Encyclopedia, Difference between revisions of "Robert Yerkes" - New World

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'''Robert Mearns Yerkes''', (born May 26, 1876; died February 3, 1956) was a psychologist, ethologist and primatologist best known for his work in intelligence testing and in the field of comparative psychology. Yerkes was a pioneer in the study of both human and primate intelligence, and of the social behavior of gorillas and chimpanzees. Joining with John D. Dodson, Yerkes developed the Yerkes-Dodson law relating arousal to performance.
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'''Robert Mearns Yerkes''', (born May 26, 1876; died February 3, 1956) was a [[psychologist]], [[ethology|ethologist]] and primatologist best known for his work in [[intelligence test|intelligence testing]] and in the field of [[comparative psychology]]. Yerkes was a pioneer in the study of both human and [[primate]] [[intelligence]], and of the social behavior of [[gorilla]]s and [[chimpanzee]]s. Joining with John D. Dodson, Yerkes developed the Yerkes-Dodson law relating arousal to performance.
  
 
==Life==
 
==Life==
  
Robert M. Yerkes was born on May 26, 1876 on a farm somewhere near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His early life was of a typical farm boy, spent in work on the farm and play with animals. Yerkes has never had a good relationship with his father, what additionally motivated him to leave farm life and his father's desire for agricultural studies, and turn to biology and chemistry.  
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Robert M. Yerkes was born on May 26, 1876 on a farm near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His early life was of a typical farm boy, spent in work on the farm and playing with animals. Although he had pleasant memories of that life, Yerkes did not have a good relationship with his father, and that motivated him to leave farm life and his father's desire for him to study [[agriculture]]. Instead, he chose to study [[biology]] and [[chemistry]].  
  
Yerkes received his bachelor's degree from Ursinus College in 1897, after which he entered Harvard, obtaining his PhD in psychology in 1902. At Harvard, he first became an instructor and later an assistant professor of Comparative Psychology, teaching at Harvard from 1902 until 1917. His colleague professors there included some eminent names, like William James, Hugo Münsterberg, Francis Peabody, George Santayana, Dickinson Miller, Robert MacDougall, Edwin B. Holt, and Ralph Barton Perry.
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Yerkes received his bachelor's degree from Ursinus College in 1897. He then faced a choice between studying medicine in Philadelphia or graduate work in biology, [[psychology]], and [[philosophy]] at [[Harvard]]. The decision determined the course of his professional career. Choosing Harvard, Yerkes obtained his Ph.D. in psychology in 1902.  
  
In 1905 Yerkes married Ada Watterson, who became an essential part of his professional life, participating together with him in numerous research projects.  
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He was then offered a teaching position at Harvard, first as instructor and later as assistant professor of [[Comparative Psychology]]. He taught there from 1902 until 1917. His colleagues on the faculty at Harvard included some eminent scholars: [[William James]], [[Hugo Münsterberg]], Francis Peabody, [[George Santayana]], Dickinson Miller, Robert MacDougall, [[Edwin B. Holt]], and [[Ralph Barton Perry]]. Another colleague, was John D. Dodson, with whom Yerkes formulated the famous Yerkes-Dodson Law.
  
In 1908 together with his colleague John D. Dodson, Yerkes set ground work for the famous Yerkes-Dodson Law, which was published in the Journal of Comparative Neurology and Psychology.
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In 1905, Yerkes married Ada Watterson, who became an essential part of his professional life, participating together with him in numerous research projects.  
  
Prior to World War I, Yerkes worked closely with John B. Watson to develop the theory of behaviorism. Although Yerkes never subscribed to the strict behaviorism that Watson advocated, the correspondence between the two psychologists reveals evidence of a close collaboration and sharing of ideas.  
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Prior to [[World War I]], Yerkes worked closely with [[John B. Watson]] to develop the theory of [[behaviorism]]. Although Yerkes never subscribed to the strict behaviorism that Watson advocated, correspondence between the two psychologists reveals evidence of a close collaboration and sharing of ideas.  
  
After the war started in 1914, Yerkes joined army. He served as a researcher for both the Army and the Navy. He worked on intelligence tests for recruits, army leadership and organization. Yerkes helped to create the Yerkes-Bridges Point Scale of Intelligence in 1915.  
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After the war started in 1914, Yerkes joined the army. He served as a researcher for both the army and the navy, working on [[intelligence test]]s for recruits, army leadership, and organization.  
  
Yerkes became a professor of psychobiology in Yale University, where he served for twenty years - from 1924 until 1944. Those years were the most fruitful ones in Yerkes's life, spun with research and teaching. Yerkes founded and directed the Yale Laboratories of Primate Biology in 1929 and acted as its director until 1941.
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After the war, Yerkes continued to serve the military until offered a position as professor of [[psychobiology]] in [[Yale University]], where he served for twenty years—from 1924 until 1944. Those years were the most fruitful ones in Yerkes' life, filled with research and teaching. He founded the Yale Laboratories of Primate Biology in 1929, and acted as its director until 1941.
  
 
Yerkes retired in 1941, but continued to teach at Yale for several more years. He died in 1956.
 
