Paul R. Farnsworth

Paul R. Farnsworth (August 15, 1899 – October 27, 1978) was an American music psychologist. He had a forty-year career at Stanford University where he researched the psychology of music preference. In addition to authoring three books, he was the editor of the Annual Review of Psychology from 1955 to 1968.

Early life and education Paul Randolph Farnsworth was born in Waterbury, Connecticut, on August 15, 1899 He grew up in Ohio, and attended Sandusky High School. He then attended the Ohio State University, where he majored in psychology. He remained at Ohio State to complete a master's degree and a PhD, graduating in 1925 under advisor Albert Paul Weiss.

Career In 1925, Farnsworth accepted a teaching position at Stanford University. He largely remained at Stanford for the rest of his career, aside from brief visiting scholar stints at Ohio State University, the University of Chicago, and the University of Wisconsin. He authored three books: Social Psychology (1936), Musical Taste: Its Measurement and Cultural Nature (1950), and The Social Psychology of Music (1958). The last title was translated into Japanese and German, and was republished in two editions, the last in 1969.

Farnsworth played the violin throughout his life. He was frequently in poor health—in his younger years, he was afflicted by chronic amoebic dysentery. In later life, he had angina. He died of cancer on October 27, 1978, at his home in Stanford, California.