Robert W. White (1904–2001) was an American psychologist whose professional interests centered on the study of
personality, both normal and abnormal. His book The Abnormal Personality, published in 1948, became the standard textbook on
Abnormal Psychology.[1]
A historian in perspective, White did not focus entirely on abnormal psychology, but investigated the coping methods of normal people. Diverging from
Freud whose thinking dominated psychology at the time, he emphasized that individuals were also driven by needs to be competent and effective in the world.[2]
He began teaching at
Harvard University in 1937 and retired from teaching in 1964.[3] During
World War II, White became acting director of Harvard's psychological clinic. He was head of Harvard's clinical psychology program and chairman of the social relations department. In 1969 he was awarded professor emeritus.[2]
^White, Robert W. (September 1959). "Motivation reconsidered: The concept of competence". Psychological Review. 66 (5): 297–333.
doi:
10.1037/h0040934.
PMID13844397.
^White, Robert W. (1948). "Historical introduction: Origins of abnormal psychology". The abnormal personality: A textbook. pp. 3–53.
doi:
10.1037/10023-001.