Franz Samelson

Franz Samelson (September 23, 1923 – March 16, 2015) was a German-American social psychologist and historian of psychology.[1]

Samelson was born on September 23, 1923 in present-day Wroclaw, Poland (then known as Breslau, Germany).[1] Prohibited by the laws of Nazi Germany from attending any German universities, he instead attended a photography school in Munich, where he later worked in a factory with prisoners of war. After World War II ended, he began working for the United States Army. He also enrolled at the University of Munich, where he received a diploma in psychology in 1952.[2]

In 1952, he emigrated to the United States, following his older brother Hans. He went on to receive his Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Michigan in 1956.[2] He joined the faculty of Kansas State University in 1957, where he remained until retiring as Professor in 1990.[1]

Samelson died on March 16, 2015, in Manhattan, Kansas.[1]