Ulric Neisser
Encyclopedia
Ulric Neisser is an American
psychologist
and member of the National Academy of Sciences
. He is a faculty member at Cornell University
. In 1995, he headed an American Psychological Association
task force that reviewed The Bell Curve
and related controversies in the study of intelligence. The task force produced the report "Intelligence: Knowns and Unknowns
". In April 1996, he chaired a conference at Emory University
that focused on secular changes in intelligence-test scores.
Neisser is a former Guggenheim and Sloan Fellow.
Born in Kiel
, Germany
, he moved with his family to the United States
in 1931. Neisser earned a bachelor's degree from Harvard University
in 1950, a Master’s at Swarthmore College
, and a doctorate from Harvard in 1956. He then taught at Brandeis
, Cornell
, and Emory
universities.
The modern growth of cognitive psychology
received a major boost from the publication in 1967 of the first, and most influential, of his books: Cognitive Psychology.
In 1976, he wrote Cognition and Reality, in which he expressed three general criticisms of the field of cognitive psychology. First, he was dissatisfied with the linear programming model of cognitive psychology, with its over-emphasis on peculiar information processing
models used to describe and explain behavior. Second, he felt that cognitive psychology had failed to address the everyday aspects and functions of human behavior. He placed blame for this failure largely on the excessive reliance on artificial laboratory tasks that had become endemic to cognitive psychology by the mid-1970s. In this sense, he felt that cognitive psychology suffered a severe disconnect between theories of behavior tested by laboratory experimentation and real-world behavior, which he called a lack of ecological validity
. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, he had come to feel a great respect for the theory of direct perception and information pickup that had been promulgated by the preeminent perceptual psychologist J. J. Gibson
and his wife, the "grand dame" of developmental psychology
, Eleanor Gibson. Neisser, in this book, had come to the conclusion that cognitive psychology had little hope of achieving its potential without taking careful theoretical note of the Gibsons' work on perception
which argued that understanding human behavior first involves careful analysis of the information available to any perceiving organism.
In 1981, Neisser published John Dean's memory: a case study, in regards to the testimony of John Dean
for the Watergate Scandal
.
In 1995, Neisser headed an American Psychological Association
task force writing a consensus statement on the state of intelligence research, in response to the claims being advanced amid the controversy surrounding The Bell Curve
, titled Intelligence: Knowns and Unknowns
.
In 1998, he published The Rising Curve: Long-Term Gains in IQ and Related Measures.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
psychologist
Psychologist
Psychologist is a professional or academic title used by individuals who are either:* Clinical professionals who work with patients in a variety of therapeutic contexts .* Scientists conducting psychological research or teaching psychology in a college...
and member of the National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
. He is a faculty member at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
. In 1995, he headed an American Psychological Association
American Psychological Association
The American Psychological Association is the largest scientific and professional organization of psychologists in the United States. It is the world's largest association of psychologists with around 154,000 members including scientists, educators, clinicians, consultants and students. The APA...
task force that reviewed The Bell Curve
The Bell Curve
The Bell Curve is a best-selling and controversial 1994 book by the Harvard psychologist Richard J. Herrnstein and political scientist Charles Murray...
and related controversies in the study of intelligence. The task force produced the report "Intelligence: Knowns and Unknowns
Intelligence: Knowns and Unknowns
Intelligence: Knowns and Unknowns was a 1995 report issued by a Task Force created by the Board of Scientific Affairs of the American Psychological Association.- Background :...
". In April 1996, he chaired a conference at Emory University
Emory University
Emory University is a private research university in metropolitan Atlanta, located in the Druid Hills section of unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The university was founded as Emory College in 1836 in Oxford, Georgia by a small group of Methodists and was named in honor of...
that focused on secular changes in intelligence-test scores.
Neisser is a former Guggenheim and Sloan Fellow.
Born in Kiel
Kiel
Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, he moved with his family to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1931. Neisser earned a bachelor's degree from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1950, a Master’s at Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College is a private, independent, liberal arts college in the United States with an enrollment of about 1,500 students. The college is located in the borough of Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, 11 miles southwest of Philadelphia....
, and a doctorate from Harvard in 1956. He then taught at Brandeis
Brandeis University
Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...
, Cornell
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
, and Emory
Emory University
Emory University is a private research university in metropolitan Atlanta, located in the Druid Hills section of unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The university was founded as Emory College in 1836 in Oxford, Georgia by a small group of Methodists and was named in honor of...
universities.
