| Activity | Tolman was educated at various Newton public schools. In 1908 he attended Massachusetts Institute of Technology graduating with a B.S. in electrochemistry in 1911. In the summer of 1911 he enrolled in two summer schools at Harvard, a philosophy course from Ralph Barton Perry (nd), and a course in comparative psychology from Robert M. Yerkes (nd). After taking these summer courses Tolman began at Harvard as a full graduate student in the joint department of philosophy and psychology. At the end of his first graduate year Tolman went to Germany to spend the time with Kurt Koffa (nd) who introduced him to Gestalt psychology.
Tolman received his Ph.D.from Harvard in 1915 and also married in the same year. In the autumn of 1915 Tolman and his wife moved to Evanston, Illinois, where for 3 years he taught at Northwestern University.In 1918 Tolman was offered a lectureship at Berkeley. He accepted and stayed for 41 years. During his first years at the University, Tolman established an animal laboratory and taught his widely known class "The Tolman Seminar". Soon after Tolman arrived at Berkely his thinking , influenced by Watson's (nd) work, turned toward behaviourism. In 1922 Tolman argued for a "true nonphysiological behaviourism" writing a series of articles which attempted to show how "mentalistic" concepts such as sensation, emotion and consciousness could be translated into new objective behaviorual terms. Throughout his many years in Berkeley his constructive influence was powerfully felt both within the university and within the community. He successfully led the protracted fight of the Berkeley faculty against the imposition of a loyalty oath. Dr Tolman received many honours in his academic life culminating in the naming of a new psychological building at Berkeley "Edward Chace Tolman Hall" in 1962.
Tolman's in memoriam lists his academic vita as follows:
Instructor, Northwestern University, 1915-1918
Instructor, University of California, 1918-1920
Assistant Professor, University of California, 1920-1923
Associate Professor, University of California, 1923-1928
Professor of Psychology, University of California, 1928-1954
Professor of Psychology Emeritus, University of California, 1954-1959
President, Western Psychological Association, 1922
Associate Editor, Journal of General Psychology 1928
Elected Member, Society of Experimental Psychologists, 1930
Member of the Council of the American Psychological Association, 1932-1934
Collaborating Editor, Contributions to Psychological Theory, 1935
Associate editor, Journal of Comparative Psychology, 1936
Representative of American Psychological Association on the Division of Anthropology and Psychology, National Research Council, 1936-1939
President, American Psychological Association, 1937
Elected Member of the National Academy of Sciences, 1937
President, Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues, 1940
Elected Penrose Lecturer, American Philosophical Society, 1941
Vice-President, American Association for the Advancement of Science,
Chairman of Section I, 1944
Psychologist, Office of Strategic Services, 1944-1945
President, Division of Theoretical-Experimental Psychology, American Psychological Association, 1945
Board of Directors, American Psychological Association, 1945-1947
Faculty Research Lecturer, University of California, 1946
Elected Member, American Philosophical Society, 1947
President, Division of General Psychology, American Psychological Association, 1947
Kurt LewinMemorial Award, Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues, 1949
Awarded Honorary Sc.D., Yale University, 1951
Member, Institute for Advanced Studies, Princeton, 1952
President, Division of General Psychology, American Psychological Association, 1953-1955
Awarded Honorary Sc.D., McGill University, 1954
Elected Honorary Fellow, British Psychological Society, 1954
Co-President, XIV International Congress of Psychology, 1954
Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award, American Psychological Association, 1957
Awrded Honorary LL.D., University of California, Berkeley, 1959
Elected Associate Member, Societe Francaise de Psychologie, 1959.
Sources. "Edward Chace Tolman", History of Psychology in Autobigraphy (C Murchison) Vol.4, 323-339 1952
In Memoriam Edward Chace Tolman 1959 unknown publisher
In Memoriam University of California (nd)
In Memory of Edward Chace Tolman (1886-1959) G.W.Leytham Bull. B.P.S. No.49 Oct.1962 pp 21-28
Tolman's autobiography is available in the History of Psychology in Autobiography series (C Murchison) Vol 4, 323-339, 1952.
Compiled by Mike Maskill, BPS Archivist for the History of Psychology Centre. |
| PublishedWorks | Selected Bibliography:
Purposive Behaviour in Animals and Men. New York: Century Co., 1932
Drives Toward War. New York: D. Appleton-Century Co., 1942 pp.xv-118
Tolman, E C; Ritchie, B F; Kalish, D (1992), "Studies in spatial learning. I. Orientation and the short-cut. 1946.", Journal of experimental psychology. General (Dec 1992) 121 (4): 429–34
Tolman, E.C. (1955), "Principles of performance.", Psychological review (Sep 1955) 62 (5): 315–26,
Tolman, E.C., Postman, L. (1954), "Learning.", Annual review of psychology 5: 27–56,
Tolamn, E C. Glietman, H (1949), "Studies in learning and motivation; equal reinforcements in both end-boxes; followed by shock in one end-box.", Journal of experimental psychology (Dec 1949) 39
Tolman, E C; Gleitman, H (1949), "Studies in spatial learning; place and response learning under different degrees of motivation.", Journal of experimental psychology (Oct 1949) 39 (5): 653–
Tolman, E C (1949), "There is more than one kind of learning.", Psychological review (May 1949) 56 (3): 144–55
Tolman, E. C. (1938). The determinants of behavior at a choice point. Psychological Review, 45, 1-41.
Tolman, E. C. (1948). Cognitive maps in rats and men. Psychological Review, 55, 189-208. (Retrieved on 07-02-06)
Tolman, E. C. (1951). Behavior and psychological man: essays in motivation and learning. Berkeley, Univ. of California Press. |