Oliver Zangwill facts for kids

Oliver Louis Zangwill (FRS) (born October 29, 1913 – died October 12, 1987) was an important British neuropsychologist. This means he studied how the brain affects our behavior and thinking. He was a professor at the University of Cambridge from 1952 to 1981.

Oliver Zangwill came from a family of talented people. His father, Israel Zangwill, was a writer, and his mother, Edith Ayrton, was also an author. His grandparents were a physicist and a doctor. In 1977, he became a Fellow of the Royal Society, which is a very high honor for scientists.

Early Life and Education

Oliver Zangwill was born in Littlehampton, a town in West Sussex, England. He went to school in London at University College School. Later, he studied at the University of Cambridge, where he was part of King's College.

He earned his first degree in 1935 and his master's degree in 1939. He studied natural sciences and then focused on moral sciences, which included both philosophy and psychology. He did very well in his studies, showing a special talent for these subjects.

His Career in Psychology

Oliver Zangwill spent many years working in psychology. He started as a research student at Cambridge. During World War II, from 1940 to 1945, he worked as a psychologist at a special unit in Edinburgh that helped people with brain injuries.

After the war, he moved to Oxford, where he became an assistant director and senior lecturer in psychology. In 1952, he returned to Cambridge as the Professor of Experimental Psychology. This was a very important job because he was the main professor for psychology at Cambridge at that time.

• Research Student, Cambridge Psychological Laboratory, 1935–40
• Psychologist, Brain Injuries Unit, Edinburgh, 1940–45
• Assistant Director, Institute of Experimental Psychology, Oxford, 1945–52
• Senior Lecturer in General Psychology, University of Oxford, 1948–52
• Professorial Fellow, King's College, Cambridge, 1955–87

Helping Psychology Grow

As a professor at Cambridge, Zangwill had a lot of influence. He was a founder of the Experimental Psychology Society and was also active in the British Psychological Society. He helped these groups work together, even when they had different ideas.

He was always ready to help new psychology programs start at other universities in the UK during the 1950s and 1960s. He also helped check the work of many students studying for their degrees and PhDs. Because of this, he played a big part in how fast psychology grew in the UK.

Research on the Brain

Zangwill was most interested in neuropsychology. This field looks at how different parts of the brain affect our behavior and mental abilities. He was especially interested in brain lateralisation, which is how the left and right sides of the brain have different jobs. For example, the left side often handles language, while the right side might be better at understanding shapes.

He did much of his research at the National Hospital for Nervous Diseases in London. He always wanted his research to help patients directly. Even though he was modest about his own work, he encouraged and supported many other researchers. Many people believe that the growth of neuropsychology in the UK from the 1970s onwards was thanks to his efforts.

He also made sure to supervise any PhD students whose research ideas didn't quite fit with his colleagues' work. One of his students, Liam Hudson, described him as a "scholarly, preoccupied, subtle, and at times startlingly insightful, person."

His Legacy

To honor his important work in helping patients with brain disorders, a special research and treatment center was named after him. It's called the Oliver Zangwill Centre for Neuropsychological Rehabilitation. This center helps people recover from brain injuries.

Oliver Zangwill was married twice. He had a son named David with his first wife, Joy Moult. Later, he adopted his second wife Shirley Tribe's son, Jeremy.

Other Important Roles

Oliver Zangwill held several other important positions throughout his career:

• Visiting Psychologist, National Hospital for Nervous Diseases, London, 1947–79
• Honorary Consulting Psychologist to United Cambridge Hospitals, 1969–1987
• Editor, Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 1958–66
• President: Section J, British Association for the Advancement of Science, 1963
• President: Experimental Psychology Society, 1962–63
• President: British Psychological Society, 1974–75
• Member of the Biological Research Board, Medical Research Council, 1962–66