Beginnings of Psychology in the US
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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
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•
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.
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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.