Milton Theaman: Today in the History of Psychology (21st August 1916)

Milton Theaman was born. Renowned for his unceasing commitment to promoting the social usefulness of psychology, Theaman was an influential writer and speaker on issues relating to professional accountability, licensure and free/low-cost psychological service provision.

In 1982 Theaman received the American Psychological Association Award for Distinguished Contributions to Independent Practice.

Roger Wolcott Sperry: Today in the History of Psychology (20th August 1913)

Roger Wolcott Sperry was born. A world renowned Professor of Psychobiology, Sperry is best known for his pioneering split-brain research into the functional specialization of the cerebral hemispheres, for which he was awarded The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1981.

In 1989 Sperry received The President's National Medal of Science: "For his work on neurospecificity which showed how the intricate brain networks for behavior are effected through a system of chemical coding of individual cells, which has made fundamental contributions to the understanding of human nature."

Susan Tufts Fiske: Today in the History of Psychology (19th August 1952)

Susan Tufts Fiske was born. Professor of Psychology and Public Affairs at Princeton University, Professor Fiske is internationally renowned for her groundbreaking research into the causal nature of stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination. A profoundly influential expert in her field, Professor Fiske's testimony was central to a landmark decision on gender bias by The U.S. Supreme Court in 1989 and she was also called to testify before President Clinton’s Race Initiative Advisory Board in 1998.

Among her many academic honors, Professor Fiske received the American Psychological Association (APA) Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award in 2010 and was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 2013.

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Eminent Women in Psychology

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George Fullerton: Today in the History of Psychology (18th August 1859)

George Stuart Fullerton was born. Fullerton was renowned for his pioneering work within the field of psychophysics, in particular his collaboration with James McKeen Cattell on the perception of small differences.

A pivotal figure in the early days of modern psychology, Fullerton hosted the First Annual Meeting of the American Psychological Association (APA) in Philadelphia in December 1892 and served as APA president in 1896.

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History of Psychology

Clark Hull: Today in the History of Psychology (17th August 1943)

Clark Hull's classic book 'Principles of Behavior' was published. Widely considered one of the most influential contributions to learning and behavior theory, its popularity made Hull one of the most frequently cited psychologists of his day.

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Positive Psychology Information and Resources

Positive psychology: Learn all about the branch of psychology devoted to the science of happiness.

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Wilhelm Wundt: Today in the History of Psychology (16th August 1832)

Wilhelm Wundt was born. A profoundly influential figure in the history of psychology, Wundt founded the first experimental laboratory of psychology in Leipzig, Germany in 1879, the primary aim of which was to establish psychology as an independent empirical science. Among the many eminent psychologists to study under the supervision of Wilhelm Wundt were, Edward B. Titchener, G. Stanley Hall, Hugo Münsterberg, James McKeen Cattell and Lightner Witmer.

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History of Psychology

Stanley Milgram: Today in the History of Psychology (15th August 1933)

Stanley Milgram was born. Milgram was renowned for conducting a series of the most notorious and controversial experiments in the history of psychology designed to explore the extent to which people would be willing to obey an experimenter's orders to administer 'electric shocks' as a form of punishment in a 'learning exercise.'

In 1963 Milgram published a number of papers documenting the disturbing finding that 65% of his subjects obeyed orders from an authority figure to inflict severe levels of pain on someone else, a finding he examined in detail in 1974 in his book 'Obedience to Authority' which was translated into seven languages. Milgram's work on obedience not only raised serious questions about research ethics but was also challenged on methodological grounds, most notably in relation to his very small sample size and the fact that the infamous 65% obedience level figure was based on just one out of 24 experimental variations. Despite this, Milgram's work still ranks among the most influential areas of social psychological research.

An avant-garde thinker, Milgram also conducted fascinating research into such things as the 'small world' phenomenon, the effects of televised antisocial behavior and the experience of living in cities.

