Difference between revisions of "Tavistock Institute for Human Behavior"
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==Early history: WWI & the Tavistock Clinic== | ==Early history: WWI & the Tavistock Clinic== | ||
| − | In 1941 a group of psychiatrists at the Tavistock Clinic secured means from British Parliament to try new measures. The group was later asked to join the Directorate of Army Psychiatry. After World War I, there was a growing recognition that neurosis was not just war related, but endemic and pervasive in a modern society. In response the Tavistock Clinic | + | In 1941 a group of psychiatrists at the Tavistock Clinic secured means from British Parliament to try new measures. The group was later asked to join the Directorate of Army Psychiatry. After World War I, there was a growing recognition that neurosis was not just war related, but endemic and pervasive in a modern society. In response the Tavistock Clinic was founded in 1920, as a voluntary outpatient clinic. Many of the founders were doctors who had been concerned with neurosis in World War I. They included general physicians, neurologists, psychiatrists and one or two physicians also trained in psychology and anthropology. The group linked social sciences, general medicine and psychiatry. <ref>Eric Trist, Hugh Murray [http://www.moderntimesworkplace.com/archives/ericsess/tavis1/tavis1.html A Social Engagement of Social Science: Historical Review], Tavistock Anthology, February 1989</ref> |
==WWII & the Tavistock Group== | ==WWII & the Tavistock Group== | ||
| − | According to Tavistock founder Eric Trist in "A Tavistock Anthology", the institute is a "novel, interdisciplinary, action-oriented | + | According to Tavistock founder Eric Trist in "A Tavistock Anthology", the institute is a "novel, interdisciplinary, action-oriented, research organization". |
| − | :The circumstances of World War II brought together an unusually talented group of psychiatrists, clinical and social psychologists and anthropologists in the setting of the British Army, where they developed a number of radical innovations in social psychiatry and applied social science. They became known as the 'Tavistock Group' because the core members had been at the pre-war Tavistock Clinic. Though only some of them continued their involvement with the post-war Tavistock organization, those who did built on the war-time achievements to introduce a number of far-reaching developments in several fields. This style of research related theory and practice in a new mode. In these volumes this style is called "The Social Engagement of Social Science".<ref>Eric Trist [http://www.moderntimesworkplace.com/archives/ericsess/sessPreface/sesspreface.html The Social Engagement of Social Science], A Tavistock Anthology, February 1989</ref> | + | :"The circumstances of World War II brought together an unusually talented group of psychiatrists, clinical and social psychologists and anthropologists in the setting of the British Army, where they developed a number of radical innovations in social psychiatry and applied social science. They became known as the 'Tavistock Group' because the core members had been at the pre-war Tavistock Clinic. Though only some of them continued their involvement with the post-war Tavistock organization, those who did built on the war-time achievements to introduce a number of far-reaching developments in several fields. This style of research related theory and practice in a new mode. In these volumes this style is called "The Social Engagement of Social Science".<ref>Eric Trist [http://www.moderntimesworkplace.com/archives/ericsess/sessPreface/sesspreface.html The Social Engagement of Social Science], A Tavistock Anthology, February 1989</ref> |
==1950's - 70's: MK-Ultra== | ==1950's - 70's: MK-Ultra== | ||
Revision as of 19:06, 15 October 2009
The Tavistock Institute was founded in London in 1946 with the aid of a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation. [1] It is a not-for-profit think tank, policy and consulting organization. It publishes "Human Relations and host Evaluation: The International Journal of Theory, Research and Practice, a scholarly journal. According to their website, they assist organizations:
- "Through innovation and change, working with the technical and emotional challenges involved. (They have) consistently been at the cutting edge of participative and action research approaches and applied them, for example, to ground-breaking organisation and evaluation support. (They) integrate different approaches from the social sciences to give our clients a deep understanding of their issues and potential ways forward. (The institute) assumptions to the surface and work with the unpredictable, including what is hidden, and sometimes, unconscious." [2]
Contents
Early history: WWI & the Tavistock Clinic
In 1941 a group of psychiatrists at the Tavistock Clinic secured means from British Parliament to try new measures. The group was later asked to join the Directorate of Army Psychiatry. After World War I, there was a growing recognition that neurosis was not just war related, but endemic and pervasive in a modern society. In response the Tavistock Clinic was founded in 1920, as a voluntary outpatient clinic. Many of the founders were doctors who had been concerned with neurosis in World War I. They included general physicians, neurologists, psychiatrists and one or two physicians also trained in psychology and anthropology. The group linked social sciences, general medicine and psychiatry. [3]
WWII & the Tavistock Group
According to Tavistock founder Eric Trist in "A Tavistock Anthology", the institute is a "novel, interdisciplinary, action-oriented, research organization".
