Department of Social Technologies
ABSTRACT
“Psychology and its connection with other sciences”
Tolyatti 2008
Introduction
1 The connection between psychology and philosophy
2 The connection between psychology and medicine
3 The connection between psychology and law
4 The connection between psychology and management
5 The connection between psychology and pedagogy
6 The connection between psychology and finance and credit
Introduction
Psychology is connected, historically and currently, with all major areas of knowledge. It presents both natural science and humanitarian orientations, but the humanitarian approach becomes predominant, because the personality is placed at the center of psychology, and this means the impossibility of a strictly objective approach - the approach to man as a “natural phenomenon.”
The expressed orientation of psychology not only towards cognition, but also towards practice allows us to assert that psychology has its own fundamental and application sections.
The connection between psychology and the natural sciences is quite obvious - especially with the biological ones. Scientific psychology is characterized by the borrowing of certain general biological theoretical principles to substantiate the laws of mental development.
It should be noted: if psychology borrows mainly certain explanatory principles from the fundamental sciences, then in relation to the humanities it not only borrows, but also offers them its own ways of understanding phenomena; Moreover, there are “psychological schools” within the framework of history, sociology and linguistics.
The area of phenomena studied by psychology is enormous. It covers processes, states and properties of a person that have varying degrees complexity - from the elementary distinction of individual features of an object affecting the senses, to the struggle of individual motives.
As is known, in previous decades psychology was predominantly a theoretical (worldview) discipline. Currently, its role in public life has changed significantly. It is increasingly becoming an area of special professional practical activity in the education system, in industry, public administration, medicine, culture, sports, etc. The inclusion of psychological science in solving practical problems significantly changes the conditions for the development of its theory.
1. The connection between psychology and philosophy
The connection between psychology and philosophy is extremely important. Psychology has been developing for a long time within the framework of philosophy, and its separation into an independent science does not mean complete autonomy. Problems of mental life cannot be developed outside of ideas about the relationships between the material and the ideal, the spiritual and the physical, the biological and the social, the subjective and the objective, and these are philosophical problems, like many others; True, psychologists do not always clearly formulate their positions on these problems. In many cases, psychologists are directly based on certain philosophical systems, sometimes even offering their own. For psychology, certain philosophical concepts act as methodological basis. And in some cases psychological theories developed into philosophical trends (at least claimed to be so) or influenced the emergence and development of philosophical theories.
“Philosophy is the art of understanding,” wrote N.A. Berdyaev. Indeed, philosophy, not being an applied science, itself educates in thought and word and is a mirror in human relations social structure life, and also serves as the basis for other sciences, in particular psychology and pedagogy. Figuratively speaking, it itself is psychology and pedagogy - their means and method of understanding and educating a person.
The philosophical task of psychology and pedagogy is to heal distorted souls and affirm holistic ones. Education has the root “image”, which must correspond to the human image.
Philosophy, unlike other sciences, forms the soul as a whole. Plato also dreamed of an ideal state in which philosophers would rule, since he was aware of the great educational power of philosophy, which alone is capable of teaching people independently, freely, i.e. think creatively.
Philosophy is education, pedagogy, since it shapes a person’s thinking, thereby cultivating his personality in creative freedom. Epicurus also said about this main, character-building, psychological and pedagogical function of philosophy, about its pedagogical and practical purpose: “The words of that philosopher are empty, with which no human suffering is healed, just as there is no benefit from medicine if it does not expel diseases from the body, So it is with philosophy, if it does not drive out illnesses of the soul.” Protagoras expressed this idea even more clearly: “The main task of philosophy is to educate people.” These words express the idea that is the main practical value philosophy: it forms the personality of a new person through thinking. This demonstrates its close relationship with psychology and pedagogy.
In psychology, all theories and specific questions are raised, as S. Hessen and L. Vygotsky noted, to philosophical problems. Philosophy forms the basis of all ancient and modern psychological and educational theories and research. D. Locke’s phrase “There is nothing in the mind that is not first in the senses” can be paraphrased as follows: “There is nothing in psychology and pedagogy that is not first in philosophy.” In psychology, as in pedagogy, a person’s philosophical view of the world. Understanding and rethinking the connection between philosophy and psychology and pedagogy is necessary not only for solving psychological and pedagogical problems, as L. Vygotsky believed, but also for philosophy itself.
The role of any philosophical theories is purely practical: to transform the world - this is where its psychological and pedagogical nature is manifested. The psychological and pedagogical task of philosophy is to form independent thinking, to reveal the philosophical and psychological patterns of influence social experience per person, which is pedagogical and educational in nature.
Philosophy and psychology have common ground: human experience. But there is a difference: if in psychology it is possible to study not only personal, but also collective social experience on the basis of studying the individual similar experiences of other people, then it is impossible to join philosophy only on the basis of studying other people’s philosophical experience, without having your own. For philosophizing is not empty theorizing, but such an understanding of one’s experience with the help of someone else’s philosophical experience, expressed in philosophical concepts, when the suffering experienced by a person acquires special meaning, as if opening the world to him anew. Through this mental experience, which D. Locke called internal, a personality is formed that is capable of thinking independently.
