Wilfred TrotterBorn 3 Nov 1872; died 25 Nov 1939 at age 67. Wilfred Batten Lewis Trotter was an English surgeon, who was an authority on cancers of the neck and head and recognized as a pioneer in neurosurgery. He took an interest in sociology and originated the term "herd instinct" in his book Instincts of the Herd in Peace and War (1914), referring to human behaviour. He was the first to study the psychology of animals, investigating gregariousness as an instinct, in a beehive, a flock of sheep and a wolf pack. He related how herd membership created a homogeneity whereby individuals would instead act together as one. Within humanity, he distinguished two disparate types of people: resistive and sensitive, which came into conflict as the former resisted change, while the latter embraced change.« |
