Tracy Kendler, née Sylvia Seedman (August 4, 1918 – July 28, 2001) was an American research psychologist known for her research in

discrimination learning Discrimination learning is defined in psychology as the ability to respond differently to different stimuli. This type of learning is used in studies regarding operant and classical conditioning. Operant conditioning involves the modification of a ...

Early life and education

Kendler was born Sylvia Seedman in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, and changed her name to Tracy at a young age. She was encouraged to find a husband instead of attending university, but matriculated at

Brooklyn College Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn in New York City, United States. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls nearly 14,000 students on a campus in the Midwood and Flatbush sections of Brooklyn as of fall ...

, where she began to work with

Abraham Maslow Abraham Harold Maslow ( ; April 1, 1908 – June 8, 1970) was an American psychologist who created Maslow's hierarchy of needs, a theory of psychological health predicated on fulfilling innate human needs in priority, culminating in self-actua ...

. She and her future husband, Howard H. Kendler, moved to the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

for their graduate studies, where she studied for a master's degree with

Kenneth Spence Kenneth Wartinbee Spence (May 6, 1907 – January 12, 1967) was a prominent American psychologist known for both his theoretical and experimental contributions to learning theory and motivation. As one of the leading theorists of his time, Spence ...

and did research in neobehaviorism for her Ph.D., which she earned in 1943. Kendler was not offered any paying employment at the university during her studies; she worked concurrently at a state mental hospital as a clinical psychologist, for the Army as a statistician, and as a volunteer psychologist.

Career and research

After her graduate studies, Kendler moved to

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, and began her career in the Army Air Force Selection Program. While raising a family, she worked with the

American Jewish Congress The American Jewish Congress (AJCongress) is an association of American Jews organized to defend Jewish interests in the US and internationally through public policy advocacy, using diplomacy, legislation, and the courts. History The idea for a ...

and the

NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is an American civil rights organization formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E. B. Du&nbs ...

to gather evidence for the ''

Brown v. Board of Education ''Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka'', 347 U.S. 483 (1954), was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that ruled that U.S. state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional, even if the ...

'' case, which outlawed "separate but equal" educational segregation in the United States. Her major research began with a study of discrimination learning in young children to compare their behavior to adult humans and rats. In 1955, Kendler began as an assistant professor in psychology 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 ...

, her first paid academic position. Her work received widespread attention and funding 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 ...

, and she was summarily promoted to associate professor in 1959, and she earned tenure in 1960. However, while she was there, she was not allowed to teach graduate courses and discriminated against for her gender. Kendler's husband was offered a professorship at the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an ...

in 1963, but she was not offered a position due to anti-

nepotism Nepotism is the act of granting an In-group favoritism, advantage, privilege, or position to Kinship, relatives in an occupation or field. These fields can include business, politics, academia, entertainment, sports, religion or health care. In ...

rules. After long negotiations, the university granted her an exception – the first in its history – and she was given a professorship in 1966. Her work there included significant mentorship, extensive publication, and research on the

neurophysiology Neurophysiology is a branch of physiology and neuroscience concerned with the functions of the nervous system and their mechanisms. The term ''neurophysiology'' originates from the Greek word ''νεῦρον'' ("nerve") and ''physiology'' (whic ...

cognitive development Cognitive development is a field of study in neuroscience and psychology focusing on a child's development in terms of information processing, conceptual resources, perceptual skill, language learning, and other aspects of the developed adult bra ...

. She retired and became a professor emerita in 1989, was diagnosed with

pulmonary fibrosis Pulmonary fibrosis is a condition in which the lungs become scarred over time. Symptoms include shortness of breath, a dry cough, feeling tired, weight loss, and nail clubbing. Complications may include pulmonary hypertension, respiratory ...

in 1997, and died of the disease in 2001.

Honors and awards

Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are Grant (money), grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, endowed by the late Simon Guggenheim, Simon and Olga Hirsh Guggenheim. These awards are bestowed upon indiv ...

, 1974 * Governing Board,

Psychonomic Society The Psychonomic Society is an international scientific society of over 4,500 scientists in the field of experimental psychology. The mission of the Psychonomic Society is to foster the science of cognition through the advancement and communicatio ...

(first woman) * Member,

Society of Experimental Psychologists The Society of Experimental Psychologists (SEP), originally called the Society of Experimentalists, is an academic society for experimental psychologists. It was founded by Edward Bradford Titchener in 1904 to be an ongoing workshop in which mem ...

* President,

Western Psychological Association The Western Psychological Association (abbreviated WPA) is an American learned society dedicated to the study of psychology and other behavioral sciences. It is a regional association focused on the Western United States, and is affiliated with th ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kendler, Tracy 20th-century American psychologists American women psychologists Brooklyn College alumni University of Iowa alumni University of California, Santa Barbara faculty 1918 births 2001 deaths 20th-century American women