Reflections on the golden age of Columbia psychology

This paper discusses the Golden Age (1920-1940) of the Columbia University psychology department and analyzes some of the sources of its strengths and weaknesses. Much of the credit goes to Robert S. Woodworth, the dean of American experimental psychology, who set up the objective eclectic orientation of the department, recruited a remarkable group of competent faculty members, and above all kept up a cooperative unified spirit in the department. Because the Columbia University psychology department was so influential during its Golden Age, its organization, staffing and departmental characteristics are analyzed. Probably the key to its success was the capability of a guiding genius, Robert S. Woodworth, who gathered a remarkable group of scholars about him. Woodworth's objective eclectic orientation provided the broadest possible approach within a rigorous experimental-statistical orientation. Woodworth's scholarly approach pervaded the department so that many of his colleagues also wrote pioneering encyclopedic works in their particular fields of specialization. The writings of the Columbia psychologists truly shaped the field.