Joseph Wolpe

Joseph Wolpe (1915 – 1997) was born in Johannesburg, South Africa in 1915, but became an American citizen later in his life. He is best known for developing what is now called systematic desensitization. This treatment developed as a result of his translational research with fearful animals. Systematic desensitization involves the imaginary exposure to a feared stimulus while simultaneously applying relaxation. Along with Arnold Lazarus he is considered one of the fathers of behavior therapy. Wolpe was professor of psychiatry at Temple University Medical School from 1965 to 1988. He then moved to Los Angeles and taught at both UCLA and Pepperdine University. One of his best known books is The Practice of Behavior Therapy (4th Ed in 1991).

He developed the SUDS (Subjective Units of Disturbance Scale) for assessing the level of subjective discomfort or psychological pain.

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