Currently, psychology is a complex and branched system of directions scientific research, the structure of which consists of many relatively independently developing industries. The expansion and enrichment of the structure of psychology is determined by the influence of two factors:
- Firstly, it becomes more complicated social life and activities modern man Consequently, psychology is faced with new tasks and questions, the answers to which require a thorough study of new psychological realities;
- Secondly, the development of science itself and its research methods make it possible to constantly expand the horizons of psychology; today there are up to a hundred branches of psychology that are in the different stages their development and emergence as independent scientific disciplines.
A special position among all areas is occupied by general psychology, which unites various branches into holistic scientific knowledge. Studying the essence and general patterns of the emergence, functioning and development of the psyche, it represents a methodological and theoretical basis everyone psychological disciplines. An important place in the structure of psychological knowledge is occupied by the history of psychology, the focus of which is on the processes of development of ideas about the nature and essence of the psyche from ancient times to the present day.
Branches of psychology are usually classified according to different criteria.
1. Branches of psychology studying psychological problems specific types of human activity:
· psychology labor explores psychological characteristics labor activity person, psychological aspects scientific organization of labor;
· medical psychology studies the psychological aspects of health and illness, the psychological foundations of activity medical personnel;
· pedagogical psychology examines the psychological laws of the processes of training and education;
· legal psychology is divided into forensic psychology, which studies the mental characteristics of the behavior of participants in criminal proceedings, criminal psychology, which deals with problems of behavior and the formation of the personality of the criminal, the motives of the crime, as well as penitentiary psychology, which studies the psychology of prisoners in correctional institutions;
· engineering psychology analyzes the processes of information interaction between humans and technical devices, solving problems of engineering and psychological design in the “man - machine” system;
· sports psychology examines the psychological characteristics of the personality and activities of athletes, the conditions and means of their psychological preparation;
industries that deal with psychological aspects advertising, business, management, creativity and many other types of human activity.
2. Branches of psychology that study various aspects mental development:
· age psychology traces the development of the psyche in ontogenesis - its sections are child psychology, adolescent psychology, youth psychology, adult psychology, gerontopsychology;
· comparative psychology studies the patterns, origin and development of the psyche of animals and humans;
· psychology abnormal development , or special psychology, studies disorders of the mental development of a child.
3. Branches of psychology, studying the relationship between the individual and society:
· social psychology studies mental phenomena in the process of relationships between people;
· ethnopsychology focuses on the ethnic characteristics of the people’s psyche, ethnic stereotypes, etc.
Even mentioning a small part of the currently developing branches of psychology allows us to judge how multifaceted this science is. At the same time, psychology is a single scientific discipline based on a single subject of research and a single method and included in the general scientific context.
6. Connection of psychology with other sciences.
Psychology issues for a long time were considered within the framework of philosophy. Only in the middle of the 19th century did psychology become an independent science. But having separated from philosophy, it continues to maintain a close connection with it. Currently, there are scientific problems that are studied by both psychology and philosophy. Such problems include the concepts of personal meaning, life goals, worldview, political views, moral values and more. Psychology uses experimental methods to test hypotheses. However, there are questions that cannot be solved experimentally. In such cases, psychologists can turn to philosophy. Philosophical and psychological problems include problems of the essence and origin of human consciousness, the nature of the highest forms of human thinking, the influence of society on the individual and the individual on society.
Although for a long time philosophy was divided into materialistic and idealistic, now there has been a convergence of these currents of philosophy, and we can talk about the equal importance for psychology of both directions. Materialistic philosophy is fundamental when considering problems of activity and the origin of higher mental functions.
Psychology is closely related to social sciences. It has a lot in common with sociology. Sociology borrows methods for studying personality and human relationships from social psychology. Psychology widely uses methods of collecting scientific information such as surveys and questionnaires, which are traditionally considered sociological. There are various concepts that psychology and sociology adopt from each other. Psychologists and sociologists solve many problems, such as national psychology, political psychology, problems of socialization and social attitudes, together.
Social sciences such as pedagogy and history. An example of a synthesis of history and psychology is the theory of cultural and historical development of higher mental forms L. S. Vygotsky. The use of the historical method in psychology is to study the phylo- and ontogenetic development of mental phenomena from elementary to complex forms. The convergence of history and psychology is based on the concept that modern man is a product of human development.
Psychology and biology. Biology is the science of living nature, and man is part of it, so it is natural that mutually beneficial connections and relationships should arise between psychology and biology. The famous biologist Charles Darwin at one time developed an evolutionary theory that bridged the gap that separated humans and animals. Thus, as a biologist, he made it possible to transform psychology from a philosophical science of the soul into an experimental science close to natural science.
For a natural science-oriented psychologist, starting from the 19th century, it became necessary to study human biology and physiology for a deeper understanding of the origin, development and functioning of the human psyche.
