Henry Alexander Murray (May 13, 1893 – June 23, 1988) was an American

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and explanation, interpretatio ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

. From 1959 to 1962, he conducted a series of psychologically damaging and purposefully abusive experiments on minors and undergraduate students. One of those students was Ted Kaczynski, later known as the Unabomber. Murray was Director of the Harvard Psychological Clinic in the School of Arts and Sciences after 1930. Murray developed a theory of

personality Personality is any person's collection of interrelated behavioral, cognitive, and emotional patterns that comprise a person’s unique adjustment to life. These interrelated patterns are relatively stable, but can change over long time per ...

called personology, based on "

need A need is a deficiency at a point of time and in a given context. Needs are distinguished from wants. In the case of a need, a deficiency causes a clear adverse outcome: a dysfunction or death. In other words, a need is something required for a ...

" and "press". Murray was also a co-developer, with Christiana Morgan, of the

Thematic Apperception Test The Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) is a projective psychological test developed during the 1930s by Henry A. Murray and Christiana D. Morgan at Harvard University. Proponents of the technique assert that subjects' responses, in the narratives ...

(TAT), which he referred to as "the second best-seller that Harvard ever published, second only to the ''

Harvard Dictionary of Music ''The Harvard Dictionary of Music'' is a standard music reference book published by the Belknap Press of Harvard University Press. The first edition, titled ''Harvard Dictionary of Music'', was published in 1944, and was edited by Willi Apel. ...

''".

Early life and education

Murray was born in New York City into a wealthy family of Henry Alexander Murray Sr. and Fannie Morris Babcock, daughter of financier Samuel Denison Babcock. Murray had an older sister and a younger brother. Carver and Scheier note that "he got on well with his father but had a poor relationship with his mother", resulting in a deep-seated feeling of depression. They hypothesize that the disruption of this relationship led Murray to be especially aware of people's needs and their importance as underlying determinants of behavior.Carver, Charles S., and Michael Scheier (1992). ''Perspectives on Personality'', 2nd ed. Needham Heights, Mass.:

Allyn & Bacon Allyn & Bacon, founded in 1868, is a higher education textbook publisher in the areas of education, humanities and social sciences. It is an imprint of Pearson Education, the world's largest education publishing and technology company, which is ...

. . After

Groton School Groton School is a Private school, private, college-preparatory school, college-preparatory, day school, day and boarding school located in Groton, Massachusetts, United States. It is affiliated with the Episcopal Church (United States), Episcop ...

he attended

, where he majored in history while competing in

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically a ...

and

boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...

. His academic pursuits at Harvard were lacking, but at

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

he excelled in medicine and completed his M.D. and also received an M.A. in

biology Biology is the scientific study of life and living organisms. It is a broad natural science that encompasses a wide range of fields and unifying principles that explain the structure, function, growth, History of life, origin, evolution, and ...

in 1919. For the following two years he was an instructor in physiology at Harvard. He received his doctorate in

biochemistry Biochemistry, or biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology, a ...

from the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

in 1928, aged 35. In 1916, Murray married at age 23 to Josephine Lee Rantoul. In 1923, after seven years of marriage, he met and fell in love with Christiana Morgan; he experienced a serious conflict as he did not want to leave his wife. This was a turning point in Murray's life as it raised his awareness of conflicting needs, the pressure that can result, and the links to motivation. Carver and Scheier note that it was Morgan who was "fascinated by the psychology of Carl Jung" and it was as a result of her urging that he met

Carl Jung Carl Gustav Jung ( ; ; 26 July 1875 – 6 June 1961) was a Swiss psychiatrist, psychotherapist, and psychologist who founded the school of analytical psychology. A prolific author of Carl Jung publications, over 20 books, illustrator, and corr ...

in Switzerland. He described Jung as "The first full blooded, spherical—and Goethean, I would say, intelligence I had ever met." He was analyzed by him and studied his works. "The experience of bringing a problem to a psychologist and receiving an answer that seemed to work had a great impact on Murray, leading him to seriously consider psychology as a career".

Professional career

During his period at Harvard, Murray sat in on lectures by

Alfred North Whitehead Alfred North Whitehead (15 February 1861 – 30 December 1947) was an English mathematician and philosopher. He created the philosophical school known as process philosophy, which has been applied in a wide variety of disciplines, inclu ...

