Early Psychological Apparatuses Stored in Japan: Imported, Replicated, and Reformed Apparatuses before World War II

Abstract

AbstractA considerable number of classic psychological apparatuses (early apparatuses) are stored in the former Imperial Universities and a few private universities in Japan. Since 2013, the author has been investigating these classic psychological apparatuses as a member of the Historic Document Preservation Committee of the Japanese Psychological Association (JPA). He recently finished the main investigations and found that the classic apparatuses could be divided into three categories: imported products from European and American companies, replicas of the imported products, and reformed products. The latter two categories of apparatuses were made mainly by four Japanese companies, while a considerable number of the imported apparatuses were made by E. Zimmermann's firm. Although the apparatuses made by Japanese companies were not easy to distinguish from each other (i.e., reformed products from replicas), the author identified the existent replicas. Catalogs from domestic and foreign companies contributed considerably to helping him identify the apparatuses in all of the three categories.