An eloquent recognition of the importance of relevant knowledge for a psychologist is the existence of psychophysiology and neuropsychology as sciences bordering psychology, anatomy and physiology of the brain.
Finally, psychology and biology share another area of mutual interest. This is animal psychology, i.e. the science of animal psychology. Research in this area, in addition to psychology, is also focused on ethology - the science of animal behavior.
Psychology and medicine. Although formally psychology as a science of the soul has reached our time in the form of written philosophical sources, in fact psychological knowledge originally originated and developed within the framework of ancient medicine. They came to Europe from Eastern countries ( Ancient China, Ancient India, countries of Mesopotamia) precisely as part of medical knowledge.
Psychology is closely related to medical and biological sciences. The use of the achievements of these sciences in psychology is based on the fact that most mental phenomena and mental processes are physiologically determined. There are known facts about the mutual influence of the mental and somatic on each other. The mental state influences the physiological state. Mental characteristics can contribute to the development of certain diseases. Feedback is that chronic diseases affect mental state.
IN modern world Medicine continues to play a very significant role in the development of psychological knowledge, in the development and support of psychological science. This primarily applies to such areas of medicine as neurology, psychotherapy and psychiatry.
Neurologists, studying the human nervous system, recording and analyzing psychological reactions human activity-related nervous system and its individual parts. Thus, they contribute to the development of psychophysiology and neuropsychology, enriching scientific knowledge about the connections between mental processes and the work of the central nervous system.
Psychotherapists diagnosing and treating neuroses and mental illness, notice and describe the psychological characteristics and conditions of patients, use these data both in making a diagnosis and in assessing the success of treatment of the corresponding diseases.
Modern psychotherapy in general is an area of research and practice that relates to both medicine and psychology. Therefore, psychologists, when discussing methods of practical psychology, often call them psychotherapeutic, and in the works of physicians devoted to psychotherapy, one can find a considerable number of references to psychological science and to methods developed by professional psychologists.
Fruitful connections and the closest cooperation have developed between modern psychology and medicine.
Psychology actively interacts with a large number of sciences and branches of scientific knowledge. This interaction is manifested, first of all, in the creation of branches of psychology, which are related, applied branches of scientific knowledge that study the patterns of objective reality from the perspective of the subject of psychology. For example, the connection between psychology and anthropology is established thanks to the existence of such a fundamental branch of psychology as personality psychology; psychology connection with psychiatry is expressed in the existence of such branches as pathopsychology, clinical psychology, psychosomatics, psychology of abnormal development; communication with neurobiology, anatomy and physiology the central nervous system is discovered and realized through neuropsychology, psychophysiology; the connection with genetics is expressed in the creation of psychogenetics; with defectology - in the existence of special psychology; linguistics, interacting with psychology, gives birth to psycholinguistics; The connection with jurisprudence is clearly manifested in such branches of psychology as forensic psychology, victim psychology, criminal psychology, and crime investigation psychology.
In addition, there are many sciences that arose and are being developed at the intersection of psychology and medicine. This clinical psychology, pathopsychology, a number of branches of special psychology , psychopharmacology and etc. Clinical psychologists work together with doctors in modern medical institutions, helping them in diagnosis, treatment of diseases and rehabilitation of patients.
Psychology and exact sciences. Mathematics is rightfully considered the most accurate of all sciences, and physics is an example of not only exact, but also experimental science. In the image and likeness of a physical experiment, experimental studies were built and carried out in all other sciences, which at one time took the path of experimentation.
This also applies to psychology. When at the beginning of the second half of the 19th century. it turned into an experimental science and seriously began to lay claim to the accuracy of its knowledge, concepts and laws, to recognition among other developed sciences; the physical experiment was also a model for organizing and conducting scientific research. But even the brilliant physicist A. Einstein, at one time personally talking with the famous psychologist J. Piaget, quite sincerely admitted that psychology is more complex than physics.
The interest of physicists in psychology arose much earlier than the interest of psychologists in physics. One important event for the cooperation of physicists and psychologists took place at the University of Leipzig. The university opened the world's first experimental psychological laboratory, which turned out to be equipped with many physical instruments. Physics became a science useful for psychologists, and in a number of branches of psychology many terms appeared that were directly borrowed from physics. This “stimulus”, “energy”, “field”, “space”", and physical units measurements of light and sound wills.
Procedures precise quantification and mathematical representation dependencies that exist between psychological phenomena become mandatory for scientific experimental psychology. Somewhat later, a borderline area of scientific research appears - mathematical psychology. As a separate psychological science mathematical psychology still exists, and in it they pose and solve how psychological issues issues related to the development and functioning of mathematical knowledge, and issues related to the application of mathematics in various fields modern psychology.
Psychology and history. Without knowledge of the history of human society, it is difficult to understand the psychology of modern man. This, in particular, determines the interest of psychologists in history as a science that arose approximately 150 years ago (meaning the formation, starting from the mid-19th century, of cultural-historical psychology).
