Ian Deary

Who is Ian Deary?

Ian Deary FRSE is Professor of Differential Psychology at the University of Edinburgh. He is Director of The University of Edinburgh Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology and co-Director of the Alzheimer Scotland Dementia Research Centre. He graduated in Psychology and Medicine at the University of Edinburgh, and studied there for his PhD. He practised psychiatry in London and Edinburgh before moving to academic psychology. His principal research interests are: human mental abilities, especially the origins of cognitive differences, the effects of ageing and medical conditions on mental skills, the impact of cognitive differences on people's lives; and human personality differences.

He has published over 500 refereed journal articles, four authored books and three edited books. His 'h index' in ISI's Web of Science is 59. He leads a research team studying cognitive ageing by following up the people who took part in the Scottish Mental Surveys of 1932 and 1947: the Lothian Birth Cohorts of 1921 and 1936. Other members of his research team are currently investigating: the influence of childhood and early adult IQ on health in adulthood and survival to old age; and effects of diseases on cognitive abilities. His research includes the application of molecular genetic and brain imaging techniques to the understanding of cognitive ability differences and cognitive ageing.