Ravenna Helson

Ravenna Mathews Helson (born February 13, 1925) is an American psychologist known for her research on the psychology of women and creativity. Dacher Keltner has described her as "a pioneer in the study of women's lives". She is mostly known for the Mills Longitudinal Study, a long-term study of personality change in Mills College senior undergraduates (only females), which she began in 1958. The main purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between personality and creativity. The study also contributed to other studies, a.o. the Social Clock Theory and had as key insight that personality does change in different stages and situations in life. The full list of publications resulted from the Mills Longitudinal Study can be found here.