In turn, historians, reflecting on the causes and course historical events, came to the conclusion that these events depend to a large extent on the psychology of people who lived in the corresponding historical era, as well as on individual characteristics historical figures that influenced the course of historical events. Therefore, historians also late XIX V. interest in psychological knowledge arose.
Psychology and pedagogy. Psychology and pedagogy have a long-standing interest in each other and a long history of cooperation, second perhaps only to the cooperation of psychology with medicine and philosophy. Many famous teachers of the past, among whom are Pestalozzi, Disterweg, K.D. Ushinsky, clearly understood and recognized the need for the widespread use of psychological knowledge in pedagogy, and actively encouraged teachers to collaborate with psychologists.
At the beginning of the 20th century. a special science took shape and soon received recognition and dissemination in a number of countries around the world, which is a direct synthesis of psychological, pedagogical and other knowledge about the child, - pedology. Its name comes from the names of two sciences : pedagogy and psychology. It was these two sciences that played a key role in pedology, although it also actively used information from the field of medicine, physiology, sociology and genetics. Pedology existed for about forty years and made a significant contribution to the development of promising and ongoing cooperation between teachers and psychologists.
Thus, the area of use of psychological knowledge and cooperation of psychologists with representatives of other sciences is quite wide; It is difficult to find any other science or field of knowledge that would be as widely in demand as psychology in a wide variety of sciences: exact, natural, humanities and social sciences. It follows from this that psychology is currently one of the most necessary and useful sciences for people. .
Related information.
The branches of psychology have a very ramified scheme, among which there are fundamental and applied, general and special. The fundamental branches of psychology have general meaning to understand and explain the psychology and behavior of people, regardless of what specific activity they engage in.
The main branch of psychology is general psychology, which studies the most general laws and mechanisms of development and functioning of the human and animal psyche. As a fundamental scientific discipline, general psychology studies issues of methodology and theory of psychology in general. In general psychology, there are sections that represent (sensation, perception, and), as well as personality psychology, which considers such structural formations as character, abilities, emotions, needs, motives, will, etc. The study of psychological sciences begins with general psychology, since without knowledge of basic concepts, laws and mechanisms it is impossible to understand special branches of psychology.
Special, or applied, branches of psychology consider certain types of mental phenomena and human activity, and their achievements are used in practice. Thus, the pedagogical aspect of psychology is studied by educational psychology. She studies the patterns of teaching and upbringing, the conditions for the formation of cognitive functions in students, and finds out psychological factors that influence the success of knowledge acquisition, develops psychological recommendations.
Studies the ontogenesis of various mental processes and personality traits of a developing person, age characteristics mental processes, factors of personality development, etc. It is divided into child psychology, adolescent psychology, youth psychology, adult psychology and gerontopsychology (psychology of an elderly person). One of the central problems of age and is the problem of learning and mental development and their interdependence.
Identifies and describes individual differences people, genetic psychology studies the hereditary mechanisms of the human psyche and behavior, their dependence on the genotype. Medical issues of psychology are considered by such a branch as. She explores the psychological aspects of the doctor’s activities and the patient’s behavior.
A branch of psychology that studies patterns of behavior and activity of people determined by their involvement in social groups, and psychological characteristics these groups. She studies social and psychological phenomena in large groups, problems of mass communication (television, cinema, press, etc.), mechanisms and effectiveness of the influence of mass communication on various communities of people, psychology of nations, nationalities, influence on people political processes happenings in society. The socio-psychological problems of small groups include the following issues: psychological compatibility in closed groups, interpersonal relationships in groups, the position of the leader and followers in the group, types of groups, person’s perception of the person and much more.
Studies the psychological aspects of human labor activity, the psychological foundations of the scientific organization of labor. The tasks of occupational psychology include research professional characteristics human, patterns of development of labor skills, clarification of the influence of the production environment, design and arrangement of devices on the worker. Labor psychology has a number of sections, which are at the same time independent branches of science. These include engineering psychology, which studies the activity of the operator in automated control systems, legal psychology, which examines issues related to the implementation of the legal system, military psychology, which studies human behavior in combat conditions, and the psychological aspects of the relationship between officers and their subordinates.
The science of staging methods and rules psychological diagnosis. Psychocorrection considers issues related to the development of methods of influencing the individual in order to correct certain mental abnormalities.
All branches of psychology and its smaller disciplines are very closely interconnected; there is a constant exchange of experimentally identified scientific information between them, which makes it possible to solve practical problems faster and more comprehensively.
It should be noted that modern psychology occupies a special place among other scientific disciplines, because combines into a single whole the most diverse knowledge about a person. The Swiss psychologist noted that “...psychology occupies a key position in the system of sciences. On the one hand, psychology depends on all other sciences and sees in psychological life the result of physico-chemical, biological, social, linguistic, economic and other factors that are studied by all sciences dealing with objects outside world. But, on the other hand, none of these sciences is possible without logical-mathematical coordination, mastery of which is possible only through the body’s influence on objects, and only allows one to study this activity in development.” Thus psychology becomes important means relationships modern sciences in the field of human cognition, combining natural sciences, technical and social scientific disciplines.