, whose

process philosophy Process philosophy (also ontology of becoming or processism) is an approach in philosophy that identifies processes, changes, or shifting relationships as the only real experience of everyday living. In opposition to the classical view of change ...

marked his philosophical and metaphysical thinking throughout his professional career. In 1927, at the age of 33, Murray became assistant director of the Harvard Psychological Clinic. He developed the concepts of latent needs (not openly displayed), manifest needs (observed in people's actions), "press" (external influences on motivation) and "thema"—"a pattern of press and need that coalesces around particular interactions". Murray collaborated with Stanley Cobb, Bullard Professor of Neuropathology at the Medical School, to introduce psychoanalysis into the Harvard curriculum but to keep those who taught it away from the decision-making apparatus in Vienna. He and Cobb set the stage for the founding of the Boston Psychoanalytic Society after 1931, but both were excluded from membership on political grounds. In 1935, Murray and Morgan developed the concept of apperception and the assumption that everyone's thinking is shaped by subjective processes, the rationale behind the

Thematic apperception test The Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) is a projective psychological test developed during the 1930s by Henry A. Murray and Christiana D. Morgan at Harvard University. Proponents of the technique assert that subjects' responses, in the narratives ...

. They used the term "apperception" to refer to the process of projecting fantasy imagery onto an objective stimulus. In 1937, Murray became director of the Harvard Psychological Clinic. In 1938 he published ''Explorations in Personality'', a classic in psychology, which includes a description of the Thematic Apperception Test. In 1938 Murray acted as a consultant for the British Government, setting up the Officer Selection Board. Murray's work at The Harvard Psychological Clinic enabled him to apply his theories in the design of the selection processes with a "situation test", an assessment based on practical tasks and activities, an analysis of ''specific criteria'' (e.g. "leadership") by a number of raters across a range of activities. Results were pooled to achieve an overall assessment.

World War II, Office of Strategic Services, 1939–1945

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he left Harvard and worked as lieutenant colonel for the

Office of Strategic Services The Office of Strategic Services (OSS) was the first intelligence agency of the United States, formed during World War II. The OSS was formed as an agency of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) to coordinate espionage activities behind enemy lines ...

(OSS). James Miller, in charge of the selection of secret agents at the OSS during World War II, said the situation test was used by British War Officer Selection Board and OSS to assess potential agents. In 1943 Murray helped complete '' Analysis of the Personality of Adolph Hitler'', commissioned by OSS boss Gen. William "Wild Bill" Donovan. The report was done in collaboration with

psychoanalyst PsychoanalysisFrom Greek: and is a set of theories and techniques of research to discover unconscious processes and their influence on conscious thought, emotion and behaviour. Based on dream interpretation, psychoanalysis is also a talk th ...

Walter C. Langer, Ernst Kris,

New School for Social Research The New School for Social Research (NSSR), previously known as The University in Exile and The New School University, is a graduate-level educational division of The New School in New York City, United States. NSSR enrolls more than 1,000 stud ...

, and Bertram D. Lewin, New York Psychoanalytic Institute. The report used many sources to profile

Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

, including informants such as Ernst Hanfstaengl,

Hermann Rauschning Hermann Adolf Reinhold Rauschning (7 August 1887 – 8 February 1982) was a German politician and author, adherent of the Conservative Revolution movement who briefly joined the Nazi movement before breaking with it. He was the President of the S ...

, Princess Stephanie von Hohenlohe, Gregor Strasser, Friedelind Wagner, and Kurt Ludecke. The groundbreaking study was the pioneer of

offender profiling Offender profiling, also known as criminal profiling, is an investigative strategy used by law enforcement agencies to identify likely suspects and has been used by Detective, investigators to link cases that may have been committed by the same ...

and political psychology. In addition to predicting that Hitler would choose suicide if defeat for Germany was near, Murray's collaborative report stated that Hitler was impotent as far as heterosexual relations were concerned and that there was a possibility that Hitler had participated in a homosexual relationship. The report stated: "The belief that Hitler is homosexual has probably developed (a) from the fact that he does show so many

feminine Femininity (also called womanliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and Gender roles, roles generally associated with women and girls. Femininity can be understood as Social construction of gender, socially constructed, and there is also s ...

characteristics, and (b) from the fact that there were so many homosexuals in the

Party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a Hospitality, host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will oft ...

during the early days and many continue to occupy important positions. It is probably true that Hitler calls Albert Forster 'Bubi', which is a common nickname employed by homosexuals in addressing their partners."

Harvard human experiments, 1959–1962

In 1947, he returned to Harvard as a chief researcher, lectured and established with others the ''Psychological Clinic Annex''. From late 1959 to early 1962, Murray was responsible for unethical experiments in which he used twenty-two Harvard undergraduates as research subjects. Among other goals, experiments sought to measure individuals' responses to extreme stress. The unwitting undergraduates were submitted to what Murray called "vehement, sweeping and personally abusive" attacks. Specifically tailored assaults to their egos, cherished ideas, and beliefs were used to cause high levels of stress and distress. The subjects then viewed recorded footage of their reactions to this verbal abuse repeatedly. Among the subjects was 17-year-old Ted Kaczynski, a mathematician who went on to become the domestic terrorist known as the 'Unabomber', who targeted academics and technologists for 17 years. Alston Chase's book ''Harvard and the Unabomber: The Education of an American Terrorist'' connects Kaczynski's abusive experiences under Murray to his later criminal career.Chase, Alston (Jun. 2000)
"Harvard and the Making of the Unabomber."
''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 185 ...