Philosophizing, being a deeply personal activity, nevertheless has nothing to do with individualism, because even the most personal experience latently contains a global, universal world experience that connects a person with other people.
2. The connection between psychology and medicine
It is difficult to say what is more in medical psychology – medicine or psychology. In accordance with the problems it solves and the tasks it faces, medical psychology can be considered a medical science, and in accordance with the theoretical premises and research methods, it belongs to psychology.
The connections between psychology and medicine are so close that for psychologists working in this field, medical knowledge is absolutely necessary. At the same time, doctors are becoming more and more aware of the need for psychological knowledge for successful medical work. Thus, medical psychology is a field of scientific knowledge and field practical work, equally belonging to both medicine and psychology. When developing problems in medical psychology, the efforts of psychologists, physiologists, doctors, and biologists are combined.
Medical psychology How applied Science has the following tasks:
Study of mental factors influencing the development of diseases, their prevention and treatment;
Studying the influence of certain diseases on the psyche;
Study of various manifestations of the psyche in their dynamics;
Study of mental development disorders;
Studying the nature of the relationship of a sick person with medical personnel and the microenvironment around him;
Development of principles and methods of psychological research in the clinic;
Creation and study of psychological methods of influencing the human psyche for therapeutic and preventive purposes
The work of psychologists in medicine is primarily related to the development and application of psychodiagnostic methods. Psychology has in this regard great opportunities. The most important tasks activities medical psychologist consist of studying psychological characteristics intelligence, emotional-volitional sphere and personality of the patient, as well as the psychological causes of his illness. The main methods of medical and psychological study of a patient remain clinical conversation and experimental psychological research of patients. Due to the fact that quite a lot has been developed in psychology effective methods To obtain such information, a professional psychologist is useful in medicine when compiling an anamnesis (medical history), conducting a medical and psychological examination, as well as medical and psychological consultation.
Important role The role of a medical psychologist in the treatment process is that it contributes to a better understanding of the psychological causes and manifestations of a person’s illness. Many mental illnesses have psychological reasons: conflicts, mental trauma, suggestions and self-hypnosis, entrenched pathogenic reactions and conditions. Such human diseases are called psychogenic. Among them, the most common neuroses are functional disorders nervous system, arising as a reaction of the individual to factors that traumatize the psyche. The role of psychologists in working with such patients is especially important.
At the intersection of medicine and psychology, medical psychology arose, developing psychological problems diagnostics, treatment, prevention, rehabilitation of patients. I would especially like to highlight the one founded by A.R. Luria neuropsychology, a science existing at the intersection of psychology, physiology and medicine that studies the brain mechanisms of higher mental functions based on local brain lesions (according to the original thought of L.S. Vygotsky, whose collaborator was A.R. Luria, mental functions, becoming systemic, are associated with corresponding changes in the organization of brain mechanisms). Closely related to medicine is the so-called special psychology, studying various options developmental pathologies. Thus, the connection between psychology and the biological sciences is undeniable.
3. The connection between psychology and law
Being a border science between psychology and jurisprudence, legal psychology remains a psychological discipline - its theoretical basis lies in the patterns and characteristics of the human psyche; only the application, accounting and use of these patterns and features are specific human behavior: legal psychology considers them in relation to the field of legal regulation. However, this specificity is so significant that the entire system of legal psychology, its categorical (conceptual) apparatus is structured depending on the logic legal regulation, legal factors. The subject of legal psychology - legal psychology studies and systematizes the psychological foundations of law-making, legal education, law enforcement, law enforcement and penitentiary activities.
Legal psychology correlates with the problems of socialization of the individual, the foundations of lawmaking, legal consciousness, and psychological foundations self-regulation of behavior. Criminal psychology is interconnected with the formation of deviant behavior, mental and genetic abnormalities, and the general theory of behavioral motivation. Forensic psychology is associated with the theory of heuristics, sign theory, the psychology of cognitive-search activity in problem situations, and the psychology of interpersonal interaction. Similar relationships are typical for judicial proceedings. Penitentiary psychology associated with the theory of resocialization, personality correction, problems of repentance, value reorientation of the individual, and methods for the formation of socially positive behavior. It is especially closely connected with penology - the science of punishment.
Already a brief analysis structural units legal psychology indicates their relative independence - they are connected with their scientific zones and, along with this, they are structurally interconnected.
Russia already in the first half of the 19th century. Attempts are being made to substantiate certain criminal legal positions with psychological knowledge; in 1806-1812 A course in “Criminal Psychology” was taught at Moscow University.
