Psychologist Arthur Bindman of Palm Beach and Lexington, Mass., died Friday, June 29, 2012, at Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, Mass., from complications from Parkinson’s disease, according to The Boston Globe. He was 86.

Mr. Bindman was working toward a degree in engineering at Northeastern University when he enlisted in the Navy during World War II as a radar technician, according to the Globe. After his stint, he transferred to Harvard College and switched from engineering to psychology.

“Things he observed during the war pushed him to really want to understand why people did the things they did,” said his son, David, of West Newton, Mass.

Mr. Bindman, who formerly was chief of psychological services for the Boston region of the state Department of Mental Health, was proudest of helping lead the effort to de-institutionalize patients from state hospitals and help them reintegrate into society, his son said.

After graduating from Harvard in 1948, Mr. Bindman went to Boston University, from which he graduated with a master’s in psychology in 1949, and a doctorate in clinical psychology in 1955. He also received a master’s in public health from Harvard in 1957.

While a graduate student, Mr. Bindman interned at Boston-area Veterans Affairs hospitals . He served as president of the Massachusetts Psychological Association and chaired the state Board of Registration of Psychologists.

While working for the state, Mr. Bindman kept a part-time private practice. After retiring in 1979 from the Department of Mental Health, he worked as a consultant and began seeing patients full-time.

Locally, he was a patron of Palm Beach Opera.

Born in New York City, Mr. Bindman moved to Boston at 5. He married Bernice Levenson in 1950 and they settled in Belmont, Mass.

In addition to his wife and son David, Mr. Bindman is survived by two other sons, Andrew of San Francisco and Carl of Andover; and seven grandchildren. A service was held earlier this month. Levine Chapels of Brookline, Mass., handled arrangements.