According to the point of view of B. M. Kedrov, psychology occupies a central location in the system of other sciences, since, on the one hand, it is an integrative product of other sciences, and on the other, it acts as a source further development others scientific directions.
Briefly characterizing the relationship between psychology and the natural sciences, it should be noted, for example, that psychology borrowed some theories from biology to substantiate the patterns of phylogenetic development of the psyche. The problem of the relationship between hereditary and social factors influencing intellectual and personal development the individual, is one of the central ones in psychology.
In this regard, scientific data from such a science as genetics is important for her, providing material about the mechanisms of inheritance of certain inclinations, predisposition to mental illness and so on.
Psychology is closely related to higher physiology nervous activity. Thus, he studies the relationship of the psyche with its material substrate - the brain.
Clinical psychologists work in close collaboration with doctors (and, first of all, with neurologists and psychiatrists), developing problems of diagnosis, prevention, correction, and rehabilitation of sick people.
Psychology is closely related to the humanities. It has been developing for a long time within the framework and many psychological schools based on certain philosophical systems. Today, many philosophical problems are being developed in psychology, such as the relationship between the material and the ideal, the biological and the social, the subjective and the objective. Psychologists actively use data from history, anthropology, philology, linguistics, etc. Together with sociology - the science of social systems and processes - psychology studies the psychological patterns of interaction between an individual and his social environment.
Political scientists study the behavior of individuals and groups in a political context, so problems such as conflict resolution, sources of power, its accumulation and distribution are extremely relevant for psychology.
Psychology is closely interconnected with technical sciences. In particular, the development of various sociotechnical systems involves taking into account the mental and psychophysiological capabilities of a person as the most complex element of the “man-machine” system. Mathematical Sciences provide psychology with statistical methods for processing diagnostic results of psychological research. Besides, in Lately The modeling method is widely used.
Thus, psychology, on the one hand, accumulates theoretical and empirical knowledge of other sciences and at the same time provides these sciences with the necessary information related to the psychological characteristics of a person.
GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY
The subject of psychology, its tasks, content.
The word “psychology” translated from ancient Greek literally means “the science of the soul” (psyche - “soul”, logos - “concept”, “teaching”). The term “psychology” first appeared in scientific use in the 16th century. Initially, it belonged to a special science that studied the so-called mental, or mental, phenomena, that is, those that every person easily detects in his own consciousness as a result of introspection. Later, in the 17th–19th centuries. the area studied by psychology is expanding and includes not only conscious, but also unconscious phenomena. Thus, psychology is the science of the psyche and mental phenomena. Psychology is the science of the soul.
Subject Psychology is the psyche and mental phenomena of both one specific person and mental phenomena observed in groups and collectives. In turn, the task of psychology is the study of mental phenomena. Describing the task of psychology, S. L. Rubinstein writes: “Psychological cognition is an indirect cognition of the mental through the disclosure of its essential, objective connections.”
Tasks:
Qualitative study of psychic reality;
Analysis of the formation and development of mental phenomena;
Study of physiological mechanisms of mental phenomena;
Promoting the systematic introduction of psychological knowledge into the practice of people’s lives.
Psychology as a science
When dividing sciences into groups based on the subject of study, natural sciences, humanities and technical sciences are distinguished. The first study nature, the second - society, culture and history, the third are associated with the study and creation of means of production and tools. Man is a social being, and all his mental phenomena are largely socially conditioned, which is why psychology is usually classified as a humanitarian discipline.
The concept of “psychology” has both scientific and everyday meaning. In the first case, it is used to designate the corresponding scientific discipline, in the second - to describe behavior or mental characteristics individuals and groups of people. Therefore, to one degree or another, every person becomes acquainted with “psychology” long before its systematic study.
Fourthly, scientific psychology has extensive, varied and sometimes unique factual material that is not available in its entirety to any representative of everyday psychology.
However, everyday psychological knowledge is very approximate, vague and differs in many ways from scientific knowledge. What is this difference (Fig. 1.7)?
Firstly, everyday psychological knowledge is specific, tied to specific situations, people, and tasks. Scientific psychology strives for generalization, for which appropriate concepts are used.
Secondly, everyday psychological knowledge is intuitive. This is due to the way they were obtained - random experience and its subjective analysis on an unconscious level. In contrast, scientific knowledge is based on experiment, and the acquired knowledge is completely rational and conscious.
Third, there are differences in the way knowledge is transferred. As a rule, knowledge of everyday psychology is transferred with great difficulty, and often this transfer is simply impossible. As Yu. B. Gippenreiter writes, “the eternal problem of “fathers and sons” is precisely that children cannot and do not even want to adopt the experience of their fathers.” At the same time, in science, knowledge is accumulated and transferred much more easily.
