Sam Thompson
Sam Thompson is a Senior Lecturer in psychology at the University of East London (UEL) where he teaches on the MSc in Applied Positive Psychology. In addition to UEL, Sam also works at the Centre for Well-being at nef (the new economics foundation), an independent think-tank. His main research interests include well-being and quality of life, applications of psychological research to public policy, social indicators and associated measurement issues, and the psychology of pro-environmental attitudes and behaviours. He was a co-author of nef’s award-winning Happy Planet Index, and has worked on numerous projects for central and local government and other agencies.
After reading music at Cambridge, Sam gained an MA in music psychology from the University of Sheffield and a PhD in psychology from Royal Holloway, University of London. Between 2000-04 he was a member of the RCM’s academic staff, contributing to undergraduate teaching and conducting research on subjective experiences in music listening and psychological approaches to performance anxiety. Since then, he has been honorary research associate in the CPS, where he maintains a keen interest in the relationship between engagement with music and aspects of psychological well-being.
Email: sam.thompson@neweconomics.org
Other websites: UEL and nef
Publications
- THOMPSON S, Williamon A, & Valentine E (2007), Time-dependent characteristics of performance evaluation, Music Perception, 25, 13-29.
- THOMPSON S (2007), Determinants of listeners’ enjoyment of a performance, Psychology of Music, 35, 20-36.
- THOMPSON S (2006), Audience responses to a live orchestral concert, Musicae Scientiae, 10, 215-244.
- Williamon A & THOMPSON S (2006), Awareness and incidence of health problems among conservatoire students, Psychology of Music, 34, 411-430.
- Williamon A, THOMPSON S, Lisboa T, & Wiffen C (2006), Creativity, originality, and value in music performance, in I Deliège & G Wiggins (eds.), Musical Creativity: Multidisciplinary Research in Theory and Practice (pp. 161-180), Psychology Press.
- THOMPSON S & Lehmann AC (2004), Strategies for sight-reading and improvising music, in A Williamon (ed.), Musical Excellence (pp. 143-159), Oxford University Press.
- Williamon A, & THOMPSON S (2004), Psychology and the music practitioner, in JW Davidson (ed.), The Music Practitioner: Research for the Music Performer, Teacher and Listener (pp. 9-26), Ashgate.
- THOMPSON S & Williamon A (2003), Evaluating evaluation: musical performance assessment as a research tool, Music Perception, 21, 21-41.