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Arthur Lester Benton (October 16, 1909 – December 27, 2006) was a neuropsychologist and Emeritus Professor of Neurology and Psychology at the University of Iowa.

Biography

He received his A.B. from Oberlin College in 1931, his A.M. from Oberlin College in 1933 and his Ph.D. from Columbia University in 1935. He established a Neuropsychology Laboratory in the Neurology Department at the University of Iowa School of Medicine in the 1940s; the lab remains and now bears his name.^[1] He was the author of numerous books and the creator of a number of neuropsychological testing instruments, including the Benton Visual Retention Test (BVRT). His son, Raymond S. Benton married Mary Kay Loftus in 1968 in Iowa.^[2] Arthur died in Glenview, Illinois from complications of emphysema.^[3]

Awards and honors

• Distinguished Professional Contribution Award from the American Psychological Association (1978)
• Outstanding Scientific Contribution of the International Neuropsychological Society (1981)
• Samuel Torrey Orton Award of the Orton Dyslexia Society (1982)
• Distinguished Service and Outstanding Contribution Award of the American Board of Professional Psychology (1985)
• First speaker in an annual series of lectures initiated by the New York Neuropsychology Group and the Psychology Section of the New York Academy of Sciences, featuring important figures in the development of neuropsychology, subsequently named The Arthur L. Benton Lecture in his honor.(1986)
• Distinguished Clinical Neuropsychological Award of the National Academy of Neuropsychology (1989)
• Gold Medal Award for Life Achievement in the Application of Psychology from the American Psychological Foundation, for which the citation reads: "For lifetime contributions that include pioneering clinical studies of brain-behavior relations. He introduced novel and objective psychological assessment techniques that expanded our understanding of the difficulties manifested by neurologically compromised patients. He broadened the applications of psychology and in the process opened up a new field of study and practice, clinical neuropsychology." (1992)

References