Tag: Psychology

On This Day … 23 March

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People (Births)

  • 1900 – Erich Fromm, German psychologist and sociologist (d. 1980).
  • 1933 – Philip Zimbardo, American psychologist and academic.

People (Deaths)

  • 2008 – Vaino Vahing, Estonian psychiatrist, author, and playwright (b. 1940).

Erich Fromm

Erich Seligmann Fromm (23 March 1900 to 18 March 1980) was a German social psychologist, psychoanalyst, sociologist, humanistic philosopher, and democratic socialist. He was a German Jew who fled the Nazi regime and settled in the US. He was one of the founders of The William Alanson White Institute of Psychiatry, Psychoanalysis and Psychology in New York City and was associated with the Frankfurt School of critical theory.

Philip Zimbardo

Philip George Zimbardo (/zɪmˈbɑːrdoʊ/; born 23 March 1933) is an American psychologist and a professor emeritus at Stanford University. He became known for his 1971 Stanford prison experiment, which was later severely criticised for both ethical and scientific reasons. He has authored various introductory psychology textbooks for college students, and other notable works, including The Lucifer Effect, The Time Paradox, and The Time Cure. He is also the founder and president of the Heroic Imagination Project.

Stanford Prison Experiment

The Stanford prison experiment (SPE) was a social psychology experiment that attempted to investigate the psychological effects of perceived power, focusing on the struggle between prisoners and prison officers. It was conducted at Stanford University on the days of 15-21 August 1971, by a research group led by psychology professor Philip Zimbardo using college students. In the study, volunteers were assigned to be either “guards” or “prisoners” by the flip of a coin, in a mock prison, with Zimbardo himself serving as the superintendent. Several “prisoners” left mid-experiment, and the whole experiment was abandoned after six days. Early reports on experimental results claimed that students quickly embraced their assigned roles, with some guards enforcing authoritarian measures and ultimately subjecting some prisoners to psychological torture, while many prisoners passively accepted psychological abuse and, by the officers’ request, actively harassed other prisoners who tried to stop it. The experiment has been described in many introductory social psychology textbooks, although some have chosen to exclude it because its methodology is sometimes questioned.

The US Office of Naval Research funded the experiment as an investigation into the causes of difficulties between guards and prisoners in the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps. Certain portions of it were filmed, and excerpts of footage are publicly available.

The experiment’s findings have been called into question, and the experiment has been criticized for unscientific methodology. Although Zimbardo interpreted the experiment as having shown that the “prison guards” instinctively embraced sadistic and authoritarian behaviours, Zimbardo actually instructed the “guards” to exert psychological control over the “prisoners”. Critics also noted that some of the participants behaved in a way that would help the study, so that, as one “guard” later put it, “the researchers would have something to work with,” which is known as demand characteristics. Variants of the experiment have been performed by other researchers, but none of these attempts have replicated the results of the SPE.

Vaino Vahling

Vaino Vahing (15 February 1940 to 23 March 2008), was an Estonian writer, prosaist, psychiatrist and playwright. Starting from 1973, he was a member of Estonian Writers Union.

Vaino Vahing has written many articles about psychiatry, but also literature – novels, books and plays with psychiatric and autobiographical influence. He has played in several Estonian films.

On This Day … 20 March

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People (Births)

  • 1895 – Fredric Wertham, German-American psychologist and author (d. 1981).
  • 1904 – B. F. Skinner, American psychologist and author (d. 1990).

Frederic Wertham

Fredric Wertham (born Friedrich Ignatz Wertheimer, 20 March 1895 to 18 November 1981) was a German-American psychiatrist and author. Wertham had an early reputation as a progressive psychiatrist who treated poor black patients at his Lafargue Clinic at a time of heightened discrimination in urban mental health practice. Wertham also authored a definitive textbook on the brain, and his institutional stressor findings were cited when courts overturned multiple segregation statutes, most notably in Brown v. Board of Education.

Despite this, Wertham remains best known for his concerns about the effects of violent imagery in mass media and the effects of comic books on the development of children. His best-known book is Seduction of the Innocent (1954), which asserted that comic books caused youth to become delinquents. Besides Seduction of the Innocent, Wertham also wrote articles and testified before government inquiries into comic books, most notably as part of a US Congressional inquiry into the comic book industry. Wertham’s work, in addition to the 1954 comic book hearings led to creation of the Comics Code, although later scholars cast doubt on his observations.

B.F. Skinner

Burrhus Frederic Skinner (20 March 1904 to 18 August 1990) was an American psychologist, behaviourist, author, inventor, and social philosopher. He was a professor of psychology at Harvard University from 1958 until his retirement in 1974.

Considering free will to be an illusion, Skinner saw human action as dependent on consequences of previous actions, a theory he would articulate as the principle of reinforcement: If the consequences to an action are bad, there is a high chance the action will not be repeated; if the consequences are good, the probability of the action being repeated becomes stronger.

Skinner developed behaviour analysis, especially the philosophy of radical behaviourism, and founded the experimental analysis of behaviour, a school of experimental research psychology. He also used operant conditioning to strengthen behaviour, considering the rate of response to be the most effective measure of response strength. To study operant conditioning, he invented the operant conditioning chamber (aka the Skinner Box), and to measure rate he invented the cumulative recorder. Using these tools, he and Charles Ferster produced Skinner’s most influential experimental work, outlined in their book Schedules of Reinforcement (1957).

Skinner was a prolific author, having published 21 books and 180 articles. He imagined the application of his ideas to the design of a human community in his utopian novel, Walden Two (1948), while his analysis of human behaviour culminated in his work, Verbal Behaviour.

Contemporary academia considers Skinner, along with John B. Watson and Ivan Pavlov, a pioneer of modern behaviourism. Accordingly, a June 2002 survey listed Skinner as the most influential psychologist of the 20th century.

What is Health Psychology?

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Introduction

Health psychology is the study of psychological and behavioral processes in health, illness, and healthcare.

It is concerned with understanding how psychological, behavioural, and cultural factors contribute to physical health and illness. Psychological factors can affect health directly. For example, chronically occurring environmental stressors affecting the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, cumulatively, can harm health. Behavioural factors can also affect a person’s health. For example, certain behaviours can, over time, harm (smoking or consuming excessive amounts of alcohol) or enhance health (engaging in exercise). Health psychologists take a biopsychosocial approach. In other words, health psychologists understand health to be the product not only of biological processes (e.g. a virus, tumour, etc.) but also of psychological (e.g. thoughts and beliefs), behavioural (e.g. habits), and social processes (e.g. socioeconomic status and ethnicity).

