August 20, 2007
The Institute of Psychology- Babeş-Bolyai University, Cluj Napoca
The Department of Psychology has been founded in the same time with the Upper Dacia University in 1919 at Cluj. Professor Florian Stefănescu Goangă has been the founder of the Institute of Experimental, Comparative and Applied Psychology. At the beginning of the carrier he studied with Constantin Rădulescu-Motru at Bucharest between 1900 and 1904. Professor Goangă came to Leipzig in 1908 for three years where he took the Ph.D. thesis:”Experimentelle Untersuchungen zur Gefühlsbetonung der Farben” published in 1911 in “Psychologische Studien”. In 1919 Stefanescu-Goangă was appointed as professor at the University of Cluj.
The building in the figure 1 represented the most modernized laboratory in Romania between the First and Second World War. Also, the Department of Psychology became a very important place for learning and teaching the psychologists and researchers.
Figure 1 The Institute of Psychology- Babeş Bolyai University, Cluj
The first generation of Psychologists was strongly influenced by their high school teachers to follow the Psychology courses at the Department of Psycholoy. Thy can be seen in figure 2: Liviu Rusu (born in 1901), Lucian Bologa (born in 1901), Ionel Pitariu (born in 1904), Nicolae Margineanu (born in 1905), Alexandru Roşca (born in 1906), Mihai Beniuc (born in 1907), Tudor Bugariu (born in 1907) and Dimitrie Todoran (born in 1908).
Figure 2 the first generation of psychologists from the Department of Psychology, Cluj
In that period of time the course were not scheduled by academically semesters and years. The students were able to apply yearly the courses that are interested to follow.
The Institute of Psychology leaded by Florian Stefănescu Goanga had an important strategy: the staff of the Department of Psychology was elaborating and validating psychological tests and surveys for the professional orientation offices. Thus, the funds had been used for founding a Publishing house and a Scientific Journal where were published the books and the articles of the staff and collaborators.
The PhD students of Professor Stefănescu Goanga (figure 2) developed carriers in many psychological fields: Professor Ionel Pitariu (1904-1944) founded the first laboratory of psychology for the elementary school in Romania and has been focused on investigating the mathematical abilities; Professor Liviu Rusu has been focused on the applied psychology, philosophy, job orientation and become in 1965 member of Romanian Academy; Professor Mihai Beniuc embraced besides the title of member of Romanian Academy the poetry universe becoming a renown Romanian writer. Furthermore, Professor Beniuc became after the Second World War the head of the Department of psychology at Bucharest University.
Professor Alexandru Roşca was the first Romanian psychologist publishing a complex scientific Treaty of Experimental Psychology receiving the Government Prize in 1964. The scientific Treaty of Experimental Psychology and General Psychology has been published together with the Department Psychology staff: A. Chircev, B. Zorgo, I. Radu, M. Roşca and V. Mare. Furthermore the Treaty of Experimental Psychology and General Psychology represented many decades the Handbook of the Romanian students at psychology. Also, Professor Roşca had issued the Syntheses of Psychology (4 volumes) in a crucial moment for the psychology: the suppression of the Faculty of Psychology. He collaborated with renowned Romanian psychologist as: Vasile Pavelcu from Iasi and Paul Popescu Neveanu from Bucharest. The French psychologist Henry Wallon has been interested in this complex scientific Treaty and required for publishing a chapter from it as article in Enfance Scientific Journal. Besides Hanry Wallon, Professor Roşca collaborated with Professor Rubinstein and Professor Lomov.
Professor Alexandru Roşca depply encouraged the cooperation with many psychologists from other coutries, researches and editors of Scientific Journal. A memorable moment was the visit of Professor Jean Piaget at the Department of Psychology/Institute of Psychology from Cluj.
Figure 3 Professor Piaget and Professor Rosca, Department of Psychology, Cluj
As it can be seen in figure 3 the visit of Professor Jean Piaget represented an important beginning of scientific cooperation with Professor Alexandru Roşca. During his visit to Cluj, Professor Piaget kept lectures and experience exchange discussions with the undergraduate and graduated student.
Beginning a strong scientific cooperation, many renowned psychologists from different countries came to the Department of Psychology in Cluj: Professor Paul Fraisse, Professor W. D. Frolich (Johannes Gutenberg University), Professor M. Guluzan (Alberta University, Canada) and Professor Frank J. Landy (visiting three times the Department of Psychology before the 1989th).
The Department of Psychology continued after the suppression of the Psychology as Educational Science Department focused on school and industrial fields (H.D. Pitariu, Psihologia selectiei şi formării profesionale (1983)).
Professor Frank Landy had a great contribution in focusing the objectives of the Department of Psychology after 1989th on the industrial Psychology research (figure 4).
Figure 4. Professor Frank Landy, Department of Psychology, Babeş-Bolyai University
After few decades of psychological decline by the suppression of the Department of Psychology, in 1990 has been founded again the Department of Psychology in the same building as it was first time (figure 1) with a great help of: Professor Ioan Radu, Professor V. Mare, Professor Horia Pitariu and Professor Frank Landy. In less that five year with a great scientific effort has been published Handbooks of Psychology (coming in the students help), research books and articles and nevertheless Scientific Journals.
Now, after seventeen years, the Department of Psychology becomes an important Centre of Excellence at high scientific standards.
Figure 5. Instruments of early experimental psychology
With all the modern equipments, the history hasn’t been forgotten. The instruments of experimental Psychology, used decades before for experimental studies and research now are exposed as museum exhibits for the students, professors and visitors (figure 5).
In the renovated building of the actual Department of Psychology the rooms are prepared for master courses, students’ courses, PhD students’ classes and also research meetings (Figure 6).
Figure 6. Room from the building of the Department of Psychology, Cluj
In 2007 after decades of hard work, the Department of Psychology has been separated in two entities: the Department of Educational and I/O Psychology and the Department of Clinic Psychology. In the building of the Institute of Psychology remained only the Department of Educational and I/O Psychology. Thus, the Department of Educational and I/O Psychology has two directions: educational Psychology (Conf. A. Opre) and I/O Psychology (Prof. H.D. Pitariu).
The Department of Psychology including the Institute of Psychology has now a modern look, the staff is focused on psychological research and students teaching. Furthermore, the library is endowed with Psychological Handbooks, Treaties and Scientific Research Journals collection ( The Journal of Hman Resources (the Scientific Journal of the Department of Educational and I/O Psychology); Brain, Science, Cognition (the Scientific Journal of the Department of Clinic Psychology); Journal of Social Psychology and many others).
The Department of Educational and I/O Psychology is renown by many books belonging to the Department staff: “Managementul Resurselor Umane: Evaluarea performantelor profesionale, H. D. Pitariu (2000)” awarded with the Romanian Academy Prize; “Proiectarea Fiselor de Post, evaluarea muncii şi a personalului, H.D. Pitariu (2003, 2006)” awarded with the Babeş- Bolyai University Prize, “Cultura Organizaţională, H.D. Pitariu and A. Budean (2007)” and many others.
With all the new vision and changes of the modern Department of Psychology, the atmosphere is impregnated with the decades of unforgettable history of psychology.
Mihaela Chraif
EJOP Editor