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Beginnings of Psychology in the US. Before 1880’s, two major psychological traditions in US Phrenology Despite its errors, phrenology was “objective” – I.e., relied on measurement Flourished outside the schools physicians, businessmen and reformers found it met needs
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Before 1880’s, two major psychological traditions in US • Phrenology • Despite its errors, phrenology was “objective” – I.e., relied on measurement • Flourished outside the schools • physicians, businessmen and reformers found it met needs • Interest among physicians practicing in mental hospitals • Without totally accepting, they thought it offered general guidance in thinking about abnormal functioning of the mind • Phrenology was minor theme in various activities directed toward, e.g., temperance, anti-tobacco, birth control • Extremely popular with general public in US • Even in latter part of 20th century, popular magazines featured it and phrenology charts remained a staple at fortune teller booths at amusement parks • Phrenology did “serve the function of making the man in the street aware that he had a brain” (R.I. Watson, 1968).
Scottish “psychology” • Associationist tradition • Mainly introspective and non-empirical • Common sense philosophy
US textbooks written to review European literature; work in US overshadowed to near oblivion • Before Civil War • Colleges typically had one curriculum, emphasizing Latin, Greek, Mathematics, Philosophy. Little instruction in physical sciences, and then usually without labs • Scientific work done almost completely outside colleges (as in England, but without the benefit of the well-to-do amateur) • Establishment of scientific schools (Renssellaer, Yale, Harvard) helped change this, though they were isolated from the colleges. Med schools started to contribute, although not much research there. • Enrollments in colleges declined as they became more out of touch with the times; number of students going to Germany for graduate study increased (in 1880, there were about as many US students abroad as in US) • German universities dominated by idea of research; scientific centers of the world
After Civil War, movement to extend scope and improve quality of university education • Presidents of Cornell, Johns Hopkins, and Harvard introduced changes. As result, these schools figure prominently in development of psych. • G. Stanley Hall, 1st president at Clark influenced by European grad schools • Stanford, U of Chicago, Yale, and Princeton figured prominently in this trend • Important reforms: • Introduction of elective system to replace fixed curriculum. • Consequence: increase in # of courses and in number of departments, e.g., modern languages, social sciences, psychology • Establishment of graduate schools • Earlier, M.A. based on 5th yr of residence • Johns Hopkins– grad school opened in 1876, with independent research project required of all students.
In these changes, Psychology had “favored” and strategic position. • “new” subject brought from the German system • While psych still located in philosophy departments in Germany, the introduction of psychology instruction in US often led to creation of independent departments • Economic and social conditions in US made application of psychology almost a “foregone conclusion”. • These were years of preparation to become a science; still not much scientific advance, however.
