Wright Institute

Last updated
The Wright Institute
The Wright Institute Logo.png
MottoEducating Clinicians to Society
TypePrivate graduate school
Established1968
President Peter Dybwad [1]
Academic staff
121 [2]
Postgraduates 355 [2]
Location, ,
United States
Campus Urban
Website www.wi.edu

The Wright Institute is a private graduate school focused on psychology and located in Berkeley, California.

Contents

History

The institute was founded by Nevitt Sanford in 1968. Dr. Sanford first gained prominence as a co-author of "The Authoritarian Personality," a study of anti-Semitism published in 1950. His co-authors included two refugees from Nazi persecution, Theodor Adorno and Else Frenkel-Brunswik. [3]

Sanford believed strongly in the capacity of adults to continue to learn and grow throughout their lives. His developmental approach and emphasis on the possibilities of lifelong learning form a key part of the foundation on which the Wright's doctoral program is built. [4]

Sanford was also influential in shaping American clinical psychology educational standards. In 1947, he was appointed by the American Psychological Association to the committee that established criteria for accrediting programs in clinical psychology. [4]

From 1960, Sanford directed the Institute for the Study of Human Problems at Stanford University. In a 1988 interview, he gave his reasons for leaving Stanford as follows: "Christine, my wife, and I had never really left Berkeley in a psychological sense. We wanted to go home. In addition, no tradition-bound university is likely to lend a home to an institute bent on action". After an initial attempt to teach his ideas at the Berkeley Graduate Theological Union was unsuccessful, Sanford founded the Wright Institute with $25,000 in funding from Hopkins Funds, "a small foundation that gave support to unpopular causes". [5]

In the same interview, Sanford described the origin of the institute's name: [5]

When I talked to a lawyer to ask him to do the incorporating, he said, "You can't have a name like 'Institute for the Study of Human Problems' because all those names have long since been used up. Why don't you just get a name like the Salk Foundation or the Tavistock Institute that doesn't by itself mean anything, and then you can do whatever you please." I presented the problem to my wife and the next morning she said, "Why don't you call it the Wright Institute?" It turned out that Wright was her mother's maiden name, Elizabeth Wright. We needed a one-word thing, and something that rolls easily off the tongue. I felt right away that that was the name.

Academics

The Wright Institute has two programs: a doctoral program in clinical psychology leading to a Psy.D. degree; and a master's program in counseling psychology leading to an M.A. degree. [6]

The institute is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Senior Colleges and Universities of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). [6] The Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) in Clinical Psychology program is accredited by the American Psychological Association's Committee on Accreditation [7] and the Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology program is approved by the Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS). The MA program is designed to meet the requirements defined in the California Business and Professions (B&P) Code Sections 4980.37 and 4980.40 which cover the statutes and regulations relating to the practice of marriage and family therapy. [8]

Notable alumni

Notable former employees

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Psychologist</span> Professional who evaluates, diagnoses, treats and studies behavior and mental processes

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 individuals relate to each other and to their environments.

The Doctor of Education is a research or professional doctoral degree that focuses on the field of education. It prepares the holder for academic, research, administrative, clinical, or professional positions in educational, civil, private organizations, or public institutions. Considerable differences exist in structure, content and aims between regions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doctor of Psychology</span> Doctoral degree

The Doctor of Psychology is a professional doctoral degree intended to prepare graduates for careers that apply scientific knowledge of psychology and deliver empirically based service to individuals, groups and organizations. Earning the degree was originally completed through one of two established training models for clinical psychology. However, Psy.D. programs are no longer limited to Clinical Psychology as several universities and professional schools have begun to award professional doctorates in Business Psychology, Organizational Development, Forensic Psychology, Counseling Psychology, and School Psychology.

Clinical psychology is an integration of human science, behavioral science, theory, and clinical knowledge for the purpose of understanding, preventing, and relieving psychologically-based distress or dysfunction and to promote subjective well-being and personal development. Central to its practice are psychological assessment, clinical formulation, and psychotherapy, although clinical psychologists also engage in research, teaching, consultation, forensic testimony, and program development and administration. In many countries, clinical psychology is a regulated mental health profession.

The California School of Professional Psychology (CSPP) was founded in 1969 by the California Psychological Association. It is part of the for-profit Alliant International University where each campus's Clinical Psychology Psy.D. and Ph.D. program is individually accredited by the American Psychological Association. The school has trained approximately half of the licensed psychologists in California.

Fielding Graduate University is a private graduate-level university in Santa Barbara, California. It offers postgraduate and doctoral studies mainly in psychology, education, and organizational studies, primarily through distance education programs.

The Institute for the Psychological Sciences (IPS) is a graduate school of psychology and an integral part of Divine Mercy University (DMU) in Sterling, Virginia. The institute was founded in 1999 with the mission of basing the scientific study of psychology on a Catholic understanding of the person, marriage, and the family, as well as being an international center for scholarship and professional training. It seeks to educate new generations of psychologists and mental health professionals, as well as open new areas of research for psychological theories that explore the relationship between psychology and the Catholic-Christian understanding of the human person.

