About Zing-Yang Kuo
Lived 1898 – 1970 (aged 71–72). Zing-Yang Kuo was a Chinese psychologist.
Kuo Zing-yang (or Z. Y. Kuo; ; 1898–1970) was a Chinese experimental and physiological psychologist. He was a renowned educator and is also notable as having been the President of Zhejiang University, who was expelled by Zhejiang students in 1935.
Kuo was known as "Out-Watsons Mr. Watson" in the international anti-instinct movement.
Biography Kuo was born in Shantou, Guangdong Province in 1898. Kuo studied at Fudan University in Shanghai. In 1918, Kuo went to study in the United States. In 1923, while studying at UC Berkeley, Kuo was offered the chance to earn a Ph.D. However, the school suggested he change some parts of his thesis. Rather than making those changes, Kuo chose to stick with his original work and decided not to present his thesis, which meant he couldn't earn his doctorate. Kuo was a professor, the Vice-president; and from April 1924 to November 1925, the acting President of Fudan University. From 1927 to 1936, Kuo taught at National Central University and Zhejiang University. From 1933 to 1936, Kuo was the President of Zhejiang University, and did the most important research of his academic career - about animal's behavior epigenetics.
From 1946 to 1970, Kuo resided in Kowloon, Hong Kong. In 1963, Kuo returned briefly to the United States for the 16th International Congress of Zoology and resumed his research, collaborating with Gilbert Gottlieb at his Dorothea Dix Hospital lab in Raleigh, North Carolina. Kuo was a trustee of the University of Hong Kong. Kuo died in Hong Kong on 14 August 1970 at age 72.
Works Article: "Giving up Instincts in Psychology", The Journal of Philosophy, Vol. 18, No. 24 (Nov. 24, 1921), pp. 645-664. Chapter 3: From Watsonian Behaviorism to Behavior Epigenetics (by Zing-Yang Kuo). Book: The Dynamics of Behavior Development: An Epigenetic View; by Gilbert Gottlieb, Zing-Yang Kuo; June 1976. Book: The Dynamics of Behavior Development; by Zing-Yang Kuo; Random House Press, 1967. Book: Instinct; 1961. Princeton, NJ:Van Nostrand.
Extra materials "To be a big shot or to be shot": Zing-Yang Kuo's other career (by Geoffrey H. Blowers, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong) (Using the above link will provide a new link "content.pdf" that you can use to see the full text of the article.) History of Psychology - Abstract Zing-Yang Kuo (biography) Robert Epstein: Comparative Psychology as the Praxist Views It; Journal of Comparative Psychology. Vol 101(3), Sep 1987, 249–253. Gottlieb, G. (1972): Zing-Yang Kuo: Radical scientific philosopher and innovative experimentalist (1898–1970); Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 80, 1–10.
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Important facts
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Frequently asked questions
Who was Zing-Yang Kuo?
psychologist
When was Zing-Yang Kuo born?
Zing-Yang Kuo was born in 1898 in Shantou.
When did Zing-Yang Kuo die?
Zing-Yang Kuo died on 14 August 1970 in Hong Kong.
What was Zing-Yang Kuo's occupation?
Zing-Yang Kuo was a psychologist.
What nationality was Zing-Yang Kuo?
Zing-Yang Kuo was Chinese.
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APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Zing-Yang Kuo. https://biography.guide/zing-yang-kuo/
MLA: "Zing-Yang Kuo." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/zing-yang-kuo/.
Chicago: "Zing-Yang Kuo." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/zing-yang-kuo/.
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