- "The circumstances of World War II brought together an unusually talented group of psychiatrists, clinical and social psychologists and anthropologists in the setting of the British Army, where they developed a number of radical innovations in social psychiatry and applied social science. They became known as the 'Tavistock Group' because the core members had been at the pre-war Tavistock Clinic. Though only some of them continued their involvement with the post-war Tavistock organization, those who did built on the war-time achievements to introduce a number of far-reaching developments in several fields. This style of research related theory and practice in a new mode. In these volumes this style is called "The Social Engagement of Social Science".[4]
1950's - 70's: MK-Ultra
A behavior control research project began in the 1950's was coordinated by the Tavistock Institute, the Scottish Rite Masons, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and U.S., British, Canadian and United Nations (UN) agencies. The project became famous in the 1970s under a CIA code name, MK-Ultra. Several books were written about its notorious tortures, which included brainwashing by drugs, hypnosis and electroshock. U.S. Senate hearings exposed many of abuses and President Gerald Ford appointed a commission headed by Vice President Nelson Rockefeller to investigate. There were widespread views at the time that here was the fox guarding the hen house... [5]
Clients
Clients include international agencies, the European Union, local and central government within the United Kingdom, regional agencies, health local authorities, charities and small family firms. The work with organizations, groups and individuals while "always retaining a focus on system-wide issues and dynamics". They are known for "helping organisations adapt to environmental changes and new technology, with a focus on organizational issues and relationships, leadership, emergence of knowledege, cultural differences and diversity and public policy. [6]
Funding
Tavistock describes itself as "a registered charity and a not-for-profit organisation" whose income "comes from research grants and contracts for research projects, consultancy, training and publishing;" plus its "own resources." [7]
A number of Tavistock educational initiatives are validated by the University of East London. [8]
Researchers and Consultants
- Director - Phil Swann
- Principal Researcher/Consultants - Dione Hills, Beth Neustadt, John Kelleher, Mannie Sher
- Emeritus Director - Frank Heller (Centre for Decision-Making Studies)
- Principal Advisor, Evaluation - Elliot Stern
- Senior Researcher/Consultants - Frances Abraham, Kari Hadjivassiliou, Camilla Child, Claire Sandamas (acting)
- Researcher/Consultants - Pernille Solvik, Kerstin Junge, Fay Sullivan, Eliat Aram
- Principal Associates - Karen Izod, Joe Cullen
- Senior Associates - Chris Ramsden, Elizabeth (Liz) Sommerlad, Angela Eden, Jim Mackay
Council Members
- Sarah Childerstone - Chair
- Barry Curnow
- Rodney Brooke
- Sue Merchant
- David Hollywood
- David Guest
- Ray Loveridge
See also: Tavistock Institute for Human Behavior: Former People
Contact
The Tavistock Institute
30 Tabernacle Street
London EC2A 4UE
Email: central.admin@tavinstitute.org
Tel: +44(0)20 7417 0407
Fax: +44(0)20 7417 0566
Website address: http://www.tavinstitute.org/
Articles & sources
Sourcewatch articles
References
- ↑ Eric Trist The Social Engagement of Social Science, A Tavistock Anthology, February 1989
- ↑ About Us, Tavistock Institute, 2007
- ↑ Eric Trist, Hugh Murray A Social Engagement of Social Science: Historical Review, Tavistock Anthology, February 1989
- ↑ Eric Trist The Social Engagement of Social Science, A Tavistock Anthology, February 1989
- ↑ Anton Chaitkin British psychiatry: from eugenics to assassination, Executive Intelligence Review, V21 #40, July 2002
- ↑ Our Clients, Tavistock Institute, 2007
- ↑ Tavistock Institute for Human Behavior, Spin Profiles, accessed October 2007
- ↑ Quality Audit Report, University of East London, July 2000
- ↑ Researchers and Consultants, Tavistock Institute, accessed August 19, 2007.
- ↑ Council Members, Tavistock Institute, accessed August 19, 2007.
External articles
- Dr. Byron T. Weeks Tavistock: The Best Kept Secret in America, Educate Yourself, July 2001
- Dr. John Coleman Forward: The Tavistock Institute Of Human Relations, ASIN: B000MQPTMQ, 1999
External resources
Dr. John Coleman The Tavistock Institute Of Human Relations: Shaping the Moral, Spiritual, Cultural, Political, and Economic Decline of The United States of America, ASIN: B000MQPTMQ, 1999
