Born in Vienna in 1916, Dr. Leopold Bellak died in March of 2000, leaving behind a legacy in psychiatry. He is best known for his contributions to the T.A.T. (Thematic Apperception Test) and the development of the C.A.T. (Children’s Apperception Test) and S.A.T. (Senior Apperception Test), as well as for his book, “The TAT, CAT and SAT in Clinical Use”. Dr. Bellak’s comprehensive research was presented in his book “Ego Functions in Schizophrenics, Neurotics, and Norms”. He also pioneered a department of research on schizophrenia at the National Institute of Health in the 1960s. Generations of professionals in the mental health field are indebted to Dr. Bellak for his contributions to developing the disciplines between the behavioral sciences. Bellak began his medical studies at the University of Vienna. He was a tutor for a son of Dorothy Burlingham, Anna Freud’s best friend. He maintained close friendships with the Burlinghams and the Freuds throughout his life.

After receiving an affidavit from Mrs. Burlingham to leave Vienna just before the Anschluss, Bellak came to the United States at the age of 22. He arrived with just $3.00, alone and unable to speak much English. He worked various jobs as he searched for ways to continue his education, eventually receiving a full scholarship to Boston University and a fellowship at Harvard. While at Harvard, Dr. Bellak did his doctoral study with eminent professor Henry Murray on the T.A.T. In 1954, he published the first edition of “The TAT, CAT and SAT in Clinical Use”, which continues to be the main source of scoring for the use of the personality tests. Bellak became a professor at the NY Psychoanalytical Institute and the New School of Social Research, as well as at New York University. Bellak never had a problem voicing his views on sensitive topics; as a member of the Psychoanalytical Association, he was the only M.D. to defy the dictate that forbade teaching outside of the Institute at the risk of expulsion. He outwardly refused, remaining on the graduate psychology faculty at NYU.

As a psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, and psychologist, Dr. Bellak received numerous awards for his work, such as the Frieda Fromm-Reichmann Award, the Distinguished Psychoanalyst Award from the NY Society for Psychoanalytical Training, the Bruno Klopfer Award from the Society for Personality Assessment, and the American Psychological Association Award for Distinguished Professional Contributions. His specialties were in attention deficit disorder in adults, brief and emergency psychotherapy, and schizophrenia. In Dr. Bellak’s clinical practice, he fought implant research on schizophrenia and founded the first walk-in clinic at the Elmhurst hospital in New York. He lectured extensively across the globe and wrote a series of narrations for PBS television.

Dr. Bellak authored 37 books, and more then 100 papers, as well as his numerous tests and videotapes, many of which have been translated into foreign languages. He was a visiting professor at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York close to the time he became ill. Dr. Bellak was also the proud father of two daughters. His eldest, Kerin Bellak-Adams, is President of C.P.S. Publishing, LLC, which distributes C.A.T. products worldwide in 15 languages. Limited editions of Dr. Bellak’s classic textbooks and videotapes may be purchased on this website.