Why is it important to study the history of psychology, with reference to the nature of historical writing.

-- soph workman (sophworkman@aol.com), November 17, 2002

Answers

I'm not sure I understand the question, but if one is going to write general history, and psychology is one major cultural institution among others, then one should write about the history of psychology as much as any other major cultural institution.

-- Christopher Green (christo@yorku.ca), November 17, 2002.

my thoughts:

psychology is the study of what makes people 'tick', why people do what they do, for example, what made Hitler 'tick'??? the study of psychology is to look at the 'science of mental life.' to understand why people do the things that they do, what makes history, you first should understand where they are coming from, what they think and feel - their emotions and reasoning for their actions.

-- helen arnott (helenrarnottuk@yahoo.co.uk), November 27, 2002.

Any aspect in the history of humanity is of significance to the study and writing of history. I believe it was Lincoln who said, "those who fail to study history are destined to repeat it." We learn from past mistakes and successes. Studying the thought lives of our predecessors helps provide a point of origin for choices and paths in human history. The field of psychology is dynamic in nature. We must study it to improve it. The point is upward growth from past experiences.

-- D A McDaniel (JointHeirs5@msn.com), November 29, 2002.