Bernard Crespi, a professor at Simon Fraser University鈥檚 department of , is the 2016 recipient of the SFU鈥檚 for his novel research that re-envisions human mental illness through the lens of evolutionary biology.

According to the , Crespi鈥檚 theory is one of the most revolutionary ideas to psychiatry since Freud.

Crespi will be presented with the Sterling Prize at an award ceremony held on Monday, October 17 at the Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue at SFU鈥檚 Vancouver campus.

Following the ceremony, Crespi will present a lecture outlining his research. The event is free and open to the public but requires registration.

鈥淚 think the award recognizes research that鈥檚 new, novel, and potentially wrong but potentially revolutionary as well,鈥� Crespi says. 鈥淭hat encourages people to take risks, which they might not otherwise do.鈥�

Crespi鈥檚 Diametric Theory of Human Mental Illness, originally published with co-author and  sociologist Christopher Badcock in 2008, proposes that psychiatric disorders such as autism and schizophrenia are diametric opposites on a mental illness spectrum. The theory also posits that human mental illness occurs in part from conflict between maternally and paternally-inherited genes.

Crespi鈥檚 work calls for the revision or replacement of the American Psychologist Association鈥檚 Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) as a categorization for psychological adaptations.

The Sterling Prize was first awarded in 1993, and remains committed to recognizing work that provokes and contributes to the understanding of controversy, while presenting new ways of looking at the world and challenging complacency. The Prize recognizes work across disciplines and departments, and is awarded annually by the Sterling Prize committee.

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