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EASP – European Association of Social Psychology

History of the EASP

See also our history pages.

50 years of the EASP

At the General Meeting in Granada (2017) EASP celebrated its 50th anniversary. To mark the occasion the Executive Committee invited Eddy Van Avermaet to write an account of the history of EASP. The download below is a pdf version of the original booklet that was offered as a gift to all the participants of the Granada Meeting.

Following a description of the conferences that eventually led to the foundation of EASP, the historic account contains an overview of EASP’s activities in the early years and of some of the problems confronted. The middle section of the account contains testimonials from presidents and EC members throughout the years. The overview ends with a comparison between then and now. The text is illustrated with (old) documents and with lots of older and more recent pictures.

This booklet was written by Eddy Van Avermaet (University of Leuven), member of the Executive Committee between 2002 and 2008. Tina Keil (University of Exeter) designed and layouted the booklet for the EASP.

The additional download is a copy of the lightfooted speech on the EASP’s history, which Eddy delivered at the farewell dinner of the Granada General meeting (July 6-8 2017).

ProFile: A guide to the EAESP

Bernard Rimé, while secretary of EASP (1987-1990), suggested the creation of a booklet that would contain all the information relevant for (prospective) members of EASP.

The guide, edited by Bernard himself and first published in the early nineties, proved extremely valuable. It covers the aims and scope, the origins, membership, the EC, activities, meetings, lectures and articles and standing orders of the EASP. It also constituted the basis for the early version of the EASP website which was created in 2002, under the auspices of Eddy Van Avermaet.

ProFile Guide (Cover, 1999)
ProFile Guide (Cover, 1999)

The Origins of the EAESP: Social Psychology in Europe

The text (see download) was written by Carl F. Graumann (University of Heidelberg). It was first published in the first (1995) and second (1999) editions of the ProFile of the EAESP. Part of the text is based on a research project on the history of social psychology in post-war Europe. It also make use of the Archives of the EAESP, which are kept at the K.U.Leuven library.

Further downloads, illustrate some of the original documentation associated with the beginnings of the EAESP.

The Founding Planning Committee

In the early 1960's John Lanzetta (1926-1989), then director of Delaware's Center for Research on Social Behavior, spent his first sabbatical year in London as a liaison scientist of the Group Psychology Branch of the United States Office of Naval Research. With the active support of Luigi Petrullo, the well known co-editor of the 1958 Person Perception and Interpersonal Behavior and head of the Washington Office of ONR, John Lanzetta took the initiative to gather together a number of European scientists involved in experimental social psychology. The objective was to permit informal discussion of common problems and some measure of personal contact both of which could facilitate the establishment of a ‘permanent’ international committee to encourage and assist in the development of experimental social psychology in Europe.

John Lanzetta chaired a first meeting in London in March 1963 in which Mauk Mulder, Robert Pagès and Henri Tajfel participated. They all attended a second meeting in Paris in May 1963, together with Ragnar Rommetveit and John Thibaut. None of the European participants had previously met each other. These six persons acted as a Planning Committee and prepared the first European Conference on Experimental Social Psychology held in Sorrento, December 12-16, 1963, and also the second Conference held in Frascati, December 11-15 , 1964. Thus, the Founding Planning Committee consisted of John Lanzetta, chairman, Mauk Mulder, secretary, and Robert Pagès, Henri Tajfel, Ragnar Rommetveit and John Thibaut.

The first elected European Planning Committee

On the last afternoon of the Frascati Conference, a ‘business meeting’ was held. It was decided to concretise the formal planning of a European Association. Therefore a European Planning Committee was elected by the European participants. The following 5 participants were elected: Gustav Jahoda, Serge Moscovici, Mauk Mulder, Jozef M. Nuttin Jr., and Henri Tajfel. Jozef Nuttin declined to become chairman, but promised to organize within a short period a first meeting of the European Planning Committee.

The First meeting of European Planning Committee took place in Leuven, February 5-7, 1965, and appointed Serge Moscovici as Chairman and Mauk Mulder as Secretary. This Committee organized the third “European Conference on Experimental Social Psychology,” which was held in Royaumont, France, March 27 - April 1, 1966

First Executive Committee

At the business meeting of the Royaumont Conference, it was decided to elect a formal Executive (rather than ‘Planning’) Committee, consisting of 7 members (rather than 5). The 5 members of the Frascati Planning Committee were all reelected, the additional 2 being Martin Irle and Ragnar Rommetveit.

John Lanzetta
John Lanzetta