The psychoanalytic kindergarten project in Soviet Russia 1921–1930

Imported from abroad, psychoanalytic theory found fertile soil in Russia in the post-revolutionary times, a period when enlightenment absolutism swept the country. During this era, a variety of advocacy groups promoted progressive psychological approaches to the study of early human development. The growing interest in giving scientific accounts of developmental processes to propagandise ideas about societal transformation was prompted by the need to change ‘inherited’ society. Ideas about the transformative power of education were nurtured by modern psychological and pedagogical theories. It is not surprising then that Sigmund Freud’s psychology of unconsciousness sparked interest in Russia both prior to and after the Bolshevik ‘October Revolution’ of 1917.