Antonette M. Zeiss


Antonette M. Zeiss is an American psychologist. Zeiss was chief consultant for mental health services at the Department of Veterans Affairs Central Office – the first woman and the first psychologist to hold this position. In 2013 she received the lifetime achievement award from the American Psychological Association.

Education

She received her PhD in Clinical Psychology from the University of Oregon in 1977.

Research and work

Zeiss worked as a faculty member at Arizona State University and as a visiting faculty member Stanford University. She did research on delayed gratification, including the famous Stanford marshmallow experiment together with Walter Mischel. Afterwards she joined the Department of Veterans Affairs, where she was Director of Interdisciplinary Team Training in Geriatrics and later Director of Psychology Training at the Palo Alto Health Care System. In 2005 she became the deputy chief consultant for the Office of Mental Health Services at the Department of Veterans Affairs Central Office, from 2010 to 2012 she was chief consultant.
Zeiss is active in the Women in Leadership Special Interest Group of the Association of VA Psychology Leaders. The group wants to promote topics relevant for female psychologists in leadership positions and support them. She was Co-Chair of this group in the past, as well. In 2010 the Association of VA Psychology Leaders established the Antonette Zeiss Distinguished Leadership Award to honor VA psychologists who have shown expert leadership during their career and a strong commitment to the work of providing health care for Veterans. Zeiss herself was the first recipient of this award.
After her retirement in 2012, she still remains active in her field, publishing books and articles and serving as a member of the Board of Professional Affairs for APA.

Awards and honors

2004: Society of Clinical Geropsychology's Distinguished Clinical Mentorship Award
2006: Award for the Advancement of Psychology and Aging from the APA Committee on Aging
2007: APA Presidential Citation
2009: United States Presidential Rank Award of Meritorious
2010: Antonette Zeiss Distinguished Leadership Award
2011: Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapy
2013: Award for Lifetime Contributions to Psychology from the American Psychological Association

Personal life

Antonette Zeiss is married to Robert Zeiss. They live in Santa Cruz, California.