Headshot of Dr.Scott T. Allison

Dr. Scott T. Allison

University Professor Emeritus
Curriculum Vitae

  • Profile

    Scott Allison has authored numerous books, including Heroes and Heroic Leadership. He is Professor of Psychology at the University of Richmond where he has published extensively on heroism and leadership. His other books include Reel Heroes, Conceptions of Leadership, Frontiers in Spiritual Leadership, and the Handbook of Heroism. His work has appeared in USA Today, National Public Radio, the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Slate Magazine, MSNBC, CBS, Psychology Today, and the Christian Science Monitor. He has received Richmond's Distinguished Educator Award and the Virginia Council of Higher Education's Outstanding Faculty Award.

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    • Awards

      State Council of Higher Education for Virginia's Outstanding Faculty Award


      Distinguished Educator Award, University of Richmond


      Psi Chi Outstanding Faculty Award

  • Selected Publications
    Books

    Allison, S. T. & Goethals, G. R. (2022). Motional intelligence: The ability of leaders to move, and move others. Cambridge University Press. 

    Allison, S. T. & Goethals, G. R. (2020). The heroic leadership imperative: How leaders inspire and mobilize change. West Yorkshire: Emerald. 

    Goethals, G. R., & Allison, S. T. (2025). Case studies of political leadership. New York: Elgar.

    Allison, S. T., & Goethals, G. R. (2025). Heroic leadership: An influence taxonomy of 100 exceptional individuals. New York: Routledge.

    Allison, S. T., Beggan, J. K., & Goethals, G. R. (Eds.) (2024). The encyclopedia of heroism studies. New York: Springer.

    Beggan, J. K., Allison, S. T., & Goethals, G. R. (2023). The hazard of great leadership. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Goethals, G. R., Allison, S. T., & Sorenson, G. J. (Eds.) (2023). The SAGE encyclopedia of leadership studies. Thousand Oaks: Sage.

    Allison, S. T. & Goethals, G. R. (2020). The heroic leadership imperative: How leaders inspire and mobilize change. West Yorkshire: Emerald. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-83909-175-920201007

    Goethals, G. R., & Allison, S. T. (2019). The romance of heroism and heroic leadership: Ambiguity, attribution, and apotheosis. West Yorkshire: Emerald. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-83909-175-920201006

    Journal Articles

    Beggan, J. K., & Allison, S. T. (2023). Pressures to comply or defy: How social value orientation influences perceptions of nurses as villains or heroes. Heroism Science, 8(1), 1-32.

    Allison, S. T., & Beggan, J. K. (2022). The dynamic negotiated exchange model of heroism and heroic leadership: Lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic. Interdisciplinary Journal of Leadership Studies, 1, 15-31.

    Allison, S. T., Beggan, J. K., & Efthimiou, O. (2022). Curb your heroism: How Larry David, an old, bald misanthrope, won the hearts of millions. Heroism Science, 7(2), 1-29. 

    Kneuer, M. A., Green, J. D., & Allison, S. T. (2022). In pursuit of important goals: Nostalgia fosters heroic perceptions via social connectedness. Heroism Science, 7(1), 1-29.

    Allison, S. T., & Green, J. D. (2020). Nostalgia and heroism: Theoretical convergence of memory, motivation, and function. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 3682. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.577862

    Hoyt, C. L., Allison, S. T., Barnowski, A., & Sultan, A. (2020). Lay theories of heroism and leadership: The role of gender, communion, and agency. Social Psychology, 51, 381-395. https://doi.org/10.1027/1864-9335/a000422

    Allison, S. T. (2019). Heroic consciousness. Heroism Science, 4, 1-43. https://doi.org/10.26736/hs.2019.02.06

    Allison, S. T., Goethals, G. R., Marrinan, A. R., Parker, O. M., Spyrou, S. P., Stein, M. (2019). The metamorphosis of the hero: Principles, processes, and purpose. Frontiers in Psychology10, 606. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00606

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