The modern growth of cognitive psychology
Cognitive psychology
Cognitive psychology is a subdiscipline of psychology exploring internal mental processes.It is the study of how people perceive, remember, think, speak, and solve problems.Cognitive psychology differs from previous psychological approaches in two key ways....
received a major boost from the publication in 1967 of the first, and most influential, of his books: Cognitive Psychology.
In 1976, he wrote Cognition and Reality, in which he expressed three general criticisms of the field of cognitive psychology. First, he was dissatisfied with the linear programming model of cognitive psychology, with its over-emphasis on peculiar information processing
Information processing
Information processing is the change of information in any manner detectable by an observer. As such, it is a process which describes everything which happens in the universe, from the falling of a rock to the printing of a text file from a digital computer system...
models used to describe and explain behavior. Second, he felt that cognitive psychology had failed to address the everyday aspects and functions of human behavior. He placed blame for this failure largely on the excessive reliance on artificial laboratory tasks that had become endemic to cognitive psychology by the mid-1970s. In this sense, he felt that cognitive psychology suffered a severe disconnect between theories of behavior tested by laboratory experimentation and real-world behavior, which he called a lack of ecological validity
Ecological validity
Ecological validity is a form of validity in a research study. For a research study to possess ecological validity, the methods, materials and setting of the study must approximate the real-life situation that is under investigation. Unlike internal and external validity, ecological validity is not...
. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, he had come to feel a great respect for the theory of direct perception and information pickup that had been promulgated by the preeminent perceptual psychologist J. J. Gibson
J. J. Gibson
James Jerome Gibson , was an American psychologist, born in McConnelsville, Ohio, who received his Ph.D. from Princeton University's Department of Psychology, and is considered one of the most important 20th century psychologists in the field of visual perception...
and his wife, the "grand dame" of developmental psychology
Developmental psychology
Developmental psychology, also known as human development, is the scientific study of systematic psychological changes, emotional changes, and perception changes that occur in human beings over the course of their life span. Originally concerned with infants and children, the field has expanded to...
, Eleanor Gibson. Neisser, in this book, had come to the conclusion that cognitive psychology had little hope of achieving its potential without taking careful theoretical note of the Gibsons' work on perception
Perception
Perception is the process of attaining awareness or understanding of the environment by organizing and interpreting sensory information. All perception involves signals in the nervous system, which in turn result from physical stimulation of the sense organs...
which argued that understanding human behavior first involves careful analysis of the information available to any perceiving organism.
In 1981, Neisser published John Dean's memory: a case study, in regards to the testimony of John Dean
John Dean
John Wesley Dean III is an American lawyer who served as White House Counsel to United States President Richard Nixon from July 1970 until April 1973. In this position, he became deeply involved in events leading up to the Watergate burglaries and the subsequent Watergate scandal cover-up...
for the Watergate Scandal
Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a political scandal during the 1970s in the United States resulting from the break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C., and the Nixon administration's attempted cover-up of its involvement...
.
In 1995, Neisser headed an American Psychological Association
American Psychological Association
The American Psychological Association is the largest scientific and professional organization of psychologists in the United States. It is the world's largest association of psychologists with around 154,000 members including scientists, educators, clinicians, consultants and students. The APA...
task force writing a consensus statement on the state of intelligence research, in response to the claims being advanced amid the controversy surrounding The Bell Curve
The Bell Curve
The Bell Curve is a best-selling and controversial 1994 book by the Harvard psychologist Richard J. Herrnstein and political scientist Charles Murray...
, titled Intelligence: Knowns and Unknowns
Intelligence: Knowns and Unknowns
Intelligence: Knowns and Unknowns was a 1995 report issued by a Task Force created by the Board of Scientific Affairs of the American Psychological Association.- Background :...
.
In 1998, he published The Rising Curve: Long-Term Gains in IQ and Related Measures.
Publications
Below is a list of some selected publications by Neisser.- Neisser, U (1967) Cognitive psychology Appleton-Century-Crofts New York
- Neisser, U (1976 ) Cognition and reality: principles and implications of cognitive psychology WH Freeman
- Fivush, R & Neisser, U (1994) The remembering self: construction and accuracy in the self-narrative. Cambridge University Press New York
- Neisser, U (1998) The rising curve: long-term gains in IQ and related measures American Psychological Association
- Neisser, U (1993) The Perceived self: Ecological and Interpersonal Sources of Self Knowledge Cambridge University Press New York, NY
- Neisser, U (1982 ) Memory observed: remembering in natural contexts
- Neisser, U (1987 ) Concepts and conceptual development: ecological and intellectual factors in categorization. Cambridge University Press
External links
- Biografia de Ulric Neisser No Site Psicoloucos.com
- Ulric Neisser via Cornell University