Hunt, Thelma Freeman, 1902-1964

Thelma Hunt (1903-1992) in her long career as a pioneer woman psychologist, had a considerable impact on the discipline of psychology. She was born November 30, 1903 in Aurora, Arkansas and entered the George Washington University (GW) in 1921. She earned an A.B. (1924), with Distinction in Psychology, an M.A. (1925) and a Ph.D. (1927). Upon receiving her Ph.D., she taught psychology at Middle Tennessee State College and returned to GW in 1928 as an instructor in psychology. She received her M.D. degree in 1935, and after gaining her license to practice medicine in the District she was offered a full professorship in psychology at GW.

In 1938 she was appointed Chair of the Psychology Department and held this position for twenty-five years (1938-1963). She continued teaching full-time through 1969 when she became Professor Emerita of Psychology. Her career at GW spanned seventy years. During her teaching career, she strengthened the Psychology Department by establishing training programs in rehabilitation counseling, in clinical psychology, and in personnel psychology.

She was a recognized authority on psychological testing and test construction. Her first book, Measurement In Psychology, was published in 1936. She developed some of the new-type multiple choice questions for Civil Service Examinations. Her mentor, Fred A. Moss, Chair of the Psychology Department, encouraged her to develop a test of social intelligence for her Ph. D. thesis. Early in her career, with the cooperation of local Schools of Nursing in the metropolitan Washington, DC area, she developed a series of nursing aptitude tests, which were utilized as entrance exams by Nursing Schools throughout the nation. She also wrote about physical ability factors in personnel selection and developed strength and agility tests for fire fighters and police officers. She conducted the first psychological research evaluating the results of lobotomies done on psychiatric patients. She published many articles about psychological testing.

In 1937, she became a member of the International Personnel Management Association (IPMA) and served on numerous IPMA committees. In 1927, Dr. Hunt, with other psychologists, established the Center for Psychological Service to provide clinical and counseling psychological services to the public. Subsequently, she took over the Center as her own responsibility, and expanded the services to include psychological consulting services on management and personnel problems. In 1942 she married Ernest A. Healy, who assisted her, until his death in 1966, in the management of the Center. She served as consultant/advisor to many other groups including the D.C. Department of Vocational Rehabilitation, School Guidance Center, and others. She was actively involved in the affairs of the American Psychological Association (APA) from 1924 and served on many committees. She was the first president of the D.C. Psychological Association. She died June 23, 1992 in Washington, D.C. An oral history done with Dr. Hunt in 1989 can be found in University Archives Acc#371, the Oral History Collection.