ABSTRACT
Work in this genre, originating with the war, set a pattern or style of study that was continued by the Research on Contemporary Cultures, first directed by Ruth Benedict and then by Margaret Mead. A few historians, however, more venturesome than their fellows, have begun to take an interest in this area. David Potter, in his book People of Plenty, has sought to assimilate the studies that have been done on American character by nonhistorians and to link them to more traditional historical perspectives. The Authoritarian Personality took off from the near contemporary scene of fascism in Germany and the possibility of incipient fascism in America; but its method is primarily clinical, focused on the psychodynamics of individuals as revealed in interviews and projective tests. The Lonely Crowd resembles The Authoritarian Personality, which appeared at the same time, in its effort to deal with a historical problem that is broader than genitality and narrower than fate.
