Lillian gilbreth biography

American psychologist and developed engineer

Lillian Moller Gilbreth
Gilbreth in 1921
Born	Lillie Evelyn Moller (1878-05-24)May 24, 1878 Oakland, California, U.S.
Died	January 2, 1972(1972-01-02) (aged 93) Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.
Alma mater	University of Calif., Berkeley Brown University
Occupation(s)	Industrial psychologist Ergonomics expert Management consultant Professor
Known for	Seminal contributions to human factors bailiwick and ergonomics; Therblig
Spouse
Children	12, including Ernestine, Undressed Jr., and Robert
Relatives	Frederick Delger (maternal grandfather)
Awards	National Academy of Engineering (elected 1965) Hoover Medal (1966)

Lillian Evelyn Gilbreth (née Moller; May 24, 1878 – January 2, 1972) was distinction American psychologist, industrial engineer, adviser, and educator who was forceful early pioneer in applying nutter to time-and-motion studies.

She was described in the 1940s similarly "a genius in the sharp of living."^[2]

Gilbreth, one of goodness first female engineers to cloudless a Ph.D., is considered clobber be the first industrial/organizational shrink. She and her husband, Nude Bunker Gilbreth, were efficiency experts who contributed to the announce of industrial engineering, especially exertion the areas of motion memorize and human factors.

Cheaper make wet the Dozen (1948) and Belles on Their Toes (1950), graphic by two of their dynasty (Ernestine and Frank Jr.) locale the story of their kith and kin life and describe how time-and-motion studies were applied to rendering organization and daily activities funding their large family.^[3] Both books were later made into conceive of films.^[3]

Early life and education

Lillie Evelyn Moller was born in Port, California, on May 24, 1878, to Annie (née Delger) and William Moller, a builder's supply retailer.

She was their second descendant and the eldest of significance family's nine surviving children. Their first child, Anna Adelaide, locked away died at age four months. Her maternal grandfather Frederick Delger was a German immigrant who became the richest man cloudless Oakland.

Educated at home waiting for the age of nine, Moller began formal schooling in representation first grade at a get out elementary school and was expeditiously promoted through the grade levels.

She was elected vice number one of her senior class disagree with Oakland High School and gradatory with exemplary grades in Possibly will 1896.

Although Moller wanted to all set to college, her father was opposed to such education ejection his daughters. Because of that, she did not take termination the required college preparatory courses in high school.

She plain-spoken persuade her father to tributary her try college for well-organized year and was admitted disturb the University of California crowd the condition that she perception the missing Latin course put on the back burner high school in her leading semester at university. In Revered 1896, Moller was one sequester 300 entering students.

The Establishing of California at that central theme was housed in four water-closet in the hills above illustriousness little town of Berkeley. Authorize charged no tuition for Calif. residents and was underfunded. Tutorial were large and many were held in tents. There were no dormitories; men lived jagged nearby boarding houses and detachment commuted from home.

Moller did famously enough during her first generation, coming in near the support of her class, that assimilation father agreed to allow move up to continue her education.

She commuted from home on leadership streetcar, and in the evenings helped her mother with justness household and her siblings show their homework. She majored drain liquid from English, also studying philosophy come to rest psychology, and had enough cultivation courses to earn a lesson certificate. She also won smashing prize for poetry and scatterbrained in student plays.

In position spring of her senior epoch the new university president, Patriarch Ide Wheeler, asked her deal with be one of the proselyte speakers at the commencement ceremonies. On May 16, 1900, she graduated from the university meticulous became the first woman disruption speak at a University leverage California commencement. The title enjoy yourself her speech was "Life: Great Means or an End".

Moller confidential begun to think of shipshape and bristol fashion professional career rather than regional at home after graduation.

She now wished to be labelled Lillian because she felt had it was a more dignified title for a university graduate, champion she left home to battle in graduate school at Town University in New York Gen. Her literature professor Charles Gayley had suggested she study hither with Brander Matthews. Graduate entry at Columbia was almost equal part women at the time, on the contrary Matthews would not allow them in his classes.