Yerkes retired in 1941, but continued to teach at Yale for several more years. He died in 1956.
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===Yerkes-Dodson Law===
 
===Yerkes-Dodson Law===
  
Based on their research in biopsychology and neuroscience, together with John D. Dodson, Yerkes created a Yerkes-Dodson Law. The law makes an association between cognitive arousal and performance on a task stating that as the arousal increases, the performance increases accordingly, until the point where too much arousal decreases the performance. In another words, performance on a certain task can be increased by an increase in the level of cognitive arousal. Interesting and complicating tasks require higher arousal. Consequently, as the arousal increases, our attention increases and we perform better on the task. However, too much arousal creates too much stress, and the performance suffers. Too much arousal decreases the level of performance. The law is often graphicaly described as an inverted U-shaped curve.
+
Based on their research in biopsychology and neuroscience, together with John D. Dodson, Yerkes created a Yerkes-Dodson Law (Yerkes & Dodson 1908). The law makes an association between cognitive arousal and performance on a task stating that as the arousal increases, the performance increases accordingly, until the point where too much arousal decreases the performance. In another words, performance on a certain task can be increased by an increase in the level of cognitive arousal. Interesting and complicating tasks require higher arousal. Consequently, as the arousal increases, our attention increases and we perform better on the task. However, too much arousal creates too much stress, and the performance suffers. Too much arousal decreases the level of performance. The law is often graphicaly described as an inverted U-shaped curve.
  
 
===Intelligence testing===
 
===Intelligence testing===
  
In 1917, Yerkes served as president of the American Psychological Association (APA). Under his urging, the APA began several programs devoted to the war effort in World War I. As chairman of the Committee on the Psychological Examination of Recruits, he developed the Army's Alpha and Beta Intelligence Tests, given to over 1 million United States soldiers during the war. The test ultimately concluded that recent immigrants (especially those from Southern and Eastern Europe) scored considerably lower than older waves of immigration (from Northern Europe), and was used as one of the eugenic motivations for harsh immigration restriction. The results would later be criticized as very clearly only measuring acculturation, as the test scores correlated nearly exactly with the number of years spent living in the US
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Yerkes helped to create the Yerkes-Bridges Point Scale of Intelligence in 1915. In 1917, Yerkes served as president of the American Psychological Association (APA). Under his urging, the APA began several programs devoted to the war effort in World War I. As chairman of the Committee on the Psychological Examination of Recruits, he developed the Army's Alpha and Beta Intelligence Tests, given to over 1 million United States soldiers during the war. The test ultimately concluded that recent immigrants (especially those from Southern and Eastern Europe) scored considerably lower than older waves of immigration (from Northern Europe), and was used as one of the eugenic motivations for harsh immigration restriction. The results would later be criticized as very clearly only measuring acculturation, as the test scores correlated nearly exactly with the number of years spent living in the US
  
 
===National Research Council===
 
===National Research Council===

Revision as of 23:52, 7 June 2006


Robert Mearns Yerkes, (born May 26, 1876; died February 3, 1956) was a psychologist, ethologist and primatologist best known for his work in intelligence testing and in the field of comparative psychology. Yerkes was a pioneer in the study of both human and primate intelligence, and of the social behavior of gorillas and chimpanzees. Joining with John D. Dodson, Yerkes developed the Yerkes-Dodson law relating arousal to performance.

Life

Robert M. Yerkes was born on May 26, 1876 on a farm near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His early life was of a typical farm boy, spent in work on the farm and playing with animals. Although he had pleasant memories of that life, Yerkes did not have a good relationship with his father, and that motivated him to leave farm life and his father's desire for him to study agriculture. Instead, he chose to study biology and chemistry.

Yerkes received his bachelor's degree from Ursinus College in 1897. He then faced a choice between studying medicine in Philadelphia or graduate work in biology, psychology, and philosophy at Harvard. The decision determined the course of his professional career. Choosing Harvard, Yerkes obtained his Ph.D. in psychology in 1902.

He was then offered a teaching position at Harvard, first as instructor and later as assistant professor of Comparative Psychology. He taught there from 1902 until 1917. His colleagues on the faculty at Harvard included some eminent scholars: William James, Hugo Münsterberg, Francis Peabody, George Santayana, Dickinson Miller, Robert MacDougall, Edwin B. Holt, and Ralph Barton Perry. Another colleague, was John D. Dodson, with whom Yerkes formulated the famous Yerkes-Dodson Law.

In 1905, Yerkes married Ada Watterson, who became an essential part of his professional life, participating together with him in numerous research projects.

Prior to World War I, Yerkes worked closely with John B. Watson to develop the theory of behaviorism. Although Yerkes never subscribed to the strict behaviorism that Watson advocated, correspondence between the two psychologists reveals evidence of a close collaboration and sharing of ideas.

After the war started in 1914, Yerkes joined the army. He served as a researcher for both the army and the navy, working on intelligence tests for recruits, army leadership, and organization.