The structure of psychological science, the main branches of psychology.
developing areas of scientific research. Bearing in mind this fact, as well as the fact that at present the system of psychological sciences continues to actively develop (every 4-5 years a new direction appears), it would be more correct to talk not about one science of psychology, but about a complex of developing psychological Sci.
They, in turn, can be divided into fundamental and applied, general and special. The fundamental or basic branches of psychological science are of general importance for understanding and explaining the psychology and behavior of people, regardless of who they are or what specific activities they engage in. These areas are designed to provide knowledge that is equally necessary for everyone who is interested in psychology and human behavior. Due to such universality, this knowledge is sometimes combined with the term “general psychology.”
Applied branches of science are those whose achievements are used in practice. General branches pose and solve problems that are equally important for the development of all scientific areas without exception, while special ones highlight issues of particular interest for the knowledge of one or more groups of phenomena.
Let's consider some fundamental and applied, general and special branches of psychology related to education.
General psychology
(Fig. 2) explores individual highlighting cognitive processes and personality in it. Cognitive processes cover sensations, perception, attention, memory, imagination, thinking and speech. With the help of these processes, a person receives and processes information about the world, and they also participate in the formation and transformation of knowledge. Personality contains properties that determine a person’s deeds and actions. These are emotions, abilities, dispositions, attitudes, motivation, temperament, character and will.
Special branches of psychology(Fig. 3), closely related to the theory and practice of teaching and raising children, include genetic psychology, psychophysiology, differential psychology, developmental psychology, social psychology, educational psychology, medical psychology, pathopsychology, legal psychology, psychodiagnostics and psychotherapy.
Genetic psychology studies the hereditary mechanisms of the psyche and behavior, their dependence on the genotype. Differential psychology identifies and describes the individual differences of people, their prerequisites and the process of formation. In developmental psychology these differences are presented by age. This branch of psychology also studies the changes that occur during the transition from one age to another. Genetic, differential and age-related psychology taken together
Rice. 2. Structure of general psychology
Rice. 3. Branches of psychological science related to training and education
are the scientific basis for understanding the laws of child mental development.
Social Psychology studies human relationships, phenomena that arise in the process of communication and interaction of people with each other in various types of groups, in particular in the family, school, in student and teaching teams. Such knowledge is necessary for psychological proper organization education.
Pedagogical psychology combines all information related to training and education. Special attention here it turns to the justification and development of methods of training and education of people of different ages.
The following three branches of psychology are - medical and pathopsychology, and psychotherapy - deal with deviations from the norm in the human psyche and behavior. The task of these branches of psychological science is to explain the causes of possible mental disorders and justify methods of their prevention and treatment. Such knowledge is necessary where the teacher deals with the so-called difficult, including pedagogically neglected, children or people in need of psychological assistance. Legal psychology considers a person’s assimilation of legal norms and rules of behavior and is also needed for education. Psychodiagnostics poses and solves the problems of psychological assessment of the level of development of children and their differentiation.
The study of psychological sciences begins with general psychology, since without a sufficiently deep knowledge of the basic concepts introduced in the course of general psychology, it will be impossible to understand the material contained in the special sections of the course. However, what is proposed in the first book of the textbook is not general psychology in pure form. Rather, it is a thematic selection of materials from various areas of psychological science that are important for the education and upbringing of children, although they are, of course, based on general psychological knowledge.
Or classification as in the lecture:
1) By the nature of the activity: pedagogical, legal, economic.
2) Taking into account development criteria: age, special (clinical), comparative (differential)
3) In relation to the individual and society: social psychology, personal development.
4) . general characteristics research methods in psychology. Planning and design of the study.
Scientific research methods are those techniques and means by which scientists obtain reliable information that is then used to build scientific theories and production practical recommendations. The strength of science largely depends on the perfection of research methods, on how valid and reliable they are, how quickly and effectively this branch of knowledge is able to perceive and use all the newest, most advanced that appears in the methods of other sciences. Where this can be done, there is usually a noticeable breakthrough in knowledge of the world.
All of the above applies to psychology.
Any independent science has only its own methods. Psychology also has such methods. All of them can be divided into two main groups: subjective And objective.
Validity and reliability of the psychodiagnostic test
To characterize the ability of a test to measure the actual level mental properties or quality, the concept of “validity” is used. The validity of a test shows the extent to which it measures the quality (property, ability, characteristic, etc.) that it is intended to assess. Invalid, i.e., tests that do not have validity, are not suitable for practical use.
Subjective methods are based on self-assessments or self-reports of subjects, as well as on the opinion of researchers about a particular observed phenomenon or information received. With the separation of psychology into an independent science, subjective methods received priority development and continue to be improved at the present time. The very first methods of studying psychological phenomena were observation, introspection and questioning.
