Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsEarly LifeCareerContributions to PsychologySelected Publications

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Early Life

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Contributions to Psychology

Selected Publications

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Hans Eysenck was born in Germany but moved to England after turning 18 and spent most of his working life there. His research interests were broad, but he is perhaps best known for his theories of personality and intelligence.

Eysenck was a hugely influential figure in psychology. At the time of his death in 1997, he was the most-frequently cited psychologist in scientific journals.

Despite his influence, Eysneck was also a controversial figure. His suggestion that racial differences in intelligence were due to genetics rather than environment generated a tremendous amount of pushback.

Learn more about his life and influence on psychology in this brief biography.

Birth and DeathEysenck was born on March 4, 1916He died on September 4, 1997

Birth and Death

Eysenck was born on March 4, 1916He died on September 4, 1997

Because of his German citizenship, he found it difficult to find work in England. He eventually went to school to earn a Ph.D. in Psychology from the University College London in 1940 under the supervision of psychologist Cyril Burt, who is best-known for his research on the heritability of intelligence.

During World War II, Eysenck worked as a research psychologist at Mill Hill Emergency Hospital. He later founded the psychology department at the University of London Institute of Psychiatry, where he worked until 1983. He served as Professor Emeritus at the school until his death in 1997. He was also an extremely prolific writer. Over the course of his career, Eysenck published more than 75 books and over 1,600journal articles. Prior to his death, he was the most frequently cited living psychologist.

In addition to being one of the most famous psychologists, Eysenck was also one of the most controversial.One of his earliest controversies revolved around a paper he wrote in 1952 on the effects of psychotherapy. In the paper, Eysenck reported that two-thirds of therapy patients improved significantly or recovered within two years, regardless of whether or not they received psychotherapy.

He was also a vocal critic of psychoanalysis, dismissing it as unscientific. You can hear Eysenck describe his views onFreudian theoryand psychoanalytic treatment in this video:Hans J. Eysenck, Ph.D. Lifetalk with Roberta Russell on Psychoanalysis

The greatest controversy surrounding Eysenck was his view of the heritability ofintelligence, more specifically his view that racial differences in intelligence could be partially attributed to genetic factors.After one of his students was criticized for publishing a paper suggesting that genetics were responsible for racial differences in intelligence, Eysenck defended him and later publishedThe IQ Argument: Race, Intelligence, and Education, which incited considerable controversy and criticism. His 1990 autobiography took a more moderate view that ascribed greater importance to the role of environment and experience in shaping intelligence.

While Hans Eysenck was certainly controversial, his wide-ranging research had a major influence on psychology. In addition to his work inpersonalityand intelligence, he also played a major role in establishing approaches to clinical training and psychotherapy that were firmly rooted in empirical research and science.

Eysenck, H. J. (1947).Dimensions of Personality.New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Eysenck, H. J. (1952). The effects of psychotherapy: An evaluation.Journal of Consulting Psychology, 16(5), 319-324.

Eysenck, H. J. (1979).The Structure and Measurement of Intelligence.New York: Springer-Verlag.

Eysenck. H. J. (1985).Decline and Fall of the Freudian Empire.Washington, D.C.: Scott-Townsend Publishers.

6 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Soliemanifar O, Soleymanifar A, Afrisham R.Relationship between personality and biological reactivity to stress: A review.Psychiatry Investigation. 2018;15(12):1100-1114. doi:10.30773/pi.2018.10.14.2Chapman BP, Weiss A, Barrett P, Duberstein P.Hierarchical structure of the Eysenck Personality Inventory in a large population sample: Goldberg’s trait-tier mapping procedure.Pers Individ Dif. 2013;54(4):479-484. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2012.09.024Pelosi AJ.Personality and fatal diseases: Revisiting a scientific scandal.J Health Psychol. 2019;24(4):421-439. doi:10.1177/1359105318822045Eysenck HJ.The effects of psychotherapy: An evaluation.Journal of Consulting Psychology.1952;16(5):319–324. doi:10.1037/h0063633Sauce B, Matzel LD.The paradox of intelligence: Heritability and malleability coexist in hidden gene-environment interplay.Psychol Bull. 2018;144(1):26-47. doi:10.1037/bul0000131Hofmann SG, Hayes SC.The future of intervention science: Process-based therapy.Clin Psychol Sci.2019;7(1):37-50. doi:10.1177/2167702618772296Additional ReadingEysenck, HJ.Rebel with a Cause: The Autobiography of Hans Eysenck.New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers; 1990.Eysenck, HJ.The IQ Argument: Race, Intelligence, and Education.New York: Library Press; 1971.Haggbloom SJ, Warnick R, Warnick JE, et al.The 100 most eminent psychologists of the 20th century.Review of General Psychology.2002;6(2),139–152. doi:10.1037//1089-2680.6.2.139McLoughlin, CS. Eysenck, Hans Jurgen. In: Kazdin AE, ed.Encyclopedia of Psychology.Vol 3. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2000:310-311.Schatzman M. Obituary: Professor Hans Eysenck.The Independent.Published September 8, 1997.

