fei75766_ch18_569-609.indd 590  02/24/20 10:50 AM
Part VI    Learning-Cognitive Theories590
totheUnited States. After living invarious parts ofthecountry, theyeventually 
settled inBrooklyn, where Walter attended primary andsecondary schools. Before 
hecould accept acollege scholarship, hisfather suddenly became ill,andWalter 
wasforced totakeaseries ofoddjobs. Eventually, hewasabletoattend NewYork 
University, where hebecame passionately interested inart(painting andsculpture) 
anddivided histimeamong art,psychology, andlifeinGreenwich Village. 
Incollege, Mischel wasappalled bytherat-centered introductory psychol -
ogyclasses thatseemed tohimfarremoved from theeveryday livesofhumans. His
humanistic inclinations weresolidified byreading Freud, theexistential thinkers, and
thegreat poets. After graduation, heentered theMAprogram inclinical psychology 
atCityCollege ofNewYork. While working onhisdegree, hewasemployed asa
social worker intheLower EastSideslums, work thatledhimtodoubt theusefulness 
ofpsychoanalytic theory andtoseethenecessity ofusing empirical evidence toevalu -
ateallclaims ofpsychology. 
Mischel’s development asacognitive social psychologist wasfurther enhanced 
byhisdoctoral studies atOhio State University from 1953 to1956. Atthattime, 
thepsychology department atOhio State wasinformally divided intothesupporters 
ofitstwomost influential faculty members—Julian Rotter andGeorge Kelly. Unlike 
most students, whostrongly supported oneortheother position, Mischel admired 
bothRotter andKelly andlearned from eachofthem. Asaconsequence, Mischel’s 
cognitive social theory shows theinfluence ofRotter’s social learning theory aswell
asKelly’s cognitively based theory ofpersonal constructs (seeChapter 19).Rotter 
taught Mischel theimportance ofresearch design forimproving assessment tech-
niques andformeasuring theeffectiveness oftherapeutic treatment; Kelly taught 
himthatparticipants inpsychology experiments arelikethepsychologists whostudy 
them inthattheyarethinking, feeling human beings. 
From 1956 to1958, Mischel lived much ofthetimeintheCaribbean, studying 
religious cultsthatpracticed spirit possession andinvestigating delay ofgratification 
inacross-cultural setting. Hebecame determined tolearn more about whypeople 
prefer future valuable rewards overimmediate lessvaluable ones. Much ofhislater
research hasrevolved around thisissue. 
Next, Mischel taught for2years attheUniversity ofColorado. Hethenjoined 
theDepartment ofSocial Relations atHarvard, where hisinterest inpersonality 
theory andassessment wasfurther stimulated bydiscussions withGordon Allport 
(seeChapter 12),Henry Murray, David McClelland, andothers. In1962, Mischel 
moved toStanford andbecame acolleague ofAlbert Bandura (seeChapter 17).After 
more than20years atStanford, Mischel returned toNewYork, joining thefaculty at
Columbia University, where heremains asanactive researcher andcontinues tohone 
hiscognitive social learning theory.
While atHarvard, Mischel metandmarried Harriet Nerlove, another graduate 
student incognitive psychology. Before theirdivorce, theMischels collaborated to
produce three daughters andseveral scientific projects (H.N.Mischel &W.Mischel, 
1973; W.Mischel &H.N.Mischel, 1976, 1983). Mischel’s most important early 
work wasPersonality and Assessment (1968), anoutgrowth ofhisefforts toidentify 
successful Peace Corps volunteers. Hisexperiences asconsultant tothePeace Corps 
taught himthatunder therightconditions, people areatleastascapable asstandard -
izedtestsatpredicting theirownbehavior. InPersonality and Assessment, Mischel Final PDF to printer