PSYCHIATRIC CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE GERMAN DEBATES ON THE FILM MEDIUM INTHE SILENT-MOVIE ERA

Literary writers and scientists of Various disciplines have contribute d to debates about the silent movie in the 10s and 20s in Germany, lea ding to basic insights into the structure and effects of the new film medium. Psychiatric authors of the documented period have elaborated p ropositions towards a theory of film perception and analyses of differ ent possibly nocuous film effects. The hypothesis of a causal effect o f the film medium on violence and the notion of a transmission of suic idal behaviour by fictitious film models are still controversially dis cussed.