Gestalt psychology in the soviet union

Summary The influence of the Berlin school of Gestalt psychology on Soviet psychology in the period before the reactological debate (1931) is analyzed. A review of the channels of communication (congresses personal visits, translations, review papers) shows that Soviet psychologists were well informed about Gestalt psychology, and that the members of L.S. Vygotskij's circle were the main promotors of Gestalt ideas in the Soviet Union. Gestalt psychology was welcomed as a potential ally in the construction of a Marxist psychology first outlined by K.N. Kornilov. The initial enthusiasm for Gestalt psychology was stimulated by the system concept as developed by Wolfgang Köhler, and A.R. Luria made an attempt to demonstrate the compatibility between Köhler's theory and some general methodological implications of dialectical materialism. Later on, the focus of interest shifted to Köhler's investigations of intelligent behavior in apes, which formed part of the empirical base of the historico-cultural theory of mental development. The impact of Gestalt ideas served an important function in the struggle against mechanistic theories of behavior which were at that time predominant in Soviet psychology.Thanks are due to Josef Broek and Sonia Argyle, who have kindly agreed to polish my English. The remaining teutonisms are not their fault. All translations from Russian or German sources were done by the author. Please address offprint requests to Eckart Scheerer, Universität Oldenburg, FB 1 - Psychologie, Birkenweg 3, 2900 Oldenburg, Federal Republic of Germany