The History Corner: Reflections on SIOP 2017 Living History Series With Sheldon Zedeck

Nathan T. Carter, University of Georgia, Michael A. Daniels, University of British Columbia

The 2017 Meeting of SIOP was the first for the new History Committee. We had the privilege of continuing the tradition of conducting the Living History Series interviews with past SIOP President and past Editor of the Journal of Applied Psychology, Dr. Sheldon Zedeck. The full hour-long interview is available here. In this brief installment of the History Corner, we reflect on the experience.

Interviewing Shelly was an exciting process, as both of us are alumni of Bowling Green State University. Because of this, we had heard much about Shelly—the first graduate of that PhD program (as he humorously confirms in his interview)—over the course of our graduate careers. It was not only a pleasure to learn about his unique career path and his insights but also to realize that Shelly is a great person with a warm and charming disposition. We would like to thank him sincerely for imparting his time and experience to make this possible. A rundown of what to expect in the video:

• What Shelly wanted to be when he grew up and how he stumbled into I-O psychology
• As an undergraduate, what course Shelly got “less than a C” in
• Who was really the first graduate of BGSU? Shelly or Frank Landy?
• How Shelly got tenure without an I-O program at UC Berkley
• How Shelly dealt with tragedy in his personal life at a crucial point in his career
• AND MUCH MORE!

For the SIOP 2018 Living History Series we will be interviewing Dr. Nancy Tippins (PhD, Georgia Tech), a principal consultant at CEB (now Gartner) with more than 30 years of experience on the applied side of industrial-organizational psychology, working for organizations like Exxon, Bell Atlantic, GTE, and Valtera, mainly in the areas of assessment and selection (though as we will learn, she has done much more). Her influence can be seen in the many books she has either coedited or coauthored, her extensive publication record in peer-reviewed journals, and her involvement in committees for establishing testing and assessment practices for SIOP’s Principles (1999) and the Standards for Educational and Psychological Tests (2014). She is a past president of SIOP (2000–2001) and is a fellow of SIOP, APA, and APS. In keeping with our tradition, Dr. Tippins is an exemplar of the scientist–practitioner model, and we are very excited for her interview in Chicago. Hope to see you there!