Binet, Alfred

(born July 8, 1857, Nice, France—died Oct. 18, 1911, Paris) French psychologist. His interest in Jean-Martin Charcot's work on hypnosis prompted him to abandon a law career and study medicine at the Salpêtrière Hospital in Paris (1878–91). He served as director of a research laboratory at the Sorbonne (1895–1911). A major figure in the development of experimental psychology in France, he founded , the first French journal on psychology, in 1895. He developed experimental techniques to measure reasoning ability; between 1905 and 1911 he and Theodore Simon developed influential scales for the measurement of intelligence of children. His works include (1903) and (1915).

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