'', vol. 285, no. 6, pp. 41-65. Kaczynski himself disputed connections made between Murray's experiments and the Unabomber bombings, stating that throughout the study, he only had one unpleasant experience for just 30 minutes. In 1960,

Timothy Leary Timothy Francis Leary (October 22, 1920 – May 31, 1996) was an American psychologist and author known for his strong advocacy of psychedelic drugs. Evaluations of Leary are polarized, ranging from "bold oracle" to "publicity hound". Accordin ...

started research in

psychedelic drugs Psychedelics are a subclass of Hallucinogen, hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger psychoactive drug, non-ordinary mental states (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips") and a perceived "expansion of consciousness". Also ...

at Harvard, which Murray is said to have supervised. Some sources have suggested that Murray's experiments were part of, or indemnified by, the United States government's research into mind control, known as the MKUltra project. Moreno, Jonathan D. (2012). ''Mind Wars: Brain Science and the Military in the 21st Century''. New York: Bellevue Literary Press, NYU School of Medicine. Revised and updated. . Originally published as ''Mind Wars: Brain Research and National Defense''. Washington, D.C.: Dana Press (2006).

Retirement and death

In 1962, shortly after the death of his wife, Murray became emeritus professor, and earned the Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award from the

American Psychological Association The American Psychological Association (APA) is the main professional organization of psychologists in the United States, and the largest psychological association in the world. It has over 170,000 members, including scientists, educators, clin ...

and the Gold Medal Award for lifetime achievement from the American Psychological Foundation.Biographical profile
at

McGraw-Hill Education McGraw Hill is an American education science company that provides educational content, software, and services for students and educators across various levels—from K-12 to higher education and professional settings. They produce textbooks, ...

. He later married Caroline "Nina" Fish, a child psychologist at

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

and the Massachusetts Mental Health Center, who had been a former student of

Jean Piaget Jean William Fritz Piaget (, ; ; 9 August 1896 – 16 September 1980) was a Swiss psychologist known for his work on child development. Piaget's theory of cognitive development and epistemological view are together called genetic epistemology. ...

. Murray died from pneumonia at the age of 95. Murray was a leading authority on the works of American author

Herman Melville Herman Melville (Name change, born Melvill; August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance (literature), American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works ar ...

Fowler, Glenn (Jun. 24, 1988)
"Henry A. Murray is dead at 95; developer of personality theory."
(

obituary An obituary (wikt:obit#Etymology 2, obit for short) is an Article (publishing), article about a recently death, deceased person. Newspapers often publish obituaries as Article (publishing), news articles. Although obituaries tend to focus on p ...

). ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', p. D17. and amassed a collection of books, manuscripts and artifacts relating to Melville which he donated to the Berkshire Athenaeum in

Pittsfield, Massachusetts Pittsfield is the most populous city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsfi ...

Personology

Murray's Theory of Personality, also called ''personology'', is explained in his book, ''Explorations in Personality'', written in 1938. Murray's system of needs is an important part of the personological system. and developed while personality theory in psychology was becoming dominated by the statistics of trait theory. Personology was a holistic approach that studied the person at many levels of complexity all at the same time by an interdisciplinary team of investigators. According to Murray's ideas, an individual's personality develops dynamically as each person responds to complex elements in her or his specific environment. Murray viewed an individual's entire life as one unit, and pointed out that although a specific element of a person's life can be studied through psychology, this studied episode gives an incomplete picture of the entire life unit. To properly analyze the entire life cycle, Murray favored a narrative approach to studying personality, which he called "personology". The personological system has been used as an approach for multiple academic disciplines: philosophy, humanism, biological chemistry, and societal and cultural studies. Murray divided personology into five principles: (1) Cerebral physiology, rooted in the brain, governs all aspects of personality. (2) People act to reduce physiological and psychological tension to gain satisfaction, but do not strive to be tension-free, and rather cycle between seeking excitement, activity and movement in their lives and then relaxing. (3) An individual's personality continues to develop over time and is influenced by all of the events that occur over a person's lifetime. (4) Personality is not fixed and it can change and progress, and (5) Each person has some unique characteristics and others which are shared by everyone. Murray's theory of personality is rooted in psychoanalysis, and the chief business and aim of personology is the reconstruction of the individual's past life experiences in order to explain their present behavior. To study personality, Murray used free association and dream analysis to bring unconscious material to light. Murray's personality theories have been questioned by some psychologists, and extended by others, such as

David McClelland David Clarence McClelland (May 20, 1917 – March 27, 1998) was an American psychologist, noted for his work on motivation need theory. He published a number of works between the 1950s and the 1990s and developed new scoring systems for the ...

