In Memoriam

In Memoriam: Nico Frijda

Nico Frijda, middle, his Ph.D. student Jan van Hooff, right, and van Hooff's Ph.D student, Frans de Waal, left

On Saturday April 11 the well-known Dutch psychologist, Professor Nico Frijda, passed away at the age of 87. Nico Frijda acquired world fame with his research on human emotions. While a behavioral focus had been the dominant paradigm in psychology for a long time, Frijda considered the emotions as the main drive behind behavior. In 1986 his book ‘The Emotions’ appeared, which would become a standard work within psychology. Frijda was Professor at the University of Amsterdam and became Emeritus Professor upon his retirement in 1992. Professor Frijda taught the course Psychology of Emotions at UCU in 2003 and was appointed an Honorary Fellow at the College.