Obituary: Florence Halpern (1900-1981).

This article describes the career and contributions to psychology of Florence Halpern, born January 5, 1900. She was the "grandmother of psychology" in New York and raised many generations of professional psychologists who today are among the senior members and leaders of the profession. She was not only an outstanding clinician, a stimulating and respected teacher, and a concerned and aware professional; she was at the same time a wife, a mother of two children (now both successful professionals), an involved grandmother, a woman of broad cultural interests, and an inspired hostess who loved to do her own cooking and entertaining. Highlights are provided of her academic career, her contributions to the professionalization of psychology, her activities at the national level in psychology, and her scholarship. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Tribute to Tamara Dembo: May 28, 1942-October 17, 1993.

Item memorializes Tamara Dembo as having had a profound influence on the field of rehabiltation psychology, both as a leader since its early beginnings and as a teacher of critical ideas in rehabilitation. She was one of the founders of the "National Council on Psychological Aspects of Physical Disability" when it became a special interest group of APA in 1949 and then Division 22 in 1958. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Award for Distinguished Scientific Contributions: Alice H. Eagly.

Alice H. Eagly, winner of the Award for Distinguished Scientific Contributions, is cited for her work in the field of social psychology, the psychology of gender, and the use of meta-analytic techniques. She envisions a psychology that extends from individual cognitions to societal structures. In addition to the citation, a biography and selected bibliography of Eagly's works are presented. Also included is Eagly's paper, entitled "The his and hers of prosocial behavior: An examination of the social psychology of gender," a version of which she delivered at the American Psychological Association's annual convention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

From H = log sn to conceptual framework: A short history of information.

"Information" has become a widely used term in psychology, especially within cognitive psychology. However, despite its status as a technical term, the word now rarely receives explicit definition. By contrast, when information entered the vocabulary of psychologists in the late 1940s, it had an explicit mathematical definition largely derived from developments in information theory. This article examines how information entered psychology, how its meaning changed, and how it remained a technical term in the vocabulary of psychologists in the second part of the 20th century. "Information" became a term that was required to speak to ever more diverse theoretical concerns and its earliest definitions in psychology could not sustain such uses. As a consequence, "information" became a term whose technical uses became increasingly difficult to differentiate from its everyday meanings. I argue that this has not necessarily made "information" a worthless term but one whose lack of specificity may now be unsettling to some psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Obituary: Alison Turtle (1939-2006).

Presents an obituary for Alison Turtle, the first scholar to write detailed historiographies of Australian psychology. Ms. Turtle was always interested in the socio-cultural context of psychology, recognizing that neither psychology specifically nor science generally are conducted in a cultural vacuum, hence her studies in cross-cultural psychology. She was a good feminist, a defender of animal rights, and an activist in the local academic union. As a unionist, she had particular concerns with superannuation questions and with women's rights and conditions of employment. Ms. Turtle died from the effects of cancer in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, on April 26, 2006. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

To Division 24 from the current president of Division 2.

The president of APA's Division Two suggests that those who teach psychology can make contributions to psychologist-scholars in theoretical and philosophical psychology. She indicates that members of Division Two could use some help in learning to think differently about the psychology they teach and specifically about the ways in which they try to teach theoretical and philosophical issues in psychology. For Division Two's part, she believes that their members could reciprocate with additional insights that might help Division 24's students learn. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychology in flux: The academic-professional bipolarity.

The "main fission in psychology is that between academic psychology and professional psychology." Clinical, industrial, and social psychology, among other applied fields, have expanded dramatically since World War II. Experimental psychology itself is now being professionalized. Serious problems stem from the fact that most graduate curricula are oriented to training "pure scientists" as scholars while most psychology graduates will "wind up in professional work outside universities and colleges." One solution is "to set up a school forthrightly embracing both academic and professional graduate training." There would be an "academic department" and a separate "professional department." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Helen Peak (1900–1985).

