Prisoner Behavior and Social System in the Nazi Concentration Camps

Until recently, American theory and discussion on prisoner behavior in the Nazi concentration camps differed in important ways from most European work. The American peculiarities stem from two main sources. First, there were gross reporting errors which added to the common difficulties in making sense of the camp system and genocide. Second, before the end of World War II and after, there was quick publication of poorly-grounded theories, reflecting concern with narrowly psychodynamic processes, rather than social processes. The present paper reviews study findings on the importance of human groups in the struggle for survival. Particular attention is given to the emergence of a prisoner social system and to the normative aspects of such a system. Along with references to the relevant work of others, the author deals at some length with his own early research, involving intensive interviews with fifty-two camp sur vivors who emigrated to the United States. In that study, data were gathered on changes with time in the camps in (1) patterns of interpersonal relations, (2) sharing with other prisoners and assisting them, and (3) thefts from other prisoners. The paper considers several propositions on human behavior in extreme situations. These include the proposition by Bruno Bettelheim that the longer prisoners were confined, the more they identified with the SS; that a prisoner had reached the final stage of adjustment to the camp situation when he had changed his personality so as to accept as his own the values 11 of his captors. The paper summarizes the author's findings on prisoner behavior in especially extreme situations such as prolonged punishment assemblies and winter- time transports of Auschwitz evacuees; on the attitudes of respondents toward "old" prisoners and toward members of prisoner underground organizations; and on the length of imprisonment of members of various national and inter national camp committees. Evidence is offered which suggests that stable pairing was the most common type of interpersonal relationship pattern and that most survivors had a sharing relationship of mutuality with one or more persons; that the pair was the basic unit of survival. Respondents showing decline in sharing behavior were in the camps sub stantially less time than those showing no change. Those respondents who showed greater and more stable general social participation were in the camps con siderably longer than those whose participation declined. Respondents showing decline in thefts (taking from other prisoners only) or consideration of theft, were in the camps longer than those showing increasing theft behavior. The study findings offered conflict at many points with narrowly psycho dynamic interpretations of prisoner behavior. It is concluded that in the camps the human group and social change system emerge as the most fruitful foci for scientific analysis.