Interest in forensic psychological problems especially increased after the judicial reform of 1864. In 1874, the first monograph on forensic psychology- “Essays on forensic psychology.” Its author is psychiatrist A.A. Frese believed that the subject of forensic psychology is “the application of our information about the normal and abnormal manifestations of mental life to legal issues.” In 1877, lawyer L.E. Vladimirov presented an article “Psychological characteristics of criminals the latest research”, in which he noted that the social causes of crime find soil in individual characters, the study of which is mandatory for lawyers.
At the end of the 19th century. In connection with the development of experimental psychology, forensic psychology is gradually becoming an independent science. Its largest representative D.A. Dril pointed out that psychology and law deal with the same phenomena - “the laws of a person’s conscious life.”
At the beginning of the twentieth century, a psychological school of law was formed in Russia, the founder of which was the lawyer and sociologist L.I. Petrazhitsky, in 1898-1918. Head of the Department of History of Legal Philosophy at St. Petersburg University. Leon Petrazhitsky believed that the sciences of law and state should be based on the analysis of mental phenomena. However, Petrazycki replaced the social conditioning of law with psychological conditioning. Petrazycki argued that only mental processes really exist, and socio-historical formations are their external projections.
The psychological school of law proceeded from the complete compatibility of law and psychology. Legal psychology was not conceptualized by the psychological school of law as a border area between law and psychology. However, despite the general failure of the psychological school of law, it attracted the attention of lawyers to the psychological aspects of law. Petrazycki's ideas had a significant influence on the development of forensic psychology at the beginning of the twentieth century.
In the first years after the revolution, a broad study began of the psychology of various groups of criminals, the psychological preconditions of crime, the psychology of individual participants in legal proceedings, the problems of forensic psychological examination, and the psychology of correction of offenders.
Forensic (criminal) psychology is becoming a generally recognized and authoritative branch of knowledge. Already in 1923 on I All-Russian Congress a section of criminal psychology worked in psychoneurology (under the leadership of criminologist S.V. Poznyshev). The congress noted the need to train criminological psychologists, as well as the advisability of opening rooms for criminal psychological research.
4. The connection between psychology and management
Management offers many concepts to solve the problem of leadership, but none of them has been sufficiently universal until now. In this sense, the concept of emotional intelligence today represents one of the most effective tools for finding solutions to leadership issues. In addition, it provides an opportunity to develop leadership skills for people who lack them.
Emotional intelligence is closely related to concepts characteristic of psychology such as empathy and alexithymia, and therefore can rightfully be considered to be within the scope of psychological issues (this article will reveal the nature of the interaction of these concepts with each other).
Leadership qualities are manifested not only in economic relations, but also in any human relationship. A universal concept that allows us to explain the mechanisms of leadership in any or virtually any environment gives us the greatest opportunity to study a variety of interpersonal interactions and, at the same time, to study an individual with a certain set of leadership qualities.
A modern manager must not only know economic postulates, the nature of management processes, information technology, be able to plan the activities of a company (or other economic or political entity), divide your own resources in the most rational way, but also be a specialist in working with your colleagues, subordinates and opponents, be able to make decisions in difficult situations express your thoughts clearly and intelligibly.
In situations where a person faces complex interpersonal (intra-group) problems, he needs to comprehend all the internal mechanisms and prerequisites for the occurrence of these complications. This can be done with the help of psychology, which is able to understand all the complexity and subtlety of a person’s mental world, his soul.
In the management system, any employee is considered as a “black box”, tightly closed with all the locks. the main objective any manager if he wants to successfully interact with each unit of personnel for maximum efficiency work - to find out what is inside this “black box”.
Inner world a person is very multifaceted. It has its own internal structure and some special patterns. The mental world is both the world of perception and knowledge of the surrounding reality, and a look inside oneself, and the world of one’s experiences, relationships with other people. This is the very soul of man.
Psychology at the dawn of mankind was created for a reason, but in order to master the power of the human spirit, learn to control human behavior and predict his further actions.
5. The connection between psychology and pedagogy
These sciences are intertwined. Psychology is closely related to the education and upbringing of a child. System pedagogical views based on data from human sciences, including psychology. The psychological knowledge of a teacher increases the effectiveness of teaching and raising a child. “In order to comprehensively educate a person, he must be studied comprehensively” [K.D. Ushinsky]. If pedagogy is not based on knowledge about the nature of psychological phenomena, it turns into a simple set of psychological advice and recipes and ceases to be a genuine science that can help the teacher.
In the development of all areas of pedagogy (didactics, private methods, education theory), problems arise that require psychological research. Knowledge of the patterns of mental processes, dynamics, formation of knowledge, skills, abilities, nature of abilities and motives, mental development of the child as a whole are essential for solving fundamental pedagogical problems, such as determining the content of education at different levels of education, developing the most effective methods of teaching and upbringing. As you know, the purpose of education is to form a personality that meets the requirements of a developing society. And achieving this goal involves studying the patterns of personality formation: its orientation, abilities, needs, motives, etc.
