George W. Boguslavsky, PhD

DURHAM, NC - George W. Boguslavsky, PhD, passed away April 13, 2017, at the age of 106 in Durham, NC.

He was born on October 17, 1911 [1910], in Razdolnoye, Russia, to Vasily and Anna (Lysenko) Boguslavsky. When he was 10, his aunt Zhenya helped him and his siblings escape from the Bolsheviks on two separate occasions before his family found refuge in China. George was educated in Russia and China (St. Francis Xavier’s College, Shanghai) before coming to the United States in 1930. He completed BA and MS degrees in psychology at the University of Washington. World War II interrupted further study while he served as a lieutenant in the Army on General Douglas MacArthur’s staff. Earning a PhD in psychology from Cornell, he was hired by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY, to develop a top-tier psychology department which he served as chairman for 20 years, retiring in 1977. Dr. Boguslavsky originally studied under Howard Liddell and furthered research in mathematical modeling of Pavlovian classical conditioning.

Preceding him in death were his first wife Geneva K. Bowers (married 63 years), his second wife Galina A. Zlenko (married 7 years), brother Boris W. Boguslavsky and sister Alla B. Galt.

He is survived by a nephew, a niece Janet (Clark) Kvistad of Edmonds, WA, a first cousin once-removed Natalie (David) Hart of Ann Arbor, MI, and several other relatives.