Leona Tyler
Kenyetta Holmes
PSY/310
Daralyn. A Plains, Ph. D.
September 7, 2012

Leona Tyler was born on May 10, 1906. She was born in Chetek, Wisconsin to Leon Tyler and Bessie Carver Tyler. Leona had three siblings and was greatly influenced by her mother. Her mother treated her equally to her brothers and she encouraged her children to receive higher education because neither she nor Leona’s father pursued higher education. Leona was very smart so she was able to skip some grades and graduate from high school at the age of fifteen then she went on to graduate college at age of nineteen. Tyler got her Bachelors degree at the University of Minnesota at age 19 and a Ph. D in psychology at the University of Minnesota. After graduating Leona did what most women that were highly educated did back in those days, she taught school. After teacher her students for a number of years Tyler found disciplining the students to be no longer desirable to her. Tyler taught at several institutions following her graduating college. These institutions included Muskegon Heights and University of Oregon. Tyler was fascinated by the things she read in the writings of her students and how diverse the writings were, which fueled her interest in individual differences. She got to see firsthand how some forced choices and pressures of life would shape her students’ futures. Tyler opened a counseling center for soldiers returning from WWII where she spent one third of her time counseling. With all the resources she had to make money Tyler was able to publish her first book in 1947 entitled, “The Psychology of Human Differences”. After all her years of study, teaching, and counseling Tyler came up with the theory of possibilities. Her theory states that all creatures are characterized by multipotentiality (http://www.webster.edu). She explained that even though people have many possibilities to become different things as that person grows only few of those potentialities become an actuality whether it is missed unconsciously or consciously. Tyler came up with the Choice Pattern Technique to determine cultural differences by individual choice. In these techniques she would give the patient a set of cards that he or she would have to put into groups according to what they were interested in and what he or she was not interested in. After sorting the cards the patient would have to explain why the cards got put into the groups they were put into. She found out from using this technique on students of multiple cultures that the more of an influence the environment had on a career choice, the less the choices. Her test also showed that when it came to careers dislikes and things that people wanted to avoid were more important than the things they liked, this would be a major finding for those psychologists in the future. Her technique proved so accurate that it is still used today in career counseling. Leona wrote at least 100 articles and books. Some of her works are “Clinical Psychology”, “Developmental Psychology”, and “Individuality: Human Possibilities and Personal Development of Men and Women”. Her books were widely used and all her work was widely accepted. Leona was active in many areas of life besides her professional life. She also took a part in many community and professional services. She served as a member of the Amnesty International and other peace organizations. She was a strong believer in the movement towards peace and she showed this in every aspect of her life. Leona was always so kind, honest, trust worthy, and fair that people often looked to her for her intelligence and everyone respected her. All of these unique qualities assisted her in her position as the Dean of the University of Oregon. Throughout her lifetime she received many awards and rewards not limited to being made president of the Oregon Psychological Association and also being president of the Counseling Division of the American Psychological Association. She also received the award for an honorary doctorate from Linfield College and a University colloquium series on her eightieth birthday. Leona Tyler was a very smart woman with a very strong support system. All the support she received from her parents gave her the drive to go to college and use her knowledge from her students and past experiences to come up with the construct of organized choices. Leona’s studies gave her the knowledge to come up with a test that allows psychologists to see what causes people to make the choices they make in their lives. Her lifetime contributions have got her many rewards before and after death. She was a great woman with a great mind who provided great contributions to the world of psychology.
References
http://www.webster.edu
http://www.feministvoices.com/leona-tyler