Leta Stetter Hollingworth
| Leta Hollingworth | |
|---|---|
| Born | Leta Anna Stetter May 25, 1886 Chadron, Nebraska |
| Died |
November 27, 1939 (aged 53) Columbia University Medical Center Manhattan, New York City |
| Nationality | American |
| Fields | Psychology |
| Institutions | Teachers College, Columbia University |
| Education | University of Nebraska (1905) |
| Notable students | Theodora Mead Abel |
Leta Hollingworth (25 May 1886 – 27 November 1939) was an American psychologist who conducted pioneering work in the early 20th century. It is generally agreed upon that Hollingworth made significant contributions in three areas: psychology of women; clinical psychology; and educational psychology. She is best known for her work with exceptional children.
On May 25, 1886, Leta A. Stetter was born in Dawes County, Nebraska near the town of Chadron. She was the first of three children born to Margaret Elinor Danley (1862–1890) and John George Stetter (1856–1943).
Her childhood consisted of multiple hardships. At three years old, her mother died after giving birth to her third child, and her father deserted the family. Leta and her sisters were then raised by their maternal grandparents — Samuel Thomas Danley (1833–1898) and Mary (1838–1904) — on their farm. After ten years of absence, Leta's father remarried and forced the children to leave their grandparents and move to Valentine, Nebraska to live with him and their stepmother. Leta described the experience of living there as a "fiery furnace" due, in part, to the alcoholism that plagued the household and the verbal and emotional abuse inflicted upon the children by their stepmother. School was her only refuge from this abusive home life. In her early education, Leta described her education as a one room school where she received excellent education which was individualized. Leta attended Valentine High School where she excelled in the classroom and discovered her talent and passion for writing. Her overall intelligence, wit, and humor were made evident when she was hired at age fifteen to write weekly columns in the town newspaper, The Valentine Democrat. She was able to make her final escape from home in 1902 when she graduated from Valentine High School.
When she was just 16 years old, she enrolled at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln where she blossomed academically. She originally studied literature and writing as she aspired to be a writer. However, her series of short stories were never published due to her being female. She was the literary editor of the Daily Nebraskan, associate editor of The Sombrero, and assistant editor of The Senior Book. During her time at the University of Nebraska, she met and became engaged to Harry Hollingworth and the two would wed on December 31, 1908. Harry Hollingworth moved to New York to do graduate work at Columbia University and completed his doctorate under James Cattell. Stetter stayed behind in Nebraska to finish her undergraduate studies. She graduated with Phi Beta Kappa honors in 1906 and received her Bachelor of Arts degree, along with a State Teacher's Certificate. This qualified her to teach English Language and Literature in any Nebraska public high school.
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