The Emergence of Clinical Psychology in Britain from 1943 to 1958 Part II: Practice and Research Traditions

Abstract

This paper considers the range of practice and research traditions in clinical psychology that developed in Britain from 1943 to around 1958, and the contexts in which they arose. The earliest and for many years the largest identifiable tradition was that of mental hygiene and child guidance, influenced by the educational background of many psychologists. Three different groups worked at the Institute of Psychiatry in London, representing the influence of Hans Eysenck, Monte Shapiro, and those working at the Medical Research Council Social Psychiatry Unit. A number of the principal investigators at the last Unit (Jack Tizard and Neil O’Connor) worked in the learning disability and autism fields, and so collaborated with the Clarkes at Epsom and Herbert Giinzburg in Birmingham. The two other adult mental health traditions, of the Crichton Royal at Dumfries, and the Tavistock Clinic in London, illustrate very different approaches to both training and practice in this field. The neuropsychology field, led by Oliver Zangwill from Cambridge, was the only other client-group speciality identifiable at that time. Many psychologists worked away from these centres, and the story of this period is of slow development away from London, with more diverse research activity than is often assumed. The influence of key protagonists is discussed, including the role of different groups of doctors in promoting clinical psychology. Opportunities for further and more critical research in this field are outlined.