The connection between psychology and pedagogy has given a powerful impetus to the study of age-related characteristics of children and the identification of conditions and factors determining child development. The desire to make pedagogy psychological, to introduce psychology into the pedagogical process became the basis on which the system of educational psychology was built (although the term “educational psychology” itself was not yet used at that time), led to the participation of scientists from various specialties in the development of its problems.
Educational psychology is a science about the facts, mechanisms and patterns of human mastery of sociocultural experience, the patterns of intellectual and personal development child as a subject of educational activities organized and managed by the teacher in different conditions educational process. In general, we can say that educational psychology studies psychological issues management of the pedagogical process, explores the processes of learning, formation cognitive processes and so on.
There are a number of problems in educational psychology. Among the most important are the following: the relationship between training and development, the relationship between training and education, taking into account sensitive periods of development in education; work with gifted children, the problem of children's readiness for schooling and etc.
Consequently, the general task of educational psychology is to identify, study and describe the psychological characteristics and patterns of intellectual and personal development of a person in the conditions of educational activities and the educational process. This determines the structure of this branch of psychology: the psychology of learning, the psychology of education, the psychology of teachers.
Psychological and educational sciences are unthinkable without relying on knowledge about the psyche and the laws of human mental development. At the same time, psychology largely loses its applied significance without access to the practical activities of any person, and not just a teacher. The close connection between psychology and pedagogy is natural in its essence. Combining these sciences, as is done in sports, in pedagogy is completely justified when it comes to the practical use of psychology for pedagogical purposes. Their integration in application terms forms new science- pedagogy of individuality, which is a derivative of psychology and pedagogy. Pedagogy of individuality is the application of theoretical principles of psychology to the practice of human life. Its task: to reveal how the achievements of psychology can be applied in relation to your mental health and your professional activity. This approach, when by merging the achievements of psychology and pedagogy, general tasks Pedagogy is solved using psychological tools for influencing a person, which is adhered to by both domestic and foreign researchers.
Of course, the connection between psychology and pedagogy has always existed; even K.D. Ushinsky said: “In order to comprehensively educate a person, he must be comprehensively studied.” Here the practical significance of psychology is especially clearly visible. If pedagogy is not based on knowledge about the nature of psychological phenomena, it turns into a simple set of pedagogical councils and recipes and ceases to be a genuine science that can help the teacher. In the development of all areas of pedagogy (general theory, didactics, specific methods, education theory) problems arise that require psychological research. Knowledge of the patterns of mental processes, dynamics, formation of knowledge, skills and abilities, the nature of abilities and motives, mental development of a person as a whole is essential for solving fundamental pedagogical problems, such as determining the content of education at different levels of education, developing the most effective teaching methods and education, etc.
Currently, a lot of problems have accumulated that cause heated discussions on the questions: what to teach modern schoolchild? what and how to select from the huge mass of information that science accumulates for school? It is psychology that must determine what the capabilities and reserves of a person’s mental development are at different age levels and where their boundaries are.
The need for psychology is no less acute when pedagogy turns to the problems of education. The purpose of education is to form a personality that meets the requirements of a developing society. And achieving this goal involves studying the patterns of personality formation: its orientation, abilities, needs, worldview, etc. All of the above indicates that modern psychology is at the intersection of sciences. It occupies an intermediate position between the philosophical sciences, on the one hand, the natural sciences, on the other, and the social sciences, on the third.
6. The connection between psychology and finance and credit
The study of economic psychology, or the psychological aspects of economics, is a promising field of scientific research. Economic psychologists are interested in topics such as the everyday understanding of economics; factors underlying economic decisions; relationships between personal identity and mass consumption, etc. Research is carried out social psychologists, cognitive psychologists (focusing on decision making), developmental psychologists (focusing on the development of children's ideas about the economic process) Although economic psychology is developing dynamically, it cannot claim to be the focus of science. Contemporary academic psychology is dominated by cognitive, computational, and neurological approaches. In the distribution of research funds, professorships, journal editing, and other indicators of institutional power, social psychology is on the periphery. But even within it, economic psychology is only a nascent field.
In economic psychology, it is easy to distinguish two approaches: the first largely abstracts from the cultural aspects of consumption and considers mainly the relationship between economics and psychology. The second focuses on engaging with cultural approaches and sees the social psychology of mass consumption within a broader interdisciplinary field.
Economics is a science about the relationships of people regarding management, but since she describes these relationships pragmatically, rationally - in a simplified way, in the language of things and numbers, there was a need for her collaboration with psychology. As a result of the integration of scientific knowledge at the junction political economy and private economic sciences, on the one hand, and social psychology, on the other hand, a new discipline arose - economic psychology.
The subject of economic psychology is the reflection of economic relations in human consciousness and behavior. Within the framework of this discipline, the effects and phenomena of economic behavior, mechanisms and patterns are studied economic activity, algorithms and models that describe economic preferences, choices, decisions and factors influencing business experience.
