Bibring, Edward, 1894-1959

Edward Bibring, 1894-1959, M.D., 1922, Vienna Medical School; was a psychoanalyst, a close associate and advocate of Sigmund Freud, and a researcher and lecturer known for his contributions to psychoanalytic theory, history, and practice. In 1922 Bibring began his training at the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society, of which he became a member in 1927. From 1928 to 1938 he served as the Director of the Psychiatric Department of the Vienna Psychoanalytic Clinic. Bibring, and his wife and life-long collaborator Grete, emigrated to Great Britain following the Anschluss in 1938. The Bibrings emigrated to the United States in 1941 and Edward became a training analyst and lecturer at the Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute, serving as president of the society from 1947 to 1949. Bibring also lectured extensively at the Boston University School of Social Work.

Edward Bibring, 1894-1959, was a psychoanalyst, a close associate and advocate of Sigmund Freud, and a researcher and lecturer known for his contributions to psychoanalytic theory, history, and practice.

Bibring was born in Stanislau, Galicia to Jewish parents on April 20, 1894. Prior to the outbreak of the First World War, he studied history and philosophy at the University of Czernowitz, studies reflected later in life by his interest in art, archaeology, literature, and the social sciences. During the war, Bibring fought on the eastern front, where he was made a prisoner of war by the Russians. The Russian Revolution provided an opportunity for Bibring to escape imprisonment and he was able to return to Austria, where he was allowed to continue his studies. Bibring enrolled at the University of Vienna Medical School, where he earned his M.D. in 1922. It was during this period that he met his future wife and life-long collaborator, Grete (Lehner) Bibring. They were married in 1921 and the marriage produced two sons, George and Thomas.

In 1922 Bibring also began his training at the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society, of which he became a member in 1927. From 1928 to 1938 he served as the Director of the Psychiatric Department of the Vienna Psychoanalytic Clinic. Bibring was appointed co-editor-in-chief of the Internationale Zeitschrift fur Psychoanalyse in 1935, where he worked closely with Freud, its founder and sponsor. Following the Anschluss in 1938, Bibring and other psychoanalysts in Vienna left Austria for Great Britain and the United States.

The Bibrings immigrated to London in 1938. Edward joined the training staff at the London Psychoanalytic Institute and Clinic and was named to its Board of Directors. From London he continued to work on the Internationale Zeitschrift fur Psychoanalyse, as well as a revised German edition of Freud’s collected works. In 1941 the Bibrings came to Boston, Mass., where Edward became a training analyst and lecturer at the Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute, commencing a relationship with the organization that would last the remainder of his life. Bibring served as President of the Society from 1947 to 1949 and Chairman of the Education Committee in 1944 and 1949. In addition to the Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute, Bibring also lectured extensively at the Boston University School of Social Work. In addition to lecturing, Bibring researched and wrote about topics in psychoanalysis. Some of his publications include, “On the Theory of Therapeutic Results” (1936), “Development and Problems of the Theory of Instincts” (1941), “The Mechanism of Depression” (1952), and “Psychoanalysis and the Dynamic Psychotherapies” (1953). Bibring maintained memberships in the International Psychoanalytic Association and the American Psychoanalytic Association, serving as the Chairman of the Committee on Institutes. At the time of his death in 1959, after a long illness, Bibring was also a research consultant at Beth Israel Hospital.