Doll, Edgar A. (Edgar Arnold), 1889-

EDGAR DOLL was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He was educated at Cornell University (A.B. in Education in 1912), New York University (Pd.M in Education, 1916), and Princeton University (Ph.D in Psychology, 1920). Doll's professional career was dedicated to improving the lives of children with special needs. He was associated with The Training School at Vineland (New Jersey) first as a clinical psychologist working under H.H. Goddard from 1912-1917.

Doll accepted academic appointments at New York University and Ohio State University. From 1919-1923 Doll worked for the State of New Jersey' s Department of Institutions and Agencies working with educational and penal agencies. In 1925 he returned to the Training School at Vineland as Research Director. He remained in that position until 1949. He devised, standardized and published the Vineland Social Maturity Scale. This scale was used worldwide and translated into dozens of languages. He was a lifelong student of the causes of developmental disabilities, and advocated for persons with special needs. Doll worked closely with educators, residential facilities, medical personnel and parents diagnosing, counseling and advising those with special needs.

Doll left Vineland in 1949 to became Coordinator of Research for the Devereaux Schools in Devon, Pennsylvania. He left there in 1953 and became Consulting Psychologist to the Public Schools of Bellingham, Washington. His consultantships and professional affiliations were numerous, but he was particularly active in the Clinical Division of the American Psychological Association, the American Orthopsychiatric Association and the American Association on Mental Deficiency.

GERALDINE LONGWELL DOLL (1907-1983) was also renowned for her work with children with special needs. Geraldine was educated at Denison University (A.B., 1929), Radcliffe College (M.A., 1930), and Cornell University where she was granted the Ph.D in Experimental Psychology in 1937.

From 1930 until 1938 she worked at the Training School at Vineland (New Jersey), first as a Research Fellow and later as a Clinical Psychologist. She married Edgar Doll in December, 1938. The Dolls relocated to Washington where Longwell Doll taught from 1956-1959 at Western Washington College and established her own career as a psychologist in the public school system of Bellingham. With Doll, Longwell Doll worked to establish in Bellingham a system of Special Education innovative in its concepts of individual placement, practical training and lifetime planning. Longwell Doll continued this work in Bellingham after Doll's death in 1968. She retired from the school system in 1972 but continued to publish for and speak to organizations of parents and educators interested in innovations in the field of Special Education. Longwell Doll died in WA in 1983.

From the guide to the Edgar A. and Geraldine Longwell Doll papers, 1932-1983, (Center for the History of Psychology)