Herbert Sidney Langfeld (July 24, 1879 – February 25, 1958) was an American psychologist and a past president of the American Psychological Association (APA).

Herbert Langfeld
Born(1879-07-24)July 24, 1879
DiedFebruary 25, 1958(1958-02-25) (aged 78)
Known forPast president, American Psychological Association
Scientific career
FieldsPsychology
InstitutionsHarvard University
Princeton University
ThesisÜber die heterochrome Helligkeitsvergleichung (1909)
Doctoral advisorCarl Stumpf

Biography edit

Herbert Langfeld was born in Philadelphia on July 24, 1879.[1] He grew up in Philadelphia and was initially drawn to a diplomatic career. He was working for the American Embassy in Berlin when he was attracted to psychology. He earned a PhD in 1909 at the University of Berlin. He took a faculty position at Harvard University and ultimately went to Princeton University, where he became the psychological laboratory director and later the department chair for psychology.[2] While at Princeton he also directly influenced the ecological psychology approach of J. J. Gibson through his phenomenological ideas.[3]

Langfeld was APA president in 1930.[4] He also held leadership positions with the International Congress of Psychology and the Psychology Section of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.[5]

He died from heart disease in Princeton, New Jersey on February 25, 1958.[6]

References edit

  1. ^ "Herbert Sidney Langfeld". Princeton Alumni Weekly. Vol. LIX, no. 11. November 28, 1958. p. 27. Retrieved May 5, 2023 – via Google Books.
  2. ^ Bartlett, F. C. (1958). "Herbert Sidney Langfeld: 1879-1958". American Journal of Psychology. 71 (3): 616–619. JSTOR 1420272. PMID 13571476.
  3. ^ Lobo, Lorena; Heras-Escribano, Manuel; Travieso, David (November 27, 2018). Hommel, Bernhard (ed.). "The History and Philosophy of Ecological Psychology". Frontiers in Psychology. 9: 2228. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02228. PMC 6280920. PMID 30555368.
  4. ^ "Former APA presidents". American Psychological Association. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
  5. ^ Written at Princeton, New Jersey. "Dr. Herbert Sidney Langfeld, 78; Served as Camouflage Adviser". Newsday. Hempstead, New York. February 26, 1958. p. 70. Retrieved May 5, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.