After the war, Yerkes continued to serve the military until offered a position as professor of psychobiology in Yale University, where he served for twenty years—from 1924 until 1944. Those years were the most fruitful ones in Yerkes' life, filled with research and teaching. He founded the Yale Laboratories of Primate Biology in 1929, and acted as its director until 1941.

Yerkes retired in 1941, but continued to teach at Yale for several more years. He died in 1956.

Work

Yerkes-Dodson Law

Based on their research in biopsychology and neuroscience, together with John D. Dodson, Yerkes created a Yerkes-Dodson Law (Yerkes & Dodson 1908). The law makes an association between cognitive arousal and performance on a task stating that as the arousal increases, the performance increases accordingly, until the point where too much arousal decreases the performance. In another words, performance on a certain task can be increased by an increase in the level of cognitive arousal. Interesting and complicating tasks require higher arousal. Consequently, as the arousal increases, our attention increases and we perform better on the task. However, too much arousal creates too much stress, and the performance suffers. Too much arousal decreases the level of performance. The law is often graphicaly described as an inverted U-shaped curve.

Intelligence testing

Yerkes helped to create the Yerkes-Bridges Point Scale of Intelligence in 1915. In 1917, Yerkes served as president of the American Psychological Association (APA). Under his urging, the APA began several programs devoted to the war effort in World War I. As chairman of the Committee on the Psychological Examination of Recruits, he developed the Army's Alpha and Beta Intelligence Tests, given to over 1 million United States soldiers during the war. The test ultimately concluded that recent immigrants (especially those from Southern and Eastern Europe) scored considerably lower than older waves of immigration (from Northern Europe), and was used as one of the eugenic motivations for harsh immigration restriction. The results would later be criticized as very clearly only measuring acculturation, as the test scores correlated nearly exactly with the number of years spent living in the US

National Research Council

Immediately after Word War I, Yerkes worked as a paid officer for the National Research Council (NRC) and took the helm of the NRC Committee for Research in Problems of Sex. The Committee for Research in Problems of Sex helped Yerkes establish close relationships with officers from Rockefeller philanthropic foundations, relationships that later helped him to solicit substantial funds for his chimpanzee projects.

Primatology pioneer

Yerkes had a long and storied fascination with the study of chimpanzees. He had spent time observing chimpanzees in Cuba at Madame Abreu's colony in the early 1920s, and had returned from the trip determined to raise and observe chimps on his own. He began by purchasing two chimpanzees, Chim and Panzee, from a zoo. He brought the two chimps home, where they lived in a bedroom and ate with a fork at a miniature table. Chim was a particular delight for Yerkes, and the summer that chimp and psychologist spent together is memorialized in Almost Human (1924).

In 1924, Yerkes was hired as a professor of psychobiology, a field that he pioneered, at Yale University. He founded the Yale University Laboratories of Primate Biology in New Haven, followed by his Anthropoid Breeding and Experiment Station in Orange Park, Florida with funds from the Rockefeller Foundation. After Yerkes death, the lab was moved to Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia and is now called the Yerkes National Primate Research Center. The Great Ape language Yerkish was developed there.

Legacy

Robert Yerkes will remain known for his comparative psychology research with apes. He founded the first non-human primate research lab in the United States, being its director from 1929 until 1941. The research laboratory in Yale was named after him - the Yerkes National Primate Research Center.

Yerkes contributed toward development of military testings, being the president of the committee that created the Army Alpha and Beta intelligence tests during the First World War.

Together with John D. Dodson, Yerkes made an association between cognitive arousal and task-parformance, establishing a law that will be named after him - Yerkes-Dodson Law.

Bibliography

  • Yerkes, Robert M. (1903). Reactions of Daphnia pulex to light and heat. H. Holt and Company
  • Yerkes, Robert M. (1907/1926). The Dancing Mouse, A Study in Animal Behavior. Ayer Co Pub. ISBN 0405051743
  • Yerkes, Robert M. (1911). Methods of Studying Vision in Animals. H. Holt & company
  • Yerkes, Robert M. (1914). Outline of a Study of the Self. Harvard University Press
  • Yerkes, Robert M. (1917). How may we discover the children who need special care?, National Committee for Mental Hygiene, Inc.
  • Yerkes, Robert M. (1934). Modes of behavioral adaptation in chimpanzee to multiple-choice problems. Johns Hopkins Press
  • Yerkes, Robert M. (1982). Psychological examining in the United States Army. Kraus Reprint. ISBN 0527735884
  • Yerkes, R.M. & Dodson, J.D. (1908) The relation of strength of stimulus to rapidity of habit-formation. Journal of Comparative Neurology and Psychology, 18, 459-482

External links

  • Emory.edu - 'Innovation and Science: The History of Yerkes', Yerkes National Primate Research Center
  • Indiana.edu - 'Robert Mearns Yerkes (1876-1956) American Comparative Psychologist', Indiana University
  • IPFW.edu - 'Intelligence Tests' (historical overview), Indiana Pardue University
  • Karoo.net - 'A Nation of Morons' (critique of the Army Alpha Intelligence Test) by Stephen J. Gould
  • YorkU.ca - 'Autobiography of Robert Mearns Yerkes', Robert Yerkes, York University (1930)


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