By understanding psychological factors that influence health, and constructively applying that knowledge, health psychologists can improve health by working directly with individual patients or indirectly in large-scale public health programs. In addition, health psychologists can help train other healthcare professionals (e.g. physicians and nurses) to apply the knowledge the discipline has generated, when treating patients. Health psychologists work in a variety of settings: alongside other medical professionals in hospitals and clinics, in public health departments working on large-scale behaviour change and health promotion programs, and in universities and medical schools where they teach and conduct research.

Although its early beginnings can be traced to the field of clinical psychology, four different divisions within health psychology and one related field, occupational health psychology (OHP), have developed over time. The four divisions include clinical health psychology, public health psychology, community health psychology, and critical health psychology Professional organisations for the field of health psychology include Division 38 of the American Psychological Association (APA), the Division of Health Psychology of the British Psychological Society (BPS), the European Health Psychology Society, and the College of Health Psychologists of the Australian Psychological Society (APS). Advanced credentialing in the US as a clinical health psychologist is provided through the American Board of Professional Psychology.

Overview

Recent advances in psychological, medical, and physiological research have led to a new way of thinking about health and illness. This conceptualisation, which has been labelled the biopsychosocial model, views health and illness as the product of a combination of factors including biological characteristics (e.g. genetic predisposition), behavioural factors (e.g. lifestyle, stress, health beliefs), and social conditions (e.g. cultural influences, family relationships, social support).

Psychologists who strive to understand how biological, behavioural, and social factors influence health and illness are called health psychologists. Health psychologists use their knowledge of psychology and health to promote general well-being and understand physical illness. They are specially trained to help people deal with the psychological and emotional aspects of health and illness. Health psychologists work with many different health care professionals (e.g. physicians, dentists, nurses, physician’s assistants, dietitians, social workers, pharmacists, physical and occupational therapists, and chaplains) to conduct research and provide clinical assessments and treatment services. Many health psychologists focus on prevention research and interventions designed to promote healthier lifestyles and try to find ways to encourage people to improve their health. For example, they may help people to lose weight or stop smoking. Health psychologists also use their skills to try to improve the healthcare system. For example, they may advise doctors about better ways to communicate with their patients. Health psychologists work in many different settings including the UK’s National Health Service (NHS), private practice, universities, communities, schools and organisations. While many health psychologists provide clinical services as part of their duties, others function in non-clinical roles, primarily involving teaching and research. Leading journals include Health Psychology, the Journal of Health Psychology, the British Journal of Health Psychology, and Applied Psychology: Health and Well-Being. Health psychologists can work with people on a one-to-one basis, in groups, as a family, or at a larger population level.

Clinical Health Psychology (ClHP)

ClHP is the application of scientific knowledge, derived from the field of health psychology, to clinical questions that may arise across the spectrum of health care. ClHP is one of the specialty practice areas for clinical psychologists. It is also a major contributor to the prevention-focused field of behavioural health and the treatment-oriented field of behavioural medicine. Clinical practice includes education, the techniques of behaviour change, and psychotherapy. In some countries, a clinical health psychologist, with additional training, can become a medical psychologist and, thereby, obtain prescription privileges.

Public Health Psychology (PHP)

PHP is population oriented. A major aim of PHP is to investigate potential causal links between psychosocial factors and health at the population level. Public health psychologists present research results to educators, policy makers, and health care providers in order to promote better public health. PHP is allied to other public health disciplines including epidemiology, nutrition, genetics and biostatistics. Some PHP interventions are targeted toward at-risk population groups (e.g., undereducated, single pregnant women who smoke) and not the population as a whole (e.g. all pregnant women).

Community Health Psychology (CoHP)

CoHP investigates community factors that contribute to the health and well-being of individuals who live in communities. CoHP also develops community-level interventions that are designed to combat disease and promote physical and mental health. The community often serves as the level of analysis, and is frequently sought as a partner in health-related interventions.

Critical Health Psychology (CrHP)

CrHP is concerned with the distribution of power and the impact of power differentials on health experience and behaviour, health care systems, and health policy. CrHP prioritises social justice and the universal right to health for people of all races, genders, ages, and socioeconomic positions. A major concern is health inequalities. The critical health psychologist is an agent of change, not simply an analyst or cataloguer. A leading organisation in this area is the International Society of Critical Health Psychology.

Health psychology, like other areas of applied psychology, is both a theoretical and applied field. Health psychologists employ diverse research methods. These methods include controlled randomised experiments, quasi-experiments, longitudinal studies, time-series designs, cross-sectional studies, case-control studies, qualitative research as well as action research. Health psychologists study a broad range of health phenomena including cardiovascular disease, (cardiac psychology), smoking habits, the relation of religious beliefs to health, alcohol use, social support, living conditions, emotional state, social class, and more. Some health psychologists treat individuals with sleep problems, headaches, alcohol problems, etc. Other health psychologists work to empower community members by helping community members gain control over their health and improve quality of life of entire communities.

Occupational Health Psychology

Pickren and Degni and Sanderson observed that in Europe and North America occupational health psychology (OHP) emerged as a specialty with its own organisations. The authors noted that OHP owes some of that emergence to health psychology as well as other disciplines (e.g. industrial/organisational psychology, occupational medicine). Sanderson underlined examples in which OHP aligns with health psychology, including Adkins’s research. Adkins documented the application of behavioural principles to improve working conditions, mitigate job stress, and improve worker health in a complex organisation.

Origins and Development

Health psychology developed in different forms in different societies. Psychological factors in health had been studied since the early 20th century by disciplines such as psychosomatic medicine and later behavioural medicine, but these were primarily branches of medicine, not psychology.

United States In 1969, William Schofield prepared a report for the APA entitled The Role of Psychology in the Delivery of Health Services. While there were exceptions, he found that the psychological research of the time frequently regarded mental health and physical health as separate, and devoted very little attention to psychology’s impact upon physical health. One of the few psychologists working in this area at the time, Schofield proposed new forms of education and training for future psychologists. The APA, responding to his proposal, in 1973 established a task force to consider how psychologists could:

  • Help people to manage their health-related behaviours;
  • Help patients manage their physical health problems; and
  • Train healthcare staff to work more effectively with patients.

