K. Anders Ericsson (1947–2020).

Abstract

Presents the obituary of K. Anders Ericsson (1947-2020). Anders received his PhD from University of Stockholm in 1976. His postdoctoral fellowship (1977-1980) at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) with Nobel Laureate, Herbert A. Simon, helped set his research agenda. With Simon, he defined rigorous procedures for using think aloud verbal protocols, making that technique a potent tool for exploring cognitive processes, leading to their classic Psychological Review article on the topic of verbal reports as data, followed by a highly cited book, Protocol Analysis: Verbal Reports as Data (14,000+ citations) , revised a decade later. Anders moved to University of Colorado at Boulder from 1980-1986; teaming up with Walter Kintsch to develop an influential theory about long-term working memory. He took a leave from 1987-1989, becoming a research associate professor at the prestigious Max Planck Institute for Human Development and Education. There he cemented his reputation as one of the foremost "experts on expertise," with a study of the role of deliberate practice in expert music performance with Krampe and Tesch-Römer that became his second-most cited publication (11,000þ). He joined Florida State University (FSU) in 1992 as a Conradi Eminent Scholar. Once at FSU, he put FSU's psychology department on the map for cognitive psychology, specifically for the study of expert performance. He remained there until his death, supervising 11 doctoral students. Anders was appointed Fellow of Division 3, the Society for Experimental Psychology and Cognitive Science of the American Psychological Association (1997), and the Association for Psychological Science (2006). He was invited to spend a sabbatical as a Fellow of the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University in 2002, and was proud to have been made a member of Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences in 2009. He was big brother to Lasse Ericsson and Kerstin Loden. He is survived by his wife, Natalie Sachs-Ericsson, daughter Lina and son Jens from his first marriage to Anna-Lena Malm, and grandson, Jakob Pahler. Despite his aggressive pursuit of truth in the practice of science, he will be remembered fondly by a multitude of people whose lives he changed for the better, as a kind and loving family member, loyal colleague, superb mentor, and faithful friend. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).