Dorothea M. Ross

Dorothea Mary Ross (December 24, 1923 – May 7, 2019) was a Canadian-American psychologist and pioneer in the field of pediatric psychology. Ross is best known for her work on social learning at Stanford University in the early 1960s where, together with Albert Bandura and her sister, Sheila Ross, she demonstrated that children learn aggressive behavior through modeling and imitation. Ross was also one of the founders of the Society of Pediatric Psychology.

Early life and education

Ross was born to John and Mildred Ross in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada on December 24, 1923. She received her B.A. from the University of British Columbia in 1956 and her M.A. in Psychology from the University of British Columbia in 1958. Ross received her Ph.D. in Psychology from Stanford University in 1962. The Bing Nursery School is still operating.

Society of Pediatric Psychology

In the mid-1960s, Ross together with Logan Wright and Lee Salk contacted all medical schools in the United States to gauge interest in starting a special interest group with a focus on children in the American Psychological Association. This group became the Society of Pediatric Psychology (SPP) in 1969, with Wright serving as its first president and Salk as its second president. with Ross reporting that the feeling early on in the creation of the SPP was that a female president could alienate potential members who at that time were primarily male.

Awards

In 1979 Ross was awarded the Society of Pediatric Psychology Distinguished Contributions Award for her efforts in founding the Society of Pediatric Psychology. This award is now named the Wright Ross Salk Award for Distinguished Service in Pediatric Psychology in recognition of the contributions of the pioneering efforts of Logan Wright, Dorothea Ross, and Lee Salk in establishing the field of pediatric psychology.

Later life

Ross and her sister, Sheila Ross, moved to Bainbridge Island, Washington in 1989, and she died there at the age of 95.