The Development Of Experimental Psychology In Mexico

THE INSTRUMENTS IN THE FIRST PSYCHOLOGICAL LABORATORY IN MEXICO

Antecedents, Influence, and Methods

Rogelio Escobar National Autonomous University of Mexico

Enrique O. Aragón established the first psychological laboratory in Mexico in 1916. This laboratory was inspired by Wundt’s laboratory and by those created afterward in Germany and the United States. It was equipped with state-of-the art instruments imported from Germany in 1902 from Ernst Zimmermann who supplied instruments for Wundt’s laboratory. Although previous authors have described the social events leading to the creation of the laboratory, there are limited descriptions of the instru- ments, their use, and their influence. With the aid of archival resources, the initial location of the laboratory was determined. The analysis of instruments revealed a previously overlooked relation with a previous laboratory of experimental physiology. The influence of the laboratory was traced by describing the careers of 4 students, 3 of them women, who worked with the instruments during the first 2 decades of the 20th century, each becoming accomplished scholars. In addition, this article, by identifying and analyzing the instruments shown in photographs of the psychological laboratory and in 1 motion film, provides information of the class demonstrations and the experiments conducted in this laboratory.

Keywords: psychological laboratory in Mexico, psychology in Latin America, history of exper- imental psychology, National Autonomous University of Mexico, brass instruments

When Wundt established the first psycholog- ical laboratory in Leipzig in 1879, psychology took the crucial step toward becoming an ex- perimental science. Soon afterward, psycholog- ical laboratories resembling the one in Leipzig were established in many countries. In Latin America, for example, laboratories were created in Argentina, Chile, Mexico, and Brazil be- tween 1898 and 1923 (e.g., Ardila, 1986). These laboratories accompanied the first courses in

experimental psychology in the region and set the foundations for societies, institutes, and schools of psychology (Sánchez-Sosa & Val- derrama-Iturbe, 2001). In Mexico, for example, the history of the Faculty (Department) of Psy- chology of the National Autonomous Univer- sity of Mexico (UNAM) can be traced back to the establishment of the first psychological lab- oratory.

This article narrates the history of the first psychological laboratory in Mexico focusing on the scientific instruments in the laboratory, how they were used, and how their use affected the development of psychology in Mexico. It de- scribes how the psychological laboratory was related to a previous laboratory of experimental physiology in which instruments similar to those in the psychological laboratory were used. The influence of the psychological laboratory on the development of psychology in Mexico was determined by examining the careers of four students, three of them women, who used the instruments in the first courses of experi- mental psychology. Furthermore, an attempt was made to identify the instruments shown in

The author is indebted to Andy Lattal, Armin Stock, and Alicia Roca for their comments on previous versions of this article. This article was possible thanks to the staff of the Library and the Documentation Center of the Faculty of Psychology of UNAM, to Jesica Martínez Rosas and the staff of the Historical Archives of UNAM, to Rafael Malagón Becerril (Archive of the General Direction of Personnel of UNAM), and to Isabel Chong de la Cruz (Antique Repository and Special Collections, Central Li- brary, UNAM).

Correspondence concerning this article should be ad- dressed to Rogelio Escobar, Facultad de Psicología, Uni- versidad Nacional Autónoma de México. Av. Universidad 3004. Col. Copilco-Universidad. C.P. 04510. E-mail: rescobar@unam.mx

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History of Psychology © 2014 American Psychological Association 2014, Vol. 17, No. 4, 296–311 1093-4510/14/$12.00 http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0038038

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the five known photographs of the laboratory and in one motion film, which are part of the collection of the Faculty of Psychology of UNAM. For some of these instruments, there is no historical evidence other than brief descrip- tions in the trade catalogs of the suppliers, most of them in German. By describing the instru- ments in the first psychological laboratory in México and analyzing their use and influence, this article attempts to extend the knowledge of the instruments and how laboratories were or- ganized around their use during the “brass in- strument era” of psychology, the period when the tradition of experimentation in psychology arose. Because most previous descriptions of the first psychological laboratory in Mexico are in Spanish (but see Colotla & Jurado, 1983; Sánchez-Sosa & Valderrama-Iturbe, 2001, for brief descriptions of the psychological labora- tory in Mexico in English), this article also attempts to broaden knowledge of the labora- tory in Mexico to non-Spanish-speaking psy- chologists.

The Psychological Laboratory in Mexico

The first psychological laboratory in Mexico was established in 1916 by Enrique O. Aragón1

in the National School of High Studies (ENAE) that, at the time, was part of the National Uni- versity of Mexico, now UNAM. This laboratory was mainly dedicated to course demonstrations but some basic and applied projects also were conducted (Aragón, 1939/1943). The instru- ments used in this laboratory arrived in Mexico 14 years earlier, at which time the National University of Mexico was not even estab- lished.2 These instruments were imported from Germany in 1902 under the government of Pres- ident Porfirio Diáz3 and were planned to be used in the courses of psychology in the National Preparatory School and the Normal School for Teachers (Informe leído por el presidente de la republica, 1902). Although these instruments were most likely requested by Ezequiel A. Chávez,4 there are no records of the use of the instruments until 1916.

By 1902, Chávez, considered consensually to be the first Mexican psychologist (see Baldwin, 1906; Díaz-Guerrero, 1976), was teaching ex- perimental psychology in the National Prepara- tory School. Based on his readings of James, Dewey, Ribot, Titchener, and Spencer, among

others, he prepared the courses that started in 1897, and convinced the school authorities of the importance of experimental psychology lab- oratories in Germany and the United States5

(see Álvarez Díaz de León, 2011). Chávez translated Titchener’s A Primer of Psychology (Titchener, 1902, 1904/1907) into Spanish and used it as a textbook for his courses. Aragón was a student in this course in 1897. It is unclear why there are no records of the use of the instruments in the courses in the National Pre- paratory School. One explanation is that the instruments never reached the Preparatory School. According to 19166 archival records, the instruments were assigned to the Normal School for Teachers, where demonstrations of psychological phenomena were not a priority, and the instruments thus remained in storage for several years. Furthermore, in 1903 Chávez, following the leadership of Justo Sierra,7 fo- cused on the project of creating the National University of Mexico.

It is worth mentioning that although it was suggested that James Mark Baldwin set up the psychological laboratory during his visits to Mexico (Kitson, 1953), the instruments were obtained 3 years before his first visit in 1905. Baldwin returned to Mexico to teach psychoso- ciology courses in 1910 and in 1913, but the instruments apparently were not used until 1916. Therefore, Baldwin’s contribution to the foundation of the laboratory in Mexico is un- clear (Gallegos, 1980, 1983). What is apparent is that Baldwin and Chávez had a close rela- tionship after Baldwin’s visits to Mexico (see, e.g., Baldwin’s dedication of his book, History of Psychology [1913], to Chávez).

According to Valderrama-Iturbe (2004), some of the instruments suffered from a lack of use and in 1914 were transferred to the National Preparatory School. There they were partially repaired by the head of the physics laboratory, Alberto S. Cardenas, who had experience re- pairing related instruments. Two years later, Aragón was selected to teach courses in Exper- imental Psychology at ENAE, which in 1910 had become part of the newly created National University of Mexico. The main purposes of ENAE, today the Faculty of Philosophy and Literature, were to develop research in special- ized fields and to train new researchers and teachers. Therefore, Aragón requested the equipment in 1916 for research and course dem-

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