Health psychology began to emerge as a distinct discipline of psychology in the United States in the 1970s. In the mid-20th century there was a growing understanding in medicine of the effect of behaviour on health. For example, the Alameda County Study, which began in the 1960s, showed that people who ate regular meals (e.g. breakfast), maintained a healthy weight, received adequate sleep, did not smoke, drank little alcohol, and exercised regularly were in better health and lived longer. In addition, psychologists and other scientists were discovering relationships between psychological processes and physiological ones. These discoveries include a better understanding of the impact of psychosocial stress on the cardiovascular and immune systems, and the early finding that the functioning of the immune system could be altered by learning.

Led by Joseph Matarazzo, in 1977, APA added a division devoted to health psychology. At the first divisional conference, Matarazzo delivered a speech that played an important role in defining health psychology. He defined the new field in this way, “Health psychology is the aggregate of the specific educational, scientific and professional contributions of the discipline of psychology to the promotion and maintenance of health, the prevention and treatment of illness, the identification of diagnostic and etiologic correlates of health, illness and related dysfunction, and the analysis and improvement of the healthcare system and health policy formation.” In the 1980s, similar organizations were established elsewhere. In 1986, the BPS established a Division of Health Psychology. The European Health Psychology Society was also established in 1986. Similar organisations were established in other countries, including Australia and Japan. Universities began to develop doctoral level training programmes in health psychology. In the US, post-doctoral level health psychology training programmes were established for individuals who completed a doctoral degree in clinical psychology.

United Kingdom Psychologists have been working in medical settings for many years (in the UK sometimes the field was termed medical psychology). Medical psychology, however, was a relatively small field, primarily aimed at helping patients adjust to illness. The BPS’s reconsideration of the role of the Medical Section prompted the emergence of health psychology as a distinct field. Marie Johnston and John Weinman argued in a letter to the BPS Bulletin that there was a great need for a Health Psychology Section. In December 1986 the section was established at the BPS London Conference, with Marie Johnston as chair. At the Annual BPS Conference in 1993 a review of “Current Trends in Health Psychology” was organized, and a definition of health psychology as “the study of psychological and behavioural processes in health, illness and healthcare” was proposed.

The Health Psychology Section became a Special Group in 1993 and was awarded divisional status within the UK in 1997. The awarding of divisional status meant that the individual training needs and professional practice of health psychologists were recognised, and members were able to obtain chartered status with the BPS. The BPS went on to regulate training and practice in health psychology until the regulation of professional standards and qualifications was taken over by statutory registration with the Health Professions Council in 2010.

A number of relevant trends coincided with the emergence of health psychology, including:

  • Epidemiological evidence linking behaviour and health.
  • The addition of behavioural science to medical school curricula, with courses often taught by psychologists.
  • The training of health professionals in communication skills, with the aim of improving patient satisfaction and adherence to medical treatment.
  • Increasing numbers of interventions based on psychological theory (e.g. behaviour modification).
  • An increased understanding of the interaction between psychological and physiological factors leading to the emergence of psychophysiology and psychoneuroimmunology (PNI).
  • The health domain having become a target of research by social psychologists interested in testing theoretical models linking beliefs, attitudes, and behaviour.

The emergence of AIDS/HIV, and the increase in funding for behavioural research the epidemic provoked.
The emergence of academic /professional bodies to promote research and practice in health psychology was followed by the publication of a series of textbooks which began to lay out the interests of the discipline.

Objectives

Understanding Behavioural and Contextual Factors

Health psychologists conduct research to identify behaviours and experiences that promote health, give rise to illness, and influence the effectiveness of health care. They also recommend ways to improve health care policy. Health psychologists have worked on developing ways to reduce smoking and improve daily nutrition in order to promote health and prevent illness. They have also studied the association between illness and individual characteristics. For example, health psychology has found a relation between the personality characteristics of thrill seeking, impulsiveness, hostility/anger, emotional instability, and depression, on one hand, and high-risk driving, on the other.

Health psychology is also concerned with contextual factors, including economic, cultural, community, social, and lifestyle factors that influence health. Physical addiction impedes smoking cessation. Some research suggests that seductive advertising also contributes to psychological dependency on tobacco, although other research has found no relationship between media exposure and smoking in youth. OHP research indicates that people in jobs that combine little decision latitude with a high psychological workload are at increased risk for cardiovascular disease. Other research reveals a relation between unemployment and elevations in blood pressure. Epidemiologic research documents a relation between social class and cardiovascular disease.

Health psychologists also aim to change health behaviours for the dual purpose of helping people stay healthy and helping patients adhere to disease treatment regimens (also see health action process approach). Health psychologists employ cognitive behavioural therapy and applied behaviour analysis (also see behaviour modification) for that purpose.

Preventing Illness

Health psychologists promote health through behavioural change, as mentioned above; however, they attempt to prevent illness in other ways as well. Health psychologists try to help people to lead a healthy life by developing and running programmes which can help people to make changes in their lives such as stopping smoking, reducing the amount of alcohol they consume, eating more healthily, and exercising regularly. Campaigns informed by health psychology have targeted tobacco use. Those least able to afford tobacco products consume them most. Tobacco provides individuals with a way of controlling aversive emotional states accompanying daily experiences of stress that characterize the lives of deprived and vulnerable individuals. Practitioners emphasize education and effective communication as a part of illness prevention because many people do not recognise, or minimise, the risk of illness present in their lives. Moreover, many individuals are often unable to apply their knowledge of health practices owing to everyday pressures and stresses. A common example of population-based attempts to motivate the smoking public to reduce its dependence on cigarettes is anti-smoking campaigns.

Health psychologists help to promote health and well-being by preventing illness. Some illnesses can be more effectively treated if caught early. Health psychologists have worked to understand why some people do not seek early screenings or immunisations, and have used that knowledge to develop ways to encourage people to have early health checks for illnesses such as cancer and heart disease. Health psychologists are also finding ways to help people to avoid risky behaviours (e.g. engaging in unprotected sex) and encourage health-enhancing behaviours (e.g. regular tooth brushing or hand washing).

Health psychologists also aim at educating health professionals, including physicians and nurses, in communicating effectively with patients in ways that overcome barriers to understanding, remembering, and implementing effective strategies for reducing exposures to risk factors and making health-enhancing behaviour changes.

There is also evidence from OHP that stress-reduction interventions at the workplace can be effective. For example, Kompier and his colleagues have shown that a number of interventions aimed at reducing stress in bus drivers has had beneficial effects for employees and bus companies.

