Elizabeth Dunn

Build Social Connections at Work to Create an Enduring Resource

How can we increase employee happiness in a time of ever-changing workplace structures? The key, according to University of British Columbia Psychology Professor Elizabeth Dunn, is to build a sense of connection within teams. In this uplifting and interactive presentation, she provides audiences with science-backed strategies for creating strong workplace connections. Dunn explains that a critical aspect to unlocking workplace happiness is to catalyze strong personal connections which creates an enduring resource for the organization that continues to be helpful in more difficult times.

Audiences will leave with practical steps for letting down their guard, learning about colleagues and strengthening their interpersonal connections in the process.

Dr. Elizabeth Dunn is a professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of British Columbia.

Dr. Dunn conducts experimental research examining how time, money, and technology shape human happiness. She is the co-author of “Happy Money: The Science of Happier Spending” (Simon & Schuster) with Dr. Michael Norton. Her work has appeared in top journals, with three papers published in Science, and she has given a talk at TED (here), PopTech! (here) and TEDx (here). She was selected as one of the “rising stars” in academia by the Chronicle of Higher Education in 2004 and was an honoree for the 2007 Mind Gym Academic Prize for pioneering work in positive psychology. In 2010, she received a New Investigator Award from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, as well as UBC’s Robert E. Knox Master Teacher Award.

Her research has been featured in hundreds of media outlets around the world, including The New York Times, The Globe and Mail, The London Times, Maclean’s, Time, and CNN. Dr. Dunn is also an avid surfer and skier.