Presents an obituary for Helen Peak. Peak was a brilliant scholar, an innovative researcher, and one of the few generalists left in an age of specialization. She helped to build social psychology as a research discipline by bringing the methodologies of the laboratory and of measurement to the study of personality and interpersonal relations. Her scientific contributions began in the 1930s with experiments that were solid contributions to the foundation of behavioral psychology. Her interest in methodology led to her classic chapter, "Problems of Objective Observation" (1953), an account of methods of data collection and analysis. It showed the fundamental assumptions and limitations of scaling procedures and interitem correlations, and considered problems of functional unity. It became a standard source for research workers both in the US and abroad. The major research that occupied Helen Peak in the postwar years was concerned with attitudinal structure and change. Her experiments showed how attitudes could be successfully changed. From this work she developed a general activation theory of both motivational processes and the properties of structure. Peak, in the spirit of Kurt Lewin, helped reunite social psychology with individual psychology in her research and theories on attitudes and motivation—central problems of both disciplines. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Does Psychology make a significant difference in our lives?

The intellectual tension between the virtues of basic versus applied research that characterized an earlier era of psychology is being replaced by an appreciation of creative applications of all research essential to improving the quality of human life. Psychologists are positioned to "give psychology away" to all those who can benefit from our wisdom. Psychologists were not there 35 years ago when American Psychological Association (APA) President George Miller first encouraged us to share our knowledge with the public. The author argues that psychology is indeed making a significant difference in people's lives; this article provides a sampling of evidence demonstrating how and why psychology matters, both in pervasive ways and specific applications. Readers are referred to a newly developed APA Web site that documents current operational uses of psychological research, theory, and methodology (its creation has been the author's primary presidential initiative): www.psychologymatters.org. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Florence L. Denmark.

Florence L. Denmark is recognized for her achievements in psychology. This article provides a citation explaining her accomplishments, a biography and a selected bibliography. The citation is as follows: "Florence Denmark has been an innovator and leader in influencing education and training so that psychology's curriculum reflects the true cultural diversity of human experience. She is recognized for her considerable contributions to psychology in the area of women's studies. She has played a particularly critical role in programs and activities designed to include the new scholarship on women in both the education and training of psychologists. She has been an advocate for changes in education and training that increase the cultural diversity of the curriculum and open opportunity for members of all underrepresented groups. Her publications, as well as professional activities in psychological organizations on a national and international level, and her leadership at her university have all influenced the way that knowledge in the discipline is transmitted to the next generation of psychologists. For these distinguished contributions, we honor her." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Jacqueline C. Bouhoutsos (1924–2008).

Jacqueline C. Bouhoutsos died in Los Angeles on May 22, 2008, at the age of 83, after a prolonged and severely disabling struggle with Alzheimer’s disease. She was a trailblazing psychologist who had an important impact not only on the discipline but also on the public through innovative research, legislative advocacy, media psychology, and forensic psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Georgia Babladelis (1931–2009).

Georgia Babladelis, a leader in the field of the psychology of women and widely regarded as a warm and generous person, died on May 28, 2009, at the age of 78. She is survived by her sister, Helen Dickens of Centerville, Indiana; her brother, George Babladelis of Manistique, Michigan; and numerous nieces and nephews. Babladelis was born on January 30, 1931, in Manistique, Michigan, the daughter of Greek immigrant parents. She received her undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Michigan in 1953; her master’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1957; and her doctorate in psychology from the University of Colorado in 1960. Babladelis was very interested in the human–animal bond. Babladelis was a fellow of APA Divisions 9 (Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues) and 35 (now the Society for the Psychology of Women) and a member of Divisions 8 (Society for Personality and Social Psychology) and 52 (International Psychology). She was also a fellow of the Association for Psychological Science and the Western Psychological Association. Her contributions were wide and influential and will not soon be forgotten. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Carolyn Wood Sherif (1922-1982).

Presents an obituary for Carolyn Wood Sherif, who lived the issues that she studied as a social psychologist, explained as a teacher, and championed as an advocate of women's issues in psychology. She conducted research in the areas of the self-system, intergroup conflict and cooperation, and social judgment, and also assumed a leadership role in psychology, both nationally and internationally. Her commitment to social psychology and her enthusiasm for sharing that commitment with others made her a remarkable leader and teacher. Dr. Sherif received the Association for Women in Psychology's Distinguished Publication Award in 1981, and the APA's award for Distinguished Contribution to Education in Psychology in 1982, and in 1982 she became the editor of the Journal of Social Issues. She died after a brief illness on July 23, 1982. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Florence W. Kaslow.

