Wade E. Pickren

As a scholar, I am interested in the circulation and transformation of scientific knowledge and practice, as exemplified in both historical and contemporary contexts. In my contemporary work, I am doing research on the transformation of culturally based beliefs about identity and health in the immigration and acculturation process.

In my historical work, I am focused on psychology in the post-World War II era, particularly the impact of Western based psychologies on the development of various indigenous psychologies. This research allows me to examine issues of knowledge and power in scientific practice and to explicate the contingencies of place, culture(s), and agency. Broadly, this reflects my ongoing interests in the social and cultural contexts of science and professional practice, with a focus on the role of culture in shaping human interactions. This research grew out of my earlier historical scholarship on race and ethnicity in American psychology and the efforts to make psychology responsive to issues of social justice in post-war America.

I am currently Editor of History of Psychology and President of the Society for the History of Psychology. I am fortunate in both roles to be able to work across disciplinary boundaries.