Thus, economic psychology is the psychology of an economic entity. It can be one person, a family, an organization, a state or a nation, i.e. the object of study of economic psychology can be presented at different levels - micro-, meso- and macroeconomic. Economic psychology has almost no specific methods. She uses both methods from other branches of psychology and purely economic methods, for example, the method of logical-theoretical analysis or the method economic modeling. Survey methods adopted in social psychology are most widely used; experiments are used less frequently.
Psychology can be used to explain important aspects of market behavior, including some aspects of conventional technical analysis." There is some structure to price movements, depending on the type of stock or market being examined.
Professional investing is mainly a matter of acquiring such assets and at times when the market clearly undervalues them. Purchasing any asset traded on the market and then selling it allows you to get a profit that exceeds the average market return.
To profit from speculation in stock markets, you just need to know when to do it. The main thing that leads to profitable investing is knowledge and understanding of how the entire huge mass that is involved in investing perceives the current state of affairs in the market. It's no secret that the key to success lies in knowing the basics of stock market psychology, which can lead to complete ruin or exceptional success.
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Objectives of psychology as a science. The role of psychology in modern society.
Psychology (Greek psyche - soul, logos - teaching, word) is the science of the laws of generation and functioning of the mental reflection of objective reality in the process of human activity and animal behavior.
Psychology, as a science, is a system of theoretical, methodological and experimental means knowledge and research of mental phenomena, their exact subject definition, registration, analysis of ensuring the continuity of their results.
Modern scientific psychology, like any other systematic activity, represents a certain stage of consistent development human knowledge. The result of this development is socio-historical experience accumulated in the process of people communicating with each other within the framework of this activity and existing in the form of concepts of norms and action patterns.
The object of psychology research and the object of application of psychological knowledge is man. The object of knowledge and application of knowledge of general psychology is a healthy person. Object of study clinical psychology and the application of her knowledge is a sick person.
The subject of the study of general psychology is the essence and patterns of the emergence, development and manifestation of the human and animal psyche.
The tasks of psychology mainly boil down to the following:
* learn to understand the essence of mental phenomena and their patterns;
* learn to manage them;
* use the acquired knowledge in order to increase the efficiency of those branches of practice at the intersection of which already established sciences and industries lie;
* be the theoretical basis for the practice of psychological services.
By studying the patterns of mental phenomena, psychologists reveal the essence of the process of reflecting the objective world in the human brain, find out how human actions are regulated, how mental activity develops and the mental properties of the individual are formed. Since the psyche, human consciousness is a reflection of objective reality, the study psychological patterns means, first of all, the establishment of the dependence of mental phenomena on the objective conditions of human life and activity. But since any human activity is always naturally conditioned not only by the objective conditions of human life and activity, but also sometimes by subjective ones (attitudes, attitudes of a person, his personal experience, expressed in the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary for this activity), then psychology is faced with the task identifying the features of the implementation of activities and its effectiveness, depending on the relationship between objective conditions and subjective aspects.
Thus, by establishing the laws of cognitive processes (sensations, perceptions, thinking, imagination, memory), psychology contributes to the scientific construction of the learning process, creating the opportunity correct definition content educational material necessary for the acquisition of certain knowledge, skills and abilities. By identifying patterns of personality formation, psychology assists pedagogy in correct construction educational process.
Wide range The problems that psychologists are engaged in solving determines, on the one hand, the need for relationships between psychology and other sciences involved in solving complex problems, and on the other, the identification within psychological science itself of special branches involved in solving psychological problems in one or another sphere of society.
Structure modern science psychology, the connection between psychology and other sciences.
Psychology is a field of scientific knowledge that studies the features and patterns of the emergence, formation and development (changes) of mental processes, mental states and mental person, as well as the psyche of animals.
Modern psychology is in a state of continuous and rapid development, which is typical for a young science. New industries and directions are emerging in its structure. Currently there are more than forty of them. Thus, modern psychology is a branched system scientific disciplines. General psychology occupies a central place in it. General psychology represents the foundation of all psychological knowledge; it studies general laws organization and functioning of the psyche, develops methodology and theory of psychology. General psychology is connected with other branches of psychology, since, on the one hand, all branches of psychology in their development are based on the general theory of psychology, on the other hand, knowledge and facts obtained in applied fields enrich the general theory of psychology. Philosophy. Considered the founder of psychology greatest philosopher antiquity - Aristotle. Philosophy is a system of views on the world and man; Psychology is the study of man. Therefore, until recently, psychology was studied in the philosophical faculties of universities, and some sections (in particular, general psychology, where definitions are given basic concepts sciences) are closely intertwined with philosophy. However, psychology cannot be the “handmaiden of philosophy,” as was the case in the Soviet Union, where Marxist-Leninist philosophy strictly determined the fundamentals. postulates of psychology. These are two independent sciences, which can mutually enrich and complement each other. At the intersection of philosophy and psychology there is such a branch of the latter as general psychology.
