Kurt Koffka Medal

The Kurt-Koffka Medal, Kurt Koffka Medal, Kurt Koffka Award, or Koffka Prize is an annual, international award bestowed by Giessen University's Department of Psychology for "advancing the fields of perception or developmental psychology to an extraordinary extent". The prize commemorates the German psychologist Kurt Koffka, a pioneer of Gestalt Psychology, in particular in the fields of perception and developmental psychology. Koffka worked at Giessen University for 16 years, from 1911 to 1927. The medal was first awarded in 2007.[1]

Kurt-Koffka medal
A bronze medallion with an outer ring containing the text "KURT KOFFKA" at the top, containing a central embossed image of a three-quarter face and upper chest of Kurt Koffka looking to the right. Superimposed on the chest and to the left of the midline is the text "1886-1941"
Awarded forAdvancing the fields of perception or developmental psychology to an extraordinary extent.
CountryGermany
First awarded2007 (2007)
Number of recipients15 awards to 18 recipients (as of 2022)[1]
Websitewww.uni-giessen.de/fbz/fb06/psychologie/postertag-koffka/KKM/KKM/view

The medal is notable among psychologists.[2]

History
Main article: Kurt Koffka

Kurt Koffka (18 March 1886 – 22 November 1941) was a German psychologist. He was born and educated in Berlin. Along with Max Wertheimer and his close associate Wolfgang Köhler they established Gestalt psychology. Koffka's interests were wide-ranging, and they included: perception, hearing impairments in brain-damaged patients,[3] interpretation, learning, and the extension of Gestalt theory to developmental psychology.[3]

Each year since 2006, a committee of Giessen University Department of Psychology has sought nominations and decided on the recipient(s) of the award. The first medal was awarded in 2007 to Martin "Marty" Banks.[1][4] The one exception was 2020, when the award ceremony was deferred to 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Description of the medal

The medal is bronze. The front (obverse) side is shown in the info box. A recipient's name is engraved on the outer ring at the bottom. The other side is an embossed version of the seal of the university.

Nominations

Nomination forms are sent by the members of the Committee to large numbers of individuals, usually in September the year before the award is made. These individuals are generally prominent academics working in a relevant area.

Selection

The members of the Committee prepare a report reflecting the advice of experts in the relevant fields.

Prizewinners

Source: Justus Liebig University, Giessen

Gender balance of recipients

Unlike some science awards, such as the Nobel prize, the Kurt-Koffka medal has a reasonable gender balance of recipients (by 2023, 11 men and 8 women).[1]

See also

References
  1. "Kurt-Koffka-Medaille".
  2. Bender, Elise (September 2010). "Sensing Success: Klatzky Doubly Honored". Aps Observer. 23 (7).
  3. , Gale Encyclopedia of Psychology, 2nd ed. Gale Group, 2001.
  4. "Martin S. Banks".
  5. "[visionlist] Dan Kersten winner of the 2019 Koffka medal".
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