Presents an overview of the career of Florence W. Kaslow and her contributions to the field of psychology. Florence Kaslow's major contributions are in the areas of family and forensic psychology. Her leadership in establishing the American Board of Forensic Psychology (now a part of the ABPP Board) and serving as its first president has advanced the field of forensic psychology in terms of professional practice and public awareness. She helped form the Division of Family Psychology and served as its third president. Beyond her organizational and leadership contributions, Dr. Kaslow is noted as a teacher, clinician, editor, and author. She has edited or written 11 books and has over 100 articles and book chapters published on family, forensic, and other topics, including the self and family of the therapist. She has presented numerous lectures and workshops throughout the world and publicizes psychology as a frequent guest on TV and radio (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Theta H. Wolf (1904–1997).

Theta H. Wolf, a longtime Fellow of Division 26 and author of the definitive biography of Alfred Binet, died on April 3, 1997. After completing a BA from Pembroke College and an MA from Brown University, she earned her PhD in 1936 from the University of Minnesota's Child Development Program. She taught applied and counseling psychology for many years at Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota, before becoming Professor of Counseling Psychology at the University of Illinois at Chicago Circle, from where she retired in 1974. This obituary summarizes her life's achievements in psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Education and Training Board. Doctoral training programs in clinical psychology and in counseling psychology.

"On recommendation of the Committee on Evaluation, the Education and Training Board with the concurrence of the Board of Directors of the American Psychological Association has approved the doctoral training programs in clinical psychology and in counseling psychology… " in a number of institutions. 43 institutions are specified in the clinical psychology approved list; 23 in the counseling psychology list. The institutions listed have been reported to the USPHS, to the VA and to the Surgeon General's Department of the U. S. Army. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Robert Sessions Woodworth: 1869-1962.

Woodworth was "a unique contributor to modern American psychology in at least four respects." (a) He was a symbol of mature, factually and method-oriented experimental psychology. (b) Through teaching and editing he became a central figure in a vigorous, broadgauged conception of research. (c) His eclecticism indicated scope and perspective. (d) He clearly defined his position on controversial issues and buttressed it with logic and evidence. For Woodworth a psychology worth knowing meant that one should know it "in three dimensions." His Experimental Psychology was a major reference work for a particular era of psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gold Medal Award for Life Achievement in Psychology in the Public Interest: Florence L. Denmark.

The 2004 Gold Medal Award for Life Achievement in Psychology in the Public Interest is awarded to Florence L. Denmark. She is recognized for her efforts to help legitimize the psychology of women by teaching the first doctoral psychology course in the field and through her scholarly texts and articles. She continues to have an impact on the psychology of women through her journal editorial memberships, her writing of articles for books and journals, her television and newspaper interviews, and through her mentoring activities. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Barbara Strudler Wallston (1943–1987).

Presents an obituary for Barbara Wallston. Wallston graduated from Cornell University in 1965 with a major in mathematics. In 1966 she obtained an MA in Counseling and Guidance from the University of Connecticut, and in 1972 she received her PhD in Social Psychology from the University of Wisconsin. She spent all of her 15-year career as an academic researcher at George Peabody College for Teachers of Vanderbilt University. For most of her professional life, much of Wallston's work focused on the development and utilization of the health locus of control scale that she devised with her colleague and former husband, Kenneth Wallston. The scale is now used throughout the world to measure people's beliefs about who or what controls their health status. She also worked in the areas of dual careerism, stereotyping, helping behavior, differential perceptions of women and men, and feminist methodology in psychology. Wallston's scholarly contributions to psychology were rivaled only by her record of service. She assumed a variety of leadership roles in several divisions of the American Psychological Association, and she was the recipient of the Carolyn Wood Sherif Lectureship Award for her achievements in and commitment to feminist scholarship, teaching, and mentoring and to professional leadership in feminist psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)