Jane Loevinger Papers
This collection focuses on Jane Loevinger's time in St. Louis, as a professor at Washington University and her work in the field of ego development. Loevinger's earlier professorship at UC Berkeley is also represented in the collection, to a lesser extent. Jane served as a founder of a new form of study in the field of ego development, a figure for women in the field of psychology and is recognized in her papers, and the documents in the collection.
Dates
- Creation: 1936-2011
Creator
- Loevinger, Jane (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Open
Conditions Governing Use
Users of the collection must read and agree to abide by the rules and procedures set forth in the Materials Use Policies.
Providing access to materials does not constitute permission to publish or otherwise authorize use. All publication not covered by fair use or other exceptions is restricted to those who have permission of the copyright holder, which may or may not be Washington University.
If you wish to publish or license Special Collections materials, please contact Special Collections to inquire about copyright status at (314) 935-5495 or spec@wumail.wustl.edu. (Publish means quotation in whole or in part in seminar or term papers, theses or dissertations, journal articles, monographs, books, digital forms, photographs, images, dramatic presentations, transcriptions, or any other form prepared for a limited or general public.)
Extent
15 linear feet
15 boxes
Biographical Information
Jane Loevinger (1919-2008), who is well known for her work on the psychology of ego development, started her career in psychology at the University of Minnesota graduating magna cum laude in 1934 and went on to obtain her Master’s degree in psychometrics in 1939. She obtained her doctorate from University of California, Berkeley in 1944, after which she taught for a little over a year Berkeley.
During World War II, Loevinger and her husband, chemist Samuel Weissman, moved to Los Alamos, New Mexico where he helped to establish the weapon design component of the Manhattan Project and to develop the atomic bomb. Jane did not work during this time, instead focused on having and raising their children.
After the war, Loevinger and her family moved to St. Louis, where she worked as a part-time professor of psychology at Washington University. The psychology department recognized Loevinger and her achievements and appointed her research associate professor of medical psychology in 1961.
She was the creator of the Washington University Sentence Completion Test, a tool to measuring ego development. This work resulted in many publications, including Measuring Ego Development, published in 1970. In 1971, Loevinger became the "first woman full professor" of psychology at Washington University. In 1973, she obtained a position as a full-time professor and in 1988, she became professor emeritus, during which time she continued her research and professional activities and became the William Stuckenberg Professor of Human Values and Moral Development in 1985.
She died January 4, 2008 at the age of 89.
Arrangement
The collection is divided into eighteen series, each one pertaining to a different aspect of Jane’s work and life.
Series 01: Grant Related Materials (arranged alphabetically by granting agency then chronologically)
Series 02: Graduate and Undergraduate Course Related Material (alphabetically by course name)
Series 03 Stuckenberg Lectures Series and Professorship (chronologically by year)
Series 04: Publications/Published Work by Jane Loevinger(chronologically, then alphabetically by last name, then by title)
Series 05: Unpublished work done by Jane (chronologically by year)
Series 06: Publications/Published Work by Others (not Jane's students) on WUSCT and/or Ego Development (chronologically, then alphabetically by last name, then by title)
Series 07: Unpublished Manuscripts Using Ego Development (alphabetically by last name)
Series 08: Jane's Reference Files of Published Articles by Author (alphabetically by last name)
Series 09: Jane's Reference Files of Published Articles by Topic (alphabetically after title)
Series 10: Jane's Research Project Material – Unpublished (chronologically by year, then by title)
Series 11: Jane's Research Notes (alphabetically by title)
Series 12: WUSCT Coding Workshops and Trainings (chronologically by year)
Series 13: Conferences and Symposia (alphabetically by organization name, then chronologically by year, then by title)
Series 14: Biographical Material (alphabetically by name)
Series 15: Correspondence: People - Jane's Students (alphabetically by name)
Series 16: Correspondence: People – General (alphabetically by name)
Series 17: Correspondence: Topic (alphabetically by title)
Series 18: Correspondence: Administrative (alphabetically by title)
Processing Information
Processed by Torry O'Connor and Sonya Rooney in July 2013.
Creator
- Loevinger, Jane (Person)
- Title
- Jane Loevinger Papers
- Description rules
- dacs
- Language of description
- eng
Revision Statements
- 2021 May 21: Resource record updated in ArchiveSpace by Sarah Schnuriger.
Collecting Area Details
Part of the University Archives Collecting Area
Sonya Rooney
Olin Library, 1 Brookings Drive
MSC 1061-141-B
St. Louis MO 63130 US
(314) 935-5495
spec@wumail.wustl.edu