Ethel Tobach (1921-2015) in memoriam

Abstract

With the passing of Ethel Tobach, the world of psychology has lost one of its few remaining giants. While her death brings to an end an important era in 20th-century comparative psychology, her contributions went beyond her research specialty into leadership and advocacy roles where she also had a substantial impact. Ethel’s professional work and societal work were well recognized and often intertwined. Her many awards included the Kurt Lewin Award (1993) from Division 9 of the American Psychological Association (APA; Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues), for “outstanding contributions to the development and integration of psychological research and social action.” She served as president of APA Division 6 (1984 –1985, Comparative and Physiological Psychology) and APA’s Division 48, (2004, the Society for the Study of Peace, Conflict, and Violence). Her professional contributions were acknowledged by being awarded the APA’s Gold Medal Award for Lifetime Achievement in Psychology in the Public Interest (2003). In addition to a corpus of research publications and essays on various aspects of psychology, she is known for coediting several important books.