How Did William James Contribute To Psychology

The psychologist I chose is to write about for project 2 is William James (01/11/1842 - 08/26/1910). He is best known for Pragmatism, Functionalism, James-Lange Theory of Emotion, and is often called the father of American psychology. William James was born into a wealthy family, he was the son of a theologian and the brother of both a prominent novelist and diarist. He himself, wrote about many topics including epistemology, education, metaphysics, psychology, religion, and mysticism. In 1861 he attended Lawrence Scientific School of Harvard University. In 1854 William James switched to Harvard Medical School but his studies were interrupted by an expedition along the Amazon River, although eight months in having

suffered terrible bouts of seasickness and smallpox he returned home and in June of 1869 William James finally achieved his M.D.

degree in medicine although he would never actually practice. Mr. James was not only an American philosopher but also a psychologist that was trained as a physician. He had medical training and was responsible for the first psychology course to be offered to students in the United States. James is best remembered for his extensive writings, which ranged widely through subjects such as mysticism, pragmatism, religion, and several aspects of psychology. Mr. William James

was the first educator to even offer a psychology course in the United States, and was also one of the leading thinkers of the late nineteenth century. He is believed by many people to be one of the most influential philosophers that the United States has ever produced. William James, along with others like Charles Sanders Peirce and John Dewey, are one of the major figures that are associated

with pragmatism. He is also cited as one of the founders of functional psychology. James is considered the fourteenth most well-known psychologist of the twentieth century, said by a Review of General Psychology analysis. I find it very interesting that he also developed the philosophical perspective which is known as “radical empiricism”. James’ work has influenced so many intellectuals including president Jimmy Carter. To get more into detail about his career, he interacted with many different types of writers and scholars throughout his entire life, which includes his godfather Ralph Waldo Emerson (an American essayist, lecturer, and poet) his godson William James Sidis (an American child prodigy and master of many languages) and many more. Most of his Academic career was spent at Harvard. For the spring 1873 term, he was appointed instructor in physiology, and anatomy and physiology. He was also the assistant professor of psychology in 1876, assistant professor of philosophy in 1881, full professor in 1885, endowed chair in psychology in 1889, plus many, many more. He decided to study medicine, physiology ad biology and then began to teach in those subjects. He retired from Harvard University in January 1907, after a long teaching career. When William was young he had hoped to
be allowed to study art, but his father tried to persuade him to study philosophy or science instead. James remains a widely read philosopher, and his theories on pragmatism have contributed both to the field of psychology and philosophy.