A. T. M. Wilson

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Alexander Thomson Macbeth Wilson
Avondale, South Lanarkshire
Died14 September 1978
Compiègne, France
NationalityBritish
OccupationChairman of the Tavistock Institute

Professor of organisational behaviour at the London Graduate School of Business Studies

Adviser at Unilever
Notable workSome Aspects of Social Process Transitional Communities and Social Reconnection: A Study of the Civil Resettlement of British Prisoners of War
SpouseMary

Alexander Thomson Macbeth Wilson

FRSA (also known as 'Tommy') (1906 – 14 September 1978) was a British psychiatrist who was a pioneer of therapeutic communities
.

Early life

A. T. M. Wilson was born in

MD
in 1940.

Inter-war work at the Tavistock Clinic

From 1931 to 1934, Wilson was Lecturer in Physiology at the

Tavistock Clinic
.

In 1937, Wilson and Daniel T. Davies (from the

peptic ulcers.[2] The now-famous paper went on to conclude that particular personalities were particularly prone to developing gastric conditions.[3]

World War II work

Early in the war, Wilson was briefly appointed Acting Medical Director of the Tavistock Clinic. This was only a short appointment, because in 1941 Wilson joined the Royal Army Medical Corps. His first project involved a study of morale with Thomas Main, and at this time he also studied the sociological and disciplinary structure of the forces and the work of Moreno and Lewin. Wilson also worked with Brigadier Francis Crew at the Directorate of Biological Research, conducting statistical and epidemiological research for the military.[4]

Like almost all of the Tavistock staff, Wilson was involved in creating new methods of selecting personnel for the British Army, helping to develop a scheme of War Office Selection Boards. Following on from this work, Wilson then became a member of the committee on the recruitment and selection of the administrative class of the Civil Service.[1]

By far the most notable work that Wilson engaged in during the war involved the planning and creation of a system to help returning prisoners of war:

Geneva Convention. He then led a pilot unit in Derby called No. 10 Special Reception and Training Unit (SRTU). As a result of these pilot studies, in April 1945 the first Civil Resettlement Unit (CRU) opened at Hatfield House. CRUs were described as "transitional communities" and built upon the therapeutic community ideas of Tavistock colleagues such as Wilfred Bion.[5] In July, the King and Queen visited the unit, resulting in significant media coverage for the programme and Wilson's military colleague Colonel Dick Rendel.[6]

Post-war work

After the war, Wilson was a founding member and influential figure of the Tavistock Institute.[7] He and his Tavistock colleague

Citizens Advice Bureaus, focussing on marital problems.[9]

In addition to his work for the Tavistock, from 1949 to 1954, Wilson was honorary secretary of the Royal Society of Medicine.[1] He was also the chairman of the World Health Organization committee on automation and mental health, and a member of the Medical Practitioners Union.

Wilson continued as chairman of the Tavistock management committee until 1958, when he was appointed adviser to Unilever on the use of social science.

British Institute of Management
in 1968.

Wilson left Unilever in 1970, when he became Professor of Organisational Behaviour at the London Graduate School of Business Studies.[1] He retired from his professorship in 1974, though he retained his connection with the university as a fellow.

Wilson died unexpectedly on a working visit to Compiègne, France, in 1978.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f "Obituary: Prof A.T.M. Wilson, Realms of Medicine and Psychiatry". The Times. London, England. 23 September 1978.
  2. ISBN 0313252785
    .
  3. ISBN 978-1317322474
    .
  4. ^
    ISBN 978-1317587880
    .
  5. ISBN 978-1317762201
    .
  6. ^ White, Alice (2016). "Chapter Five: Settling down in Civvy Street". From the Science of Selection to Psychologising Civvy Street: the Tavistock Group, 1939-1948 (Thesis). University of Kent.
  7. ISBN 9781412855679
    .
  8. ISBN 978-1461342625
    .
  9. ISBN 0812281926
    .
  10. ^ "New Training Group for Management". The Times. London, England. 14 February 1966.

External links

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