Escaping the Laboratory

The Rodent Experiments of John B. Calhoun & Their Cultural Influence

Bibliographic Data

ID9080324
AuthorsE Ramsden (0009-0006-0411-8665, University of Exeter, corresponding author), Jon Adams (0000-0002-9901-5717, London School of Economics and Political Science)
Year2009
Volume42
Issue3
Pages761-797
Publication date2009-03-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Social History (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0022-4529 • E-ISSN: 1527-1897
PublisherLondon School of Economics and Political Science (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1353/jsh/42.3.761
OpenAlexW3122060207
LanguageEN
Citations received11

In John B. Calhoun’s early crowding experiments, rats were supplied with everything they needed – except space. The result was a population boom, followed by such severe psychological disruption that the animals died off to extinction. The take-home message was that crowding resulted in pathological behaviour – in rats and by extension in humans. For those pessimistic about Earth’s “carrying capacity,” the macabre spectacle of this “behavioural sink” was a compelling symbol of the problems awaiting overpopulation. Calhoun’s work enjoyed considerable popular success. But cultural influence can run both ways. In this paper, we look at how the cultural impact of Calhoun’s experiments resulted in a simplified, popular version of his work coming to overshadow the more nuanced and positive message he wanted to spread, and how his professional reputation was affected by this popular “success.”

Aesthetics · Art · Boom · Cognitive psychology · Crowding · Cultural history · Environmental ethics · Kingdom · Media studies · Overpopulation · Pessimism · Political science · Population · Reputation · Social science · Sociology · Spectacle · Theology · Anthropology · Classics · Demography · Engineering · Historical Economic and Social Studies · History · Law · Philosophy · Psychology · Social Psychology · Species Distribution and Climate Change

Tools

Open DOISci-HubOpen Access