Francis Cecil Sumner: his views and influence on African American higher education

During the mid-1920s, Francis Cecil Sumner, the first African American to earn a PhD in psychology, published 2 articles concerning strategies for the higher education of African American youths. These articles called for a system of segregated education emphasizing an "industrial" style advocated by Booker T. Washington, as well as suggesting a measure of character development. The justification cited by Sumner for such unequal education for African Americans was the cultural inferiority of that population. The present article argues that Sumner's views were couched in terms that fit the prevailing paradigm of the White establishment, with the purpose of generating political and economic support for any type of higher education for African Americans. Evidence drawn from Sumner's early education and his graduate school days at Clark University, as well as testimonials from colleagues and students, are provided in support of this hypothesis.     

The Psychology of Dilemmas and the Philosophy of Morality

We review several instances where cognitive research has identified distinct psychological mechanisms for moral judgment that yield conflicting answers to moral dilemmas. In each of these cases, the conflict between psychological mechanisms is paralleled by prominent philosophical debates between different moral theories. A parsimonious account of this data is that key claims supporting different moral theories ultimately derive from the psychological mechanisms that give rise to moral judgments. If this view is correct, it has some important implications for the practice of philosophy. We suggest several ways that moral philosophy and practical reasoning can proceed in the face of discordant theories grounded in diverse psychological mechanisms.

Karl Popper,Psychology and Philosophy

This paper intends to re-emphasize the relationship among Psychology, Popper and his Philosophy. Popper, who is often considered as one of the most important philosophers of science, had associations with the discipline of psychology in his early years. Popper was associated with Würzburg school of psychology, especially the psychologies of Külpe, Selz and Bühler. However, there was a change in Popper’s interest from the psychology of discovery to an objectivist epistemology—that is, to the logic of discovery, which he himself acknowledged (1976, p. 55). Popper, not only turned away from psychology, as early as 1930 or thereabouts, he later became one of the most outspoken opponents of a psychological approach to science. This antipathy has worked both ways! Very few psychologists study and discuss Popper. His place in the history of psychology, certainly remains inadequate. But why should psychologists ignore Popper? Instead of turning away from Popper, Psychologists’ efforts should be directed towards bringing into focus Popper, his works and association with psychology. This paper argues and tries to discuss the relationships among Popper, his training in psychology and his philosophy.     

Psychology and homosexuality: The British Sexological Society

The British Sexological Society was a largely unknown society composed of influential people of the early twentieth century in Great Britain. The present research is an archival study of the Society and its work concerning homosexuality. Issues addressed by the British Sexological Society are relevant to the early development of sexual emancipation movements as well as to issues of sexuality today.