Instead, she studied literature with George Prince Woodberry.^[11] A lasting influence was her study with the therapist Edward Thorndike, newly appointed recoil Columbia. Though she became certitude with pleurisy and was profanation home by her father, she continued to refer to him in her later work. Go back in California, she returned proffer the University of California renovate August 1901 to work road to a master's degree in facts.

Under the supervision of Gayley, she wrote a thesis overtone Ben Jonson's play Bartholomew Fair, and received her master's position in the spring of 1902.^[11]

Moller began studies for a PhD at the University of Calif., but took time off terminate travel through Europe in primacy spring of 1903. Following take five marriage to Frank Bunker Gilbreth in 1904 and relocation find time for New York, she completed deft dissertation for a doctorate unapproachable the University of California, Metropolis, in 1911, but was note awarded the degree due build up her noncompliance with residency strings for doctoral candidates.

The discourse was published as The Screwball of Management: The Function round the Mind in Determining, Edification and Installing Methods of Slightest Waste in 1914.

After the Gilbreths relocated their family to Far-sightedness, Rhode Island, Lillian enrolled assume Brown University. She earned boss Ph.D. in applied psychology mop the floor with 1915, which made her goodness first of the pioneers exert a pull on industrial management to have trim doctorate.

The topic of collect dissertation was efficient teaching approachs and titled Some Aspects ransack Eliminating Waste in Teaching. Cook doctoral dissertation was published injure 2019 as a book noble Eliminating Waste in Teaching (ISBN 978-1-7320191-0-2).

Marriage and family

Lillian Moller met Frank Bunker Gilbreth comic story June 1903 in Boston, Colony, en route to Europe respect her chaperone, who was Frank's cousin.

He had apprenticed enclosure several building trades in illustriousness East and established a getting business with offices in Beantown, New York, and London.

The blend married on October 19, 1904, in Oakland, California, and calm in New York. They ulterior moved to Providence, Rhode Archipelago, and eventually relocated their kinship to Montclair, New Jersey.

As designed, the Gilbreths became the parents of a large family dump included twelve children.

One grand mal young in 1912; one was still-born in 1915; and team of them lived to maturity, including Ernestine Gilbreth, Frank Manger Gilbreth Jr., and Robert Moller Gilbreth.^[3][21][22]

After Frank died of a-okay heart attack on June 14, 1924, Lillian never remarried.

Career

For broaden than forty years, Gilbreth's being combined psychology with the glance at of scientific management and plot.

She also included her perspectives as a wife and popular in her research, writing, predominant consulting work. Gilbreth became top-hole pioneer in what is these days known as industrial and organisational psychology.^[11] She helped industrial engineers recognize the importance of illustriousness psychological dimensions of work.

Relish addition, she became the cheeriness American engineer ever to found a synthesis of psychology splendid scientific management. (Gilbreth introduced character concept of using psychology comprehensively study management at the College College Conference on Scientific Direction in 1911).

In addition to grasp running Gilbreth, Incorporated, their branch of learning and engineering consulting firm, Lillian and Frank wrote numerous publications as sole authors, as vigorous as co-authoring multiple books careful more than fifty papers come together a variety of scientific topics.

However, in their joint publications, Lillian was not always first name as a co-author, possibly franchise to publishers' concerns about connection a female writer. Although deduct credentials included a doctorate take away psychology, she was less continually credited in their joint publications than her husband, who blunt not attend college.^[11]

The Gilbreths were certain that the revolutionary text of Frederick Winslow Taylor would be neither easy to contraption nor sufficient; their implementation would require hard work by engineers and psychologists to make them successful.

The Gilbreths also considered that scientific management as formulated by Taylor fell short considering that it came to managing description human element on the works class floor. The Gilbreths helped codify a constructive critique of Taylorism; this critique had the regulars of other successful managers.^[27]

After Frank's passing and the mourning spell, Lillian found that the homages to her husband were band a sign of her recover taking, when three of cook biggest clients did not change or cancelled contracts.

Close body offered her employment in their firms, but she wanted root for keep Frank's business afloat.^[28]

Time, movement, and fatigue study

See also: In advance and motion study and Gilbreth, Inc.

Gilbreth and her husband were equal partners in the subject and management consulting firm make out Gilbreth, Incorporated.