In popular culture

Murray was portrayed by

Brian d'Arcy James Brian d'Arcy James (born June 29, 1968) is an American actor and musician. He is known primarily for his Broadway roles, including Shrek in '' Shrek the Musical'', Nick Bottom in '' Something Rotten!'', King George III in '' Hamilton'', and T ...

in '' Manhunt: Unabomber'', a 2017

docudrama Docudrama (or documentary drama) is a genre of television show, television and feature film, film, which features Drama (film and television), dramatized Historical reenactment, re-enactments of actual events. It is described as a hybrid of docu ...

miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

created by Andrew Sodroski, Jim Clemente, and Tony Gittelson. Barber, Nigel (Nov. 9, 2017)
"Is Psychology Responsible for the Unabomber?: 'Manhunt' partly blames research by Henry Murray."
''

Psychology Today ''Psychology Today'' is an American media organization with a focus on psychology and human behavior. The publication began as a bimonthly magazine, which first appeared in 1967. The print magazine's reported circulation is 275,000 as of 2023. ...

''.

Selected works

Books

* ''Explorations in Personality'', with
foreword
by Dan P. McAdams. New York:

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

(1938); reissue (2008).
''Assessment of Men: Selection of Personnel for the Office of Strategic Service''
with OSS Selection Staff. New York: Rinehart (1948). * '' Personality in Nature, Society, and Culture'', with Clyde Kluckhohn. New York:

Knopf Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. () is an American publishing house that was founded by Blanche Knopf and Alfred A. Knopf Sr. in 1915. Blanche and Alfred traveled abroad regularly and were known for publishing European, Asian, and Latin American writers ...

(1953).
''Myth and Mythmaking''.
New York: G. Braziller (1960).

Articles

* "The Effect of Fear Upon Estimates of the Maliciousness of other Personalities." '' Journal of Social Psychology'', vol. 4, no. 3 (1933), pp. 310–329. . * "Psychology and the University." ''Archives of Neurology and Psychiatry'', vol. 34 (Oct. 1935). .
"Assessment of OSS Personnel,"
with Donald W. MacKinnon. '' Journal of Consulting Psychology'', vol. 10, no. 2 (1946), pp. 76–80. . * "America's Mission." '' Survey Graphic'', vol. 37, no. 10 (Oct. 1948), pp. 411–415
Full issue.Full audio.

"In Nomine Diaboli."
'' New England Quarterly'', vol. 24, no. 4 (Dec. 1951), pp. 435–452. . .
"Introduction to the Issue 'Myth and Mythmaking.'"
''

Daedalus In Greek mythology, Daedalus (, ; Greek language, Greek: Δαίδαλος; Latin language, Latin: ''Daedalus''; Etruscan language, Etruscan: ''Taitale'') was a skillful architect and craftsman, seen as a symbol of wisdom, knowledge and power. H ...

'', vol. 88, no. 2
Special Issue: Myth and Mythmaking
(Spring 1959), pp. 211–222. .
"The Personality and Career of Satan."
''

Journal of Social Issues The ''Journal of Social Issues'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues along with '' Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy'' and '' So ...

'', vol. 18, no. 4 (Oct. 1962), pp. 36–54. . * "Studies of Stressful Interpersonal Disputations." ''

American Psychologist ''American Psychologist'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by the American Psychological Association. The journal publishes articles of broad interest to psychologists, including empirical reports and scholarly reviews covering science ...

'', vol. 18, no. 1 (1963), pp. 28–36. .

Reports

* ''Analysis of the Personality of Adolph Hitler: With Predictions of his Future Behavior and Suggestions for Dealing with Him Now and After Germany's Surrender''. Washington:

(1943)
Full text.

References

External links

Henry A. Murray
at Neurotree
TAT Research
at the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or The University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United St ...

Sandra K. Webster: Henry Murray
at Westminster College
Biographical profile
at

{{DEFAULTSORT:Murray, Henry 1893 births 1988 deaths 20th-century American psychologists Analysands of Franz Alexander Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons alumni Harvard College alumni Harvard University Department of Psychology faculty Mind control theorists Project MKUltra Deaths from pneumonia in Massachusetts Human subject research in the United States People of the Office of Strategic Services APA Distinguished Scientific Award for an Early Career Contribution to Psychology recipients