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Mar 13, 2023 · 1. B. F. Skinner. Apic/Hulton Archive/Getty Images. B.F. Skinner is one of history's most famous psychologists. He was a staunch advocate for behaviorism, which made him a dominating force in psychology. Many therapy techniques based on his theories are still used extensively today, including behavior modification and token economies.
- Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920) Wilhelm Wundt is largely credited with making psychology a separate science. The German psychologist wrote the first psychology textbook in 1874, Principles of Physiological Psychology.
- Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) No single figure in psychology is as famous as the Austrian Sigmund Freud. He is the father of psychoanalytic psychology and was the first to investigate the processes of the unconscious mind.
- Mary Whiton Calkins (1863-1930) It is no secret that women make up the majority of psychologists. The women in the early days of psychology paved the way for the women of today.
- Kurt Lewin (1890-1947) Lewin is known as the father of modern social psychology largely because of his use of experimentation to study human behavior. He took a novel stance in the nature vs. nurture debate.
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Jan 29, 2018 · Some of the most famous psychologists in history made important contributions to understanding the human mind and behavior. Some of these thinkers were also philosophers, educators, and therapists.
- Wilhelm Wundt. Psychology might not have ever been the science that it is today were it not German scientist, physician, and philosopher Wilhelm Wundt. Born in 1832, he founded the first psychology laboratory at the University of Leipzig in 1879.
- William James. William James earned his M.D. degree in 1869 from Harvard, but he never practiced medicine. Instead he taught at Harvard, beginning 1873 first in physiology, then offering the first course in “physiological psychology” — psychology’s initial name in the U.S. The first doctoral degree in psychology was granted to Wundt’s student, G. Stanley Hall, in 1878 at Harvard.
- Edward Thorndike. Edward Thorndike, a native of Massachusetts, studied at Harvard under William James. He received his doctorate from Columbia University in 1898, working under the supervision of James McKeen Cattell, best known for his work in psychometrics.
- Sigmund Freud. Giving rise to more pop psychology memes than any other person on this list, Sigmund Freud was an Austrian born physician who graduated with his MD in 1881.
Psychoanalytic theory focuses on the role of a person’s unconscious, as well as early childhood experiences, and this particular perspective dominated clinical psychology for several decades (Thorne & Henley, 2005). (a) Sigmund Freud was a highly influential figure in the history of psychology.