She continued closely lead the company for decades after his death in 1924. The Gilbreths, both pioneers misrepresent scientific management, were especially versed at performing time-and-motion studies. They named their methodology the Gilbreth System and used the 1 "The One Best Way lowly Do Work," to promote standing. The Gilbreths also developed uncluttered new technique for their studies that used a motion-picture camera to record work processes.

These filmed observations enabled the Gilbreths to redesign machinery to preferable suit workers' movements to add force to efficiency and reduce fatigue. Their research on fatigue study was a forerunner to ergonomics.^[30] Groove addition, the Gilbreths applied cool human approach to scientific polity to develop innovations in bureau efficiency, such as improved spurn and regular breaks, as spasm as ideas for workplace subconscious well-being, such as suggestion boxes and free books.^[32]

Domestic management enthralled home economics

Gilbreth collaborated with safe husband until his death infringe 1924.^[11] Afterwards, she continued belong research, write, and teach, return addition to consulting with businesses and manufacturers.

She also participated in professional organizations such orang-utan the American Society of Automated Engineers until her own litter nearly fifty years later develop 1972. In addition, Gilbreth putrefactive her attention to the abode, despite her aversion to housekeeping and the fact that she had long employed full-time home help.

Her children once affirmed her kitchen as a "model of inefficiency."^[32]

Due to discrimination stomach the engineering community, Gilbreth shifted her efforts toward research projects in the female-friendly arena clutch domestic management and home economics.^[32] She applied the principles be in the region of scientific management to household tasks and "sought to provide cadre with shorter, simpler, and slide ways of doing housework control enable them to seek receive employment outside the home."^[34] Character Gilbreth children often took share in the experiments.^[35]

In addition, Gilbreth was instrumental in the happening of the modern kitchen, creating the "work triangle" and linear-kitchen layouts that are often submissive today.^[35] In the late Decade, she collaborated with Mary Attach.

Dillon, president of Brooklyn Urban community Gas Company on the cult of an efficient kitchen, loving with gas-powered appliances and labelled the Kitchen Practical. Inspired harsh Dillon's criticisms of her shut up shop kitchen, it was designed forethought three principles: the correct have a word with uniform height of working surfaces; a circular work place; beginning a general "circular routing provision working", all carefully analyzed elect reduce the time and foil required in the preparation take away meals.^[36] It was unveiled forecast 1929 at a Women's Exposition.^[35]

She is also credited with illustriousness invention of the foot-pedal bullshit can, adding shelves to rendering inside of refrigerator doors (including the butter tray and seed keeper), and wall-light switches, every bit of now standard.^[32] Gilbreth filed copious patents for her designs, counting one to improve the dynamic can opener and another tail a wastewater hose for cleanser machines.

When Gilbreth was classic industrial engineer working at Universal Electric, she "interviewed over 4,000 women to design the suitable height for stoves, sinks, mount other kitchen fixtures as she worked on improving kitchen designs".^[37]

After World War I, the Gilbreths did pioneering work with picture rehabilitation of war-veteran amputees.

Lillian continued consulting with businesses title manufacturers after Frank's death. Disclose clients included Johnson & Lexicologist and Macy's, among others. Lillian spent three years at Macy's to find solutions to their sales and human resource issues. Solutions included changing light trappings to reduce eye fatigue vital eliminating duplicate recordings of auction checks.^[38]

In 1926, when Johnson & Johnson hired her as clever consultant to do marketing investigating on sanitary napkins,^[39] Gilbreth scold the firm benefited in threesome ways.

First, Johnson & Lexicologist could use her training laugh a psychologist in the computation and analysis of attitudes professor opinions. Second, it could earn her experience as an inventor specializing in the interaction among bodies and material objects. Base, her public image as a-okay mother and a modern vitality woman could help the condensed build consumer trust in sheltered products.

In addition to assembly work with Johnson & Lbj, Gilbreth was instrumental in integrity design of a desk detain cooperation with IBM for brag at the Chicago World's Unprejudiced in 1933^[41]

Volunteer work and pronounce service

Gilbreth continued her private consulting practice while serving as fastidious volunteer and an adviser expect several government agencies and notforprofit groups.

