Hal Sampson

1925 - 2015

Hal Sampson, Ph.D.

May 16, 1925 - April 23, 2015

Hal Sampson, Ph.D. passed away on April 23, 2015, in Emeryville, California. He is survived by his beloved wife, Frances Sampson, brother Edward Sampson and his family, and sons Mickey Sampson and Lawrence Sampson and their families.

Hal was born on May 16, 1925 in Chicago. He served in the U.S. Army in the 334th Infantry Regiment, on the European front, during World War II. He attended college on the G.I. Bill and graduated from U.C.L.A. Phi Beta Kappa, in 1948. Hal continued his studies at U.C. Berkeley, where he received his Ph.D. in Psychology in 1953. While studying in Berkeley, Hal met the love of his life, Frances, who was also in the Ph.D. program. Hal and Frances married in 1954, soon after Frances received her Ph.D. in Psychology. Hal and Frances had two sons and the family lived in El Cerrito, California for many years.

Hal held numerous academic positions, including Chair of the Department of Research at Mt. Zion Hospital's Department of Psychiatry, Faculty Member at the San Francisco Psychoanalytic Institute, and Lecturer and Visiting Professor at U.C. Berkeley. In 1964, Schizophrenic Women: Studies in Marital Crisis, his book written with Sheldon Messinger and Robert Towne was published. Hal published more than twenty articles in professional journals.

The major intellectual focus of Hal's professional life centered on his over forty year collaboration with Dr. Joseph Weiss on the development of Control Mastery Theory. In 1972, they founded the Therapy Research Group, now known as the San Francisco Psychotherapy Research Group. The Research Group produced leaders in teaching generations of new psychotherapy students and disseminated the theory locally, nationally and internationally. In 1986, The Psychoanalytic Process: Theory, Clinical Observations and Empirical Research, the book they wrote in conjunction with the Mt. Zion Psychotherapy Research Group, was published. Hal was active in teaching these ideas to a large number of students and in presenting the theory to numerous Psychoanalytic Institutes across the United States and Europe. Hal and Frances retired at age 80.

Hal's kind heart, passion for civil rights and wisdom will be missed. His ideas and influence live on.

A service will be held on Wednesday April 29 at 2:00 p.m. at Sunset View Mortuary, Colusa and Fairmount Avenues, El Cerrito, CA.