Rinie Geenen is full professor at the Department of Psychology at Utrecht University, Utrecht, and Altrecht Psychosomatic Medicine, Zeist, the Netherlands. He has been teaching psychology in Utrecht since 1994. Before that time, he was a researcher at UMC Utrecht and PhD candidate at Tilburg University. His field of interest comprises biopsychosocial mechanisms of chronic diseases. He is involved in the development of international guidelines for the management of pain and chronic fatigue. As a volunteer, he contributes to national and European patient associations