A while back, I challenged TIPSters to name the three most cited 
intellectuals in history. I revealed the answer to be Marx, Freud, 
and...Hans Eysenck!

My source was a secondary reference (which I can no longer recall) to 
Nyborg in his 1997 book, _The Scientific Study of Human Nature: 
Tribute to Hans J. Eysenck at 80_.

There was no information concerning how Nyborg arrived at this  
startling claim. I've now obtained the book and I can reveal all.

In fact, it wasn't Nyborg who made the claim. It was made in a 
chapter in his book by A.R. Jensen. Jensen is the psychologist famous 
for the controversial claim in his Harvard Educational Review on IQ 
and race that "Compensatory education has been tried and it 
apparently has failed". Jensen was a postdoctoral student of 
Eysenck's.

Jensen's claim is based on hard data. He said (Jensen, 1997, p. 543):

"According to the _Social Science Citation Index_ (SSCI)...the most 
frequently cited among living persons in 1997 is Hans Eysenck. Among 
all persons, living or dead, ever listed in the SSCI, Eysenck's 
citations are exceeded only by Freud and Marx". 

 I find this result remarkable and totally unexpected. It should win 
a few bets, I would expect. Note also that Jensen isn't clear on the 
order other than to place Eysenck third.  I had said in my post of 
November 25 that Marx was in first place, but Jensen didn't say this. 

Anyway, the SSCI is certainly a better source of data for this claim 
than Google hits. 

Stephen


Source:

Jensen, A.R. (1997). Eysenck as teacher and mentor. Chapter 24 in 
  H. Nyborg (ed.) _The scientific study of human nature: tribute to
  Hans J. Eysneck at eighty. Oxford: Elsevier.

__________________________________________________
Stephen L. Black, Ph.D.            tel:  (819) 822-9600 ext 2470
Department of Psychology         fax:  (819) 822-9661
Bishop's  University           e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Lennoxville, QC  J1M 1Z7
Canada

Dept web page at http://www.ubishops.ca/ccc/div/soc/psy
TIPS discussion list for psychology teachers at
 http://faculty.frostburg.edu/psyc/southerly/tips/index.htm    
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