Rolf Eduard Helmut Muuss (September 26, 1924 – July 3, 2020) was a German-American psychologist and academic. His work in psychology focused primarily on adolescent psychology and development. Muuss' academic career was spent primarily at Goucher College, where he taught from 1959 to 1995. Muuss enlisted and fought in the Luftwaffe during WWII. Early life Muuss was born in Tating, a village in the North West of Germany on September 26, 1924. His parents were Rudolf A. Muuss and Else Osterwald, and he had two older siblings. In 1929, when Muuss was 4 years old, his mother died from breast cancer. His father remarried in 1931, and his new wife had three children, making Muuss one of 6. World War II Hitler Youth Muuss joined a junior branch of Hitler Youth at a young age, before officially joining Hitler Youth at the age of 14. Membership was compulsory for Muuss and many others. Over 90 percent of German children were members of Hitler Youth in 1939, a year after Muuss joined. German Air Force When Muuss was 17, he enlisted in the German Air Force, where he trained for two years in Ghent. After completing his training Muuss was stationed at several German air bases, including those in northern France and Romania. Prisoner of War After the fall of Germany in 1945, Muuss was taken as an American prisoner of war. He was held in the Rhine meadow camps for 4 months. Muuss very quickly "denazified" following the end of the war, as he was "too young to be a real Nazi". Education Germany During his childhood in Germany, Muuss completed education up to 10th grade. After working as a farmhand after the end of WWII, Muuss received an offer to work as a lay-teacher in Sylt, an island in the North Sea. After teaching for a year, Muuss returned to high school to further his own education and received his Abitur at the age of 23. Muuss then went on to receive his teaching diploma from the Teacher's College Flensburg-Murwik, from which he graduated with honors. America Once he had obtained his teaching diploma, Muuss received an offer to undertake a 9-month Teacher Training Program with the Office of Education in Washington, DC. Muuss spent part of 1951 and 1952 in Warrensburg, Missouri at Central Missouri State College. Continuing his education in America, Muuss attended Columbia University where he