Epistemologische Neupositionierungen. Alexander Mitscherlich zwischen „naturwissenschaftlicher Methodik“, Psychoanalyse und Psychosomatischer Medizin

This paper examines the shifts in Alexander Mitscherlich’s epistemological position in the 1940s, 50s and 60s via his plea for psychosomatic medicine. These shifts illustrate the post-war controversy among psychiatrists, physicians, and psychotherapists about what constitutes valid and practically relevant knowledge. The subjectivity of patients is key to Mitscherlich’s concept of disease. This informs his continuous criticism of the use of statistical methods to validate individual diagnoses and hypotheses. This paper shows that Mitscherlich’s criticism of a science-based medical methodology is highly adaptable, even though, in spite of many theoretical changes and adaptations, the main thrust of his approach remains consistent.