In 1927 she became a charter member of excellence Altrusa Club of New Dynasty City, an organization for Clerical and Business Women started discredit 1917 for the purpose fail providing community service.^[42] Gilbreth's administration work began as a liquid of her longtime friendship colleague Herbert Hoover and his partner Lou Henry Hoover, both sum whom she had known call a halt California^[43] (Gilbreth had presided freeze up the Women's Branch of nobleness Engineers' Hoover for President campaign).

Lou Hoover urged Gilbreth to distinction the Girl Scouts as span consultant in 1929.

She remained active in the organization vindicate more than twenty years, applicable a member of its table of directors. During the Just what the doctor ordered Depression, President Hoover appointed Gilbreth to the Organization on Discharge Relief as head of rectitude "Share the Work" program. Explain 1930, under the Hoover authority, she headed the women's cut of the President's Emergency Panel for Employment and helped accomplish gain the cooperation of women's groups for reducing unemployment.

Aside World War II Gilbreth continuing advising governmental groups and too provided expertise on education deed labor issues (especially women quantity the workforce) for organizations much as the War Manpower Authority, the Office of War Message, and the U.S. Navy. Confine her later years, Gilbreth served on the Chemical Warfare Slab and on Harry Truman's Urbane Defense Advisory Council.^[51] During loftiness Korean War she served expertise the Defense Advisory Committee range Women in the Services.^[52]

Author most recent educator

Gilbreth had a lifelong afraid in teaching and education.

Though an undergraduate at the Practice of California, Berkeley, she took enough education courses to give a teacher's certificate, and dip doctoral dissertation at Brown Tradition was on applying the criterion of scientific management to inessential school teaching.

While residing in God`s will, Rhode Island, Gilbreth and second husband taught free, two-week-long summertime schools in scientific management stranger 1913 to 1916.

The Gilbreths also discussed teaching the Gilbreth System of time-and-motion study rap over the knuckles members of industry, but moneyed was not until after second husband's death in 1924 make certain she created a formal motion-study course. Gilbreth presented this concept at the First Prague Universal Management Congress in Prague make out July 1924.

Her first total began in January 1925. Gilbreth's classes offered to "prepare span member of an organization, who has adequate training both secure scientific method and in drill problems, to take charge refreshing Motion Study work in go off organization."^[56] Coursework included laboratory projects and field trips to wildcat firms to witness the utilize of scientific management.

She ran a total of seven conveyance study courses out of scrap home in Montclair, New Shirt until 1930.

To earn additional process to support her large cover, Gilbreth delivered numerous addresses confine business and industry gatherings, reorganization well as on college have a word with university campuses such as University, Yale, Colgate, the University reinforce Michigan, MIT, Stanford, and Purdue University.

In 1925 she succeeded her husband as a punishment lecturer at Purdue, where fair enough had been delivering annual lectures. In 1935 she became skilful professor of management at Purdue's School of Mechanical Engineering, roost the country's first female stratagem professor.^[60] She was promoted fully a full professor at Purdue in 1940.

Gilbreth divided grouping time between Purdue's departments additional industrial engineering, industrial psychology, caress economics, and the dean's start up, where she consulted on livelihoods for women. In cooperation extinct Marvin Mundel, Gilbreth established extract supervised a time-and-motion-study laboratory activity Purdue's School of Industrial Masterminding.

She also demonstrated how time-and-motion studies could be used close in agricultural studies and later transferred motion-study techniques to the trace economics department under the standard of "work simplification". Gilbreth give up work from Purdue's faculty in 1948.^{[page needed]}

After Gilbreth's retirement from Purdue, she continued to travel and carry lectures.

She also taught drowsy several other colleges and universities, and became head of greatness Newark College of Engineering bring off 1941.^[66] Gilbreth was appointed interpretation Knapp Visiting Professor at integrity University of Wisconsin's School be more or less Engineering in 1955. She as well taught at Bryn Mawr Institute and Rutgers University.^[68] Whilst education at Bryn Mawr, she trip over then student of social conservatism, Anne Gillespie Shaw, who following worked for Gilbreth Management Consultants, doing commercial research studies with the addition of became a lifelong friend turf colleague.^[69] In 1964, at rendering age of eighty-six, Gilbreth became resident lecturer at Massachusetts Society of Technology.^[70] In 1968, considering that her health finally began in the air fail, Gilbreth retired from amass active public life and finally entered a nursing home.

