Peter Blos (February 2, 1904 – June 12, 1997) was a German-American early

psychoanalyst PsychoanalysisFrom Greek: and is a set of theories and techniques of research to discover unconscious processes and their influence on conscious thought, emotion and behaviour. Based on dream interpretation, psychoanalysis is also a talk th ...

, a pioneer of a systematic approach to studying child and adolescent psychological development. Born in

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( ; ; ; South Franconian German, South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, third-largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, after its capital Stuttgart a ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, Blos became friends at the age of 16 with

Erik Erikson Erik Homburger Erikson (born Erik Salomonsen; 15 June 1902 – 12 May 1994) was a German-American child psychoanalyst and visual artist known for his theory on psychosocial development of human beings. He coined the phrase identity crisis. ...

, with whom he later collaborated extensively. Blos studied education at the

University of Heidelberg Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg (; ), is a public university, public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1386 on instruction of Pope Urban VI, Heidelberg is List ...

. After receiving the bachelor's degree, Blos was introduced to

Anna Freud Anna Freud CBE ( ; ; 3 December 1895 – 9 October 1982) was a British psychoanalyst of Austrian Jewish descent. She was born in Vienna, the sixth and youngest child of Sigmund Freud and Martha Bernays. She followed the path of her father a ...

. She recommended Blos for a tutoring position to Bob Burlingham, the eldest child of psychoanalyst

Dorothy Burlingham Dorothy Trimble Tiffany Burlingham (11 October 1891 – 19 November 1979) was an American child psychoanalyst and educator. A lifelong friend and partner of Anna Freud, Burlingham is known for her joint work with Freud on the analysis of childr ...

. Eventually, Blos became a director of an experimental psychoanalytical school for the children of Mrs. Burlingham, inviting Erik Erikson to assist him. Later, Blos obtained a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

in biology from the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...

. In 1934, Peter Blos fled to

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, escaping a growing

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

movement. Then he went to

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, advancing his analytical training there. Blos became part of the New York Psychoanalytical Society, becoming a special member in 1965. He presented and led a course on delayed adolescence from 1972 to 1977. Dr. Blos published four books on adolescent development, delving deeply into the area

Sigmund Freud Sigmund Freud ( ; ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating psychopathology, pathologies seen as originating fro ...

touched on but hadn't developed enough. Finished by Blos in 1962, ''On Adolescence: A Psychoanalytic Interpretation'' became a foundational volume in the field, still widely studied. Peter Blos died in 1997 at his home in Holderness, New Hampshire, at the age of 93.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blos, Peter 1904 births 1997 deaths Emigrants from Nazi Germany to the United States German psychoanalysts Scientists from Karlsruhe