Ellis, Albert (1913–2007)

US psychologist and author. He practised clinical psychology and published many books on psychology and sexual behaviour. He developed Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy, which rejects Freudian theories and asserts that emotions come from conscious as well as unconscious sources.

He was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, gained his PhD from Columbia University, New York, and taught at Rutgers University, New Jersey. His books include Sex Without Guilt (1958), The Art and Science of Love (1960), and A Guide to Successful Marriage (1961). In 1959 he founded the Institute for Rational Living, later renamed the Albert Ellis Institute, in New York.