Walter Dill Scott
Walter Dill Scott | |
---|---|
Lynn Hough | |
Succeeded by | Franklyn Bliss Snyder |
Personal details | |
Born | University of Leipzig | May 1, 1869
Occupation | Psychologist, academic administrator |
Walter Dill Scott (May 1, 1869 – September 24, 1955)[1] was an American psychologist and academic administrator who was one of the first applied psychologists and the 10th president of Northwestern University. He applied psychology to various business practices such as personnel selection and advertising.
Early life
Scott was born in
He returned to the United States in 1900 and was appointed instructor of psychology and education and director of the psychological laboratory at Northwestern University. In 1907, Scott was made professor of psychology and head of the new Department of Psychology.[2] In 1909, he was appointed professor of advertising in its School of Commerce and in 1912, professor of applied psychology in the School of Commerce.
While teaching at Northwestern University, he was approached by an advertising executive looking for ideas to make advertising more effective. He turned his attention to this area and composed the book The Psychology of Advertising in Theory and Practice in 1903. In 1908, he published another book about that topic titled The Psychology of Advertising. Scott was granted extended leave of absence from Northwestern from 1916-1918 which enabled him to serve as Director of the new Bureau of Salesmanship at the Carnegie Institute of Technology. Scott's main area of interest at the Bureau was the application of scientific knowledge to business problems.[2] Some of his personnel selection methods included tests to measure certain desirable characteristics and rating scales to rate applicants on necessary skills and attributes (appearance, demeanor, neatness, judgment, accuracy). In 1919, Scott and his associates founded the Scott Company Engineers and Consultants in Industrial Personnel, which provided services to over 40 industrial concerns in its first year.
He was elected president of the
He was a member of Phi Beta Kappa, Sigma Xi, and Alpha Phi Omega.
Quantitative intelligence
Along with
Scott, Galton, and Binet all sought to facilitate the institutional placement of persons by objectifying evaluations and assuming that mental ability was innate.[3]
Role in applied psychology
The nature of applied psychology was too demanding for Walter Dill Scott to continue his research on human behavior, which led his focus on establishing his own theories.[3] Scott developed laws of suggestibility as a critical mechanism of advertising. He argued that consumers don't act rationally, and therefore can be easily influenced. According to Scott, consumer suggestibility was based on three factors: emotion, sympathy, and sentimentality.[4] He believed that advertising was primarily a persuasive tool, rather than an informational device, and that advertising had its effect on consumers in a nearly hypnotic manner. People were thought to be highly susceptible to suggestion, as long as suggestion was available to them under a variety of conditions. Using his three parts of suggestibility, Scott advised companies to take on the "direct command" approach for advertising to consumers by using phrases such as "Use Apple Computers." Scott also recommended that companies use return coupons because they required consumers to take direct action.[4][5] A 1903 article published in The New York Times suggested that Walter Dill Scott also advocated for the use of illustrations in advertisements. Illustrations attract reader attention, and must be self-explanatory and relevant. This would then allow the reader to study the explanatory text of the advertisement. Scott said companies should also consider the circulation used and the tone the advertisement portrays to the audience. According to Scott, advertisements are utilized most effectively when large numbers of the right kind of people see them in a publication which adds confidence and recommends it favorably to prospective customers. Successful writers of advertisements had to possess technical knowledge, a creative imagination, and the ability to give precise descriptions of things.[6]
This proved to be the most successful and effective advertising strategy at the time; Scott's techniques were used widely all over the country by 1910. The concept of suggestibility eventually was phased out among scientific psychologists; however, the notion that underlying human behavior influences consumer decisions is still preserved. The AIDA contemporary model of marketing has roots in Scott's writings, which describe what usually occurs when a consumer engages with an advertisement.[7]
In 1913, Scott proposed another technique of advertising that consisted of three stages: attention, comprehension, and understanding. According to this model, advertisements (or promotions) have three stages. They must first garner the attention of consumers and help them develop beliefs about the product or service. Second, advertising should create interest or positive feelings about the service or product. Third, advertising or promotions should instill in consumers a desire for the product or service. Finally, consumers must be convinced and feel a need to take action, that is, buy the product.[5]
Scott wanted to make the marketplace and workplace more efficient through the rationalization of consumer and worker activities, especially by appealing to the self-interest of shoppers and laborers.[3]
Walter Dill Scott's role in Applied psychology eventually lead him to be considered one of the founders of
World War I
In 1917 the United States entered
Works
- The Psychology of Advertising in Theory and Practice. Small, Maynard & Company. 1908.
- Increasing Human Efficiency in Business - A contribution to the psychology of business. The Macmillan company. 1911.
- The Theory of Advertising; A Simple Exposition of the Principles of Psychology in Their Relation to Successful Advertising. Small, Maynard & Company. 1903.
References
Sources
- Schultz, Duane P.; Schultz, Sydney Ellen (2004). A History of Modern Psychology (8th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thompson Learning.