KIE Kaufman Family Research Symposium
The Kaufman family has been a leading name in intelligence, assessment, and creativity for decades. Alan and Nadeen, developers of innovative tests of intelligence and achievement, have been on the clinical faculty of Yale’s Child Study Center since 1997. Jennie is a clinical psychologist and professor of criminal justice, who is interested in prison reform and helping college students to deal with mental health issues. James is a scholar and researcher in the theory and practice of creativity who is a professor of educational psychology. All have interest in applying their work to the real world. Alan and Nadeen’s clinical tests, praised for their emphasis on theory and fairness, have been translated and adapted worldwide. Jennie treats adolescents and adults with equine-assisted psychotherapy as well as with psychodynamic, cognitive behavioral, and other evidence-based approaches. Jennie also provides forensic reports for the Federal Defender’s office to help courts deliver fairer sentences and rehabilitation for offenders. James has written many plays and a musical that debuted in NYC; in films and television he has tested Dr. Sanjay Gupta’s creativity on CNN and been turned into a cartoon for a documentary on comic book artists. Alan and James published an array of research articles on baseball and wrote a non-fiction book on baseball pitchers. Nadeen earned her doctorate in learning disabilities, has founded and directed psycho-educational clinics, and published an early study on creativity in students with minimal brain dysfunction. Alan’s 1979 Intelligent Testing with the WISC-R changed the way a generation of psychologists interpreted IQ tests. All of the Kaufmans have been directly influenced by Paul Torrance and his legacy, starting in 1974 when he was chairman of Alan’s department at the University of Georgia and introduced Alan and Nadeen to cerebral specialization theory—the foundation of the K-ABC. The Kaufman family was thrilled when James, early in his career, earned NAGC’s E. Paul Torrance Award.