Another group of methods of psychological science consists of modeling methods. They should be classified as a separate class of methods. They are used when using other methods is difficult. Their peculiarity is that, on the one hand, they rely on certain information about a particular mental phenomenon, and, on the other hand, their use, as a rule, does not require the participation of subjects or taking into account the real situation. Therefore, it can be very difficult to classify various modeling techniques as objective or subjective methods.
Models can be technical, logical, mathematical, cybernetic, etc. In mathematical modeling use a mathematical expression or formula that reflects the relationship of variables and the relationships between them, reproducing elements and relationships in the phenomena being studied. Technical modeling involves the creation of a device or device that, in its action, resembles what is being studied. Cybernetic modeling is based on the use of concepts from the field of computer science and cybernetics to solve psychological problems. Logic modeling is based on the ideas and symbolism used in mathematical logic.
Development of computers and software for them, it gave impetus to the modeling of mental phenomena based on the laws of computer operation, since it turned out that the mental operations used by people, the logic of their reasoning when solving problems are close to the operations and logic on the basis of which computer programs work. This led to attempts to imagine and describe human behavior by analogy with the operation of a computer. In connection with these studies, the names of American scientists D. Miller, Y. Galanter, K. Pribram, as well as the Russian psychologist L. M. Wekker became widely known.
In addition to these methods, there are other methods for studying mental phenomena. For example, a conversation is a variant of a survey. The conversation method differs from a survey in greater freedom of procedure. As a rule, the conversation is conducted in a relaxed atmosphere, and the content of the questions varies depending on the situation and characteristics of the subject. Another method is;
A method of studying documents, or analyzing human activity. It should be borne in mind that the most effective study of mental phenomena is carried out through the integrated use of various methods.
Planning and design of the study
Psychological research has several general stages and begins with awareness of the social need to solve a certain problem. Problem situations, which are formulated as tasks of a specific study, arise from general theoretical and practical tasks facing psychology as a science. For example, the tasks of studying the influence of certain types of activities of an individual on the development of certain aspects of his psyche are always relevant.
Next, the purpose of the study is defined as the desired end result of the study. The objectives of the research can be theoretical, practical and applied. Depending on the goals, the following types of scientific research are distinguished:
· Theoretical– a conceptual model of the phenomena being studied is developed, after which the created theory is correlated with the results of other studies.
· Empirical– aimed at obtaining and describing the obtained facts within the framework of any one theory.
· Applied– aimed at solving any applied problem and implementing scientific results.
Figure 4 presents the goals and reasons for the research.
Main types of research, their goals and reasons
| 1. Determination of the characteristics of the phenomenon (from literature, life) The goal is the incompleteness of the existing description of the mental phenomenon, the contradictions between the empirical data of different authors. |
| 2. Identification of the relationship of mental phenomena The goal is to determine the characteristics of the relationships (closeness, direction, stability). |
| 3. Study age dynamics phenomena Study of the processes of growth, maturation and development, age-related variability |
| 4. Description of a new phenomenon, effect Identification of factors determining the presence or absence of an effect, the strength of its manifestation, the conditions for the existence of the phenomenon. |
| 5. Discovery of a new nature of a phenomenon Study of inconsistency, insufficiency of explanations of the essence of the phenomenon. Introduction of new terms. Creation of theoretical constructs that are simpler than existing ones. |
| 6. Generalization of available data Deriving more general patterns than those described in the literature. |
| Introduction of new concepts, specification of concepts, expansion of the meaning of basic terms, areas of definition of concepts. 7. Creation of typologies, classifications Development of classification. New understanding of a class of phenomena. Correlating the classification with existing theories and concepts. |
| Definition of species, types, groups and description of their distinctive features. Creating effective diagnostic procedures |
| based on classifications. |
8. Creation of a methodology Increasing the accuracy and reliability of measurement; more full characteristics phenomena; reducing examination time by expanding the number of subjects; simplification of results processing, etc. 9. Adaptation of psychodiagnostic methods Modification of the method to a new culture, ethnic group, linguistic environment Based on the existing problems, a specific goal and a theoretical analysis of published literature in the relevant field of psychology, the objectives of a particular study, its object and subject are determined.
Object of study – this is the contingent of subjects that will be studied. The object of research can be an individual, a group of people, a community of people, etc. Therefore, to characterize the object of research, it is necessary to answer the question: who is being studied? When describing an object, the age of the subjects, their gender, level of education, condition are determined(cognition) are properties, aspects, relationships of real objects considered in certain historical conditions. If the subject is not highlighted, it is difficult to assess the adequacy of the chosen methodological approach. To characterize the subject of research, it is necessary to establish what exactly is being studied in the object. Thus, when studying the choice of profession by high school students, the motives for choice can be the subject of research.
