Thurstone, Louis L.

Thurstone, Louis L. (Leon) (1887–1955) psychologist; born in Chicago. After studying electrical engineering at Cornell, he did graduate work in psychology at the University of Chicago (Ph.D. 1917). He taught statistics and mental test theory there (1924–52) while directing the psychometric laboratory he had founded with his wife, psychologist Thelma G. Thurstone. They joined the University of North Carolina in 1952 and founded its psychometric laboratory. He is known for his contributions to the measurement of intelligence and attitudes and he developed some of the tests used by the U.S. Army and American educational institutions.