Harry Harlow By Nalee Xiong Parents Alonzo Lon

Harry Harlow By: Nalee Xiong

Parents • Alonzo “Lon” Harlow Israel Hoped to be a doctor—dropped out of medical school to get married Never found anything he liked as much as medicine Tried being an inventor Ran a garage and battery business After marrying Mable, they bought a general store together and ran the business • Mable Rock Israel

Family • Harry Frederick Israel Born on October 31, 1905 Fairfield, Iowa 3 rd oldest out of four boys Robert, Delmer, Harry, and Hugh All attended Standford • Delmer diagnosed with Pott’s Disease Family moved to New Mexico Shortly moved back to Fairfield • Grew up poor

Childhood/Adolescence • Bored by science • Hated idea of agriculture • Daydreamer, artist, poet • Ranked highest in class on aptitude test • At 17, he wished to be famous • Graduated Fairfield High School in 1923

College • Spent a year at Reed College in Portland, Oregon Just wanted to study something that made him think First course: Zoology • Freshman year at Stanford (1924) English Major—however got a C+ so switched to Psychology • Graduated in 1930

Influences • Calvin Stone Animal behaviorist • Walter Miles Moral mentor Vision expert Rat research • Lewis Terman Stanford Binet IQ Test Influenced Harry to change his last name

First Job • 1930 – Professor at UW-Madison • School had only h 4 psychology Faculty members Only 3 Ph. D students • Was extremely nervous and kept slurring his speech • Met his first wife at UW-Madison

Clara Mears • Graduate student in Psychology took Harlow’s graduate seminar about emotions • Terman was a big fan of Mears and Harlow’s relationship • Married on May 7, 1932 University had nepotism policy: didn’t allow spousal hires Dropped out of her Ph. D. program

The Beginning of his Research • Had been promised a research facility when he took the job UW-M no longer had a facility for research • Rat studies • Cats – conditioned response to bell and shock • Frogs – tried to condition with bell and shock like the cats First exposure to being “famous” • Over a game of bridge, was given the idea for studying primates

Henry Villas Zoological Park • Observed 2 orangutans who had been named after a popular comic strip of the time (Jiggs and Maggie) • Asked the zoo director if he could perform some standard intelligence tests on Jiggs Puzzles, blocks Round and square shaped holes with round and square shaped blocks • Jiggs enjoyed the puzzles

Tommy • Big male baboon—close to 90 lbs • Was not nearly as sweet in temperament as Jiggs was • Food under cups to test memory • When he was wrong, he became furious and irritated • Delayed response trials • Developed a crush on one of Harlow’s students: Betty • Harlow saw personalities and relationships among primates —compared them to people

st 1 Primate Lab at UW-M • 1932 university finally offered him an abandoned building 2 years after he had arrived at Madison • Started to renovate the building with the help of Maslow’s friend, Paul Settlage Building was still small after renovations • Outside cages Football players • “cheerful, informal place” Poor students Bread and fish Ghandi

Smart Animals • Monkeys escaped often • The capuchin monkeys Capuchin, Cinnamon, and Red “Animal intelligence”

One Year Fellowship • 1939 received a one-year fellowship in anthropology Columbia University • Harlows moved to Manhattan for the academic year Clara was expecting their first child Robert Mears Harlow born on November 16, 1939 Richard Frederick Harlow born December 10, 1942 • During this time he realized not many believed that animals were intelligent Many criticized him B. F. Skinner

WGTA • Wisconsin General Test Apparatus Became famous among primate research • Skinner agreed it was a good design

Rhesus Macaques • Cheapest primate • Smart and adaptable Showed human-like behaviors • WGTA studies Board with hollows (some contained food) and colored/different shaped blocks that fit into hollows Blocks were placed on top of hollows Monkeys were tested to find the treat • Came to realization that monkeys were curious beings, just like humans are

Butler Box • WGTA delayed response trials: Robert Butler became curious what the monkeys would do while they waited for the panel to open Added a mirror at an angle so he could watch the monkeys • Test results started declining Monkeys were more interested in him Butler began thinking about curiosity experiments • Box had two moveable windows Designed so the monkey inside could hear things outside the box, but not see what it was Monkeys could raise whichever window panel they wanted to see the world outside the box Fruit vs. an electric train Later research they had baby monkeys inside and their mothers outside, baby monkeys would spend hours opening the panels to look at their mother

st 1 Marriage Ends • Harry’s research became a kind of obsession Six months after Rick was born, Harry began to withdraw from family, spent hours at the lab Brought Robert with him to the lab, but never talked to him • Clara filed for divorce on August 14, 1946 (married for 14 years) Clara won custody of both boys and left to Rhode Island Harry didn’t defend himself or fight for anything

600 N. Park • Nicknamed Goon Park Writing looked like GOON rather than 600 N. • Uneasy atmosphere Faculty didn’t speak to one another Hierarchy

Margaret (Peggy) Kuenne • Met Harry in 1946 when she took a job at UW-Madison and joined his research team • Beautiful and smart • Married on February 3, 1948 Eloped in hopes of being undetected from UW-M as nepotism policy still enforced Pamela Ann Harlow born on September 20, 1950 Second child Johnathan was born in 1953

Raising His Monkeys • Monkeys would come to the lab extremely sick, viruses would spread easily • Pondered raising his own animals This would indirectly lead him into science of affection Began questioning if one could raise a child or monkey without love • Created and tested formulas to feed the monkeys • All monkeys were kept separate (more than 60 babies by end of 1956) Based off model at the time for hospital/orphanage settings to control diseases • Monkeys would rock and stare into space • When they were re-introduced, the monkeys had awkward interactions with others