The Effects of Disease

Health psychologists investigate how disease affects individuals’ psychological well-being. An individual who becomes seriously ill or injured faces many different practical stressors. These stressors include problems meeting medical and other bills, problems obtaining proper care when home from the hospital, obstacles to caring for dependents, the experience of having one’s sense of self-reliance compromised, gaining a new, unwanted identity as that of a sick person, and so on. These stressors can lead to depression, reduced self-esteem, etc.

Health psychology also concerns itself with bettering the lives of individuals with terminal illness. When there is little hope of recovery, health psychologist therapists can improve the quality of life of the patient by helping the patient recover at least some of his or her psychological well-being. Health psychologists are also concerned with providing therapeutic services for the bereaved.

Critical Analysis of Health Policy

Critical health psychologists explore how health policy can influence inequities, inequalities and social injustice. These avenues of research expand the scope of health psychology beyond the level of individual health to an examination of the social and economic determinants of health both within and between regions and nations. The individualism of mainstream health psychology has been critiqued and deconstructed by critical health psychologists using qualitative methods that zero in on the health experience.

Conducting Research

Like psychologists in the other main psychology disciplines, health psychologists have advanced knowledge of research methods. Health psychologists apply this knowledge to conduct research on a variety of questions. For example, health psychologists carry out research to answer questions such as:

  • What influences healthy eating?
  • How is stress linked to heart disease?
  • What are the emotional effects of genetic testing?
  • How can we change people’s health behaviour to improve their health?

Teaching and Communication

Health psychologists can also be responsible for training other health professionals on how to deliver interventions to help promote healthy eating, stopping smoking, weight loss, etc. Health psychologists also train other health professionals in communication skills such as how to break bad news or support behaviour change for the purpose of improving adherence to treatment.

Applications

Improving Doctor-Patient Communication

Health psychologists aid the process of communication between physicians and patients during medical consultations. There are many problems in this process, with patients showing a considerable lack of understanding of many medical terms, particularly anatomical terms (e.g. intestines). One area of research on this topic involves “doctor-centred” or “patient-centred” consultations. Doctor-centred consultations are generally directive, with the patient answering questions and playing less of a role in decision-making. Although this style is preferred by elderly people and others, many people dislike the sense of hierarchy or ignorance that it inspires. They prefer patient-centred consultations, which focus on the patient’s needs, involve the doctor listening to the patient completely before making a decision, and involving the patient in the process of choosing treatment and finding a diagnosis.

Improving Adherence to Medical Advice

Health psychologists engage in research and practice aimed at getting people to follow medical advice and adhere to their treatment regimens. Patients often forget to take their pills or consciously opt not to take their prescribed medications because of side effects. Failing to take prescribed medication is costly and wastes millions of usable medicines that could otherwise help other people. Estimated adherence rates are difficult to measure (see below); there is, however, evidence that adherence could be improved by tailoring treatment programs to individuals’ daily lives. Additionally, traditional cognitive-behavioural therapies have been adapted for people suffering from chronic illnesses and comorbid psychological distress to include modules that encourage, support and reinforce adherence to medical advice as part of the larger treatment approach.

Ways of Measuring Adherence

Health psychologists have identified a number of ways of measuring patients’ adherence to medical regimens:

  • Counting the number of pills in the medicine bottle.
  • Using self-reports.
  • Using “Trackcap” bottles, which track the number of times the bottle is opened.

Managing Pain

Health psychology attempts to find treatments to reduce or eliminate pain, as well as understand pain anomalies such as episodic analgesia, causalgia, neuralgia, and phantom limb pain. Although the task of measuring and describing pain has been problematic, the development of the McGill Pain Questionnaire has helped make progress in this area. Treatments for pain involve patient-administered analgesia, acupuncture (found to be effective in reducing pain for osteoarthritis of the knee), biofeedback, and cognitive behaviour therapy.

Health Psychologist Roles

Below are some examples of the types of positions held by health psychologists within applied settings such as the UK’s NHS and private practice.

  • Consultant health psychologist:
    • A consultant health psychologist will take a lead for health psychology within public health, including managing tobacco control and smoking cessation services and providing professional leadership in the management of health trainers.
  • Principal health psychologist:
    • A principal health psychologist could, for example lead the health psychology service within one of the UK’s leading heart and lung hospitals, providing a clinical service to patients and advising all members of the multidisciplinary team.
  • Health psychologist:
    • An example of a health psychologist’s role would be to provide health psychology input to a centre for weight management.
    • Psychological assessment of treatment, development and delivery of a tailored weight management programme, and advising on approaches to improve adherence to health advice and medical treatment.
  • Research psychologist:
    • Research health psychologists carry out health psychology research, for example, exploring the psychological impact of receiving a diagnosis of dementia, or evaluating ways of providing psychological support for people with burn injuries.
    • Research can also be in the area of health promotion, for example investigating the determinants of healthy eating or physical activity or understanding why people misuse substances.
  • Health psychologist in training/assistant health psychologist:
    • As an assistant/in training, a health psychologist will gain experience assessing patients, delivering psychological interventions to change health behaviours, and conducting research, whilst being supervised by a qualified health psychologist.

Training

In the UK, health psychologists are registered by the Health Professions Council (HPC) and have trained to a level to be eligible for full membership of the Division of Health Psychology within the BPS. Registered health psychologists who are chartered with the BPS will have undertaken a minimum of six years of training and will have specialised in health psychology for a minimum of three years. Health psychologists in training must have completed BPS stage 1 training and be registered with the BPS Stage 2 training route or with a BPS-accredited university doctoral health psychology program. Once qualified, health psychologists can work in a range of settings, for example the NHS, universities, schools, private healthcare, and research and charitable organisations. A health psychologist in training might be working within applied settings while working towards registration and chartered status. A health psychologist will have demonstrated competencies in all of the following areas:

  • Professional skills (including implementing ethical and legal standards, communication, and teamwork).
  • Research skills (including designing, conducting, and analysing psychological research in numerous areas).
  • Consultancy skills (including planning and evaluation).
  • Teaching and training skills (including knowledge of designing, delivering, and evaluating large and small scale training programme).
  • Intervention skills (including delivery and evaluation of behaviour change interventions).

All qualified health psychologists must also engage in and record their continuing professional development (CPD) for psychology each year throughout their career.

In Australia, health psychologists are registered by the Psychology Board of Australia. The standard pathway to becoming an endorsed health psychologists involves a minimum of six years training and a two-year registrar programme. Health psychologists must also undertake continuing professional development (CPD) each year.

On This Day … 19 March

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People (Deaths)

  • 1996 – Lise Østergaard, Danish psychologist and politician (b. 1924).

