Harlow, Harry F. (1905–1981)

Adam W. Nurton

Harry F. Harlow is best known for his studies of mother love and the importance of social interaction in primate learning. He was born in Fairview, Iowa, in 1905. He received his BA and PhD in psychology from Stanford University and immediately joined the faculty at the University of Wisconsin, where he established the Psychology Primate Laboratory. It expanded and merged with the Wisconsin Regional Primate Laboratory in 1964, with Harlow as its director. The Wisconsin Primate Center drew in several leading scientists, including humanistic psychologist Abraham Maslow. Harlow questioned current theories, which stated that love was a function of the feeding bond between mothers and a means of regularizing sexual contact. To examine the significance of mothering and the universal need for contact, Harlow studied baby rhesus monkeys, because they demonstrated a range of emotions similar to human ...

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