Abstract
Psychology and the "problem of Spain": A question for social psychology. In the history of modern Spain, the 1898 crisis, when the last colonies were lost, stressed an existing debate on the "national identity" of the country, largely formulated in terms of a national "Volksgeist" by some intellectuals deeply influenced by notions of folk psychology. Men of the "Free Institution of Education" —F. Giner and J. Costa—, the Generation of 1898 —above all, M. de Unamuno and R. Altamira—, wellknown essayist S. de Madariaga and the main leaders of the rising nationalistic movements that took place in various regions, relied on such ideas of "folk spirit" to build their programs for the ocassion. The critical position of philosopher J. Ortega, stressing the historical nature of social entities, did not affect those collective projects. Those concepts, created in social psychology, proved to be very influential in the real life, and provided some bases for long lasting movements in the country.
