Between social mission and social reform: the Settlement House Movement in Germany, 1900–30

Abstract

This chapter provides an overview of the development and characteristics of the German settlement movement and traces both the currents of social reform as well as the actors to which they were linked. Using the example of the Soziale Arbeitsgemeinschaft Berlin-Ost (social working group Berlin-East) in particular, it will be shown that the social missionary approach of the German Settlement House Movement is due especially to its anchoring in the bourgeois youth movement and its strong Protestant character. Furthermore, the chapter sheds light on the area of social research in the Berlin settlement house which helped to establish further professional networks. This creates a picture of a historical variant of community work that is both independent and unique in an international context, and in which fundamental theological-ethical positions as well as certain currents of social reform, social research and social work converged in a specific way.