Helen Lynd

Helen Merrell Lynd ( born March 17, 1886 in La Grange, Illinois, † January 30, 1982 in New York City ) was an American sociologist, social psychologist, historian and educator. She became famous in the Middletown studies in Muncie ( Indiana), which she ran with her husband, Robert S. Lynd. The resulting joint publications are among the classics of urban sociology.

Helen Merrell studied until 1919 at the College in Wellesley, Massachusetts. After the BA examination, she worked for two years as a teacher. In 1921 she married Robert S. Lynd and began to study at Columbia University on, graduating with the MA exam. From 1924 to 1929 she worked on the so-called Middletown studies that led to her husband as Research Director. The couple lived two years (1924-1926) at their place of study in Indiana.

From 1928 to 1964 Helen M. Lynd taught as a professor at the Faculty of Social Sciences of the Sarah Lawrence College. During this time she was in 1944 by Columbia University for Ph.D. doctorate.

Writings (selection )

• Robert S. Lynd / Helen M. Lynd: Middletown: A Study in Contemporary American Culture. New York 1929.
• Robert S. Lynd / Helen M. Lynd: Middletown in Transition: A Study in Cultural Conflicts. New York 1937.