Psychology lab is oldest constantly open in US

In 1988, associate professor James Capshew discovered that IU has the oldest continually operating psychology lab in the country. Two years later, he started working in the Department of History and Philosophy of Science.

On the 100th anniversary of the psychology department in 1988, Capshew wrote about how the department was started, how it had evolved and the key figures led it to greatness. Recently, he wrote an encyclopedia article on the psychology laboratory’s progress.

“One highlight is the fact that it was started in 1888 by William Lowe Bryan,” Capshew said.

Bryan went on to become IU’s longest serving president from 1902 to 1937. He emphasized experimental psychology, which was not so widespread at the time.

That was still the case in 1969, said James Craig, chancellor’s professor of psychological and brain sciences, who has worked for the department for 42 years.

IU’s clinical laboratories have been considered leaders in the psychology world. Former director Richard McFall has been a leading spokesman for the approach of evidence-based psychotherapy. The department has always focused on experimental research.

“We have our very own FMRI facility to look at brain activity during various cognitive tasks,” Craig said. FMRIs are a specialized form of MRI that measure brain activity.

Craig runs his own laboratory, which specializes in the sense of touch, and is a professor on the side.

Now, close to 125 years after the department was formed, only two women have served as chair of the department: Peggy Peterson and Linda Smith.

Smith, the current chair, said the job is only temporary because the faculty governs itself. This is Smith’s last year as the department chair.

Smith’s job includes budgetary issues, reaching the department goals and working closely with the deans and provosts. She teaches and works in her personal laboratory, which focuses on perceptual development.

“On average, I spend about 40 hours a week on science,” Smith said. “Then add 20 hours a week for chair.”

IU is a Research One University, meaning the faculty is 50 percent research and 50 percent teaching. The psychology department has 52 laboratories. Mostly faculty or research scientists run them.

Science is a team sport, Smith said. The psychology department is constantly adding and changing.

Aina Puce, director of the Imaging Research facility at IU, came to the University in August 2008.

“I knew a lot about the psychology department here because it was full of famous people who had been doing wonderful work here,” Puce said.

Smith said she encourages students to go to advisers or the psychology website and contact the faculty. She said the laboratories are well funded and are a perfect way for students to get involved and gain real-world experience.

“The quality of the department brings people here,” Smith said. “Once we started, we never stopped.”