Palo Alto Group

The earliest reference to the “Palo Alto Group” dates from 1960 and refers to three overlapping and interrelated teams of researchers that worked together in Palo Alto, California, over a 60-year span beginning in 1952 and continuing to the present day. Under the leadership of the renowned cultural anthropologist Gregory Bateson, the original team of researchers included John Weakland, Jay Haley, William Fry, and Don D. Jackson. In 1958, all original members of the Palo Alto team joined Jackson in founding the Mental Research Institute (MRI), with Weakland, Haley, and Fry as research associates, Bateson serving as a consultant, and Jules Riskin, Virginia Satir, Richard Fisch, and Paul Watzlawick joining the team. The third team, referred to as the Palo Alto Group, began work in ...