A scientometric appreciation of H. J. Eysenck’s contributions to psychology

Abstract

Abstract This article describes Hans Eysenck’s productivity, his citations, his students, his department, his journals, his personality in relation to his scientific achievement, his legacy, and a personal note of appreciation. Eysenck’s influence brought the “London School” of psychology into the twenty-first century. Originating in Darwin’s theory of evolution and the psychometrics of Galton, Spearman, Pearson, and Burt, Eysenck applied it to individual differences in social behavior and its modifiability. Even before starting his own department in 1950, Eysenck had begun work on his theory of personality, including its genetic and environmental basis and its applications to the neuroses. His work also examined the inefficacy of psychoanalysis, the relation between heritable personality traits and crime, sexuality, genius, and race, and the use of behavior therapy and vitamin-mineral supplements to modify behavior. Before his death, Eysenck had published over 1000 journal articles and book chapters and 80 books, an average of an article or book chapter every 2 weeks for 50 years and a book every 9 months. When he died, he was the most cited living psychologist and he is the third most cited psychologist of all time (after Sigmund Freud and Jean Piaget). In this writer’s opinion, Hans Eysenck was the single most important psychologist who ever lived. His citation legacy will be tracked for decades to come.