Online Exhibits

Learn more about key topics in the history of psychology through original documents, videos, and audio from the collections of the Cummings Center for the History of Psychology.

A Clockwork Lavender: Sexology, Psychology, and the LGBTQ+ Community

Explore scientific understandings about sexual orientation and gender identity over the course of the 20th century through the researchers and activists whose work had a profound impact on the lives of countless LGBTQ+ individuals. From the criminalization and censorship of LGBTQ+ identity to the liberation movements of the 1970s, this exhibit inspects the relationship between science, activism, and social change.

Open Exhibit | Access on Smithsonian Learning Lab

Before Belmont: Ethics in Experimental Psychology

In 1979, following a series of high-profile controversies, the Belmont Report provided ethical guidance for the study of human subjects in the United States. View these key ethical principles through the 20^th century medical and psychological experiments that tested and redefined their boundaries.

Open Exhibit | Access on Smithsonian Learning Lab

Exploring Heredity: Race, Eugenics, and the History of Intelligence Testing

Examine the history of intelligence testing in psychology, including its connections to World War I, United States immigration policy, and the eugenics movement. Learn more about this controversial history through original documents, films, and photographs

Open Exhibit | Access on Smithsonian Learning Lab