Dr. Charles S. Johnson

Dr. Johnson & Community Self-Survey

Dr. Charles Johnson was an American sociologist, researcher, and civil rights activist. Born in 1893, his parents were well-educated and he attended a boarding school as a child. He earned a B.A. in sociology, and a Ph.D. in sociology at the University of Chicago, although his graduate education was interrupted by World War I.

During the Red Summer of 1919, Johnson began working as a researcher for the National Urban League, eventually becoming the research director. As part of his work there, he was part of the Chicago Commission on Race Relations, an interracial committee formed in response to the race riots and deaths of the Red Summer. There he developed the method of research called “community self-survey”. The findings of this report were published in book form as The Negro in Chicago: A study of race relations and a race riot, in 1922. As World War I, the Great Depression, and World War II saw Black Americans’ place in U.S. society rise and fall and rise again, he used this method and others to study the effects of segregation and advocate for racial equality.

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The Chicago Commission on Race Relations

Dr. Johnson’s work with the Chicago Commission on Race Relations, and his use of community self-surveys, are important for several reasons. First, it’s important to note that the field of psychology was not well-established early in his career, often folded into sociology, and that research in both fields was not as regulated, scientific, or rigorous as it is now. Research was generally performed by lone 'theorists', often with little in the way of a systematic approach to data collection (e.g., Sigmund Freud), and were generally preoccupied with the most basic and essential elements of behavior and thought (e.g., Edward B. Titchener's elements of the mind).

Applications of psychological theory and research to real-world problems were still few and far between. The U.S. military pioneered some uses of intelligence and aptitude tests, but their development was generally top-down (i.e., an academic defined intelligence, created a survey instrument, and dictated its use and interpretation). And of course, racism and racial conflict were very high in the Jim Crow era, often involving riots (see the silent video below) and bloodshed, and the Civil Rights movement was still burgeoning.

In light of these points, community self-survey (described in more detail below) was ahead of its time in its consideration of race, community, well-being, and complex group interactions. As you read a bit more about it, think about your own communities and interests. Do you help guide and influence the research done about your own communities and social groups? Why do you think that is? If you were involved, what questions might you pursue instead?

Below, the people pictured to the left wrote and requested the Governor to "appoint ... an emergency state committee to study the psychological, social, and economic causes underlying the conditions resulting in the present race riot" (their names are at the bottom of the letter). Some of the findings of this commission, which pioneered the community self-

survey, are in the PDFs below. The first PDF is data from White citizens, the second is data from Black citizens. You don't have to read them super-closely, but enough to get a feel for what people are saying. As you read, keep an eye out for anything you find especially shocking or interesting about their methods or results.

johnson_white.pdf

johnson_black.pdf

Reflection Questions

What did you think about how participants were selected? How does this compare to our discussions about sample size and participant selection? Would you have made different choices, and why or why not?
If you were going to conduct a similar survey today, what questions might you keep the same and which might you change? Would you still use a qualitative approach, or something else?
In regards to the attitudes expressed by White and Black participants in the study -- how have things changed? How have things stayed the same? What role do you think psychology and psychological research has and can play in resolving these issues?

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