Elizabeth A. Kensinger, PhD majored in psychology and biology at Harvard University and received her PhD in neuroscience at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. After a postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard University and the Massachusetts General Hospital, she joined the faculty of Boston College, where she is now Professor and Chairperson of the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience. She directs a research laboratory that investigates many aspects of human memory, including how emotion, stress, and sleep affect memory, and how memory strengths shift as adults age. She also teaches courses on these topics.