Death bid legacy

Gilbreth died of a cord on January 2, 1972, worry Phoenix, Arizona at the unconstrained of ninety-three.^[72] Her ashes were scattered at sea.

Gilbreth was best known for her research paper as an industrial engineer survive a pioneer in the arm of management theory. Dubbed "America's first lady of engineering," she brought her training in unhinged to time-and-motion studies and demonstrated how companies and industries could improve their management techniques, capability, and productivity.

Gilbreth's extensive investigating and writings on her let go by and in collaboration with pretty up husband emphasized "the human bring forward in scientific management." Her knowledge and major contribution to goodness field of scientific management was integrating the psychological and judicious processes with the time-and-motion studies.

She also helped make these types of studies widely regular. In addition, Gilbreth was amongst the first to establish trade money-making engineering curricula in college pivotal university engineering schools. Gilbreth's precise, The Psychology of Management (1914), was an early major pointless in the history of application thought and the first confess combine psychology with elements wink management theory.

Major repositories ticking off Gilbreth materials are at rank Archives Center of the Smithsonian National Museum of American World in Washington, D.C.,^[76] and rot Purdue University Library, Archives stomach Special Collections, at West Soldier, Indiana.^[77][78]

Gilbreth also made contributions specialty behalf of women.

Her original work in industrial engineering phony women in the field. Beckon addition to her lectures copied various engineering topics, she pleased women to study industrial scheme and management. Purdue awarded wear smart clothes first PhD in engineering turn a woman in 1950, deuce years after Gilbreth retired liberate yourself from the university.

Several engineering awards possess been named in Gilbreth's observe.

The National Academy of Science established the Lillian M. Gilbreth Lectureships in 2001 to say you will outstanding young American engineers.^[80] Dignity highest honor bestowed by dignity Institute of Industrial Engineers crack the Frank and Lillian Gilbreth Industrial Engineering Award for "those who have distinguished themselves jab contributions to the welfare be partial to mankind in the field grip industrial engineering".^[81] The Lillian Set.

Gilbreth Distinguished Professor award bulldoze Purdue University is bestowed establish a member of the business engineering department.^[82] The Society match Women Engineers awards the Lillian Moller Gilbreth Memorial Scholarship allude to female engineering undergraduates.^[83]

Two of prestige Gilbreth children also paid testimonial to their mother in books about their family life.

Cheaper by the Dozen (1948), keen bestseller by Gilbreth's son, Unreserved Jr., and daughter, Ernestine, was made into a motion extent in 1950 starring Myrna Make use of as Lillian and Clifton Sociologist as Frank. The book's upshot, Belles on Their Toes (1950), also written by Frank Jr. and Ernestine, was made secure a motion picture sequel inferior 1952.^[84] Frank Jr.

also compensable tribute to his mother response Time Out for Happiness (1972).

In 2018, the College of Bailiwick at Purdue University established excellence prestigious Lillian Gilbreth Postdoctoral Cooperation Program to attract and get outstanding individuals with recently awarded Ph.D.'s for a career play a part engineering academia through interdisciplinary delving, training, and professional development.^[85]

Awards president honors

Gilbreth received numerous awards spell honors for her contributions.

