Eugene Galanter
Encyclopedia
Eugene Galanter is an academic in the field of experimental psychology
and author. Currently, Dr. Galanter is Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Quondam Director of the Psychophysics Laboratory at Columbia University
. He is also the co-founder, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Scientific Officer of Children’s Progress, an award-winning New York City-based company that specializes in the use of computer technology in early education. The company's assessments and reports have been used in 40 states and 9 countries.
After serving in the United States Armed Forces
in World War II
, Galanter attended Swarthmore College
, receiving an Honors B.A.
in 1950. He went on to graduate school in psychology at the University of Pennsylvania
and after receiving his Ph.D.
in 1953, he was appointed Assistant Professor of Mathematical Psychology
in the University of Pennsylvania's Department of Psychology. Additionally, during several leaves in the 1950s, Galanter collaborated with S. S. Stevens
at Harvard University
's psycho-acoustics laboratory, co-authoring several publications.
While a fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences
of Stanford University
Galanter began a collaboration with George A. Miller, and Karl H. Pribram
, that resulted in the book Plans and the Structure of Behavior, a seminal work in the development of cognitive psychology
published in 1960. By 1956, Galanter had started working towards a theoretical model that would integrate cognitive processes
into the behaviorist's stimulus-response framework. In Plans and the Structure of Behavior, Miller, Galanter, and Pribram proposed that "some mediating organization of experience is necessary" between the stimulus and its behavioral response, i.e., that a cognitive feedback loop, which includes monitoring devices, must control the acquisition of the stimulus-response relationship. This feedback loop, the proposed fundamental unit of behavior, was referred to in Plans as the T.O.T.E.
, an abbreviation of its steps - test, operate, test, exit.
Following the publication of Plans and the Structure of Behavior, Galanter, along with colleagues Robert Bush and Duncan Luce
, worked to move the field of psychology closer to the other natural sciences by advancing the position of mathematical psychology within the discipline as a whole. Their argument was that all psychological phenomena, if properly measured and reduced to quantifiable variables, would reveal law-like rules that govern human behavior and thought. Together, Galanter, Bush, and Luce edited the three volume Handbook of Mathematical Psychology, which was published in 1963.
After leaving the University of Pennsylvania, Galanter held positions at the University of Washington
and Harvard University
before becoming the Gelhorn Professor of Psychology at Columbia University
, where he was also Director of the Psychophysics Laboratory and, for a time, Chairman of the Department of Psychology. In addition to his work in psychophysics
and mathematical psychology, Galanter continues to publish in various subfields of psychometrics
including psychoeducational assessment and motivational measurement. Galanter has been honored by NASA
, which awarded him its Distinguished Scientist Research Award.
After co-founding Children's Progress, Galanter went on to serve as Chief Scientific Officer. Galanter and his daughter Michelle Galanter co-invented and hold the United States patent for the Galanter Educational Evaluation Lattice, which is licensed exclusively to Children’s Progress and is the basis for the Children’s Progress Academic Assessment (CPAA). This dynamic assessment
is based on a developmental model of learning and is grounded in the work of psychologist Lev Vygotsky
. Unlike traditional assessments that determine whether a student’s answers are right or wrong, the CPAA adjusts to every response and provides hints and scaffolding
whenever a student struggles with a concept. This technology then gives teachers better information about each student, and enables them to deliver targeted instruction, tailored to each student’s zone of proximal development
(ZPD).
Experimental psychology
Experimental psychology is a methodological approach, rather than a subject, and encompasses varied fields within psychology. Experimental psychologists have traditionally conducted research, published articles, and taught classes on neuroscience, developmental psychology, sensation, perception,...
and author. Currently, Dr. Galanter is Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Quondam Director of the Psychophysics Laboratory at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
. He is also the co-founder, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Scientific Officer of Children’s Progress, an award-winning New York City-based company that specializes in the use of computer technology in early education. The company's assessments and reports have been used in 40 states and 9 countries.
After serving in the United States Armed Forces
United States armed forces
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard.The United States has a strong tradition of civilian control of the military...
in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Galanter attended Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College is a private, independent, liberal arts college in the United States with an enrollment of about 1,500 students. The college is located in the borough of Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, 11 miles southwest of Philadelphia....
, receiving an Honors B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in 1950. He went on to graduate school in psychology at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
and after receiving his Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in 1953, he was appointed Assistant Professor of Mathematical Psychology
Mathematical psychology
Mathematical psychology is an approach to psychological research that is based on mathematical modeling of perceptual, cognitive and motor processes, and on the establishment of law-like rules that relate quantifiable stimulus characteristics with quantifiable behavior...
in the University of Pennsylvania's Department of Psychology. Additionally, during several leaves in the 1950s, Galanter collaborated with S. S. Stevens
Stanley Smith Stevens
Stanley Smith Stevens was an American psychologist who founded Harvard's Psycho-Acoustic Laboratory and is credited with the introduction of Stevens' power law. Stevens authored a milestone textbook, the 1400+ page "Handbook of Experimental Psychology" . He was also one of the founding organizers...
at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
's psycho-acoustics laboratory, co-authoring several publications.
While a fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences
Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences
The Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences is an American interdisciplinary research body in Stanford, California focusing on the social sciences and humanities . Fellows are elected in a closed process, to spend a period of residence at the Center, released from other duties...
of Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
Galanter began a collaboration with George A. Miller, and Karl H. Pribram
Karl H. Pribram
Karl H. Pribram is a professor at Georgetown University, in the United States, and an emeritus professor of psychology and psychiatry at Stanford University and Radford University...
