1. Finding Little Albert: On The Trail Of Psychology’s Lost Boy
Hall P. Beck, PhD
Appalachian State University
April 8, 2011

2. What We Learned: Watson’s Writings
1. Albert’s mother worked in the Harriet Lane Home.
2. She was a wet nurse.
3. The study was conducted in the winter of
4. Albert was born in the maternity ward at Johns Hopkins.
5. He lived almost his entire first year at Harriet Lane.
6. Albert was first tested at 8 months 26 days of age.
7. He was lasted tested at 12 months 21 days of age.

3. What We Learned: Additional Discoveries
1. No more than 4 wet nurses resided at Harriet Lane.
2. Albert appears to be Caucasian.
3. The baseline was filmed (8 months, 26 days of age).
4. Watson’s correspondence indicates baseline filmed between November 28 and December 12, 1919.
5. Albert was born between March 2 and March 16, 1919.

4. The Hard Part: Finding An Individual Who Matched These Attributes
No employee records
No patient records.
Watson burned his papers shortly before his death.

5. The Hard Part: Finding An Individual Who Matched These Attributes
No employee records
No patient records.
Watson burned his papers shortly before his death.
Census

6. To Find Albert You Must Go To Granada
Sharman

7. Johns Hopkins Hospital: 1920 Census

8. Three Foster Mothers, A Sleuth And A Grandson
Pearl Barger
Ethel Carter
Arvilla Merritte
Kristen Gary

9. Why Call The Baby Albert B. ? Brewer’s John Albert Broadus Hypothesis
Big Albert?

10. Landmarks in Arvilla Irons Merritte’s Life
1898: Born in New Jersey. Moved to Virginia early 20th century.
1915: Maurice Irons born.
1919: Douglas Merritte born. Arvilla works at the Harriet Lane.
Early 1920s: Arvilla and Douglas move in with Brashears.
1926: Arvilla marries Wilbur Hood.
1939: Gwendolyn born.
1988: Arvilla dies at 89 years of age.

11. Albert
Figure 1. Albert at 8 months and 26 days of age. Possibilities of a confirmatory and disconfirmatory analyses.

12. Douglas-Albert
Figure 2. Close-up of Douglas on the left, his age is unknown. Close-up of Albert on the right, he is 8 months and 26 days of age.

13. Comparisons of Albert’s And Douglas’ Mothers
1. Albert’s mother and Arvilla worked at Harriet Lane.
2. Albert’s mother and Arvilla lived on the Hopkins campus.
3. Albert’s mother and Arvilla were wet nurses.
4. There were probably no more than four wet nurses concurrently residing at Harriet Lane.

14. Comparisons of Albert And Douglas
1. Albert and Douglas were born in the maternity ward at Johns Hopkins.
2. Like Albert, Douglas spent almost his entire first year at the Harriet Lane Home.
3. Like Albert, Douglas left Hopkins during the early 1920s

15. Comparisons of Albert And Douglas
4. Albert and Douglas were Caucasian males.
5. Albert was born between March 2 and March 16, Douglas was born on March 9, 1919.
6. Visual inspection and biometric analyses of Douglas’ portrait and the Little Albert film reveal “facial similarities.”

16. Comparisons of Albert And Douglas: A New Finding
7. Both Albert and Douglas were neurologically and visually impaired at 8 months and 26 days of age, the time of the first testing by Watson and Rayner.

17. Epilogue To A Quest

18. Epilogue To A Quest

19. For Additional Information About Albert-Douglas
Beck, H. P., Levinson, S. & Irons, G. (2009). Finding Little Albert: A journey to John B. Watson’s infant laboratory, 64,