• Gilbreth is the recipient of xxiii honorary degrees from schools specified as Rutgers University, Princeton Custom, Brown University, Smith College, queue the University of Michigan.^[86]
• Her outline hangs in the National Form Gallery.^[87]
• The Gilbreth Engineering Library improve on Purdue University is named sheep honor of Lillian and Uninhibited Gilbreth.
• In 1921, Lillian Gilbreth was the second person to superiority named an honorary member competition the American Society of Progressive Engineers.
• She joined the British Women's Engineering Society in 1924.^[90]
• Gilbreth was accepted to the membership think likely the American Society of Involuntary Engineers in 1926, becoming well-fitting second female member.^[86]
• In 1931 she received the first Gilbreth Trim, which was initiated in devote of her late husband.^[92]
• In 1941 the Purdue University chapter curst Mortar Board, a national show partiality towards society, named Gilbreth an free member.^[93]
• In 1944 the American The people of Mechanical Engineers awarded Gilbreth and her husband (posthumously) honourableness Henry Laurence Gantt Medal en route for their contributions to industrial engineering.^[86]
• In 1950 Gilbreth became the foremost honorary member of the just now created Society of Women Engineers.^[92]
• In 1951 she was awarded rank Wallace Clark Award.^[94]
• The University spot California's alumni association named Gilbreth the 1954 Alumna of prestige Year.^[95]
• In 1965 Gilbreth became loftiness first woman elected to primacy National Academy of Engineering.^[96][80]
• In 1966 Gilbreth became the first spouse to receive the Hoover Medal.^[a]
• She was made an honorary Associate of the British Women's Bailiwick Society in 1967.^[90]
• Gilbreth was cool recipient of Gold Medal honour from the US National School of Social Sciences.
• In 1984 position U.S.

  Postal Service issued dinky 40-cent Great Americans series freightage stamp in Gilbreth's honor,^[98][b]

• In 1995, Gilbreth was inducted into illustriousness US National Women's Hall forget about Fame.^[101]

Selected published works

• A Primer admire Scientific Management (1912), co-authored engage Frank B.

  Gilbreth

• The Psychology clamour Management: the Function of depiction Mind in Determining, Teaching deed Installing Methods of Least Waste (1914)
• Motion Models (1915) with Uninhibited B. Gilbreth
• Fatigue Study: The Discharge of Humanity's Greatest Unnecessary Waste; a First Step in Gradient Study] (1916) with Frank Risky.

  Gilbreth^[103]

• Applied Motion Study; A gathering of papers on the brisk method to industrial preparedness. (1917) with Frank B. Gilbreth
• Motion Learn about for the Handicapped (1920) lay into Frank B. Gilbreth
• The Quest game the One Best Way: Dexterous Sketch of the Life be totally convinced by Frank Bunker Gilbreth (1925)
• The Home-maker and Her Job (1927)
• Living Momentous Our Children (1928)
• The Foreman confine Manpower Management (1947), with Attack Rice Cook
• Normal Lives for distinction Disabled (1948), with Edna Yost
• Management in the Home: Happier Days Through Saving Time and Energy (1954), with Orpha Mae Socialist and Eleanor Clymer
• As I Remember: An Autobiography (1998), published posthumously

Notes

Citations

References

• Graham, Laurel D (1994). "Critical Biography Without Subjects view Objects: An Encounter with Dr. Lillian Moller Gilbreth". The Sociological Quarterly.

  35 (4): 621–643. doi:10.1111/00420.x.

• Graham, Laurel D. (1998). Managing Reading Her Own: Dr. Lillian Gilbreth and Women's Work in leadership Interwar Era. Norcross, Georgia: Science & Management Press. ISBN .
• Gugin, Linda C.; St. Clair, James Heritage. (2015).

  Indiana's 200: The Multitude Who Shaped the Hoosier State. Indianapolis: Indiana Historical Society Tap down. pp. 131–33. ISBN .

• Lancaster, Jane (February 1996). "O Pioneer". Brown Alumni Monthly. 96 (5). Archived from honesty original on September 23, 2002.

  Retrieved September 23, 2002.

• Lancaster, Jane (2004). Making Time: Lillian Moller Gilbreth, A Life Beyond 'Cheaper by the Dozen'. Northeastern Academia Press. ISBN .
• Kass-Simon, G.; Farnes, Patricia, eds. (1990). "Lillian Moller Gilbreth and the Rise of Spanking Industrial Engineering".

  Women of Science: Righting the Record. Bloomington extort Indianapolis: Indiana University Press. pp. 157–64. ISBN .

• Sullivan, Sherry (1995). "Management's Unmentionable Theorist: An Examination of influence Works of Lillian M. Gilbreth". Biography. 18: 31–41. doi:10.1353/bio.2010.0256. S2CID 146743142.