Ethel Tobach (November 7, 1921 – August 14, 2015)
[ was an American ]psychologist
A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and interpretation of how indi ...
known for her work in comparative and peace psychology.
Early life and education
Tobach was born on November 7, 1921, in Miaskovka, Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic
The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic ( uk, Украї́нська Радя́нська Соціалісти́чна Респу́бліка, ; russian: Украи́нская Сове́тская Социалисти́ческая Респ ...
, which was then part of the Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
. Both of Tobach's parents were Jewish, which led to them and their daughter having to flee the country to avoid pogrom
A pogrom () is a violent riot incited with the aim of massacring or expelling an ethnic or religious group, particularly Jews. The term entered the English language from Russian to describe 19th- and 20th-century attacks on Jews in the Russia ...
s soon after Tobach was born. They initially fled to Palestine
__NOTOC__
Palestine may refer to:
* State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia
* Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia
* Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...
, but after Tobach's father died when she was nine months old, she and her mother moved to Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
in the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. Tobach and her mother lived in Philadelphia until they moved to Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
, New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
when Tobach was ten years old. She became interested in psychology after enrolling at Hunter College
Hunter College is a public university in New York City. It is one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York and offers studies in more than one hundred undergraduate and postgraduate fields across five schools. It also admi ...
in 1937. She received her B.A. from Hunter College in 1949, graduating Phi Beta Kappa
The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...
. She then enrolled at New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, the ...
(NYU), where she received her M.A. in 1952 and her Ph.D. in 1957 under the supervision of T. C. Schneirla.
Career
After taking one of Schneirla's comparative psychology classes at NYU, in which she got an A, Tobach persuaded Schneirla to give her a job at the American Museum of Natural History
The American Museum of Natural History (abbreviated as AMNH) is a natural history museum on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. In Theodore Roosevelt Park, across the street from Central Park, the museum complex comprises 26 inter ...
. She would continue to work at the American Museum of Natural History for the rest of her career.[ During her career, she also served on the faculty of NYU, Hunter College, the ]CUNY
, mottoeng = The education of free people is the hope of Mankind
, budget = $3.6 billion
, established =
, type = Public university system
, chancellor = Fél ...
Graduate Center
The Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York (CUNY Graduate Center) is a public research institution and post-graduate university in New York City. Serving as the principal doctorate-granting institution of the C ...
, and Yeshiva University.
Positions in learned societies
In 1964, she was a co-founder of the Animal Behavior Society
The Animal Behavior Society is an international non-profit scientific society that encourages and promotes the professional study of animal behavior. It has open membership and also provides a certification and directory for animal behaviorists. T ...
.[ In 1972, she became vice president of the New York Academy of Sciences.][ In 1983, she and ]Gary Greenberg
Gary Greenberg is an American author and comedian. He is known for writing comedic material for Comedy Central. He has appeared on Comedy Central and Bravo. , he is a staff writer on ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'' on ABC Television. In 2012, he won a Prod ...
founded the International Society for Comparative Psychology. She subsequently served as the Society's first president.[ In 1984, she was named president of the ]American Psychological Association
The American Psychological Association (APA) is the largest scientific and professional organization of psychologists in the United States, with over 133,000 members, including scientists, educators, clinicians, consultants, and students. It ha ...
(APA)'s Division of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, holding this position until 1985. She was the president of the Eastern Psychological Association from 1987 to 1988.[ In 2004, she served as president of the APA's Division of Peace Psychology.][
]
Honors and awards
Tobach received the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues' Kurt Lewin Award, the society's most prestigious award, in 1993. In 2003, she received the APA's Gold Medal Award for Life Achievement in Psychology in the Public Interest.[
]
Personal life and death
Tobach married Charles Tobach, a photojournalist, in 1947; he subsequently persuaded her to apply to the Ph.D. program in psychology at NYU.
References
External links
Ethel Tobach
at Jewish Women's Archive
The Jewish Women's Archive (JWA) is a national non-profit organization whose mission is to document "Jewish women's stories, elevate their voices, and inspire them to be agents of change."
JWA was founded by Gail Twersky Reimer in 1995 in Brookli ...
Ethel Tobach
at Psychology's Feminist Voices
Psychology's Feminist Voices (PFV) is an online, multimedia digital archive containing the stories of women of psychology's past and contemporary feminist psychologists who have shaped and continue to transform the discipline of psychology. It ho ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tobach, Ethel
1921 births
2015 deaths
Soviet emigrants to the United States
American women psychologists
20th-century American psychologists
Comparative psychologists
Hunter College alumni
New York University alumni
American Museum of Natural History
New York University faculty
Yeshiva University faculty
Russian Jews
Peace psychologists
American women academics
Soviet expatriates in Mandatory Palestine
21st-century American women