John D. Mayer is an expert in personality psychology and measurement. One of his specialties focuses on how people understand one another. In particular, he studies emotional intelligence, which concerns the ability to understand one’s own and others emotions; and personal intelligence, which concerns the ability to understand personality in oneself and others. (He is the author of the book, Personal intelligence: The power of personality and how it shapes our lives, published by Scientific American/Farrar, Straus & Giroux).

Professor Mayer's specialty focuses on psychological test development and validation. He can speak to the media about how psychological tests work and the standards they need to meet to be regarded as measuring what they claim to. Finally, as part of his broader interests in personality psychology, his theoretical work concerns the everyday question of why and how people evaluate one another's personalities, as well as the more formal question of what the field of personality psychology studies (or ought to study).

Below are some reports and interviews in which Mr. Mayer has been quoted:

• New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/16/health/analyzing-donald-trump-psychology.html ("The Psychiatric Question: Is it Fair to Analyze Donald Trump from Afar"?)
• New York Times:  http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/11/opinion/we-need-more-tests-not-fewer.html (“We need more tests, not fewer”)
• International Society for Research in Emotion: http://emotionresearcher.com/q-a-on-emotional-intelligence-with-john-jack-d-mayer/ (“Q & A on emotional intelligence with John D. Mayer”)
• Scientific American: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-to-plan-for-your-future-self/ (“How to plan for your future self.)