Psychology, although dominated by
men in the 19th century was a groundbreaking time for women to
promote equality actively in education and professional opportunities. Even though prejudices were still prevalent,
the latter half of the 19th century afforded women the opportunity
to enter into the medical and scientific realm.
Although not permitted to enroll formally into many academic facilities,
separate institutions for women were available for them to gain the training
necessary to become successful. One such
woman who used this to her full advantage was Margaret Floy Washburn
(1871-1939); she became the first woman to receive a Ph.D. in psychology.
Education
Margaret Floy Washburn, born July
25, 1871 was the only child of the Reverend Francis and Elizabeth Floy
Washburn. When Margaret was born her
family was living in the Harlem district of New York, which allowed Margaret to
begin her studies in a small private school when she was eight. She only attended private school for a few
years; however, her foundations for learning were secure. Her family, moving to Kingston when her
father secured a position with the ministry position there required she attend
a public high school, graduating at the age of 15. With no delay, Margaret began attending Vassar
College with an emphasis on “chemistry, biology, and philosophy;” however, in
her senior year she became interested in “science and philosophy” (Woodworth,
1948, p. 276). Upon her graduation from
Vassar in 1891 she began to pursue these interests by learning from Dr. Cattell
at Columbia University, even though they were not admitting female graduate
students. Washburn’s attendance was
strictly an auditor role; however, Cattell required her to sit in on lectures
and write reports on experimental work with the other students. After her first year of attendance, Cattell
recommend she transfer to Cornell where she could achieve her graduate degree.
These newly created educational
facilities were the only opportunity during the 19th century for
women to pursue and obtain a high quality college education. The first of these facilities opened in 1865;
Vassar College.
“[A] gift from Matthew Vassar, a
man with ideas well ahead of his time.
He endowed the college, he wrote, because ‘[i]t occurred to [him] that
woman, having received from the Creator the same intellectual
constitution as man, has the same right as man to intellectual culture and
development’” (quoted in Brubacher & Rudy, 1976, p. 66 as restated
by Goodwin, 2008, p. 171).
He endowed the college, he wrote, because ‘[i]t occurred to [him] that
woman, having received from the Creator the same intellectual
constitution as man, has the same right as man to intellectual culture and
development’” (quoted in Brubacher & Rudy, 1976, p. 66 as restated
by Goodwin, 2008, p. 171).
During her time at Cornell she
studied under E. B. Titchener, having received his doctorate with Wundt at
Leipzig, and Walter B. Pillsbury a pioneer in experimental psychology. During
her studies at Cornell she had the honor of having her doctoral dissertation on
perception and visualization chosen for publication in Wundt’s journal Philosophische Studien (Goodwin, 2008; Woodworth,
1948). Furthermore, Washburn became the
first woman recommended by Titchener to receive a doctorate in psychology,
which she gladly accepted in 1984. Upon
achieving her Ph.D. she accepted a position at Wells College where she worked for
six years, returning to Cornell where she became “warden of students” and
subsequently began her work in animal psychology making full use of the
laboratory facilities available to her (Woodworth, 1948, p. 277). In 1902 Washburn accepted an assistant
professorship of psychology at the University of Cincinnati; however, a year
later in 1903 she gladly accepted an equivalent position at Vassar. There she received the distinction of
becoming one of three women named in Cattell’s 1000 most important “American
men of science” (Goodman, 1980, p. 72).
Achievements
Washburn remained at Vassar for the
duration of her brilliant career, which included an APA presidency (1921),
co-editorship of the American Journal of
Psychology, an election to the National Academy of Sciences, and more than 70
papers that contributed substantially to the scientific community (Woodworth,
1948). Her literary achievements also
included two important scientific publications: first, The Animal Mind in 1908 followed by Movement and Mental Imagery in 1916. Furthermore, she served as vice-president to
the American Association for the Advancement of Science, held a membership to
the Division of Anthropology and Psychology of the National Research Council
and was instrumental in the publication of the Psychological Abstracts journal (Woodworth, 1948).
Although Washburn was known as an ardent professor, she never married so
that she could pursue her professional interests and scientific work with
animal behavior as relates to senses, perception, memory, problem solving,
etc., which only included the results of such observations. Through her continued research her theories
improved. Upon the publication of her book
The Animal Mind it was the most
prominent resource in comparative psychology of its time (American Psychological
Association, n.d.). Over the next
several years as her motor theories of consciousness developed she wrote and
published her second book Movement and
Mental Imagery in which she integrated the experimental method of
introspection (thinking) into the conscious aspect of motor activity. Although Washburn suffered a cerebral
hemorrhage in 1937, she remained active until her death in 1939; she was 69.
Margaret Floy Washburn was a woman
whose accomplishments and achievements for the psychological community and the
women of her time were phenomenal.
Though she was willing to study psychology knowing she would never
receive her doctoral degree from Vassar (a male only college) her level of
skill and ambition forced Dr. Cattell to encourage her toward the elite woman’s
college at Cornell to achieve the prestigious degree. At Cornell she studied under the tutelage of
E. B. Titchener and W. B. Pillsbury whose encouragement provided her with the
knowledge and skills she needed to acquire her doctorate in psychology. Washburn maintained a brilliant career
teaching and maintaining levels of achievement that were afforded only to men
until that time: scholastic memberships, editorial positions, and scientific
authorship. Washburn’s personal
sacrifices enabled her to be a driving force for the advancement of women in
the professional realm while achieving her personal desires to advance the science
of psychology. When faced with adverse
conditions, Margaret Floy Washburn is a woman who anyone can look to for
inspiration and motivation. As stated by
Washburn herself “Nothing in the world is so compelling to the emotions as the
mind of another human being” (Washburn, 1916b, p. 606 as restated by Goodman,
1980, p. 69).
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