The Conception of a Pragmatic Social Cognitive Psychology

Abstract

As the turn of the nineteenth century approached, the new president of the American Psychological Association (APA) stood before his colleagues and admonished them to join theory and research to social practice. His concerns included the hostility of experimental psychologists to applied psychologists and practitioners as well as the latter’s indifference to research. He also had great hopes for practice to be scientifically grounded. He feared the consequences of segregation into two camps: an irrelevant basic psychology fashioned from the artificialities of the laboratory and an unscientific practice reflecting suspect traditions and intuition. His own work demonstrated the value of ongoing cross-fertilization between these two perspectives. He used new theory and research in child development to guide his educational innovations; experiences emerging from them challenged theory and research for explanations.