Soviet and American Psychology During World War II - (International Contributions in Psychology) (Hardcover)

About the Book

This book compares the influence of the period leading up to World War II and of the war itself on the discipline of psychology in two major, but very different countries. During the 1930s, Soviet psychologists were formally isolated from developments in Western psychology by the ideological requirements of the Communist Party; in the United States, a vast variety of topics was being researched. When the war began, the discipline in the Soviet Union turned increasingly toward specialized topics, such as the rehabilitation of the wounded, ways to improve morale, and the psychological basis of color-camouflage. American psychologists, on the other hand, applied their psychometric and clinical skills to military needs. With the coming of glasnost, American and Russian psychologists were able to collaborate to create the first thorough examinations of the state of wartime psychology in these countries. Of interest to all students and researchers of the history of psychology, psychological theory, and the history of World War II.

Book Synopsis

This book compares the influence of the period leading up to World War II and of the war itself on the discipline of psychology in two major, but very different countries. During the 1930s, Soviet psychologists were formally isolated from developments in Western psychology by the ideological requirements of the Communist Party; in the United States, a vast variety of topics was being researched. When the war began, the discipline in the Soviet Union turned increasingly toward specialized topics, such as the rehabilitation of the wounded, ways to improve morale, and the psychological basis of color-camouflage. American psychologists, on the other hand, applied their psychometric and clinical skills to military needs. With the coming of glasnost, American and Russian psychologists were able to collaborate to create the first thorough examinations of the state of wartime psychology in these countries. Of interest to all students and researchers of the history of psychology, psychological theory, and the history of World War II.

Review Quotes

?This book contains valuable information from both the Soviet and American perspective that will make it an essential acquisition for many libraries and individual readers.?-Contemporary Psychology

?This is a very interesting evaluation of the social, political, economic, and other cultural factors that can influence science, and psychology in particular. The reader is quckily attuned to implications for our present society as well as a comparable evaluation of current social influences on contemporary psychology. This book has excellent references into the little-known Soviet literature in psychology. Recommended for those interested in the history of psychology or cultural influence on science.?-Psychological Reports

"This book contains valuable information from both the Soviet and American perspective that will make it an essential acquisition for many libraries and individual readers."-Contemporary Psychology

"This is a very interesting evaluation of the social, political, economic, and other cultural factors that can influence science, and psychology in particular. The reader is quckily attuned to implications for our present society as well as a comparable evaluation of current social influences on contemporary psychology. This book has excellent references into the little-known Soviet literature in psychology. Recommended for those interested in the history of psychology or cultural influence on science."-Psychological Reports

About the Author

ALBERT R. GILGEN is Professor of Psychology at the University of Northern Iowa. He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, the American Psychological Society, and the American Association of Applied and Preventive Psychology. His publications include: American Psychology Since World War II: A Profile of the Discipline (1982), International Handbook of Psychology (coedited with Carol K. Gilgen, 1987), and Chaos Theory in Psychology (coedited with Frederick David Abraham, 1995), all from Greenwood Press.

CAROL K. GILGEN is a certified public accountant. She is coeditor with Albert R. Gilgen of International Handbook of Psychology (Greenwood, 1987).

VERA A. KOLTSOVA is Head of the Laboratory of the History of Psychology and Historical Psychology of the Institute of Psychology of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

YURI N. OLEINIK is Dean of the Faculty of Psychology of the Youth Institute in Moscow and Senior Scientist of the Laboratory of the History of Psychology and Historical Psychology of the Institute of Psychology of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

The editors also collaborated on Post-Soviet Perspectives on Russian Psychology (Greenwood, 1996).