James J. Jenkins

Who is James J. Jenkins?

James J. Jenkins, American psychology professor, played a significant role in the development of cognitive psychology. Trained as an industrial psychologist, his early career was shaped by his Fellowship at the Social Science Research Council’s 1953 summer meeting that established the discipline of psycholinguistics. He initially attempted to apply a modified version of behaviorism to the problems of language behavior, and while his “mediational” approach was very influential, he became convinced that it could not provide an adequate account of the structural nature of language as articulated by Noam Chomsky. He continued research on language and cognition, eventually focusing on topics concerning speech perception. His research was marked by an interest in new and even radical ideas, a keen appreciation of the value of studying real-world problems, and a willingness to give up cherished theories when the facts drove him to do so. "If you're not making any progress toward understanding the problem," he said, "you've got to change." He had an infectious enthusiasm for both research and teaching, and his impact on young psychologists was tremendous.