| Born: | 08-05-1916 |
| Faculty: | Philosophical School |
| Category: | Expelled student |
Hans KREITLER, born on August 5th, 1916 in Perchtoldsdorf near Vienna/Austria (entitled residency ('heimatberechtigt') for Vienna/Austria, Citizenship: Austria), son of Wilhelm Kreitler (merchant, piano manufacturer and trader from Stanislau, Galicia/Austro-Hungarian Empire [later: Stanisławów/Poland, today: Iwano-Frankiwsk|Івано-Франківськ/Ukraine]), lived in Wien 8, Buchfeldgasse 19/5, was enrolled finally in the fall term 1937/38 at the Philosophical School in the 2nd year of his studies and took courses in Psychology and German language and literature Studies.
In 1937 he was trainee in the neuropsychological clinic at the Rothschild Hospital in Vienna and started a psychotherapeutic training with Wilhelm Stekel in Vienna in 1937/38. He was unable to complete his studies because of Nazi persecution. He emigrated to Palestine/Israel in 1938 and initially worked there as a piano turner and bar-pianist.
From 1938 to 1942 he studied psychology philososophy and sociology at Hebrew University, 1939-41 he had a psychotherapeutic training with Dr. Dreifuss, Jerusalem. From 1945 to 1955 he was executive manager of "Kreitler Piano House and Workshops" in Israel, from 1950 on he also ran a private practice in psychotherapy. In 1955/56 studied psychology, philosophy and German literature at University of Graz/Styria an graduated there in 1956 in psychology. His dissertation: "Psychologische Grundlagen des Kunstgenusses".
1956 to 1961 he was chief psychologist in Governmental Hospital for Mental Diseases, Beer Yaakov/Israel. He also lectured psychology at Bar Ilan Univ, Tel Aviv in 1958/59, became a faculty member in 1959 and founded the psychological department there in 1961 (1961-65 senior lecturer, 1965-70 associate professor, 1970 professor). In 1974/75 he was visiting professor at Harvard University. He was developing theories of cognitive orientation and artistic experience together with his third wife, Prof. Shulamit Kreitler, and did research on theory of meaning and contributed to fields of psychopathology (esp. schizophrenia), developmental psychology, and parapsychology. 1977 he was awarded a honorary doctorate of the University of Mainz/Germany.
Together with his wife he published: "Die weltanschauliche Orientierung der Schizophrenen" (Munich-Basel, 1965); Die kognitive Orientierung des Kindes (Munich-Basel, 1967); also the wellknown book "Psychology of the Arts", dedicated to his parents, Wilhelm and Eugenie Kreitler (Durham, N.C., 1972) and many others.
Hans Kreitler died on January 7th, 1993 in Tel Aviv.
Lit.: information from Mag. Sabine Koch, Vienna 2009, and from Mag. Dr. PhDr. Gregor Gatscher-Riedl, Archive of the Market Town of Perchtoldsdorf, 2013; GATSCHER-RIEDL 2008, 64, 66; GEUTER 1986, 270; ROEDER 1983, 664; History of the School of Psychological Sciences, Tel Aviv University.
Katharina Kniefacz and Herbert Posch
