William W. Biddle

There are several noted achievements in his lifetime. His 1931 article “A Psychological Definition of Propaganda” was one of the early psychological works on the subject of propaganda. He was one of the earliest practitioners of community development in the United States. His book The Community Development Process, written in collaboration with his wife Loureide J. Biddle, was translated into several languages.

William Wishart Biddle (June 19, 1900 – February 1973) was an American social scientist and a major contributor to the study of community development. Although details of his personal life are rare in written records, he made contributions to the field of psychology by developing frameworks in propaganda, education, and community development. Biddle outlined in his writings that propaganda was a form of persuasion for coercing people, illustrating examples from times of war. He established that education systems should develop each individual’s intelligence and focus on critical thinking to avoid autistic thinking. Biddle defined and established various community development programs with a focus on environment, descriptive studies, politics, religion, and educational process.