Albert S. Thompson

Abstract

Albert S. Thompson has been witness to nearly the entire development of the specialty of counseling psychology. A student of the famous industrial psychologist Morris Viteles, Dr. Thompson received his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1943. After 4 years at Vanderbilt, where he started the student counseling service, he moved to Teachers College, Columbia University, to replace the retiring Harry Dexter Kitson, a leader in the vocational guidance movement. Dr. Thompson remained at Teachers College until 1988. In many ways, his life and work mirror the growth of applied psychology, and an examination of his career provides a unique perspective on the history of counseling psychology and its possible future directions.