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First American to Earn PH.D in Psychology
Granville Stanley Hall became the first American to earn a PH.D in psychology. -
First Psychology lab
Wilhelm Wundt established the first experimental psychology lab in Leipzig, Germany. -
First American Psychology Lab
Granville Stanley Hall establishes the first American Psychology Lab at Johns Hopkins University. -
American Psychological Association (APA) founded
Granville Stanley Hall establishes the American Psychological Association and serves as the first president of APA. -
First Psychological Clinic
Lightner Witmer establishes the first psychology clinic in America, at the University of Pennsylvania. -
First Female President of APA
Mary Calkins elected president of the APA. Studied with William James at Harvard, but Harvard denied her a Ph.D. because of her gender. -
First African American Doctorate in Psychology
Francis Cecil Sumner becomes the first African American to earns a Ph.D. in psychology under G. Stanley Hall at Clark University. -
Rorschach Test
Hermann Rorschach creates a personality test based on patients' interpretations of inkblots. -
Menninger Clinic Founded
Charles Frederick Menninger and his sons Karl Augustus and William Clair found The Menninger Clinic in Topeka, Kansas. -
Menninger Clinic Nobel Prize
Menninger Clinic is awarded the first Nobel Prize for psychology research. -
First Lobotomy in the US
Walter Freeman performs first frontal lobotomy at George Washington University. The procedure intended to relieve psychosis. -
National Mental Health Act Passes
U.S. President Harry Truman signs the National Mental Health Act, which proved funding for psychiatric education and research. -
First drug to treat Depression
studies that report the drug impramine may be able to lession depression. Eight years later, the FDA approves its use in the United States under the name Tofranil. -
First National Medal of Science to Psychologist
Neal E. Miller becomes the first psychologist to receive the National Medal of Science. -
Homosexuality removed from DSM
The American Psychiatric Association removes homosexuality from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). Sexual orientation does not mean you have a mental disorder. -
AIDS, and HIV
The epidemic of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection presents mental health professionals with challenges ranging from at-risk patients’ anxiety and depression to AIDS-related dementia. -
Insanity Defense Reform Act
U.S. Congress revise federal law on insanity defense; must have proof of insanity