Psychology in the "Ostmark". Between Ideology and Collaboration

Up to the present day, a systematic historical analysis of the social and theoretical ruptures within academic psychology during and after the annexation of Austria in March 1938 has not been written. The events that took place in Austria after the Anschluss of the Ostmark, especially at the Psychological Institutes in Vienna, Graz and Innsbruck and the military-psychological testing laboratories in Vienna and Salzburg, have not been systematically researched and presented in a uniform publication so far. This project provides a systematic reconstruction and contextualization of theories and practices, which evolved in academic psychology from 1938 to 1945 and shaped the discipline for many decades, based on a historical analysis of primary and secondary literature, archival sources and private correspondence, and the conduction of interviews with contemporary witnesses. During times of rapid and profound political changes, the dynamic relationship and mutual dependency of science and politics become visible and are often openly discussed by historical actors. This study focuses on three levels of this relationship between academic-psychological and political- military interests: (1) theoretical developments and their relationship to the national-socialist worldview, (2) the scientific-political and social strategies of historical actors, and (3) the practical expertise and technical forms of knowledge that were developed at the three Psychological Institutes of the Ostmark in Vienna, Graz and Innsbruck. These three levels constitute the historiographical framework of this investigation. It enables us to gain a deeper understanding of the mutual influence and dependency of scientific knowledge, political directives, and how strategies of individual actors who shifted between these spheres can be understood in their respective contexts. The key research questions of this project are as follows: Which science-political changes characterize the development of academic psychology after the annexation of Austria in 1938? Which actors were successful in retaining their academic positions, despite rising political pressure and the militarization of academic life? Which rhetorical strategies proved to be successful in appeasing and influencing political decision makers? Which roles did psychological knowledge play in connection with national- socialist biopolitics and racial policies, such as mass deportation, the systematic murder of worthlessness life and the mobilization of the masses in times of war? Which conclusions can be drawn from the history of academic psychology in the Ostmark in regard to the question of continuity and discontinuity in the history of science in Austria? Which contribution can be made concerning current debates about the general relationship between science, politics and the social consequences of scientific practice? These questions guide this project towards an enhancement of our knowledge of the interaction and mutual dependency of science and politics during the Second World War and a reassessment of the joint responsibility of academic psychology in national-socialist war crimes and mass murder.

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