Robert F. Bales, Ph.D., author/inventor of SYMLOG
Robert Freed Bales, Ph.D. (1916-2004), Harvard University, is the author and inventor
of the SYMLOG® (a SYstem for the Multiple
Level Observation of Groups)
system. In his search for universal features, Bales redefined the fundamental boundaries
of social interaction, and established criteria for the behavior and values of leaders
and followers. Bales offered a new "field theory," an appreciation of the multiple
contexts in which people live.
Widely published and one of the most often quoted social psychologists, Bales worked
closely with SYMLOG Consulting Group until his death in 2004. His last book, Social
interaction systems: Theory and measurement (1999), is the culmination of a half
century of work in the field of social psychology. He was a pioneer at the Department
of Social Relations at Harvard University and a seminal member of the Harvard Project.
Led by Talcott Parsons, Gordon W. Allport, Henry A. Murray, and Clyde M. Kluckhohn,
the Harvard Project was intended to establish an integrative framework for social
psychology. That framework would take into consideration the interaction, the context
and content of communication, and the value-orientation of the participants.
Bales devoted his life’s work to developing this integrative framework, and saw
this as a personal involvement that went far behavior the classical experimental
approach to the study of groups. His work and findings allowed for an understanding
of polarizations as they actually exist in interaction -- between conservative and
liberal, individualistic and authoritarian, and libertarian and communitarian orientations.
Bales repeatedly emphasized that the mental processes of individuals and their social
interactions take place in systematic contexts that can be measured. Hence, they
permit explanation and prediction of behavior in a more exact way than in past traditions.
The significance of his work has been repeatedly recognized by scholars and practitioners
alike. He received awards from the American Psychological Foundation (1983), the
American Sociological Association Cooley-Meal Award (1983), and the California Psychological
Association Award (1999) from the Division of Industrial and Organizational Psychology
for his fifty years of work.
He maintained an active collaboration with the SYMLOG Consulting Group (SCG) until
his death in 2004.
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