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J. Richard Hackman, Phd (1940-2013), Donelson R. Forsyth

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

The Society of Group Psychology and Group Psychotherapy mourns the passing of our colleague, J. Richard Hackman, PhD, a leading expert on teams and performance-oriented groups in organizations. Dr. Hackman succumbed January 8, 2013 in Boston, from complications of lung cancer.

John Richard Hackman was born in Joliet, Illinois, on June 14, 1940. He received his bachelor's degree in mathematics and minors in psychology and physics from MacMurray College and his Master's and PhD degrees from the University of Illinois. The Illinois program was emerging, at that time, as the leading research center for the study of groups as social, …

The Purpose Of Our Efforts, Donelson R. Forsyth

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

This year’s APA Convention in San Francisco was something of a homecoming for the division, for it was in that same city, some 18 years ago, that group psychology and group psychotherapy first took the stage as a newly founded division within APA. Only a few months earlier this fledgling coalition of dedicated supporters of group approaches had successfully petitioned APA for official divisional recognition. As that petition explained, it was time for psychologists to focus on groups and group-based approaches to adjustment, arguing that there “are two basic psychological approaches to human life and to mental health; one through …