Lise Ostergaard

Anna Elisabeth “Lise” Østergaard (18 November 1924 to 19 March 1996) was a Danish psychologist and a politician in the social-democratic party. Under Anker Jørgensen’s leadership, she was Minister without Portfolio (1977-1980) and Minister of Culture (February 1980 to September 1982). As a psychologist, she was head of psychology in Copenhagen’s Rigshospitalet (1958) as well as the first woman to become professor of clinical psychology at Copenhagen University (1963), a position she resumed after her political career ended in the mid-1980s.

Psychology

After graduating in 1947, Østergaard worked as a psychologist in Norrtulls sjukhus, a children’s hospital in Stockholm. In 1949, she returned to Denmark, first spending a year in Dronning Louises Børnehospital (Queen Louise’s Children’s Hospital) before moving to the newly established children’s psychology clinic at Copenhagen University where she remained until 1954. She then entered the Rigshospitalet’s psychology department where she was appointed head psychologist in 1958, expanding her experience in clinical psychology. As a result, from 1955 to 1960 she headed a course in clinical psychology for the Dansk Psychologforening (Danish Psychologists Association) while teaching as the first woman psychologist at the university. She also took up assignments as a guest lecturer in Lund, Sweden, and Bergen, Norway.

Published in 1961, her Den psykologiske testmetode og dens relation til klinisk psykiatri (The Psychological Test Method and its Relationship to Clinical Psychiatry) raised considerable interest among psychiatrists. While working at Rigshospitalet, Østergaard treated a number of schizophrenic patients. In 1962, this led to her En psykologisk analyse af de formelle schizofrene tankeforstyrrelser (A Psychological Analysis of Formal Schizophrenic Thought Disorders), paving the way for research on the borderline between psychology and psychiatry in collaboration with the National Institute of Mental Health in the United States.

In 1963, Østergaard became the first female professor of psychology at Copenhagen University. After heading the Studenterrådgivningsklinikken (Student Advisory Clinic, 1964-1968), she established the Institut for Klinisk Psykologi (Clinical Psychology Institute) in 1968. From 1970 to 1973, she was a member of Denmark’s Unesco committee and from 1973 a member of Akademiet for de Tekniske Videnskaber (The Danish Academy of Technical Sciences).

What is Medical Psychology?

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Introduction

Medical psychology, or Medicopsychology, is the application of psychological principles to the practice of medicine, primarily drug-oriented, for both physical and mental disorders.

The American Society for the Advancement of Pharmacotherapy defines medical psychology as “that branch of psychology integrating somatic and psychotherapeutic modalities into the management of mental illness and emotional, cognitive, behavioral and substance use disorders”.

A medical psychologist who holds prescriptive authority for specific psychiatric medications and other pharmaceutical drugs must first obtain specific qualifications in Psychopharmacology. A trained medical psychologist, or psychopharmacologist who has prescriptive authority is equated with a mid-level provider who has the authority to prescribe psychotropic medication such as antidepressants for neurotic disorders. However, a medical psychologist does not automatically equate with a psychologist who has the authority to prescribe medication. In fact, most medical psychologists do not prescribe medication and do not have the authority to do so.

Medical psychologists apply psychological theories, scientific psychological findings, and techniques of psychotherapy, behaviour modification, cognitive, interpersonal, family, and life-style therapy to improve the psychological and physical health of the patient. Psychologists with post doctoral specialty training as medical psychologists are the practitioners with refined skills in clinical psychology, health psychology, behavioural medicine, psychopharmacology, and medical science. Highly qualified and post graduate specialised doctors are trained for service in primary care centres, hospitals, residential care centres, and long-term care facilities and in multidisciplinary collaboration and team treatment.

Medical Psychology Specialty

The field of medical psychology may include pre-doctoral training in the disciplines of health psychology, rehabilitation psychology, pediatric psychology, neuropsychology, and clinical psychopharmacology, as well as sub-specialties in pain management, primary care psychology, and hospital-based (or medical school-based) psychology as the foundation psychological training to qualify for proceeding to required post-doctoral specialty training to qualify to become a Diplomate/Specialist in Medical Psychology. To be a Specialist in Medical Psychology a psychologist must hold Board Certification from the American Board of Medical Psychology which requires a doctorate degree in psychology, a license to practice psychology, a post doctorate graduate degree or acceptable post doctoral didactic training, a residency in medical psychology, submission of a work product for examination, a written and oral examination by the American Board of Medical Psychology. The American Board of Medical Psychology maintains a distinction between specialists and psychopharmacological psychologists or those interested in practicing one of the related psychological disciplines in primary care centres. The term Medical Psychologists is not an umbrella term, and many other specialties in psychology such as healthcare psychology, embracing the biopsychosocial paradigm of mental/physical health and extending that paradigm to clinical practice through research and the application of evidenced-based diagnostic and treatment procedures are akin to the specialty and are prepared to practice in Integrated and Primary Care Settings.

Adopting the biopsychosocial paradigm, the field of medical psychology has recognised the Cartesian assumption that the body and mind are separate entities is inadequate, representing as it does an arbitrary dichotomy that works to the detriment of healthcare. The biopsychosocial approach reflects the concept that the psychology of an individual cannot be understood without reference to that individual’s social environment. For the medical psychologist, the medical model of disease cannot in itself explain complex health concerns any more than a strict psychosocial explanation of mental and physical health can in itself be comprehensive.

Duties

Medical psychologists and some psychopharmacologists are trained and equipped to modify physical disease states and the actual cytoarchitecture and functioning of the central nervous and related systems using psychological and pharmacological techniques (when allowed by statute), and to provide prevention for the progression of disease having to do with poor personal and life-style choices and conceptualisation, behavioural patterns, and chronic exposure to the effects of negative thinking, choosing, attitudes, and negative contexts. The specialty of medical psychology includes training in psychopharmacology and in states providing statutory authority may prescribe psychoactive substances as one technique in a larger treatment plan which includes psychological interventions. The medical psychologists and psychopharmacologists who serve in states that have not yet modernised their psychology prescribing laws may evaluate patients and recommend appropriate psychopharmacological techniques in collaboration with a state authorised prescriber. Medical psychologists and psychopharmacologists who are not Board Certified strive to integrate the major components of an individual’s psychological, biological, and social functioning and are designed to contribute to that person’s well-being in a way that respects the natural interface among these components. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts when it comes to providing comprehensive and sensible behavioural healthcare and the medical psychologist is uniquely qualified to collaborate with physicians that are treating the patients physical illnesses.

