Detlef Austria

Detlef Oesterreich (born January 23, 1943 - † October 6, 2016 in Berlin ) was a German humanities scholar.

Career

In 1961 he studied German and history at the Free University of Berlin, and from 1962 to 1968 he studied psychology at the Free University of Berlin. His doctorate in 1974 was on the topic of authoritarianism and autonomy . He took part in investigations into professional careers, social attitudes, socialization conditions and personality traits of former industrial apprentices at Klaus Holzkamp . From 1968 to 2006 he was a research associate at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Berlin . From 2007 to 2016, Austria was deputy managing director and scientific director of the BIS - Berlin Institute for Social Research GmbH.

Scientific work

Authoritarianism in connection with political attitudes and questions about political socialization represent central areas of the research activities of Austria. The concept of the authoritarian reaction as a basic reaction of human behavior, the Austria in critical examination with the study "The Autoritarian Personality" by Theodor W. Adorno , Else Frenkel-Brunswik , Daniel Levinson and Nevitt Sanford , represents a 'more behavioral explanatory approach' for authoritarian personalities that focuses more on the reciprocity of authority, the need for authority and the situation: “ Dominance relationships that are exclusively based on application or threats of violence are not relationships of authority. They are defined solely by the power potential of the rulers. In the relationship of authoritarianism, on the other hand, a need of the ruled must be considered at a central point. The ruled need something that authorities are able to give them. The concept of authoritarianism thus thematizes the relationship between the rulers and the ruled. "

With reference to the theoretical foundation of his approach of the authoritarian reaction, Oesterreich falls back on numerous ideas, theories and studies. The basic philosophical position, based on Immanuel Kant, poses the question of why people behave against their interests, why they become underage, that is, why they voluntarily submit. The authoritarianism theory "... is at its core a theory of irrational human behavior." Further important points of reference for the theoretical derivation are the works of Erich Fromm ( Escape of Freedom ), Bruno Bettelheim , Milton Rokeach and Stanley Milgram ( Obedience to Authority. An Experimental View ). Austria divides authoritarian behavior into two basic patterns, on the one hand it is the reaction pattern of authoritarian personalities, on the other hand it is also a human reaction in crisis and extreme situations. With this position, Austria also directs the focus on the conditions that provoke and repeatedly create authoritarian behavior. With regard to genesis, he explains: “ The authoritarian personality should be understood as a life history and solidified way of dealing with this reaction .” The basic triggers for the authoritarian reaction are fear and uncertainty. For the socialization of authoritarian personalities, it is therefore crucial how people manage to break ties with authorities. One of the basic questions of upbringing therefore relates to the promotion of autonomy and the ability to deal with conflict in children through their parents or caregivers. If children are constantly overwhelmed or insecure with regard to their social and cognitive skills, the authoritarian reaction solidifies in them as a protective mechanism. These children will then also seek protection as adults from authorities, be they persons or instances. Austria also describes this process as "... negative theory of individual emancipation."

To record authoritarianism, Austria presents an instrument (1993, 1996, 1998) that relates to behavior and experience. Questions are asked about rigidity , dogmatism , willingness to subordinate, hostility, orientation towards power and strength as well as conformism . With this construction, in particular the theoretical foundation of the instrument, Oesterreich encounters numerous criticisms of the “Study of the Authoritarian Personality ” by Adorno et al. was practiced, such as capturing ideologues instead of behavior.

Austria later played a key role in the civic education project of the Berlin Max Planck Institute for Educational Research, which had been part of the international study by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement since 1996. In 1994, on the initiative of Judith Torney-Purta, it began a second study on the political education of young people since 1975 in order to take into account the social and global political changes in this research area since the 1970s.

Publications

Monographs

• D. Austria: Authoritarianism and Autonomy. Studies on professional careers, social attitudes, socialization conditions and personality traits of former industrial apprentices. Klett, Stuttgart 1974.
• D. Austria: The choice of career of young teachers. (= Max Planck Institute for Human Development. Studies and Reports. Volume 46). Klett Verlag, Berlin / Stuttgart 1987. (PDF)
• D. Austria: Teacher cooperation and teacher socialization. Deutscher Studien Verlag, Weinheim 1988.
• D. Austria: Authoritarian Personality and Social Order. The importance of psychological factors for political attitudes - an empirical study of young people in East and West. Juventa, Weinheim u. a. 1993.
• C. Händle, D. Oesterreich, L. Trommer: Tasks of political education in secondary level I. VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 1999.
• D. Austria: Escape to safety. On the theory of authoritarianism and authoritarian reaction. Leske + Budrich, Opladen 1996.
• D. Austria: Political education of 14 year olds in Germany. Studies from the Civic Education project. Leske + Budrich, Opladen 2002.
• D. Austria, E. Schulze: Women and men in old age. Facts and recommendations on equality. edition sigma, Berlin 2011.

Gray literature / reports

• E. Berndt, H. Gothe, D. Oesterreich, E. Schulze u. a .: Market potential, development opportunities, social, health and economic effects of the future use of Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) technologies . Rostock / Darmstadt / Berlin 2009. (PDF)
• Detlef Oesterreich, E. Schulze: Over-indebtedness of private households. Psychological and social consequences. Expertise for the Federal Ministry for Families, Seniors, Women and Youth in the context of poverty and wealth reporting . Berlin 2012. (PDF)
• A. Wilbrandt, E. Schulze, D. Oesterreich: Mylife - technical assistance for people with memory problems. Berlin 2013. (PDF)
• E. Schulze, A. Wilbrandt, K. Dietel, D. Oesterreich: Social science monitoring of the "Efficiency House Plus with Electromobility". Berlin 2013. (PDF)
• Sixth state gender equality report. On the application and effectiveness of the State Equality Act of the State of Brandenburg (LGG). Reporting period: September 2008 to December 2013. (PDF)
• E. Schulze, D. Oesterreich, K. Dietel, A. Zirk, A. Engler: Social-scientific monitoring of the "Efficiency House Plus with Electromobility". Test period May 2014 to June 2015 . Berlin 2015. (PDF)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ D. Austria: Escape to safety. On the theory of authoritarianism and authoritarian reaction. Leske + Budrich, Opladen 1996, p. 108.
2. ↑ ^{a b} D. Austria: Escape to safety. On the theory of authoritarianism and authoritarian reaction. Leske + Budrich, Opladen 1996, p. 11.
3. ^ The Informed Heart: Autonomy in a Mass Age
4. ↑ The Open and the Closed Mind
5. ↑ D. Austria: Escape to safety. On the theory of authoritarianism and authoritarian reaction. Leske + Budrich, Opladen 1996, p. 14.
6. ↑ D. Austria: Escape to safety. On the theory of authoritarianism and authoritarian reaction. Leske + Budrich, Opladen 1996, p. 123.
7. ↑ D. Austria: Escape to safety. On the theory of authoritarianism and authoritarian reaction. Leske + Budrich, Opladen 1996, p. 124.
8. ^ Civic Education Project
9. ↑ IEA
10. ↑ D. Oesterreich: The political readiness for action of German young people in the international area. In: From Politics and Contemporary History. Volume 50, 2001, pp. 14-22.