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The ideal autobiographer is an intimate witness to many levels of history, the contributors to History of Psychology in Autobiography convey their complex intellectual journeys—the personal ones and that of the discipline itself—with profound skill and finesse. Covering a broad swath of the 20th century, these are brilliant examples of the nurturing of psychology by its various scientific and philosophical roots, the relationships between the individual and the society, and the joy and fascination of learning. As they relate their stories to the larger context of their times, each author becomes a testament to both the scientific method and the human imagination, from David Bakan (who finds a rich Freudian libido in ancient Jewish mysticism), to Erika Apfelbaum (who describes the disconnect between the field and the social movements of the 1960s), to Robert Rieber (who begins his essay with a poem). Much in these narratives is developmental: the myriad influences of family, the formation of identity, pivotal meetings with role models, teachers, and mentors. Here, too, one finds university politics as seen from both sides of the desk and the office, wars and alliances between theorists and ideas, and possible approaches to ongoing questions of justice and power, goodness and evil. Together, these eight memoirs document a heady era of master thinkers, they also resonate with readers as career-affirming, vibrantly human encounters.
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