Volume Preface
xiNumerous histories of our relatively young field have been
published. The Library of Congress lists 44 history of psy-
chology titles, beginning with G. S. Brett in 1912 to Leahey
in 2000, an author in this volume. More histories may have
been written without the word historyin the title, but that still
means a history every two years. And now we add the 45th.
Writing history is not easy. First, there is too much to
record, and the selection process inevitably involves bias.
Then there is distortion in hindsight. Any history of the field
should be called, “A Partial History.. .” or even “A Slanted
History...,” but those titles are understandably undesirable.
So, as John Popplestone comments in his introduction, we
present a partial history of selected topics.
In keeping with the diverse nature of this Handbook of
Psychology,we have attempted to provide a comprehensive
history—at least one that covers a broad spectrum from our
wide-ranging fields of study. The first two chapters are gen-
eral overviews of psychology as a science and as a profes-
sion. These are followed by several basic areas that typically
are included in a core curriculum in a graduate program. We
then cover a number of major professional areas and lastly
three areas of special interest.
The chapter on ethnic minorities is notably different from
the others in that it consists of vignettes reflecting on histori-
cal events, some very personal, that have characterized the
field’s perception and interaction with minority groups. The
chapter on international psychology includes a unique time
line of events covering more than three millennia. Several of
the other chapters contain events and stories that have not
been recorded in other publications.
We hope that the Historyis both interesting and useful—
and that the contributions provide an informative launching
pad for this very comprehensiveHandbook of Psychology.
Many people have helped in the process of completing the
History. First and foremost are the chapter authors, whose
contributions have made the volume possible. A number
of persons have read and helped edit chapters: Douglas
Detterman, James Overholser, Milton Strauss, Diane Tice,
Erik Youngstrom, Gerda Freedheim, and Matt Heimback. I
also would like to thank a group of editorial advisors who
gave advice early on the contributors and organization of
the text: David B. Baker, Florence L. Denmark, Wade E.
Pickren, Milton E. Strauss, Wayne Viney, and especially
Michael Wertheimer for his helpful counsel. Three staff from
the Department of Psychology at Case Western Reserve Uni-
versity have been invaluable with their technical help and pa-
tience with a fussy editor: Felicia Bruce, Cynthia Hendrick,
and Kori Kosek. Elsie Finley, librarian at CWRU, was
tenacious in her pursuit of obscure references. The editors,
Jennifer Simon and Isabel Pratt from John Wiley & Sons,
were always helpful and encouraging, as well as the staff of
Publications Development Company. And lastly, a special
thanks to the general editor of the Handbook,Irving Weiner,
for his patience, careful reviewing of drafts, and constant
encouragement.DONALDK. FREEDHEIMREFERENCESBrett, G. S. (1912). A history of psychology. London: G. Allen.
Leahey, T. H. (2000). History of psychology: Main currents in
psychological thought (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Prentice-Hall.