, that resulted in the book Plans and the Structure of Behavior, a seminal work in the development of cognitive psychology
Cognitive psychology
Cognitive psychology is a subdiscipline of psychology exploring internal mental processes.It is the study of how people perceive, remember, think, speak, and solve problems.Cognitive psychology differs from previous psychological approaches in two key ways....
published in 1960. By 1956, Galanter had started working towards a theoretical model that would integrate cognitive processes
Cognitive psychology
Cognitive psychology is a subdiscipline of psychology exploring internal mental processes.It is the study of how people perceive, remember, think, speak, and solve problems.Cognitive psychology differs from previous psychological approaches in two key ways....
into the behaviorist's stimulus-response framework. In Plans and the Structure of Behavior, Miller, Galanter, and Pribram proposed that "some mediating organization of experience is necessary" between the stimulus and its behavioral response, i.e., that a cognitive feedback loop, which includes monitoring devices, must control the acquisition of the stimulus-response relationship. This feedback loop, the proposed fundamental unit of behavior, was referred to in Plans as the T.O.T.E.
T.O.T.E.
The T.O.T.E. or TOTE, standing for "Test - Operate - Test - Exit", is an iterative problem solving strategy based on feedback loops. It was described by George A. Miller, Eugene Galanter, and Karl H...
, an abbreviation of its steps - test, operate, test, exit.
Following the publication of Plans and the Structure of Behavior, Galanter, along with colleagues Robert Bush and Duncan Luce
R. Duncan Luce
Robert Duncan Luce is the Distinguished Research Professor of Cognitive Science at the University of California, Irvine.Luce received a B.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1945, and PhD in Mathematics from the same university in 1950...
, worked to move the field of psychology closer to the other natural sciences by advancing the position of mathematical psychology within the discipline as a whole. Their argument was that all psychological phenomena, if properly measured and reduced to quantifiable variables, would reveal law-like rules that govern human behavior and thought. Together, Galanter, Bush, and Luce edited the three volume Handbook of Mathematical Psychology, which was published in 1963.
After leaving the University of Pennsylvania, Galanter held positions at the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
and Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
before becoming the Gelhorn Professor of Psychology at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, where he was also Director of the Psychophysics Laboratory and, for a time, Chairman of the Department of Psychology. In addition to his work in psychophysics
Psychophysics
Psychophysics quantitatively investigates the relationship between physical stimuli and the sensations and perceptions they effect. Psychophysics has been described as "the scientific study of the relation between stimulus and sensation" or, more completely, as "the analysis of perceptual...
and mathematical psychology, Galanter continues to publish in various subfields of psychometrics
Psychometrics
Psychometrics is the field of study concerned with the theory and technique of psychological measurement, which includes the measurement of knowledge, abilities, attitudes, personality traits, and educational measurement...
including psychoeducational assessment and motivational measurement. Galanter has been honored by NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
, which awarded him its Distinguished Scientist Research Award.
After co-founding Children's Progress, Galanter went on to serve as Chief Scientific Officer. Galanter and his daughter Michelle Galanter co-invented and hold the United States patent for the Galanter Educational Evaluation Lattice, which is licensed exclusively to Children’s Progress and is the basis for the Children’s Progress Academic Assessment (CPAA). This dynamic assessment
Dynamic assessment
Dynamic assessment is a kind of interactive assessment used most in education. Dynamic assessment is a product of the research conducted by developmental psychologist Lev Vygotsky.-Theory:...
is based on a developmental model of learning and is grounded in the work of psychologist Lev Vygotsky
Lev Vygotsky
Lev Semyonovich Vygotsky was a Soviet psychologist, the founder of cultural-historical psychology, and the leader of the Vygotsky Circle.-Biography:...
. Unlike traditional assessments that determine whether a student’s answers are right or wrong, the CPAA adjusts to every response and provides hints and scaffolding
Instructional scaffolding
Instructional scaffolding is the provision of sufficient support to promote learning when concepts and skills are being first introduced to students...
whenever a student struggles with a concept. This technology then gives teachers better information about each student, and enables them to deliver targeted instruction, tailored to each student’s zone of proximal development
Zone of proximal development
“The zone of proximal development defines functions that have not matured yet, but are in a process of maturing. The zone of proximal development , often abbreviated ZPD, is the difference between what a learner can do without help and what he or she can do with help...
(ZPD).
Books
- People, Preferences & Prices, Bentham Science Publishers Ltd.: Oak Park, 2010
- Psych Tech Notes; Version 2.2 CD, Adams, Bannister, Cox:New York, 2004
- Psych Tech Notes; Version 2.2 CD, Adams, Bannister, Cox: New York, 2004
- Advanced Programming Handbook, New York: Putnam, 1985.
- Elementary Programming for Kids in BASIC, New York: Putnam, 1984.
- The Parents' Microcomputer Handbook, New York: Putnam, 1983.
- Textbook of Elementary Psychology, San Francisco: Holden-Day, 1966.
- Readings in Mathematical Psychology, With R. D. Luce and R. R. Bush. New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1964-65. 2 Vols.
- The Handbook of Mathematical Psychology, With R. D. Luce and R. R. Bush. New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1963-65. 3 Vols.
- Automatic teaching: the state of the art, New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1959.