James McKeen Cattell - Eugenicist Beliefs

Eugenicist Beliefs

Eugenics is the "applied science or the bio-social movement which advocates the use of practices aimed at improving the genetic composition of a population, usually referring to human populations." Cattell's belief in eugenics was heavily influenced by the research of Charles Darwin, whose theory of evolution motivated Cattell’s emphasis on studying “the psychology of individual differences”.

In connection with his eugencist beliefs, Cattell's own research found that men of science were likely to have fathers who were clergymen or professors. Incidentally, Cattell's father was both.

Catell believed that he had “inherited ability", but he also credited the influence of his environment, saying "it was my fortune to find a birthplace in the sun. A germplasm fairly well compounded met circumstances to which it was unusuallly fit to react”. Cattell’s strict eugencist ideology even motivated him to offer his own children monetary gifts of $1,000 if they would only marry the offspring of a university professor or academic professional.