Carl Rogers

Carl Rogers was a professor of psychology and psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin who would become famous for his nondirective, nonauthoritarian approach to psychotherapy. Harold Wolff asked Rogers to serve on the board of the Society for the Investigation of Human Ecology, and Rogers agreed. Although he says he would have nothing to do with secret CIA activities later, he asked for understanding in light of the climate of the 1950s. "We really did regard Russia as the enemy," Rogers declared, "and we were trying to do various things to make sure the Russians did not get the upper hand."¹

The Funding Arrangement

Rogers received an important professional reward for joining the board. Executive Director James Monroe let him know that once he agreed to serve, he could expect a Society grant. "That appealed to me because I was having trouble getting funded," says Rogers. Having received about $30,000 over three years, it made it possible for him to get other grants from the Rockefeller Foundation and NIMH. Rogers felt grateful to the Society for helping him establish a funding "track record," but he emphasized that the Agency never had any effect on his research.¹

Although MKULTRA psychologist John Gittinger suspected that Rogers' work on psychotherapy might provide insight into interrogation methods, the Society did not give Rogers money because of the content of his work. The grant ensured his services as a consultant and, according to a CIA document, "free access" to his project. Above all, the grant allowed the Agency to use Rogers' name. His standing in the academic community contributed to the layer of cover around the Society that Agency officials felt was crucial.¹