6 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Soliemanifar O, Soleymanifar A, Afrisham R.Relationship between personality and biological reactivity to stress: A review.Psychiatry Investigation. 2018;15(12):1100-1114. doi:10.30773/pi.2018.10.14.2Chapman BP, Weiss A, Barrett P, Duberstein P.Hierarchical structure of the Eysenck Personality Inventory in a large population sample: Goldberg’s trait-tier mapping procedure.Pers Individ Dif. 2013;54(4):479-484. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2012.09.024Pelosi AJ.Personality and fatal diseases: Revisiting a scientific scandal.J Health Psychol. 2019;24(4):421-439. doi:10.1177/1359105318822045Eysenck HJ.The effects of psychotherapy: An evaluation.Journal of Consulting Psychology.1952;16(5):319–324. doi:10.1037/h0063633Sauce B, Matzel LD.The paradox of intelligence: Heritability and malleability coexist in hidden gene-environment interplay.Psychol Bull. 2018;144(1):26-47. doi:10.1037/bul0000131Hofmann SG, Hayes SC.The future of intervention science: Process-based therapy.Clin Psychol Sci.2019;7(1):37-50. doi:10.1177/2167702618772296Additional ReadingEysenck, HJ.Rebel with a Cause: The Autobiography of Hans Eysenck.New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers; 1990.Eysenck, HJ.The IQ Argument: Race, Intelligence, and Education.New York: Library Press; 1971.Haggbloom SJ, Warnick R, Warnick JE, et al.The 100 most eminent psychologists of the 20th century.Review of General Psychology.2002;6(2),139–152. doi:10.1037//1089-2680.6.2.139McLoughlin, CS. Eysenck, Hans Jurgen. In: Kazdin AE, ed.Encyclopedia of Psychology.Vol 3. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2000:310-311.Schatzman M. Obituary: Professor Hans Eysenck.The Independent.Published September 8, 1997.

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Soliemanifar O, Soleymanifar A, Afrisham R.Relationship between personality and biological reactivity to stress: A review.Psychiatry Investigation. 2018;15(12):1100-1114. doi:10.30773/pi.2018.10.14.2Chapman BP, Weiss A, Barrett P, Duberstein P.Hierarchical structure of the Eysenck Personality Inventory in a large population sample: Goldberg’s trait-tier mapping procedure.Pers Individ Dif. 2013;54(4):479-484. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2012.09.024Pelosi AJ.Personality and fatal diseases: Revisiting a scientific scandal.J Health Psychol. 2019;24(4):421-439. doi:10.1177/1359105318822045Eysenck HJ.The effects of psychotherapy: An evaluation.Journal of Consulting Psychology.1952;16(5):319–324. doi:10.1037/h0063633Sauce B, Matzel LD.The paradox of intelligence: Heritability and malleability coexist in hidden gene-environment interplay.Psychol Bull. 2018;144(1):26-47. doi:10.1037/bul0000131Hofmann SG, Hayes SC.The future of intervention science: Process-based therapy.Clin Psychol Sci.2019;7(1):37-50. doi:10.1177/2167702618772296

Soliemanifar O, Soleymanifar A, Afrisham R.Relationship between personality and biological reactivity to stress: A review.Psychiatry Investigation. 2018;15(12):1100-1114. doi:10.30773/pi.2018.10.14.2

Chapman BP, Weiss A, Barrett P, Duberstein P.Hierarchical structure of the Eysenck Personality Inventory in a large population sample: Goldberg’s trait-tier mapping procedure.Pers Individ Dif. 2013;54(4):479-484. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2012.09.024

Pelosi AJ.Personality and fatal diseases: Revisiting a scientific scandal.J Health Psychol. 2019;24(4):421-439. doi:10.1177/1359105318822045

Eysenck HJ.The effects of psychotherapy: An evaluation.Journal of Consulting Psychology.1952;16(5):319–324. doi:10.1037/h0063633

Sauce B, Matzel LD.The paradox of intelligence: Heritability and malleability coexist in hidden gene-environment interplay.Psychol Bull. 2018;144(1):26-47. doi:10.1037/bul0000131

Hofmann SG, Hayes SC.The future of intervention science: Process-based therapy.Clin Psychol Sci.2019;7(1):37-50. doi:10.1177/2167702618772296

Eysenck, HJ.Rebel with a Cause: The Autobiography of Hans Eysenck.New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers; 1990.Eysenck, HJ.The IQ Argument: Race, Intelligence, and Education.New York: Library Press; 1971.Haggbloom SJ, Warnick R, Warnick JE, et al.The 100 most eminent psychologists of the 20th century.Review of General Psychology.2002;6(2),139–152. doi:10.1037//1089-2680.6.2.139McLoughlin, CS. Eysenck, Hans Jurgen. In: Kazdin AE, ed.Encyclopedia of Psychology.Vol 3. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2000:310-311.Schatzman M. Obituary: Professor Hans Eysenck.The Independent.Published September 8, 1997.

Eysenck, HJ.Rebel with a Cause: The Autobiography of Hans Eysenck.New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers; 1990.

Eysenck, HJ.The IQ Argument: Race, Intelligence, and Education.New York: Library Press; 1971.

Haggbloom SJ, Warnick R, Warnick JE, et al.The 100 most eminent psychologists of the 20th century.Review of General Psychology.2002;6(2),139–152. doi:10.1037//1089-2680.6.2.139

McLoughlin, CS. Eysenck, Hans Jurgen. In: Kazdin AE, ed.Encyclopedia of Psychology.Vol 3. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2000:310-311.

Schatzman M. Obituary: Professor Hans Eysenck.The Independent.Published September 8, 1997.

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