Professor Alan Clarke, CBE, PhD, DSc, F.IASSID, FBPS

It was with considerable sadness that I, along with many others, heard of Alan Clarke's death. He passed away peacefully aged 89 years in December (2011). For some months he had lost much of his speech following a stroke, which must have been extraordinarily frustrating as he had been a superb communicator in lecture, discussion and everyday life.

Members of IASSID have reason to be very grateful to him, as Alan was a member of the international founding group of IASSMD, later IASSID. The London conference on the scientific study of mental deficiency, for which he worked strenuously, took place in 1960. Alan Clarke representing the British Psychological Society, along with Harvey Stevens of the AAMD (Now AAIDD), and Alexander Shapiro of the MD section of the Medico- Psychological Association (Now the Royal College of Psychiatrists) set up the conference, which was the first ever-multidisciplinary international meeting on mental deficiency. This led to a permanent body at the Copenhagen conference in 1964 now known as The International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual Disability.

As the first Secretary to the organisation Alan did much to steer the Association through its initial years and later became President. In more recent years he continued to take great interest in the Association as Honorary President and regularly asked for updates and commented on its activities.  Although many of the younger members of IASSID may not have known Alan well they will be familiar with The Alan and Ann Clarke Keynote Lecture at each congress meeting, which brings to members cutting edge research and ideas from prominent researchers.

Alan studied Psychology at Reading University after completing military service. I remember him telling me that he was not sure what to do at that time and his brother-in–law, Dr Monte Shapiro, who was based at the Institute of Psychiatry, Denmark Hill, London, suggested that psychology was interesting. So he decided to apply to Reading University where he met his wife-to-be Ann, which resulted in a family, and professional relationship that was to have a major impact on psychology and even more fundamentally the field of intellectual disability (now learning disabilities, UK).

Most will know of their research in the 1950s onwards that looked into the cognitive performance of people with intellectual disabilities, then called mental deficiency. Their many research articles caused a major stir because they questioned the notion of fixed IQ, dealt with the issue of pseudo feeblemindedness (i.e. false negatives on original testing) and demonstrated that people from adverse and deprived backgrounds could recover with major increases in IQ in their late teens and twenties. They had done their homework well as they dealt with the slings and arrows which would follow publication. Their research design was rigorous with independent assessors and independent and blind prediction and also an estimate of practice effects for repeated measures.

This and other work resulted in the publication of “Mental Deficiency: The Changing Outlook” in 1958, which was the time of my introduction to the Clarkes as I was on an internship at the Manor Hospital, Epsom. I was given the job of proof reading the galleys. What an enlightening experience! The book ran into several editions and had impact around the world. The original edition read like a review of leaders in the field of intellectual disability at the time, which, in Britain in particular, was undergoing major changes that were to a considerable degree because of their efforts, and those of their colleagues including Herbert Gunzburg, Neil O’Connor, Jack Tizard, and Elspeth Stevens.

Several later editions of the book came out, each expanding in range as changes in mental deficiency took place. I still meet people who believe these were the golden days of the field in Britain for, as Alan said, the end of the second world war created an upbeat feeling and many knew of the work of people with mild intellectual disabilities during the war years working on road repair and such. I remember that overseas visitors to the Manor would stop and ask me why so many changes in the field of mental deficiency had taken place in England. The answer, to some considerable degree, was because of the work and workers who wrote this book. Alan and his values were part of a zeitgeist where change was in the air.

For Alan theory and practice went hand in hand and this was the subject of his Presidential address to the Association (Clarke, 1977). Alan was both a scientist and a humanitarian and this blend led to a concern for people with intellectual disabilities, their conditions and their treatment. In their Psychology Department at the Manor Hospital, Alan and Ann carried out not just research but facilitation of young people with intellectual disability, many of whom came from very adverse backgrounds.

After my internship, Alan invited me to become a psychologist in their department, where I experienced kind and wise support from both Alan and Ann. Alan, as a leader and mentor, had a dramatic effect on my own career. But then that was the nature of the man! I have met many colleagues and students who were grateful for his sincere interest in them and for his kind but well structured advice.

After leaving the Manor Hospital Alan became Professor and Head of the Psychology Department at the University of Hull and later Pro-Vice Chancellor. He was President of the British Psychological Society (1977-78) and was often involved in government committees where his reputation and skills moved things along. He was awarded a richly deserved C.B.E. (Commander of the British Empire).

I cannot but think of Alan other than jointly with Ann. Together Alan and Ann were a remarkable team. They continued to publish over the years and after retirement produced major books, which dealt with important, and challenging issues such as why some people survive against all odds. Their book Human Resilience: A Fifty Year Quest (2003) is a living tribute to their joint work as it brings together a collection of their research writing and clinical experience over the years- their quest has laid the ground for much future work- and the quest goes on!

Alan will be remembered as a man who blended research, theory, and humanitarian concern with day-to-day support and care.  He will be dearly missed by Ann, his 2 sons Bob and Peter and their families, as well as by a wide range of friends and colleagues all of whom owe him so much.

Roy Brown PhD, F.IASSID
January 2012

Clarke, A.D.B. (1977). Presidential address: From Research to Practice . In P. Mittler, (Ed) Research to Practice in Mental Retardation, Vol 1 (p. A,  7-19). Baltimore: University Park Press.