Hugo Münsterberg (1863-1916)

1. Hugo Münsterberg (1863-1916)

2. Early Career • Obtained his Ph.D. under Wundt in 1882 • Directed the lab in Freiburg (Swirtzerland) --had the lab in his own house. • In 1892, enticed by James to direct the Psychology lab at Harvard University • In 1902, wrote American Traits

3. Münsterberg on Psych classics • (1893b). Psychological laboratory of Harvard University. [A catalogue of equipment and readings, prepared for the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago.] • (1899). Psychology and history. Psychological Review, 6, 1-31. [Münsterberg's APA Presidential address about the epistemological relation between the natural and the normative sciences. First English discussion of idiographic and nomothetic methods, later popularized by Gordon Allport.] • (1908/1925). On the witness stand. [Attempt to sell the insights and methods of scientific psychology to the legal community; foreshadows many of today's issues in forensic psychology.] • (1913). Psychology and industrial efficiency. [Attempt to sell the insights and methods of scientific psychology to the industry; major early contribution to industrial/organizational psychology.]

4. About the Münster lab • http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/Munster/Lab/ • Go to the URL, look at the pictures, glance at the contents of the catalog, look at the experiments that were on-going. If you were in that lab, which of these experiments would interest you most?

5. Münsterberg and the definition of psychology • In his APA presidential address, Münsterberg defines the boundaries of psychology in relation to other fields such as history, physics and logic.

6. Forensics • Go look at his writings on forensics at http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/Munster/Witness/index.htm • Look at the content of his writings. Choose something to read. Summarize. What do you think?

7. Industrial Psychology • This is the first "official" applied psychology book. What does Münsterberg think of applied psychology? • What are the areas of industrial psychology Münsterberg considers important? • What do you think of his analysis?

8. Forensics today • APA Division 41 at http://www.apa.org/about/division/div41.html • Go to the division site itself • What material there is interesting to students? • Go to their "links", explore some of the other organizations

9. Industrial Psychology Today • APA division 14 http://www.apa.org/about/division/div14.html • Go to the SIOP site. What seem to be some of the important issues today? What materials on there might be of special interest to students?

10. Applied research relevant to forensics • The work of Elizabeth Loftus. Look at her site at http://www.seweb.uci.edu/faculty/loftus/ • Read one of her articles. A well-known article that has become a classic is that about creating false memories at http://faculty.washington.edu/eloftus/Articles/sciam.htm

11. Münsterberg and psychotherapy • Wrote Psychotherapy in 1909 • advocates a behavioral approach. • There is no subconscious --though for a time, he did use hypnosis. • Read a 1911 encyclopedia article on psychotherapy that uses Münsterberg as one of its sources. Go to http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12549a.htm

12. The End