Early South African engagement with international psychology

South African psychology has been informed by international trends in psychology from its earliest inception. South African psychologists, such as Joseph Wolpe and Arnold Lazarus, have also influenced international trends in psychology. Jan Christiaan Smuts’s contributions to psychology and the high esteem in which he was held by Adler, Koffka, and Perls are little known. Adler facilitated the translation of Smuts’s first book in German and felt that Smuts’s ideas were of great importance to Individual Psychology. Koffka stated that Smuts’s book guided a number of Gestalt psychologists in their work, and Perls also acknowledged Smuts’s influence. Other South African psychologists engaged with leading American psychologists, influencing and shaping South African psychology into the vibrant enterprise it is today.