Herman Witkin

Herman A. Witkin (2 August 1916 – 8 July 1979) was an American psychologist who pioneered the development of cognitive theories, especially as they pertained to learning.

While many cognitive psychologists diagnosed learning disabilities with questionnaires, he preferred projective tests and problem-solving exercises.

[1] The majority of Witkin's research was done during his tenures at the SUNY Downstate Medical Center College of Medicine in Brooklyn, New York, and at Educational Testing Service (ETS) in Princeton, New Jersey, where he worked until his death in 1979.

A Review of General Psychology survey, published in 2002, ranked Witkin as the 96th most cited psychologist of the 20th century.

He earned a doctorate in psychology and worked with gestalt psychologist Wolfgang Kohler.

Inspired by Heinz Werner, Witkin organized his research regarding the cognitive styles of individuals, groups, and sex differences (Messick, 1980.)

In 1948, Witkin and Asch[3] developed an apparatus called the Rod and Frame Test (RFT).

The researcher can manipulate both the rod, the frame, and the participant's chair in different angles of tilts.

If the participant adjusts the rod so that it is leaning in the direction of the tilted frame, then that person is said to be dependent on the visual field.

These people will disregard the external cues, and use information from their bodies in adjusting the rod to appear upright.

Among the contributors were Vrij, van der Steen & Koppelaar (1995) and Linda Bastone and Heather Wood (1997).