Mind, Brain, Body, and Behavior

36 FARRERAS

a research dollar or care dollar. Because we knew if we ever

did, that [would be] the first step, then they would start

directing as they are doing now. I was told by one of the

people of the Bureau of the Budget that he suspected that

we weren’t as stupid as we appeared because if we were, we

should be fired.^10

While established and young scientists interested in research careers

were delighted by Kety’s appointment as the institutes’ director of basic

research, some psychiatrists expressed curiosity or concern, even urging

him “not to drive another nail into the coffin of psychiatry.”^11 Such

concern, however, was misplaced, as Kety proved to be very open-minded

in his approach. Given the nascent state of targeted mental illness and

neurology research at the time, Kety opted for organizing the intramural

research program along disciplinary, rather than disease-oriented, lines,

stressing multidisciplinary cooperation between laboratories.^12 There were

theoretical as well as pragmatic reasons for this approach. There were no

empirically supported theories at the time concerning the etiology of

most neurological and psychiatric disorders, and clinical research was

mostly descriptive or anecdotal.^13 Kety also believed that by providing

scientists with complete freedom to choose their own research prob­

lems, scientific discoveries were more likely to be made and young

scientists would be more attracted to the program.^14

As a result, Kety established a broad basic research program repre­

senting various disciplines. The joint intramural program centered

around three kinds of research: biological, behavioral, and clinical.

As Felix announced in 1954,

Due attention is being given to keeping the broad areas of

exploration–biological, behavioral, and medical–in balance.

With the existing state of knowledge, we cannot afford to

push one area at the expense of another. Today, most scientists

are agreed that whether the primary causes of the various types

of mental illness are found to be biological or psychological,

there will be a close relationship between them, and treatment

and prevention will need to proceed in both areas.^15