Waggoner, Raymond W.

Raymond W. Waggoner was chairman of the University of Michigan Department of Psychiatry from 1937 until his retirement in 1970. At the heart of his diverse interests was the belief that the causes and cures for mental diseases had both biological and psychological bases. This view is now widely accepted, but when Waggoner entered the profession, his interest in the neuroscientific aspects of psychiatric treatment was unusual. Under his direction the Department of Psychiatry developed programs which successfully integrated neuroscience into its clinical and educational programs. Waggoner's other professional interests included child and adolescent psychiatry, mental health issues relating to military service, human sexuality, and community mental health.

Born in Carson City, Michigan on August 2, 1901, Waggoner took his undergraduate and medical training at the University of Michigan. He earned his M.D. degree in 1924, and a Doctor of Science degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1930. He originally planned to be a neurosurgeon, however when he joined the University of Michigan neurology faculty in 1929 he became heavily involved in treating patients who had been referred from the State Psychopathic Hospital. At first, he helped colleagues interpret the Freudian terms on these patients' charts, but he progressed quickly to providing treatment for many of the mentally ill patients at the University Hospital.

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