Remembering Emeritus Professor Peter Smith

Colleagues in Psychology have been remembering Emeritus Professor Peter Smith, who recently passed away.

Peter joined Goldsmiths in 1998, quickly setting up for the Unit for School and Family Studies and was a key part of Goldsmiths’ recognition as a home for Developmental Psychology.

Peter was best known, of course, for his work on bullying (although we would be remiss to mention his work on Grandparenthood and Play). He led international research projects, bringing together researchers from across the world to think about bullying.

The book ‘Bullying, Cyberbulling and Student Well-being in Schools’ that came as a result of the ESRC-funded Indian-European Network on Bullying and School Safety comprises authorship from over 10 different nations.

Peter’s dedication to a global perspective on developmental psychology is also demonstrated by his chairing of the ISSBD (International Society for the Study of Behavioural Development) Developing Country Fellowship (DCF) Program since 2009 – forming links with early career researchers in the Global South, and inviting many of those researchers to spend time at Goldsmiths, including as PhD students.

Alongside a long list of academic publications and successful and well-known books, Peter had many successes with PhD supervision, with many still active in academia, medicine, education and science communication. Most recently, he was active in the position of Chair of Anti-Bullying Alliance, an organisation that he had collaborated with for many years – translating research into policy influence and practice.

He had been awarded the William Thierry Preyer award for Excellence in Research on Human Development in 2015, by the European Society for Developmental Psychology. He was also awarded Fellow status by the British Psychological Society, the Association of Psychological Sciences, and the Academy of Social Sciences. This week, he was due to due to collect a lifetime achievement award at the World Anti-Bullying Forum in Norway.

We will miss Peter for his generosity of time and willingness to share his work with early career researchers. He used his voice to make sure that victims of bullying were not forgotten, and used his expertise to support others in developing interventions. We hope to arrange a special event to commemorate Peter during Anti-Bullying Week in November 2025.