Frederick J. Morrison, Ph.D., professor of psychology in the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts and research professor in the Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research, retired from active faculty status on December 31, 2019.
Professor Morrison received his B.A. degree from the University of Toronto in 1966 and his Ph.D. degree from Harvard University in 1971. He joined the University of Michigan faculty as a professor in 2001.
Professor Morrison's distinguished career crossed the interdisciplinary boundaries of developmental psychology and education. His research examined the nature and sources of children's cognitive, literacy, and social development over the school transition period. This research was deeply embedded in classroom settings where instructional techniques and learning outcomes are observed and measured with multiple methods. Professor Morrison's research advanced our knowledge of how children's development in the classroom can be impacted by instruction, cognitive development, and context, and has illuminated underlying neural mechanisms. His research had important practical implications for teachers and schools through work on intervention programs designed to produce effective individualized instruction for young children. Professor Morrison was a leader in the development, implementation, and evaluation of interventions to improve the academic success of disadvantaged children and collaborated with public policy agencies to develop, implement, and test these interventions in the classroom. Professor Morrison was a prolific scientist with over 100 articles, chapters, books, and textbooks on literacy, reading, and cognitive skills. His career-long impact through outstanding mentoring and teaching will influence research on psychology and education well into the future.
The Regents now salute this distinguished teacher and researcher by naming Frederick J. Morrison, professor emeritus of psychology and research professor emeritus, Survey Research Center.
