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Kenneth Clark

Social Psychology

Kenneth Bancroft Clark was an American psychologist and educator who, together with his wife Mamie Phipps Clark, conducted the doll experiments studying how segregation shaped Black children's racial self-image and self-esteem. The Clarks testified as expert witnesses in the school segregation cases that were later combined into the Supreme Court's 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision, and their research was cited in the court's opinion. Clark taught for many years at the City College of New York and became the first Black president of the American Psychological Association. With his wife he also founded the Northside Center for Child Development in Harlem and the Harlem Youth Opportunities Unlimited program.

Facts
Birth Date
1914-07-24 1
Birth Year
1914 1
Death Date
2005-05-01 1
Death Year
2005 1
Birthplace
Panama Canal Zone 1
Death Place
Hastings-on-Hudson, New York 1
Nationality / Culture
American 1
Defining Contribution
With his wife Mamie Phipps Clark, conducted the 1940s doll experiments studying children's racial attitudes and testified as expert witnesses in Briggs v. Elliott, one of the cases combined into Brown v. Board of Education (1954); first Black president of the American Psychological Association. 1
Notable Work
Doll experiments 1
In the Other Atlases
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Kenneth and Mamie Clark
Wikimedia Foundation
  • Lead section
    They were known for their 1940s experiments using dolls to study children's attitudes about race.
  • Biography section
    Clark died in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York on May 1, 2005.
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