Psychophysiology

Abstract Psychophysiology, the study of the interaction of psychological and physiological variables, is relatively new as a separate discipline. The formal development of psychophysiology began in the 1950s, when a group composed mainly of psychologists met informally under the leadership of R. C. Davis. In 1960 this group organized the Society for Psychophysiological Research, with Chester Darrow as the first president. Research communications among this group were initiated in 1955, when Al Ax began a newsletter dealing with research and instrumentation in psychophysiology. In 1964 this newsletter developed into the journal Psychophysiology, with Ax as the editor, and became the official publication of the Society for Psychophysiological Research. However, the subject matter of psychophysiology—the interaction of mind and body—has been studied for centuries by people trained as philosophers, physicists, physicians, physiologists, and, most recently, psychologists.