Natural science is closely related to psychology. Development of theoretical and practical psychology in recent years it would have been impossible without advances in biology, anatomy, physiology, biochemistry and medicine. Thanks to these sciences, psychologists better understand the structure and functioning of the human brain, which is material basis psyche. Psychophysiology is located at the intersection of physiology and psychology. Sociology as an independent science is closely related to social psychology, which is the bridge that connects the thoughts, feelings and attitudes of individual people with the phenomena of mass consciousness. The connection between psychology and sociology is provided by social psychology.
Technical sciences are also related to psychology, since they often have the problem of “docking” complex technical systems and man.
These issues are dealt with by engineering psychology and occupational psychology.
Story. Modern man- is a product of historical development in which the interaction of biological and mental factors took place! starting from the biological process of natural selection to the mental processes of speech, thinking and work. Historical psychology studies changes in the psyche of people in the process of historical development and the role of the psychological qualities of historical figures on the course of history.
Medicine helps psychology better understand the possible mechanisms of mental disorders in people and find ways to treat it (psychocorrection and psychotherapy). At the intersection of medicine and psychology there are such branches of psychology as medical psychology and psychotherapy.
Pedagogy provides psychology with information about the main directions and patterns of training and education of people, which makes it possible to develop recommendations for the psychological support of these processes. The connection between these related sciences is provided by educational psychology and developmental psychology.
The role of communication in modern society. Basic concepts of communication psychology. Conditions necessary for the communication process to occur.
Activity and communication are two sides social existence a person, his way of life. Communication in psychology is understood both as a process of interaction and as a process of information exchange, people’s relationships with each other, mutual influence on each other, empathy and mutual understanding. In short, communication is a way of human existence, revealed in the relationships of subjects. This is a subject-subject relationship. The diversity of these relationships form a unique structure of communication. The structure of communication appears to be a set of functions that are realized by people in their relationships with each other. In psychology, it is customary to distinguish several such functions.
1. The communicative function of communication, or communication, consisting of the exchange of information between people;
2. Interactive function – consisting in organizing interaction and exchange of actions;
3. Perceptual function – which consists in the communication partners’ perception of each other and the establishment of mutual understanding on this basis.
All designated functions are manifested in conditions of direct contact between people.
The connection between psychology and other sciences.
1. General overview about methods of psychology. Classification of research methods in psychology and areas of their application.
Solution various tasks in psychology is impossible without the use of certain techniques, methods of study. Each science uses its own methods. The research method always reflects one or another methodology, that is General requirements to research methods. Methods of psychological research have certain requirements that must be observed when using any method. These are the basic methodological principles: objectivity, adequacy, development.
Method (Greek methodos - path to something) - a method of activity aimed at achieving a specific goal; a way of carrying out scientific research arising from general theoretical ideas about the essence of the objects being studied.
Methodology is a system of principles and methods of organizing and constructing theoretical and practical activities, as well as the doctrine of this system.
The methodology is embodied in all types of activities, including scientific ones.
CLASSIFICATION OF METHODS
Known in psychology various classifications methods. The most complete classification is proposed by B.G. Ananyev. In this classification, all methods are divided into four classes.
I. Data collection methods (empirical):
a) basic (observations and experiment (laboratory, natural (stating, formative);
b) auxiliary (testing, studying the products of activity, biographical, conversation, questioning, modeling, sociometric, twin).
II. Organizational methods:
a) comparative,
b) longitudinal,
c) complex.
III. Methods for processing results:
a) quantitative (statistical),
b) qualitative (differentiation of material by levels and types).
IV. Methods for interpreting results:
a) genetic (analysis of developmental results highlighting individual phases, stages, etc.);
b) structural (establishing structural connections between all personality characteristics) (see. Correlation analysis).
Basic methods
Observation is a method of psychology; consists in recording manifestations of behavior and obtaining judgments about subjective mental phenomena.
Introspection is introspection, observation, the object of which is the mental states of the subject himself.
An experiment in psychology (Latin experimentum - test, experience) is the main method of psychology, based on an accurate accounting of variable independent variables that influence the dependent variable. This is the creation of optimal conditions for the study of mental phenomena. It involves the purposeful intervention of a scientist in a research situation. To carry out the experiment, specific diagnostic techniques and methods, the totality of which is called research methodology.
Methodology of psychological research is a set of methods used in a specific study and determined by the corresponding methodology.
A laboratory experiment is a method of psychology carried out in artificial conditions (in specially equipped rooms) with strict control of all influencing factors.
Natural experiment - psychological experiment included in play, work or educational activities.
Ascertaining experiment involves identifying existing mental characteristics or levels of development of corresponding qualities, as well as establishing the relationship of causes and consequences.
A formative (educational) experiment is a method of psychology in which the systematic formation of the required mental process or personality quality takes place.
Testing-research using tests.
