Lauretta Bender

Lauretta Bender

Lauretta Bender (1897–1987) was an influential American child psychiatrist known for her work in the field of child psychiatry. She is best remembered for developing the Bender-Gestalt Test, a psychological assessment tool that evaluates visual-motor functioning, developmental disorders, and neurological impairments in children and adults.

Early Life and Education

Lauretta Bender was born in 1897. She pursued her education in the field of medicine and specialized in psychiatry, a rare choice for women at the time. Bender received her medical degree from the University of Chicago, where she was one of the few women in her class. Her interest in child psychiatry was sparked during her early career, leading her to focus on the mental health and developmental issues of children.

Career

Throughout her career, Lauretta Bender worked in various institutions dedicated to child mental health. She was notably associated with the Bellevue Hospital in New York City, where she served as a senior psychiatrist in the children's ward. It was here that Bender developed and refined the Bender-Gestalt Test in the 1930s. This test became widely used for assessing developmental disorders in children, as well as in adults with brain damage.

Bender's work extended beyond the Bender-Gestalt Test. She was a pioneer in the use of psychopharmacology for children, exploring how medications could be used to treat psychiatric disorders in the pediatric population. Despite the controversy surrounding some of her methods, particularly the use of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) on children, Bender's contributions to child psychiatry were significant. She was a prolific writer, contributing numerous articles and books on child psychiatry, developmental disorders, and treatment methods.

Legacy

Lauretta Bender's legacy in the field of child psychiatry is marked by her pioneering research and the development of the Bender-Gestalt Test. Her work has influenced generations of psychiatrists and psychologists in the assessment and treatment of developmental and neurological disorders. Despite the controversies, her contributions to the understanding of child psychology and the early use of psychopharmacology in children have left a lasting impact on the field.

Selected Works

• The Bender-Gestalt Test for Young Children
• A Visual Motor Gestalt Test and Its Clinical Use

See Also

• Child Psychiatry
• Psychopharmacology
• Electroconvulsive Therapy
• Developmental Disorders

External Links

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