prof. PhDr. Jiri Mares, CSc.

A university professor (Faculty of Medicine Charles University in Hradec Kralove) whose main interests lie in the fields of educational psychology, clinical psychology and social medicine, Dr Jiri Mares is devoted to the teaching and scientific research of teacher-student and physican-patient interaction as an aspect of human communication, the styles involved in human learning, and coping strategies in children suffering from fear and pain. In 1996 he had the distinction of receiving the Silver Medal of Charles University, Prague, for development of education and educational psychology.

He is the author or co-author of "Psychology of Academic Success", published in 1979, "Communication with Patients as a Problem in Undergraduate Medical Education", 1992, "Communication in the School", 1995, "English-Slovak Educational Dictionary",1996, and "Child and Pain", 1997, while his "Children and Students´ Learning Styles" went to press in winter 1998. In total he has published more than 100 research papers and 12 monographs so far during his career.

Professor Mares was born in Prague in 1942. He studied in the Faculty of Education, Charles University, earning a Master of Arts degree in 1969. In 1974 he obtained a PhD from the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences. Appointed to the position of Senior Principal Research Worker in 1976, he has now served as Deputy Head of the Department of Social Medicine at Charles University Faculty of medicine. He also sits on the Commision for Accreditation of Colleges and Universities, appointed by the Government of the Czech Republic.

He is a member of the Slovak and Czech School Psychology Association (Professor Mares is its Past-president since 1998), International School Psychology Association, European Association for Research in Learning and Instruction, The Purkyne Medical Association and International Association for the Study of Pain.