A test (English test - test) is a standardized psychological test, as a result of which an attempt is made to evaluate a particular mental process or personality as a whole. There are: tests of abilities and achievements, as well as personality tests (questionnaires, projective). Ability tests are designed to measure the level of development of certain abilities (memory, thinking, intelligence, professional, etc.). Achievement tests are used to determine achievements in various types of activities (learning, work, etc.). Personality tests are designed to determine various psychological qualities of an individual (motives, attitudes, values, individual characteristics(temperament, character, emotional state, etc.). In this case, questionnaires or projective tests are used.
Personality questionnaires are a type of questionnaire aimed at measuring various features personality. Personality questionnaires are divided into: a) personality trait questionnaires; b) typological questionnaires; c) motive questionnaires; d) interest questionnaires; e) values questionnaires; f) attitude questionnaires.
Projective is one of the methods of personality research. Based on identifying projections of the subject’s personality traits in the experimental data with subsequent interpretation. The method is provided by a set of projective techniques (projective tests), among which are distinguished: a) associative (for example, the Rorschach test, unfinished proposals and etc.); b) interpretive (for example, thematic apperception test TAT, which requires interpreting social situations depicted in pictures); c) expressive (psychodrama, drawing of a person or non-existent animal, etc.).
Test validity (eng. validate - confirm, declare valid) is a measure of compliance of research results with the testing purpose and objective external criteria. The measure of validity is usually the correlation coefficient of the test results with the results of other valid tests or professional criteria.
Reliability - consistency, sustainability of the results obtained with its help. Reliability indicates the test’s resistance to the distorting effects of random noise factors and its accuracy. The reliability of the tests is checked by repeated testing.
The study of the products of activity is the study of the products of human labor: inventions, books, letters, etc. From them one can, to a certain extent, judge the characteristics of the activity that led to their creation and the mental processes involved in this activity. This method is used to study the mental makeup of a person from texts (content analysis), from drawings, etc.
Content analysis (eng. contents) - scientific method identifying and assessing the characteristics of texts and other media (video recordings, television and radio broadcasts, interviews, etc.).
Biographical method (English: bio - life, graphx - writing) - methods of research, diagnosis, correction and design of a person’s life path based on information obtained from biographies, questionnaires, interviews, eyewitness accounts, content analysis of diaries, letters, etc. .
Conversation is one of the methods of psychology that involves directly or indirectly obtaining information through verbal communication.
Interviewing is a method of social psychology that involves collecting information obtained in the form of answers to questions posed.
Questionnaire (French enquete - list of questions) - methodological tool to obtain primary information.
Questioning is a study using questionnaires.
Modeling is a method of studying mental patterns, which consists in constructing models of mental phenomena and studying the functioning of these models using the results obtained as data on the patterns of mental functioning.
Sociometry is a method of psychological research into interpersonal relationships in a group or team in order to determine the structure of relationships and psychological compatibility.
The twin method is a method of scientific research based on comparison of the psychology and behavior of two types of twins: monozygotic (with the same genotype) and dizygotic (with different genotype). The method is used to solve the problem of genotypic or environmental conditioning of certain psychological and behavioral characteristics person.
The method of semantic differential is a way of studying the content and structure of a person’s consciousness through his definition of concepts using a series of predetermined polar definitions such as “strong - weak”, “good - bad”, etc. The method was introduced by the American psychologist Charles Osgood.
The comparative method is the study of the same function in different groups of subjects.
The longitudinal method (from the English longitude - longitude) is a long-term scientific study of the processes of formation, development and change of any mental or behavioral phenomena. The study of mental phenomena in the same subjects over a long period of time (sometimes for a number of years) and the consistent recording of a number of significant changes in the psyche of the subject.
The genetic method is a way of studying mental phenomena, consisting in analyzing the process of their occurrence and development from lower forms to higher ones.
The method is complex - research using different means, different sciences.
Statistics is a branch of mathematics, theoretical and applied, that deals with the collection, classification and analysis of data. Statistics includes three main sections: 1) descriptive statistics, which allows you to describe, summarize and reproduce the data of a particular distribution in the form of tables or graphs, and calculate its statistical characteristics; 2) inductive statistics, which serves to check whether the results obtained from a given sample can be extended to the entire population from which the sample was taken; 3) the measurement of correlation, which allows us to find out how related two variables are to each other, so that we can predict the possible values of one of them if we know the other.
Correlation analysis (Latin correlatio - ratio) is a statistical method for assessing the measure, form and nature of the relationship of the properties or characteristics being studied.
Correlation is a measure of the connection between phenomena of reality or experimental facts, their interrelation.
Stages of psychological research:
1. Research planning includes selection and testing of research methods. Planning is also the drawing up of logical and chronological research schemes, the selection of the contingent and number of subjects or the required number of measurements (observations), this is a plan for mathematical processing and description of the entire study, etc.