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Social Psychology

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Stanford Prison Experiment: Today in the History of Psychology (14th August 1971)

Philip Zimbardo's Stanford prison experiment began with the (simulated) arrest of nine college student volunteers. In a compelling retelling of this (in)famous day for a 40-year anniversary retrospective in 2011, Zimbardo stated:

'Driven to police station in squad car, flashing lights, fingerprinted, photographed, booked, and then stuck in a holding cell blindfolded...each stripped naked, blindfold removed, standing naked in front of a full length mirror, while guards mock their lack of manly equipment, put them in their prisoner uniform, a smock, with their prisoner ID sown on front, no underwear, chain on one leg and nylon stocking caps over their heads...each of these nine prisoners arrested by the police must learn how best to adapt to and adjust to this totally alien situation. Their nine guards (randomly assigned) to each of three 8 hr shifts, have selected their military style uniforms earlier, and helped to set up the final aspects of 'their prison,' erecting signs, fixing up the guard quarters, being prepped by the warden and superintendent.

Now the action is ready to begin. We will see what happens when Good people, bright, educated, normal, healthy young men - all Good Apples - are put in a Bad Barrel for several weeks.

The Question: Who wins, Humanity or Situational Evil?'

Victor Horsley: Today in the History of Psychology (13th August 1886)

Sir Victor Horsley gave a landmark address to the British Medical Association on 'Advances in the Surgery of the Central Nervous System' in which he described how he had successfully inferred the seizure localization of three epilepsy surgery patients; most notably 'James B.' who suffered from post-traumatic epilepsy as a result of a depressed skull fracture following a traffic accident. Drawing on both the pioneering work of John Hughlings Jackson and his own experimental findings, Horsley was confident that James B's seizure onset occurred in the contralateral sensorimotor strip. Horsley operated to remove the cortical scar and James B. became seizure-free.

Horsley's groundbreaking surgical procedures and research on seizure localization in epilepsy patients was instrumental in shaping the development of modern neuropsychology.

Martin Seligman: Today in the History of Psychology (12th August 1942)

Martin Seligman was born. A world renowned psychologist, Dr. Seligman has conducted pioneering research within a variety of fields, most notably; positive psychology, resilience, learned helplessness, depression, optimism/pessimism and well-being. A leading academic, he is the director of the Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania where he has produced a prolific body of work consisting of over 250 scholarly publications and more than 20 books.

Among his many professional accolades, Dr. Seligman received the American Psychological Association (APA) Award for Distinguished Scientific Contributions and was the recipient of both the American Psychological Society's William James Fellow Award (for contribution to basic science) and the James McKeen Cattell Fellow Award (for the application of psychological knowledge).

Still trailing a blaze within the discipline, Dr. Seligman is currently conducting foundational research into Prospective Psychology, exploring such things as mental and emotional representations of potential future events and how people are drawn to the future rather than being driven by the past.

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Positive Psychology

Edward Jones: Today in the History of Psychology (11th August 1926)

Edward Ellsworth Jones was born. A pioneering social psychologist, Jones conducted influential research within the field of interpersonal impression formation and management. Most notably, Jones developed the theory of correspondent inferences (the process by which we interpret behavior in relation to a particular disposition or personality characteristic) a body of work which was instrumental in establishing the attributional approach within mainstream social psychology.

In 1977 Jones received the American Psychological Association (APA) Award for Distinguished Scientific Contributions and in 1990 was the was the recipient of the Association for Psychological Science (APS) William James Fellow Award.

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Social Psychology

Angus Campbell: Today in the History of Psychology (10th August 1910)

Angus Campbell was born. Renowned for his pioneering research into ideological voting behavior and intentions, Campbell co-authored the classic book 'The American Voter' published in 1960 in collaboration with Philip E. Converse, Warren E. Miller, and Donald E. Stokes; a seminal text which had a profound influence within the field of political science.

Angus Campbell received the American Psychological Association (APA) Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award in 1974.