BY ALLISON KOZICHAROW AND BERNICE BORN
By unanimous vote, the Western Psychological Association (WPA) recently granted its 2017 Social Responsibility Award to William Crano, Ph.D., a member of WiRED’s Advisory Board. This WPA award “is given to an individual in recognition of substantial and influential work that facilitates peace, freedom, social justice and/or protection of this planet’s natural environment.”
Dr. Crano is a social psychologist and professor at Claremont Graduate University (CGU). CGU Dean Stewart Donaldson nominated Dr. Crano for the WPA award and said, “Professor Crano has dedicated his career to using science to improve the public good. He could easily have chosen to spend his career as a psychological scientist focused on basic research questions, but he chose to use psychological science to improve the world. We are thrilled that the WPA is honoring him with this well-deserved recognition.”
"Bill Crano is an old friend and mentor, who, over the years, has generously donated his time to guide WiRED’s field research programs and to ensure that we observe rigorous and sound practices of good science. All of us at WiRED congratulate him on this noteworthy achievement. Bill makes us proud."
— WiRED Director Gary Selnow, Ph.D.
Upon receiving the award, Dr. Crano said, “Many of the problems we face in society are not bound by place. Substance abuse is not confined to a single area of the world; disease, which is spread through ignorance and neglect, is not confined to a single region. If you have the means to mitigate some of these problems, their solution becomes available to everyone, locally, nationally, and internationally.”
WiRED Director Gary Selnow, Ph.D., noted, “Bill Crano is an old friend and mentor, who, over the years, has generously donated his time to guide WiRED’s field research programs and to ensure that we observe rigorous and sound practices of good science. All of us at WiRED congratulate him on this noteworthy achievement. Bill makes us proud.”
Dr. Crano on WiRED
I have been involved with WIRED for years. My work is of the “safe” variety. Unlike Gary Selnow, who travels all over the globe for WiRED, I usually work at my desk on behalf of the organization, helping develop measures that assess the effectiveness of our work. I also analyze the results of WiRED’s interventions in some of the world’s most needy places, to further refine our efforts.
WiRED is unbelievably efficient, bringing the information most needed to those who need it most — and who are most unlikely to receive it otherwise. WIRED has helped more people, more efficiently, in more ways, in more places, and more rapidly, than any other charitable organization I can think of. It is a model of selfless charity for the good of those most in need.
About Dr. Crano
Dr. Crano received his B.A. degree from Princeton University and his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from Northwestern University. He has taught at Michigan State University, Texas A&M University, Johns Hopkins University, the University of Arizona and Claremont Graduate University.
Currently Dr. Crano occupies the Oskamp Chair, Distinguished Professorship in Psychology in Claremont Graduate University’s Division of Behavioral & Organizational Sciences. For more than 50 years, he has been publishing articles in academic journals, encyclopedias and books on the effects of drugs and disease on communities at large.
His wife, Suellen Crano, Ph.D., is a member of WiRED’s Board of Directors. They live in Upland, CA, which is in the foothills of Mt. Baldy, midway between Los Angeles and Palm Springs. They have three children, five grandchildren and three grand dogs. Dr. William Crano enjoys skiing, prefers using fountain pens and likes fine California wines.