William (Bill) Mason • Graduate student from Stanford, recommended by Calvin Stone • Put in charge of raising six newborn monkeys • Bill and another research assistant spent hours with the monkeys • Had been lining the cages with cloth diapers to provide softness and warmth against floor Noticed the monkeys frantically attached to the diapers, wrapping themselves in it • Suggested they run tests on monkeys w/ and w/o cloths To see what babies preferred, whether it was the need to hold onto anything or if there was something meaningful about soft touch

Wire Vs Cloth Mother • Wire mother or a cloth mother • 8 baby monkeys, each in a different cage 4 cages had wire mothers with milk and cloth mothers without milk 4 cages had wire mothers without milk and cloth mothers with milk

Results • 6 months in, both groups spent majority of time with cloth mother About 18 hours a day Wire-fed monkeys spent no more than an hour a day with the wiremother, only for the food before going back to the cloth monkey • “Contact comfort” Skin to skin contact is the most nurturing sense • Began questioning how a baby reacts in relation to its mother Scary toy Open area https: //youtu. be/Or. NBEhzjg 8 I? t=2 m 6 s

Events following Research • President of American Psychological Association (APA) in 1958 • Became busy after publishing his work The Nature of love Was constantly asked about his message about love • Monkeys from the experiment started acting different Shrieking, mauling themselves (biting, ripping out fur) Strange contorted positions, huddled into corners of cage

Social Intelligence • The ability to get along with others • Realized his monkeys from before lacked social intelligence • Rearing two infants together was almost as bad as isolation Cling tightly together, and if separated, they would panic • Interacting with others was vital and key to survival

Nuclear Family Apparatus • Peggy Harlow was in charge • Neighborhood of four macaque families • Each cage-house had a mother, father, and the babies Opened onto a central playground babies could visit the other neighbors, mom and dad couldn’t fit through the door designed for small monkeys • Love was not enforced with only one relationship, there had to be multiple

Monster Mothers • To study and see effects of pathological mothers on the child Four “monster” mothers “cloth moms gone crazy” • All mothers had soft-centered bodies for cuddling “shaking” mother Air-blast mother Embedded steel frame mother Brass spiked mother • Babies would come back and cling tighter • Did not create psychopathic monkeys but rather neurotic ones

1967 • Peggy was diagnosed with breast cancer spread beyond bounds of control at this point Harry became depressed • Convinced the National Institutes of Health the invest in primate research Wisconsin was named one of the seven regional primate research centers Directed the center • Became the first and only primatologist to win the National Medal of Science

Isolation Experiments • New born baby monkeys • 30 days Closed off cage, blank space, one way mirror Monkeys only say experimenters hands when given food and water Results: “enormously disturbed, ” two monkeys refused to eat and starved to death • 6 months, then 1 year Were bullied by other monkeys Barely moved, only appeared alive by heartbeat Psychopathologic monkeys Incapable of sexual feeling “rape rock”

Pit of Despair • V shaped chamber Monkey was placed in the point at the bottom Wide opening covered with mesh After 3 days the monkeys stopped trying to escape • Even monkeys who were perfectly happy prior to experiment became depressed Made abnormal monkeys pathological and normal monkeys abnormal • Results showed how naturally we become dependent on society of others Kept in chamber no longer than 6 weeks Animals with an established bond-broken through chamber

Peer Therapists • Attempt to reverse the effects of the isolated monkeys • Matched isolated monkeys with three month old monkeys Little monkeys approached isolated monkeys Cuddled against, clinged to, and stroked Isolated monkeys slowly recovered

Peggy’s Death • Unable to finish her nuclear family project • Was made a professor of educational psychology at UW-M This was 20 years after her first job was taken away • Unable to enjoy it • Died on August 11, 1971 (52 years old) • Harry had become more depressed in the later years of Peggy’s life Began to drink more

Later Life • Didn’t like being alone and began to think about his first wife a lot Stayed in touch with Clara throughout the years because of their 2 sons He never disconnected from the boys, would visit when he was nearby • Clara had remarried twice and had another child that drowned at 2 yrs old Was working as a counselor at University of Tennessee when Harry came calling • Remarried March 1972, eight months after Peggy’s Death • Diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease • Resigned from UW-Madison in 1974 • Moved to Arizona with family, but missed Madison (spent 40 years there) • Late 1970 s, drinking smoking, depression Peggy’s Death, Parkinson’s, all catching up at once • Died on December 6, 1981 at the age of 76

Influence on Psychology • His experiments did in a way change psychology At the time, showing affection and compassion towards children wasn’t the practice Was able to demonstrate the importance of affection and feelings of security toward infant from a caregiver/parental figure Changed how people viewed parent and child interactions • Was the first to look seriously at social behavior as it emerges in developmental sense • Demonstrated the devastating effects of isolation

Discussion • Harry Harlow’s research was focused on animals. What are your opinions on this type of research and/or how he executed his research? What would you have done instead to make it more ethical? • In 2014, there was a proposal to replicate Harlow’s monkey study. For a year, 20 newborn rhesus monkeys as well as another 20 for a control group would be taken away from their mothers and be given tests intended to provoke and measure anxious behavior. It was later edited so that 20 monkeys would not be taken away from their mothers at birth. At the end of the year, they would be euthanized in order to study the brain in an effort to better understand treat anxiety and depression. What do you think of this replication?