A Study in the Psychology of Ritualism: A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Arts and Literature in Candidacy for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Department of Philosophy) (Classic Reprint)

A Study in the Psychology of Ritualism was originally presented as a doctoral dissertation by Frederick Goodrich Henke at the University of Chicago in 1910. The work was written during a period of burgeoning interest in the intersection of philosophy, psychology, and religious studies, a time when scholars sought to apply empirical methods to understand the mechanics of human behavior and belief systems. Henke aimed to analyze ritual not merely as a formal religious practice, but as a deep-seated psychological phenomenon essential to social cohesion and individual experience.

The current volume is part of the Classic Reprint series, a publishing initiative dedicated to preserving scholarly works that have fallen out of print. By utilizing high-quality scans of original academic texts, these editions allow modern researchers and historians to access foundational arguments that might otherwise be lost to time. The design intentionally maintains the austere aesthetic of the original 1910 publication, ensuring that the integrity of Henke's rigorous academic structure remains the central focus for the reader.