Person of the Month: George Trumbull Ladd (1842-1921)

Abstract

George Trumbull Ladd, (born January 19, 1842, Painesville, Ohio, U.S.—died August 8, 1921, New Haven, Connecticut), philosopher and psychologist whose textbooks were influential in establishing experimental psychology in the United States. He called for a scientific psychology, but he viewed psychology as ancillary to philosophy. He was a grandson of Jesse Ladd and Ruby Brewster, who were among the original pioneers in Madison, Lake County, Ohio. Ruby was a granddaughter of Oliver Brewster and Martha Wadsworth Brewster, a poet and writer, and one of the earliest American female literary figures. Ladd’s main interest was in writing Elements of Physiological Psychology (1887), the first handbook of its kind in English. Because of its emphasis on neurophysiology, it long remained a standard work. In addition, Ladd’s Psychology, Descriptive and Explanatory (1894) is important as a theoretical system of functional psychology, considering the human being as an organism with a mind purposefully solving problems and adapting to its environment.