Dr Janet Reibstein is a US raised and trained/UK resident clinician, academic, coach, consultant, broadcaster and writer who has been dubbed in the popular media ‘The UK’s couples’ guru’. She is Professor Emerita of Psychology at the University of Exeter, where she ran post-graduate programmes and training clinics for mental health professionals. She is esteemed for her work on relationships, with particular emphasis on family and couples, as well as on relationships within the workplace. Her research on couples, through all phases and types of couple relationships- including separation and divorce – published over three of her books, formed the basis of a prime-time television series on which she appeared and two BBC Radio 4 series, which she presented. She has been both the research advisor and public face presenting public interest campaigns by Standard Life (finances and the family); Avon (breast cancer and its impact); and Pink Lady apples (opportunities for personal development across the life cycle). Her research and practice (including her high profile psychotherapy practice; an innovative clinical method she developed in her training clinic for working with couples in use across the UK; a series of programmes commissioned for the UK government for parents; her consultancy, advisory and Board-level work with various international and high profile businesses, the NHS and a host of other organisations) has yielded a ‘code’—for being skilful in relating so you can develop “Social Fitness”. Social fitness, a growing body of robust research, including hers, has established is as key to well-being as not smoking and a healthy diet. It is at least as key to thriving and to health as physical fitness. Her recent popular book, Good Relations: Cracking the code for how to get on better, (published by Bloomsbury) teaches the skills for social fitness across all types of relationships, from sibling ones, to parenting ones, to couples, to work ones; to friendships; and to virtual ones.
Over her career she has been a frequent guest both in the UK and internationally commenting on such issues on radio and tv, as well writing on them for the popular media, in addition to her scholarly publications.