After the object and subject of the research have been determined, its tasks and goals have been set, the researcher reflects on what the main answer to the question posed might be, i.e. puts forward a hypothesis. Hypothesis is a scientific assumption arising from a theory that has not been confirmed or refuted. This is the intended answer to the question that is contained in the problem. Most often, a hypothesis establishes a possible connection between certain mental phenomena. There are general hypotheses and specific hypotheses that arise during the research itself.
The process of putting forward and refuting hypotheses is one of the main stages of a researcher’s activity. The quantity and quality of hypotheses is determined by the creative abilities of the researcher. When testing hypotheses, their number is limited to two: the main and the alternative, which is embodied in the research procedure. When putting forward hypotheses, it is necessary to take into account the results of previously conducted research, the general psychological laws of mental development and, to a certain extent, pedagogical experience. All this ensures the plausibility of the hypothesis. Another important quality of a correct hypothesis is its accessibility to testing. This means that when we put forward a hypothesis, we must be sure that we can prove its truth or falsity during the course of research. Stages psychological research are reflected in the diagram.
Expressing the tasks of science is a difficult and painstaking task, since there are general and specific tasks, theoretical and practical, broad and narrow, etc. The main task is to study the laws mental activity in its development.
In addition to it, psychology solves a number of other problems:- First you need discover facts, i.e. describe psychological phenomena in as much detail as possible, noting their diversity and numerous manifestations. Facts are the beginning, the background, the empirical basis of any knowledge. However, facts alone do not make science. Some of them are repeatable and seem understandable to the researcher. Others seem less important at first, but over time, as they accumulate, they require ordering and interpretation.
- From knowing the facts comes a more difficult task - establishing patterns or laws of discovered phenomena. This means a transition from description to explanation of the obtained factual information, to finding cause-and-effect relationships. It becomes possible to predict a particular fact or event, provided that science has proven measures to influence this event.
- Next, the allocated task becomes identification of mechanisms for implementing the established law. Find the mechanism, therefore, understand, model the theoretical essence, driving force, connections between phenomena and essence. Knowledge of laws and mechanisms is already a complete scientific concept. In relation to psychology, the task of identifying mechanisms is quite complex. For example, we can talk about the biochemical mechanisms of memory, but for all their material significance, they do not directly explain the psychological laws of memory.
- The final task is practical use, competent implementation of its knowledge and results in real life. But at the same time, a large number of related problems are raised: social, economic, methodological, organizational. In addition, the psychologist comes into contact with problematic aspects, such as moral, ethical, ethical. Let us assume that a scientist has proven his ability to form one or another psychological quality that was previously considered impossible. However, what confidence is there that such formation should be carried out for everyone? After all, the real harmlessness and significance of an intervention are not always scientifically substantiated.
Branches of psychology can be distinguished according to several criteria: 1) according to the areas of activity whose needs are served, i.e. by what a person does (work psychology, educational psychology); 2) according to who exactly performs this activity, i.e. is its subject and at the same time its object psychological analysis(subject: a person of a certain age – developmental psychology); 3) on specific scientific problems, for example, communication problems, mental disorders with brain lesions (neuropsychology).
General psychology:
1. psychology methodology (what and how is studied)
2. mental processes, functions (cognitive, sensation, memory, emotional, regulatory)
3. personality research (personology)
Developmental psychology. studies developed. psyche for a long time. a person's entire life. There are 2 lines:
1. descriptive
2. identification of development patterns.
Pedagogical (psychological aspects of study, education)
1. psychology of learning
2. psychology of education
3. teacher psychology
Social (various phenomena of human social psyche; features mental state and behavior in interactions with others). Studies the natural mental activity of a person in society
Medical (studies the psychological factors of the occurrence, treatment and prevention of diseases aimed at promoting health, diagnosis and prevention mental disorders, psychological assistance to patients)
includes 3 main section:
1. pathopsychology (psychological activity in people with psychological illnesses)
2. neuropsychology (interaction between the psyche and the brain)
3. psychosomatics (study of psychological factors in the occurrence of somatic diseases)
cosmetic
economic
political
10. natural science and humanities paradigm in psychology There are two paradigms in psychology: natural science and humanities. These paradigms are not mutually exclusive, because each of them has specific ways of interacting with mental phenomena, and the problem is only in limiting the scope of their application.
