Science at war?

Abstract

The psychological societies of Great Britain and Germany were deeply connected with each other before the First World War through friendly relationships and scientific communication. These relations were only partly disrupted during the war. The psychologists of both countries (a.k.a. members of the societies) committed themselves to the military demands, worked in similar fields but in different ways. They differed in the involvement in military psychiatry and in their treatment of Shell Shocked soldiers. Their shared knowledge of relevant psychological research before the war influenced the development of sound localisation machines for detecting submarines, a military project, which was supported in both countries. The activities of those psychologists were observed and commented by the other side, but there were no hostile remarks against the enemy and soon after the war the scientific exchange began again.