Vienna Psychoanalytical Society

psychological organization

Also known as: Psychological Wednesday Circle

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July 14, 2026

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The Vienna Psychoanalytic Society was a group of early psychoanalysts, primarily followers of Sigmund Freud, who met in Vienna starting in 1902. Initially called the Psychological Wednesday Circle, it was renamed the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society in 1908. This organization was central to the development and dissemination of psychoanalytic theory, which emphasizes the role of the unconscious mind and early childhood experiences in shaping human behavior and mental health.123

Key figures associated with the society included Alfred Adler, Carl Jung, Otto Rank, and Sándor Ferenczi, though many of these prominent members later broke away from Freud and established their own schools of thought. The society's early history was marked by both collaboration and significant internal conflict, reflecting the intense intellectual and personal dynamics within the nascent psychoanalytic movement.13

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Sigmund Freud
Sexuality and development
In 1902 the Psychological Wednesday Circle began to gather in Freud’s waiting room with a number of future luminaries in the psychoanalytic movements in attendance. Alfred Adler and Wilhelm Stekel were often joined by guests such as Sándor Ferenczi, Carl Gustav Jung, Otto Rank, Ernest Jones, Max Eitingon,…
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In 1902 the Psychological Wednesday Circle began to gather in Freud’s waiting room with a number of future luminaries in the psychoanalytic movements in attendance. Alfred Adler and Wilhelm Stekel were often joined by guests such as Sándor Ferenczi, Carl Gustav Jung, Otto Rank, Ernest Jones, Max Eitingon,…
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Sándor Ferenczi
…of Freud’s “inner circle,” the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society. Thus began his long, close friendship and collaboration with Freud, whom he accompanied on many travels, including a journey to Clark University, Worcester, Mass. (1909). He founded the Hungarian Psychoanalytic Society in 1913 and became a professor of psychoanalysis at the University…
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…of Freud’s “inner circle,” the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society. Thus began his long, close friendship and collaboration with Freud, whom he accompanied on many travels, including a journey to Clark University, Worcester, Mass. (1909). He founded the Hungarian Psychoanalytic Society in 1913 and became a professor of psychoanalysis at the University…
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