Palo Alto University (PAU) is a private university in Palo Alto, California that focuses on behavioral health disciplines like counseling, psychology, and social work. It was founded in 1975 as the Pacific Graduate School of Psychology and became Palo Alto University in 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Chicago School</span> Private university with its main campus in Chicago, Illinois, United States

The Chicago School is a private university with its main campus in Chicago, Illinois. Established in 1979, The Chicago School was primarily focused on the professional application of psychology. It currently has about 6,000 students across all campuses and online. The university offers more than 30 academic programs in professional fields such as psychology, business, health care, health services, education, counseling, and nursing.

The Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology is a division of Yeshiva University. Along with the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, it is located at the Louis E. and Doris Rousso Community Health Center on Yeshiva University’s Jack and Pearl Resnick Campus in the Bronx, New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nova Southeastern University College of Psychology</span> College at Nova Southeastern University

The College of Psychology at Nova Southeastern University was organized in 1967 and is located in the Maxwell Maltz Building on NSU's main campus in Davie, Florida. It serves to provide education to current and future psychologists and counseling professionals through training that provides individuals with an understanding of psychological research and the proper delivery of mental health care. Prior to a 2015 university-wide reorganization, the college was known as the Center for Psychological Studies. The reorganization brought in several undergraduate and graduate programs that were previously part of the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences.

Adler University is a private university, with two campuses in North America. The university's flagship campus is in Chicago, Illinois, and its satellite campus is located in Vancouver, British Columbia. The university also offers online classes and degree programs online for both masters and doctoral students.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pacifica Graduate Institute</span> Private for-profit graduate school in Santa Barbara, California

Pacifica Graduate Institute is a private for-profit graduate school with two campuses near Santa Barbara, California. The institute offers masters and doctoral degrees in the fields of clinical psychology, counseling, mythological studies, depth psychology, and the humanities. The institute is accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission.

Nevitt Sanford was an American professor of psychology at the University of California at Berkeley and later at Stanford University. A Harvard doctoral student of Gordon Allport, PhD in social psychology and Henry Murray, MD at the Harvard Clinic, as a young Cal professor Sanford studied ethnocentrism and antisemitism, and was the senior author along with Columbia University philosopher Theodor Adorno of The Authoritarian Personality, also known as "the Berkeley Study."

The Michigan School of Psychology (MSP), formerly the Michigan School of Professional Psychology and the Center for Humanistic Studies, is a private graduate school in Farmington Hills, Michigan, which specializes in clinical psychology. It offers three programs of study: the Master of Arts (M.A.) in clinical psychology, which is offered in a one-year full-time or a two-year part-time format; the Doctor of Clinical Psychology (Psy.D.) degree, a full-time, minimum four-year, post-masters program; and a Certificate in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), a two-year certificate that can be completed concurrently with the MA program in clinical psychology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William James College</span> Private school of psychology in Newton, Massachusetts, U.S.

William James College, formerly Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology (MSPP), is a private university focused on psychology and located in Newton, Massachusetts. It enrolls more than 750 students and offers graduate academic degree and certificate programs across four departments: Clinical Psychology, Counseling Psychology, Organizational and Leadership Psychology, and School Psychology, as well as a Bachelor of Science completion program in Psychology and Human Services.

Saybrook University is a private university in Pasadena, California. It was founded in 1971 by Eleanor Camp Criswell and others. It offers postgraduate education with a focus on humanistic psychology. It features low residency, master's, and doctoral degrees and professional certification programs. The university is accredited by the WASC Senior Colleges and University Commission. The university is classified an exclusively graduate institution with programs that are "Research Doctoral: Humanities/social sciences-dominant". As of Fall of 2017 the university had 785 students enrolled. The university reported 222 full-time and part-time academic faculty in 2017.

Nicholas Andrew Cummings was an American psychologist and author.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Divine Mercy University</span>

Divine Mercy University (DMU) is a private Catholic graduate university of psychology and counseling located in Sterling, Virginia.

References

  1. "Administration & Staff". The Wright Institute. 2016. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
  2. 1 2 "Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology Wright Institute". Peterson's. 2016. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
  3. Goleman, Daniel (11 July 1995). "Nevitt Sanford, 86, Psychologist Who Traced Roots of Prejudice". Query.nytimes.com. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
  4. 1 2 "The Wright Institute - Educating Clinicians to Society". Wi.edu. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
  5. 1 2 Canon, Harry J. (January 1, 2001). "Nevitt Sanford: Gentle Prophet, Jeffersonian Rebel". In Heppner, P. Paul (ed.). Pioneers in Counseling & Development: Personal and Professional Perspectives. Alexandria, VA: American Association for Counseling and Development. p. 92. ISBN   1-55620-078-1.
  6. 1 2 "Statement of Accreditation Status The Wright Institute". 19 June 2015. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
  7. "Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation" . Retrieved 20 November 2018.
  8. "Board of Behavioral Sciences Schools with MFT Programs" . Retrieved 20 November 2018.
  9. "Janice Kay Haaken - Curriculum Vitae, 2016". JHaaken.com. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  10. Farris, Phoebe (1999). Women artists of color: a bio-critical sourcebook to 20th century artists in the Americas. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press. pp.  184. ISBN   0-313-30374-6.
  11. Suzanne Segal (1996). Collision With the Infinite: A Life Beyond the Personal Self. Blue Dove Press. pp.  102. ISBN   1-884997-27-9.