Doris Twitchell Allen (1901–2002) was a noted psychologist and the founder of Children's International Summer Villages (now

CISV International CISV International (''Formerly'' ''Children's International Summer Villages'') was founded in 1950 by Dr. Doris Twitchell Allen and aims to educate and inspire action for a more just and peaceful world. The organisation operates international e ...

). She specialized in development and

psychodrama Psychodrama is an action method, often used as a psychotherapy, in which clients use spontaneous dramatization, role playing, and dramatic self-presentation to investigate and gain insight into their lives. Developed by Jacob L. Moreno and h ...

Education

After receiving degrees in Chemistry ( AB in 1923) and

Biology Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary i ...

( MA in 1926) at the

University of Maine The University of Maine (UMaine or UMO) is a public land-grant research university in Orono, Maine. It was established in 1865 as the land-grant college of Maine and is the flagship university of the University of Maine System. It is classifie ...

, where she was a member of the national honorary society

Phi Kappa Phi The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi (or simply Phi Kappa Phi or ) is an honor society established in 1897 to recognize and encourage superior scholarship without restriction as to area of study, and to promote the "unity and democracy of education ...

, she earned a PhD in

Psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries between ...

in 1930 at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

, and completed her post-graduate study at the Psychological Institute,

University of Berlin Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (german: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a German public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin. It was established by Frederick William III on the initiative ...

, in 1932.

Career

Her career as a psychologist began as Director of the Field Laboratory at the Child Education Foundation, now known a
CISV
in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

(1932–1935). From 1962 until her retirement, she was Professor of Psychology at the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,0 ...

and Professor of Psychology (Psychodrama) at the University of Maine. She developed several valued tools in the fields of psychology and education. Among them the ''Social Learning in the Schools Through Psychodrama'' project and the ''Twitchell-Allen Three-dimensional Personality Test'' for use in CISV research and clinical practice to portray personality dynamics, irrespective of age or culture. Doris Twitchell Allen, founder of CISV, with the Japanese Prime Minister Nakasone in 1987

Doris Twitchell Allen, founder of CISV, with the Japanese Prime Minister Nakasone in 1987

In addition to founding CISV in 1951, Doris Allen served as International President (1951–1956), Trustee (1956–1965), Research Chairman (1951–1967), and Honorary Counsellor (1965–2002), and simultaneously served as President (1956–1965), Research Chair / Co-Chair (1956–1969) and Life Trustee (1970–2002) of CISV USA. From its inception in 1988, Doris Allen had also served as Trustee / Honorary Trustee of the CISV International Peace Fund Trust.

Awards and legacy

In 1979, Doris was also nominated for the

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Chemistry, Physics, Physiolog ...

for her work with CISV. The Doris Twitchell Allen Village (DTAV) student accommodation blocks at the University of Maine were named after her.''The Doris Twitchell Allen Village'' on the University of Maine website

Personal life

She was married to Erastus S. Allen, a lawyer for

Procter & Gamble The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is an American multinational consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble. It specializes in a wide range of personal health/consumer he ...

Education

Career

Awards and legacy

Personal life

References

See also