Encyclopedia of Psychology | Albert Ellis

1913-
American psychologist who originated rational-emotive therapy (RET), also known for his work as an author and counselor in the areas of marriage and sexuality.

Raised in the Bronx, New York, Albert Ellis was shy and physically frail when he was young. Although he had literary ambitions in his teens and twenties, he earned degrees in accounting and business. While in his twenties, he found that he had a gift for advising his friends on sexual matters and undertook an intensive independent study of human sexuality. Deciding to become a professional therapist, he earned a Ph.D. in clinical psychology at the Teachers College at Columbia University in 1947, followed by four years of psychoanalytic training with Charles R. Hulbeck at the Karen...