Certifications

The Academy of Medical Psychology defines medical psychology as a specialty trained at the post doctoral level and designed to deliver advanced diagnostic and clinical interventions in Medical and Healthcare Facilities utilising the knowledge and skills of clinical psychology, health psychology, behavioural medicine, psychopharmacology and basic medical science. The Academy of Medical Psychology makes a distinction between the Psychopharmacologist who is a psychologist with advanced training in psychopharmacology and may prescribe medicine or consult with physician or nurse practitioner prescribers to diagnose mental illness and select and recommend appropriate psychoactive medicines, and the Medical Psychologists who are prepared to do the psychopharmacology consulting or prescribing, but also must have training which prepares them for functioning with Behavioural and Lifestyle components of physical disease and functioning in or in consultation with multidisciplinary healthcare teams in Primary Care Centres or Community Hospitals in addition to traditional roles in the treatment of mental illness and substance abuse disorders. The specialty of Medical Psychology and this distinction from Psychopharmacologist is recognised by the National Alliance of Professional Psychology Providers (the psychology national practitioner association; see http://www.nappp.org).

A specialty of medical psychology has established a specialty board certification, American Board of Medical Psychology and an Academy of Medical Psychology (www.amphome.org) requiring a doctorate degree in psychology and extensive post doctoral training in the specialty and the passage of an oral or written examination.

Although the Academy of Medical Psychology defines medical psychology as a “specialty” and has established a “specialty board certification,” and is recognised by the national psychology practitioner association (www.nappp.org) there is a split in national psychology associations between NAPPP and APA and the American Psychological Association and the National Alliance of Professional Psychology Providers do not currently recognise the same specialties with the APA being a group that represents scientists, academics, and practitioners (as a minority) and NAPPP being an organization that represents only practitioners. However, Louisiana, having a unique to that state definition of medical psychology does recognise the national distinction between Medical Psychology as a Specialty and a psychopharmacology proficiency (See APA proficiency in psychopharmacology) and restricts the term and practice of medical psychology by statute (the Medical Psychology Practice Act) as a “profession of the health sciences” with prescriptive authority. It is equally important to note than the American Psychological Association does not recognise that the term medical psychology has, as a prerequisite, nor should the term be equated with having, prescriptive authority and has established psychology post doctoral prescribing medicines as “a proficiency in psychopharmacology”.

In 2006, the American Psychological Association (APA) recommended that the education and training of psychologists, who are specifically pursuing one of several prerequisites for prescribing medication, integrate instruction in the biological sciences, clinical medicine and pharmacology into a formalised programme of postdoctoral education. In 2009, the National Alliance of Professional Providers in Psychology recognised the education and training specified by the American Board of Medical Psychology (www.amphome.org; ABMP) and the Academy of Medical Psychology as the approved standards for post graduate training and examination and qualifications in the nationally recognised specialty in Medical Psychology. Since then numerous hospitals, primary care centres, and other health facilities have recognised the ABMP standards and qualifications for privileges in healthcare facilities and verification of specialty status.

The following Clinical Competencies are identified as essential in the education and training of psychologists, wishing to pursue prescriptive authority. These recommended prerequisites are not required or specifically recommended by APA for the training and education of medical psychologists not pursuing prerequisites for prescribing medication:

  • Basic Science: anatomy, & physiology, biochemistry.
  • Neurosciences: neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, neurochemistry.
  • Physical Assessment and Laboratory Exams: physical assessment, laboratory and radiological assessment, medical terminology.
  • Clinical Medicine and Pathophysiology: pathophysiology with emphasis on the principal physiological systems, clinical medicine, differential diagnosis, clinical correlation and case studies, chemical dependency, chronic pain management.
  • Clinical and Research Pharmacology and Psychopharmacology: pharmacology, clinical pharmacology, pharmacogenetics, psychopharmacology, developmental psychopharmacology.
  • Clinical Pharmacotherapeutics: professional, ethical and legal issues, combined therapies and their interactions, computer-based aids to practice, pharmacoepidemiology.
  • Research: methodology and design of psychopharmacology research, interpretation and evaluation, FDA drug development and other regulatory processes.

The 2006 APA recommendations also include supervised clinical experience intended to integrate the above seven knowledge domains and assess competencies in skills and applied knowledge.

The national psychology practitioner association (NAPPP; http://www.nappp.org) and top national certifying body (Academy of Medical Psychology; http://www.amphome.org) have established the national training, examination, and specialty practice criterion and guidelines in the specialty of Medical Psychology and have established a national journal in the specialty. Such certifying bodies, view psychopharmacology training (either to prescribe or consult) as one component of the training of a specialist in Medical Psychology, but recognise that training and specialised skills in other aspects of the treatment of behavioural aspects of medical illness, and mental illness affecting physical illness is essential to practice at the specialty level in Medical Psychology. The Louisiana Academy of Medical Psychology (LAMP), currently the largest organisation of psychologists with prescriptive authority in the world and the only organization representing practitioners of medical psychology in Louisiana as defined by Louisiana statute within any jurisdiction in the United States, no longer recognises the Academy of Medical Psychology as an adequate certifying body for its practitioners, and its members have resigned from the Academy of Medical Psychology en masse. Similarly, virtually all members of LAMP have also resigned from the Louisiana Psychological Association (LPA) after many LPA members uncovered that the LAMP’s prescriptive authority movement covertly came to an agreement with Louisiana’s medical board to transfer the entire practice of psychology for psychologists with prescriptive authority to the medical board. Louisiana is the only state in which the practice of psychology, including psychological testing, psychotherapy, diagnosis, and treatment for some psychologists (i.e. medical psychologists) is regulated by a medical board.

On This Day … 18 March

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People (Births)

  • 1935 – Frances Cress Welsing, American psychiatrist and author (d. 2016).

People (Deaths)

  • 1980 – Erich Fromm, German psychologist and philosopher (b. 1900).

Frances Cress Welsing

Frances Luella Welsing (née Cress; 18 March 1935 to 02 January 2016) was an American psychiatrist. She has been described by critics as a black supremacist. Her 1970 essay, The Cress Theory of Colour-Confrontation and Racism (White Supremacy), offered her interpretation of what she described as the origins of white supremacy culture.

She was the author of The Isis Papers: The Keys to the Colours (1991).

Erich Fromm

Erich Seligmann Fromm (23 March 1900 to 18 March 1980) was a German social psychologist, psychoanalyst, sociologist, humanistic philosopher, and democratic socialist. He was a German Jew who fled the Nazi regime and settled in the US. He was one of the founders of The William Alanson White Institute of Psychiatry, Psychoanalysis and Psychology in New York City and was associated with the Frankfurt School of critical theory.

