Vision, Mission, and Values

The Cummings Center consists of three units: the Archives of the History of American Psychology, the National Museum of Psychology, and the Institute for Human Science and Culture.

The Archives of the History of American Psychology and the National Museum of Psychology focus on collecting, providing access to, and interpreting the historical record of psychology.

The Institute has distinct collections, exhibitions, and programming. Read more about the Institute here.

Vision

Activating psychology’s history to explore our shared humanity.

Mission

The mission of the Archives and Museum is to collect, preserve, and provide access to the historical record of psychology and related human sciences to the broadest community possible.

The Archives actively acquires, preserves and provides access to primary sources and rare materials that support the teaching and research of the historical record of psychology and related human sciences. The Museum provides education and outreach programs, exhibitions, and public access to collections.

Together, these two units provide opportunities to discover the diverse and changing roles psychology plays in our shared humanity.

Values

The mission of the Archives and Museum is achieved through a set of six core values:

• Access
• Collaboration
• Education
• Inclusion
• Respect
• Responsible Stewardship

The goals of the Archives and Museum are:

• Collect, preserve, and provide access to the historical record of psychology and related human sciences
• Generate awareness and understanding of the history of psychology and related human sciences
• Support research and examination of contemporary issues through historical analysis
• Offer education, in the form of classes, lectures, films, workshops, conferences, and exhibits that promote understanding of the human experience
• Promote the care of archival materials and special collections.