| Features of cognition | |
| E-N ( various shapes manifestations of mental life: behavior, relationships, communication) | G. ( mental life person in its integrity, irreducible to the sum of its individual manifestations) |
| Principles | |
| determinism | Indeterminism |
| Target | |
| Knowledge of objective laws of the psyche, subsuming individual facts under general dependence | Understanding inner world the individual in his individuality and value, the study life path personalities |
| Methods | |
| Objective research methods: observation, experiment, etc. | Subjectivist research methods: intuition, hermeneutics, etc. |
| Researcher's position | |
| Impartial, detached | Emotional, empathic, included |
| Method of constructing knowledge | |
| Hypothesis theoretical construct | Premiselessness |
11. methods of observation and experiment in psychology Specifics experiment- it purposefully and thoughtfully creates an art situation in which the property being studied is highlighted, manifested and assessed best. The main advantage of the experiment is that it allows you to reliably draw conclusions about the cause-and-effect relationships of the phenomenon under study with other phenomena, and scientifically explain the origin of the phenomenon and its development. There are two main types of experiment: natural and laboratory. They differ from each other in that they allow one to study the psychology and behavior of people in conditions that are remote or close to reality. Natural the experiment is organized and carried out in ordinary life conditions, where the experimenter practically does not interfere with the course of events taking place, recording them as they unfold on their own. Laboratory an experiment involves creating some artificial situation in which the property being studied can best be studied. The main and most common method of psychology is the observation method - this is a method where phenomena are studied directly under the conditions in which they occur in real life. Based on observations, conclusions are drawn about certain mental processes. There are two types of observation - continuous and selective. Continuous observation is when all the features and manifestations of a person’s mental activity are recorded during a certain period. In contrast, with selective observation, attention is paid only to those facts in human behavior that are directly or indirectly related to the issue being studied. The results of observations are recorded in special protocols. It’s good when the observation is carried out not by one person, but by several, and the data is compared and summarized. When using the observation method, the following requirements: 1. Preliminarily plan an observation program. highlighting the most important objects and stages of observation. 2. The observations made should not affect the natural course of the phenomenon being studied. 3. It is advisable to observe the same mental phenomenon on different faces. Even if the object of study is a specific person, he can be known better and more deeply by comparing him with others. 4. Observation must be repeated, and when studying personality, systematic.
12. testing as a research method in psychology. Types of tests. Tests are special methods of psycho-diagnostic examination, using them you can obtain an accurate quantity or quality characteristics of the phenomenon being studied. Tests differ from other research methods: they require a clear procedure for collecting and processing primary data, as well as the originality of their subsequent interpretation. Types of tests: verbal and non-verbal, whether the speech component is presented in the test or not. Test for lexicon- verb, non-verb - a test that requires certain actions as an answer. Group and individual tests differ - in group testing, a group of subjects is studied. Achievement tests and personality tests differ based on which personality traits are tested. Tests have been achieved- these are academic achievement tests, creativity tests, aptitude tests, sensory-motor tests and, of course, intelligence tests. Personal tests- These are tests for attitudes, interests, temperament and motivational tests. Objective tests include most achievement tests and psychophysiological tests. Projective tests give an answer that cannot be regarded as “correct” or “incorrect”, but must be given a free answer, i.e. There must be a way of constructing a test task in which the test taker must get the answer “out of his head.” Simple and complex tests They differ in that the latter consist of several independent subtests, for each of which an answer must be obtained, and an overall score is calculated. Questionnaires can also be classified as tests. Criteria-Based Tests, allowing you to evaluate the subject in relation to a predetermined norm, without comparing with the average statistical data.
13 methods of cognition in the humanitarian psychological tradition Basic methodological principles And provisions GPs come down to the following: a) a person is integral and must be studied in his integrity; b) every person is unique, therefore analysis individual cases are no less justified than statistical generalizations;c) a person is open to the world, a person’s experience of the world and himself in the world is the main thing psychological reality; d) human life should be considered as a single process of human formation and existence; e) a person has the potential for continuous development and self-realization, which are part of his nature; f) a person has a certain degree of freedom from external determination due to meanings and the values that guide his choices; g) man is an active, intentional, creative being. The general methodological platform of the GP is implemented in wide range different approaches. Problem driving forces the formation and development of personality, human needs and values was disclosed in the works Maslow,Frankl,Bühler etc. The main area of practice of GP is psychotherapeutic practice. Non-directive psychotherapy Rogersai logotherapy Frankl are among the most popular and widespread psychotherapeutic systems. 2 area of practical application of GP - humanistic pedagogy based based on the principles of non-directive interaction between teacher and student, aimed at developing the creative abilities of the individual. 3 area GP - socio-psychological training, one of the founders of which was Rogers. The successes of GP in these areas largely determined the social platform of GP, based on the utopian idea of improving society through the improvement of individuals and interpersonal relationships (Maslow). Today, GP occupies an important and stable place in Western psychology; There have been trends toward its partial integration with other schools and directions, including psychoanalysis and neobehaviorism.
14 the concept of practical psychology and its methods. Psychology is divided into: academic (the goal is to study mental reality) and practical (the goal is to change mental reality) Practical:
4 forms of psychological practice:
1 psychological counseling (aimed at identifying psychological needs, psychological assistance strategy)
2 psychotherapy (psychological assistance is aimed at changing personality and resolving personal conflicts): -medical (separate treatment of certain types of mental illnesses) and non-medical
3 psychological correlation (correction of deviations in psychological development)
4 psychological training (aimed at forming the development of any abilities or skills)
Methods of simulating psychological practices
psychoanalysis
behavioral
gestalt therapy
rational emotive therapy
humanitarian psychology