On This Day … 17 March

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People (Births)

  • 1877 – Otto Gross, Austrian-German psychoanalyst and philosopher (d. 1920).
  • 1922 – Patrick Suppes, American psychologist and philosopher (d. 2014).

Otto Gross

Otto Hans Adolf Gross (17 March 1877 to 13 February 1920) was an Austrian psychoanalyst. A maverick early disciple of Sigmund Freud, he later became an anarchist and joined the utopian Ascona community.

His father Hans Gross was a judge turned pioneering criminologist. Otto initially collaborated with him, and then turned against his determinist ideas on character.

A champion of an early form of anti-psychiatry and sexual liberation, he also developed an anarchist form of depth psychology (which rejected the civilising necessity of psychological repression proposed by Freud). He adopted a modified form of the proto-feminist and neo-pagan theories of Johann Jakob Bachofen, with which he attempted to return civilisation to a ‘golden age’ of non-hierarchy. Gross was ostracised from the larger psychoanalytic movement, and was not included in histories of the psychoanalytic and psychiatric establishments. He died in poverty.

Greatly influenced by the philosophy of Max Stirner and Friedrich Nietzsche and the political theories of Peter Kropotkin, he in turn influenced D.H. Lawrence (through Gross’s affair with Frieda von Richthofen), Franz Kafka and other artists, including Franz Jung and other founders of Berlin Dada. His influence on psychology was more limited. Carl Jung claimed his entire worldview changed when he attempted to analyse Gross and partially had the tables turned on him.

He became addicted to drugs in South America where he served as a naval doctor. He was hospitalised several times for drug addiction, sometimes losing his guardianship of himself to his father in the process. As a Bohemian drug user from youth, as well as an advocate of free love, he is sometimes credited as a founding grandfather of 20th-century counterculture.

Patrick Suppes

Patrick Colonel Suppes (17 March 1922 to 17 November 2014) was an American philosopher who made significant contributions to philosophy of science, the theory of measurement, the foundations of quantum mechanics, decision theory, psychology and educational technology. He was the Lucie Stern Professor of Philosophy Emeritus at Stanford University and until January 2010 was the Director of the Education Program for Gifted Youth also at Stanford.

Early Life and Career

Suppes was born on 17 March 1922, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He grew up as an only child, later with a half brother George who was born in 1943 after Patrick had entered the army. His grandfather, C.E. Suppes, had moved to Oklahoma from Ohio. Suppes’ father and grandfather were independent oil men. His mother died when he was a young boy. He was raised by his stepmother, who married his father before he was six years old. His parents did not have much formal education.

Suppes began college at the University of Oklahoma in 1939, but transferred to the University of Chicago in his second year, citing boredom with intellectual life in Oklahoma as his primary motivation. In his third year, at the insistence of his family, Suppes attended the University of Tulsa, majoring in physics, before entering the Army Reserves in 1942. In 1943 he returned to the University of Chicago and graduated with a B.S. in meteorology, and was stationed shortly thereafter at the Solomon Islands to serve during World War II.

Suppes was discharged from the US Army Air Force in 1946. In January 1947 he entered Columbia University as a graduate student in philosophy as a student of Ernest Nagel and received a PhD in 1950. In 1952 he went to Stanford University, and from 1959 to 1992 he was the director of the Institute for Mathematical Studies in the Social Sciences (IMSSS). He would subsequently become the Lucie Stern Professor of Philosophy, Emeritus, at Stanford.

Computer-Aided Learning

In the 1960s Suppes and Richard C. Atkinson (the future president of the University of California) conducted experiments in using computers to teach math and reading to school children in the Palo Alto area. Stanford’s Education Programme for Gifted Youth and Computer Curriculum Corporation (CCC, now named Pearson Education Technologies) are indirect descendants of those early experiments. At Stanford, Suppes was instrumental in encouraging the development of high-technology companies that were springing up in the field of educational software up into the 1990s, (such as Bien Logic).

One computer used in Suppes and Atkinson’s Computer-assisted Instruction (CAI) experiments was the specialized IBM 1500 Instructional System. Seeded by a research grant in 1964 from the US Department of Education to the Institute for Mathematical Studies in the Social Sciences at Stanford University, the IBM 1500 CAI system was initially prototyped at the Brentwood Elementary School (Ravenswood City School District) in East Palo Alto, California by Suppes. The students first used the system in 1966.

Suppes’ Dial-a-Drill programme was a touchtone phone interface for CAI. Ten schools around Manhattan were involved in the programme which delivered three lessons per week by telephone. Dial-a-Drill adjusted the routine for students who answered two questions incorrectly. The system went online in March 1969. Touchtone telephones were installed in the homes of children participating in the programme. Field workers educated parents on the benefits of the programme and collected feedback.

Decision Theory

During the 1950s and 1960s Suppes collaborated with Donald Davidson on decision theory, at Stanford. Their initial work followed lines of thinking which had been anticipated in 1926 by Frank P. Ramsey, and involved experimental testing of their theories, culminating in the 1957 monograph Decision Making: An Experimental Approach. Such commentators as Kirk Ludwig trace the origins of Davidson’s theory of radical interpretation to his formative work with Suppes.

On This Day … 16 March

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People (Births)

  • 1937 – Amos Tversky, Israeli-American psychologist and academic (d. 1996).

People (Deaths)

  • 1841 – Félix Savart, French physicist and psychologist (d. 1791).

Amos Tversky

Amos Nathan Tversky (Hebrew: עמוס טברסקי‎; 16 March 1937 to 02 June 1996) was an Israeli cognitive and mathematical psychologist, a student of cognitive science, a collaborator of Daniel Kahneman, and a key figure in the discovery of systematic human cognitive bias and handling of risk.

Much of his early work concerned the foundations of measurement. He was co-author of a three-volume treatise, Foundations of Measurement. His early work with Kahneman focused on the psychology of prediction and probability judgment; later they worked together to develop prospect theory, which aims to explain irrational human economic choices and is considered one of the seminal works of behavioural economics. Six years after Tversky’s death, Kahneman received the 2002 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for the work he did in collaboration with Amos Tversky (The prize is not awarded posthumously). Kahneman told The New York Times in an interview soon after receiving the honour: “I feel it is a joint prize. We were twinned for more than a decade.” Tversky also collaborated with many leading researchers including Thomas Gilovich, Itamar Simonson, Paul Slovic and Richard Thaler. A Review of General Psychology survey, published in 2002, ranked Tversky as the 93rd most cited psychologist of the 20th century, tied with Edwin Boring, John Dewey, and Wilhelm Wundt.

