Founding President, Hawaii Association for Humanistic Psychology

Seven months after his arrest in the Bachman Hall sit-in, Ekroth became founding president of the newly organized Hawaii Association for Humanistic Psychology. The Honolulu Star-Bulletin reported the election on December 13, 1968, identifying him as “Dr. Lauren E. Ekroth, assistant professor of speech at the University of Hawaii.” Fellow officers were Jack S. Annon, an intern at UH’s Counseling and Testing Center, as treasurer, and Dr. George Y. Fujita, associate specialist at the same center, as secretary.

That a speech professor led an organization composed otherwise of psychology professionals reflects Ekroth’s cross-disciplinary position. Humanistic psychology — the “Third Force” after psychoanalysis and behaviorism, associated with Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers — emphasized self-actualization, authentic encounter, and experiential learning over diagnostic labeling. These were principles fully consonant with how Ekroth already taught persuasion: by sending students into the community rather than keeping them in classrooms.

The group’s first major activity was arranging to meet with Dr. Jack Gibb — past president of the national American Association of Humanistic Psychology and a pioneer in trust-based, supportive communication — at a communication institute sponsored by the Nuuanu YMCA at Camp Erdman from January 2–4, 1969. The founding presidency marks the beginning of a decade-long movement toward psychology and personal development that would eventually shape Ekroth’s post-academic career as a coach and conversation specialist.