Howard S. Hoffman (May 23, 1925 – August 31, 2006) was an American

experimental psychologist Experimental psychology is the work done by those who apply Experiment, experimental methods to psychological study and the underlying processes. Experimental psychologists employ Research participant, human participants and Animal testing, anim ...

. Hoffman's work on imprinting, the

startle reflex In animals, including humans, the startle response is a largely unconscious defensive response to sudden or threatening stimuli, such as sudden noise or sharp movement, and is associated with negative affect.Rammirez-Moreno, David. "A computatio ...

, and

memory Memory is the faculty of the mind by which data or information is encoded, stored, and retrieved when needed. It is the retention of information over time for the purpose of influencing future action. If past events could not be remembe ...

were particularly influential and earned him an international reputation. He published hundreds of papers as well as a book about the experience of being a scientist, ''Amorous Turkeys and Addicted Ducklings: A Search for the Causes of Social Attachment''.Howard S. Hoffman obituary
, Bryn Mawr College Alumnae Bulletin, November 2006, (accessed 21 February 2015).

Career

Hoffman received grants from the

National Science Foundation The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) is an Independent agencies of the United States government#Examples of independent agencies, independent agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that su ...

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in 1887 and is part of the United States Department of Health and Human Service ...

and the

National Institute for Mental Health The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) is one of 27 institutes and centers that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NIH, in turn, is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and is the primar ...

. He served as chairman of a National Institute of Mental Health committee to review grant applications.Howard Hoffman...On Life
Serendip Studio (accessed 21 February 2015). Hoffman was a veteran of

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 ...

who served in the

European theatre The European theatre of World War II was one of the two main theatres of combat during World War II, taking place from September 1939 to May 1945. The Allied powers (including the United Kingdom, the United States, the Soviet Union and Franc ...

. He earned five bronze stars and two invasion arrowheads. Following the war, he initially studied physics at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

, but was uncertain which of his divergent interests he should pursue. Supported by the

Veterans Administration The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a Cabinet-level executive branch department of the federal government charged with providing lifelong healthcare services to eligible military veterans at the 170 VA medical centers an ...

, which identified his aptitude for physics, mathematics, and painting, Hoffman later attended art school, studying under Moses Sawyer. After observing children in the nursery school where he was employed, he turned to psychology (not, ironically, one of the domains identified by the VA's aptitude testing) and ultimately earned his Ph.D. Hoffman continued to paint. He had one-man shows at Bryn Mawr and the Tyme Gallery, and his work joined the permanent collections of Bryn Mawr,

Haverford College Haverford College ( ) is a private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Haverford, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded as a men's college in 1833 by members of the Religious Society of Fr ...

Rosemont College Rosemont College is a private Catholic university in Rosemont, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1921 as a women's college by the Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus, the undergraduate program opened to male students beginning in fall 2009. ...

, and the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

. Hoffman taught statistics at the

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university system with its main campus in Storrs, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1881 as the Storrs Agricultural School, named after two benefactors. In 1893, ...

, where he earned his Ph.D, then moved to the psychology department of

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

in 1957. Hoffman is credited with rediscovering

prepulse inhibition Prepulse inhibition (PPI) is a neurological phenomenon in which a weaker prestimulus (prepulse) inhibits the reaction of an organism to a subsequent strong reflex-eliciting stimulus (pulse), often using the startle reflex. The stimuli are usually ...

in 1963, and inventing the term. His many papers on the reflex and its modification laid the groundwork for the widespread use of prepulse inhibition today in studies of schizophrenia and other disorders. In 1970, Hoffman joined the faculty of

Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr College ( ; Welsh language, Welsh: ) is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as a ...

. While there, he taught courses on perception and statistics. The perception classes spurred his development of techniques to teach drawing and lead to the book ''Vision and the Art of Drawing''.

Personal life

Hoffman had three sons with his first wife, the psychologist

Dorothy Tennov Dorothy Jane Tennow (August 29, 1928 – February 3, 2007), known as Dorothy Tennov, was an American psychologist who, in her 1979 book, ''Love and Limerence – the Experience of Being in Love'', introduced the term "limerence". Early life and ...

. His second wife, Alice M. Hoffman, had two children from a previous marriage, then they had another daughter together, raising a total of six children. Hoffman collaborated with his son, Russell, to create a computerized statistics course. In collaboration with Alice Hoffman he wrote ''Archives of Memory: A Soldier Recalls World War II'' and ''The Cruikshank Chronicles: Anecdotes, Stories, and Memoirs of a New Deal Liberal''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoffman, Howard S. 1925 births 2006 deaths Experimental psychologists 20th-century American psychologists University of Connecticut faculty Pennsylvania State University faculty Bryn Mawr College faculty University of Connecticut alumni Brooklyn College alumni The New School alumni