Jerome Kagan Biography, Life, Interesting Facts

Jerome Kagan was born in 1929, to Joseph and Myrtle Kagan. He was born in Newark, New Jersey, in the United States.

He studied psychology at Rutgers University, and he graduated in 1950. Kagan earned his master's degree at Harvard University, and he then went to Yale where he received his Ph. D. in Psychology.

Career

After Kagan graduated with his Ph.D., Ohio State University offered him his first position. He joined the faculty soon after.

In 1955, the U.S. Army recruited Kagan. He became part of their research team during the Korean War. When he finished with the Army research, Fels Research Institute invited Kagan to lead a project, and he accepted. The National Institute of Health funded the study.

Harvard University then asked Kagan to help with creating a new program on Human Development, which Kagan accepted.

Kagan stayed at Harvard until he retired. He became a professor in 1972.

Research

Kagan did extensive research when he was at Fels. He studied the personality traits of infants, right through to adulthood. Kagan tried to find if there were any similarities between early experiences and future personalities.

In 1962, he published a book on his findings, called, Birth to Maturity.

Over the years, Kagan's research included emotions and temperament, specifically in young children.

He published 12 books during his career. These include Personal Development (1971), The Nature of a Child (1982), and Once more into the Breach (2010).

Kagan has co-authored a further nine books.

Awards

Kagan's awards include:

1963: Hofheimer Prize (American Psychiatric Association)
1995: G. Stanley Hall Award (American Psychological Association)

Kagan won the Hofheimer Prize of the American Psychiatric Association in 1963. In 1995, he won the G. Stanley Hall Award of the American Psychological Association (APA).