Implications of Lewin’s Field Theory on Social Change

Abstract

Abstract During the Second World War, Kurt Lewin was part of a wider research team commissioned by the U.S. Department of Defense to study how dietary habits of American citizens could be changed so as to avoid protein starvation due to the lengthy war efforts. Lewin’s research on food habits can be linked to his earlier studies on social fields. This paper aims to interpret Lewin’s findings on changing dietary habits by using his very own field theory approach, in order to hypothesize how the such findings can be drivers of social change, with the findings being applicable for business management settings as well. Concepts of time and space, as well as ‘simultaneity’ and ‘psychological ecology’ are brought up to discussion in order to back up the purpose of research.