Felix Savart

Félix Savart (30 June 1791 to 16 March 1841) was a physicist and mathematician who is primarily known for the Biot–Savart law of electromagnetism, which he discovered together with his colleague Jean-Baptiste Biot. His main interest was in acoustics and the study of vibrating bodies. A particular interest in the violin led him to create an experimental trapezoidal model. He gave his name to the savart, a unit of measurement for musical intervals, and to Savart’s wheel – a device he used while investigating the range of human hearing.

Biography

He was the son of Gérard Savart, an engineer at the military school of Metz. His brother, Nicolas, who was a student at the École Polytechnique and an officer in the engineering corps, did work on vibration. At the military hospital at Metz, Savart studied medicine and later he went on to continue his studies at the University of Strasbourg, where he received his medical degree in 1816. Savart became a professor at Collège de France in 1820 and was the co-originator of the Biot–Savart law, along with Jean-Baptiste Biot. Together, they worked on the theory of magnetism and electrical currents. Their law was developed and published in 1820. The Biot–Savart law relates magnetic fields to the currents which are their sources.

Savart also studied acoustics. He developed the Savart wheel which produces sound at specific graduated frequencies using rotating disks.

Félix Savart is the namesake of a unit of measurement for musical intervals, the savart, though it was actually invented by Joseph Sauveur (Stigler’s law of eponymy).

On This Day … 07 March

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People (Births)

  • 1924 – Morton Bard, American psychologist (d. 1997).
  • 1978 – Jaqueline Jesus, Brazilian psychologist and activist.

Morton Baird

Morton Bard (07 March 1924 to 04 December 1997) was an American psychologist, known for the research he undertook on the psychology of crime victims. He was a one-time member of the New York Police Department, a psychologist, and a professor who studied the reactions of crime victims.

Bard, in partnership with the police, conducted studies of crime victims (e.g. hostages, rape victims, and the families of murder victims). He published two volumes on domestic violence and crisis intervention. He also is recognised for having laid the foundation of victim-focused training into many law enforcement academies and the FBI National Academy.

In 1979, Bard co-authored The Crime Victim’s Book. This volume provides practical information on how best to identify and support the needs of crime victims. The Crime Victim’s Book was considered a “bible” for not only advocates but also crime victims. He is considered to have been a pivotal critical thinker in the development of the modern discipline of crisis intervention. He also wrote scholarly articles on the training of police officers in the application of different forms of crisis intervention out in the field.

Jaqueline Jesus

Jaqueline Gomes de Jesus (born 07 March 1978) is a Brazilian psychologist, writer, and activist.

Jesus is the daughter of a computer operator and a mining science teacher. She has a sibling, a younger brother. Jesus lived most of her life in Ceilândia. A good student, she studied chemistry, for a year before switching majors. She holds an M.Sc. in Psychology from the University of Brasília, and a PhD in Social Psychology, Work and Organisations from the same institution. She worked at the University of Brasília from 2003-2008 as a diversity adviser and also coordinated a center for black students. She was one of the organizers of Brasilia’s Pride parade, and participated in the development of Brazil’s goals for the UN’s Millennium Dome. Jesus has proactively addressed discriminatory actions, refusing to accept passive prejudice. She began her human rights activism in 1997, with “Estructuración”, a Brasilia homosexual group, serving first as secretary and in 1999, became president. In that period, she worked alongside government and educational institutions, in fighting prejudice and valuing differences, speaking at the opening of the 5th National Conference on Human Rights. Jesus participated in various social movements. In 2000, with Luiz Mott, she cofounded the Academic Association of Gays, Lesbians and Sympathizers of Brazil, serving as general secretary. She was appointed to the editorial board of the Grupo Gay Negro de Bahia; and founded the NGO Acciones Ciudades en Orientación sexual.

On This Day … 06 March

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People (Deaths)

  • 1941 – Francis Aveling, Canadian priest, psychologist, and author (b. 1875).

Francis Aveling

Francis Arthur Powell Aveling DD D.Sc PhD DLit MC ComC (25 December 1875 to 06 March 1941) was a Canadian psychologist and Catholic priest. He married Ethel Dancy of Steyning, Sussex in 1925.

Life

Francis Aveling was born at St. Catharines, Ontario 25 December 1875. He went to Bishop Ridley College in Ontario and McGill University before studying at Keble College at the Oxford University, England. Aveling was received into the Roman Catholic Church by Father Luke Rivington in 1896 and entered the Pontificio Collegio Canadese in Rome. There he earned his doctor of divinity degree. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1899, and served as a curate in Tottenham, before becoming first rector of Westminster Cathedral Choir School. He was also a chaplain at the Cathedral, and to St. Wilfrid’s Convent, Chelsea.

In 1910, Aveling obtained a doctor of philosophy degree at the age of 35 from the University of Louvain (his advisor was Albert Michotte), and in 1912 he was recipient of a doctor of science degree from the University of London, and received the Carpenter Medal following his work On the Consciousness of the Universal and the Individual: A Contribution to the Phenomenology of the Thought Process. Subsequently, Aveling received his doctor of letters degree from the University of London.

Career

Aveling taught at University College, London from 1912 as a Lecturer (Assistant Professor), under the leadership of Charles Spearman, until the First World War. During that war he served in France as a chaplain in the British Army, after which he returned to the University of London. In 1922, he transferred to King’s College, London where he was promoted to reader (associate professor), and later to professor of psychology. He was an extern examiner in philosophy at the National University of Ireland; and a lecturer in pedagogical methods for the London County Council.

Aveling authored several books. He was the doctoral advisor of Raymond Cattell From 1926 until 1929, Aveling was also a president of the British Psychological Society. Aveling was a member of the Council of the International Congresses, of the Aristotelian Society, of the council and advisory board of the National Institute of Industrial Psychology, of the council of the British Institute of Philosophical Studies and of the Child Guidance Council.

He was a contributor to the Dublin Review, The American Catholic Quarterly Review, Catholic World, The nineteenth Century, The Journal of Psychology, and the Catholic Encyclopaedia.

Works

  • The Immortality of the Soul (1905).
  • Science and Faith (1906).
  • The God of Philosophy (1906).
  • On the Consciousness of the Universal and the Individual (1912).
  • Personality and Will (1931).
  • An Introduction to Psychology (1932).