Synopsis "The German Mind: Made for Industry?"
For 150 years Germany has surpassed many other countries in economic prowess despite devastating wars, political strife, and shrinking territory and natural resources. Why? Perhaps it's because of the psychology and culture of the German people. Wieland shows that simplistic explanations are wrong. The German people are not workaholics, working longer hours than others. Nor is achievement motivation higher among Germans. Several personality syndromes seem very important. Key is conscientiousness: which includes traits of being organized, orderly, systematic, efficient, precise, prompt, meticulous, and frugal. The syndrome of neuroticism also plays a role in German industriousness. Germans have a strong need to avoid uncertainties, and this fosters the rules, planning, systematization, and reliability that are hallmarks of German culture. There is some evidence that personality is primary and determines culture, not vice versa. In addressing the question of origins for German economic prowess, Wieland covers many other questions about the peculiarities of German culture. For example: Can the German emphasis on order and efficiency explain how Germany outperforms other countries economically? Why do Germans seem disagreeable in temperament? Why are punishments rather than rewards often used to control behaviors in Germany? Germans have long had a reputation as thinkers and philosophers. They seem to love information. Do these traits contribute to Germany's economic achievements? Does angst, a severe general anxiety that is a distinctive feature of the German psyche, help or hinder achievement? Could the modern study of epigenetics explain how the repeated traumas of war paradoxically seem to have made Germany even stronger in some ways? Does the American theory of "terror management" help explain Germany's economic success? How might East Germany's forty-five years under Communism contribute an understanding of German economic power? Other peculiarities of German culture: Why do Germans prefer to do one thing at a time rather than multitask? Is the German dislike of uncertainty a factor in economic achievement? Why are many Germans reluctant to smile? Why do they suffer from negativism and hypochondria? Why do Germans love to criticize but also love to take criticisms from others? Why are Germans more pessimistic about the future than people in other countries despite their nation's strong economy? Why are they politically conservative? Why do they suffer from what some call "paralysis by analysis?" And why did the German equivalent of Time magazine once devote forty pages to a history of the bathroom? These and many other unusual aspects of German personality and culture are covered. The German Mind includes an index of terms and pages where located as well as 218 literature references for further reading.
