| Code | BPS/GB/26 |
| Thumbnail | 
|
| Name | Edgell; Beatrice (1871-1948); Professor; HonFBPsS |
| Title | Professor |
| Forenames | Beatrice |
| Surname | Edgell |
| Dates | 1871-1948 |
| Epithet | HonFBPsS |
| Other Names | Beatrice Edgell |
| Gender | Female |
| Nationality | British |
| DatesAndPlaces | Born Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire 26 October 1871, Died Cheltenham Gloucestershire 10 August 1948
Tewkesbury 1871-1886
London 1886-1891
Aberystwyth 1891-189?
North of England 189?
London 1898-1900
Wurzburg 1900-1901
London 1901- 19
Cambridge 19?-1948 |
| Address | London |
| Relationships | Ms Edgell was the youngest daughter of Edward Higginson Edgell (nd), Bank Manager and his wife Sarah Ann, nee Buckle.
She was unmarried. |
| Activity | Ms Edgell attended Tewkesbury High School Kindergarten, Tewkesbury High School for Girls and entered Notting Hill High School for Girls in 1882.
In 1891 Ms Edgell left Notting Hill High School for the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth obtaining a BA with second-class honours in mental and moral science , awarded by the University of London in 1894.
Ms Edgell achieved distinction in the Teacher's Diploma of the University of London in 1896 and an MA (1899) and DLitt (1924) from the University of Wales.
Ms Edgell also obtained a PhD from Wurzburg in 1901 (the first British woman to gain a doctorate in psychology).
After 3 years teaching in North of England schools Dr Edgell was appointed lecturer in philosophy and head of the department of mental and moral science at Bedford College London, holding the latter post until her retirement in 1933.
Dr Edgell became reader in psychology in 1913, professor of psychology in 1927 (attracting much media attention as the first female holder of a chair in psychology in Britain) and on her retirement emeritus professor of psychology.
Dr Edgell held many other appointments in the college and the University of London, including a time as a member of senate (1906-1911) and external examiner in psychology (1913-1919).
Dr Edgell 's cross-disciplinary interests in experimental psychology and philosophy allowed her to be President of the British Psychological Society 1929 to 1932, President of the Mind Association in 1927 and (in 1932) of section J (psychology) of the British Association for the Advancement of Science and the Aristotelian Society. Dr Edgell was also the first female President of each of these four organizations.
Dr Edgell was elected an honorary member of the British Psychological Society in 1940. After her retirement Dr Edgell worked in a child guidance clinic and acted as a teacher and examiner in psychology for the nursing profession.
Note: Dr Edgell's contributions to British psychology include establishing one of the first psychological laboratories in Britain-and the first in a women's college; making substantial contributions to research, developing the status of psychology-both locally in London University and nationally-partly through her work with the British Psychological Society and as a teacher in a women's college, training a number of women who later played a prominent role in the development of scientific and professional psychology in Britain.
Sources:
P Lovie and A D Lovie, Edgell, Beatrice (1871-1948), Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004[accessed 11 Jan 2005: <available at>http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/52394
Biography by Elizabeth R.Valentine entitled " Beatrice Edgell-the Pioneer Woman", History and Philosophy of Psychology (2001), Vol.3, No.1, pp.14-26.
For more information on Beatrice Edgell see; Elizabeth R. Valentine's book " Beatrice Edgell: Pioneer Woman Psychologist" published by Nova Science Publishers, Inc. New York, 2006, ISBN: 1-59454-389-5 (hardcover).
Compiled by Mike Maskill, BPS Archivist for the History of Psychology Centre. |
| OtherInfo | Dr Edgell's contributions to British psychology include establishing one of the first psychological laboratories in Britain-and the first in a women's college; making substantial contributions to research, developing the status of psychology-both locally in London University and nationally-partly through her work with the British Psychological Society and as a teacher in a women's college, training a number of women who later played a prominent role in the development of scientific and professional psychology in Britain. |
| PublishedWorks | "The British Psychological Society" article first published in the British Journal of Psychology, Vol.37 May 1947 |
| Source | Sources: P Lovie and A D Lovie, Edgell, Beatrice (1871-1948), Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004[accessed 11 Jan 2005: <available at>http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/52394
Valentine E R, Beatrice Edgell-the Pioneer Woman, History and Philosophy of Psychology (2001), Vol.3, No.1, pp.14-26 |
| Conventions | International Standard Archival Authority Record for Corporate Bodies, Persons and Families - ISAAR(CPF) - Ottawa 1996 ISBN ISBN 0-9696035-3-3
National Council on Archives, Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997 |