Background of Kurt Lewin
· 1890 - Born in Prussia, now Germany.
· 1909 - Enrolled at the University of Frieberg, then transferred to the University of Munich to study Biology.
· 1914 - Joined the German army, later to be injured in combat.
· 1916 - Earned a Ph.D. from the University of Berlin.
· 1921 - Became a lecturer at the Psychological Institute of the University of Berlin.
· 1932 - Emigrated to the United States and became a professor at Stanford.
· 1933 – Became a professor at Cornell.
· 1935 - Became a professor at the University of Iowa; published A Dynamic Theory of Personality.
· 1936 – Published Principles of Topological Psychology.
· 1938 – Became a professor at Harvard.
· 1944 - Established the Group Dynamics research center at MIT and the National Training Laboratories for the U.S. government.
· 1947 - Died at age 57 of a heart attack.
· 1951 – Harper & Row published Field Theory in Social Science; Selected Theoretical Papers.
Kurt Lewin is considered the founding father of social psychology. Lewin published more than eighty articles and 8 books on multiple psychology topics. He is most well known for his books on group dynamics, group therapy, and social psychology. Lewin’s interest in groups led to research focusing on factors that influence people to change. His most influential theory was his model of the change process in human systems, the three-stage model of change that is known as the unfreezing-change-refreeze model. Even after his early death, his unfinished papers were published by his colleagues. (Cooke, 2007)
· 1909 - Enrolled at the University of Frieberg, then transferred to the University of Munich to study Biology.
· 1914 - Joined the German army, later to be injured in combat.
· 1916 - Earned a Ph.D. from the University of Berlin.
· 1921 - Became a lecturer at the Psychological Institute of the University of Berlin.
· 1932 - Emigrated to the United States and became a professor at Stanford.
· 1933 – Became a professor at Cornell.
· 1935 - Became a professor at the University of Iowa; published A Dynamic Theory of Personality.
· 1936 – Published Principles of Topological Psychology.
· 1938 – Became a professor at Harvard.
· 1944 - Established the Group Dynamics research center at MIT and the National Training Laboratories for the U.S. government.
· 1947 - Died at age 57 of a heart attack.
· 1951 – Harper & Row published Field Theory in Social Science; Selected Theoretical Papers.
Kurt Lewin is considered the founding father of social psychology. Lewin published more than eighty articles and 8 books on multiple psychology topics. He is most well known for his books on group dynamics, group therapy, and social psychology. Lewin’s interest in groups led to research focusing on factors that influence people to change. His most influential theory was his model of the change process in human systems, the three-stage model of change that is known as the unfreezing-change-refreeze model. Even after his early death, his unfinished papers were published by his colleagues. (Cooke, 2007)