2. The research location must provide isolation from external interference, meet sanitary, hygienic, engineering and psychological requirements, that is, provide a certain comfort and relaxed working environment.
3. The technical equipment of the research must correspond to the tasks being solved, the entire course of the research and the level of analysis of the results obtained.
4. The selection of subjects should ensure their qualitative homogeneity.
5. The researcher (experimenter) inevitably influences the progress of the work being carried out at all its stages.
6. The instructions are drawn up at the work planning stage. It should be clear, concise, unambiguous.
7. The research protocol must be both comprehensive and focused.
8. Processing of research results is quantitative and qualitative analysis and synthesis of data obtained during the study.
2. Temperament and activity. Typologies of temperament.
By the word “psychology” people understand not only science, but also a certain system of everyday knowledge. Between these areas human culture there are both similarities and differences. The similarity is that both of these areas study the same thing - the human psyche, but the differences between them are very significant.
However, between everyday and scientific knowledge there is a certain correspondence. Often worldly knowledge manifests itself in folk proverbs and sayings.
The connection between psychology and other sciences.
Philosophy. The greatest philosopher of antiquity, Aristotle, is considered the founder of psychology. Philosophy is a system of views on the world and man, and psychology is the study of man. Therefore, until recently, psychology was studied in philosophy departments of universities, and some of its sections (for example, general psychology, where definitions of the basic concepts of science are given) are closely intertwined with philosophy. However, psychology cannot be the “handmaiden of philosophy”, as it was in Soviet Union, where Marxist-Leninist philosophy strictly defined the basic postulates of psychology. These are two independent sciences that can mutually enrich and complement each other. At the intersection of philosophy and psychology there is such a branch of the latter as “General Psychology”.
Natural science closely related to psychology. The development of theoretical and practical psychology in recent years would have been impossible without advances in biology, anatomy, physiology, biochemistry and medicine. Thanks to these sciences, psychologists better understand the structure and functioning of the human brain, which is the material basis of the psyche. “Psychophysiology” is located at the intersection of physiology and psychology.
Sociology as an independent science, it is closely related to social psychology, which is the bridge that connects the thoughts, feelings and attitudes of individual people with the phenomena of mass consciousness. In addition, sociology provides psychology with facts about the social activities of people, which are then used by psychology. The connection between psychology and sociology is provided by “Social Psychology”.
Technical science are also associated with psychology, since they often have the problem of “docking” complex technical systems and humans. These issues are dealt with by “Engineering Psychology” and “Occupational Psychology”.
Story. Modern man is a product of historical development, during which the interaction of biological and mental factors took place - from the biological process of natural selection to the mental processes of speech, thinking and work. Historical psychology studies changes in the psyche of people in the process of historical development and the role of the psychological qualities of historical figures on the course of history.
Medicine helps psychology better understand the possible mechanisms of mental disorders in people and find ways to treat it (psychocorrection and psychotherapy). At the intersection of medicine and psychology there are such branches of psychology as “Medical Psychology” and “Psychotherapy”.
General concept of psychology as a science
When dividing sciences into groups based on the subject of study, natural, humanitarian and Technical science. 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 the behavior or mental characteristics of individuals and groups of people. Therefore, to one degree or another, every person becomes acquainted with “psychology” long before its systematic study.
Man is social creature, and he cannot live outside of society, without contact with others. In the practice of live communication, each person comprehends many psychological laws. Thus, since childhood, each of us has been able to read” the emotional state of another person by external manifestations - facial expressions, gestures, intonation, behavioral characteristics. Thus, every person is a kind of psychologist, since it is impossible to live in society without certain ideas about the human psyche.
However, everyday psychological knowledge very approximate, vague and in many ways different from scientific knowledge. 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 nature. 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 methods of knowledge transfer. 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.
Fourth, scientific psychology has extensive, varied and sometimes unique factual material, inaccessible in its entirety to any bearer of everyday psychology.
The word “psychology” translated from ancient Greek literally means “the science of the soul.” IN scientific use The term “psychology” appeared for the first time in the 12th century. Initially, it belonged to a special science that dealt with the study of so-called mental or mental phenomena, i.e. those that every person easily detects in own mind as a result of self-observation. Later, in the XVII-XIX 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.
It should be noted that there are different points of view on the structure of mental phenomena. For example, certain mental phenomena, depending on the author of the position, can be classified into different structural groups. Moreover, very often in scientific literature You may encounter a confusion of concepts. Thus, some authors do not separate the characteristics of mental processes and mental properties of the individual. We will divide mental phenomena into three main classes: mental processes, mental states and mental properties of the individual.
1) Mental processes act as primary regulators of human behavior. Mental processes have a definite beginning, course and end, that is, they have certain dynamic characteristics, which, first of all, include parameters that determine the duration and stability of the mental process. Based on mental processes, they are formed certain conditions, knowledge, skills and abilities are being formed. In its turn , mental processes can be divided into three groups: cognitive, emotional and volitional.
TO cognitive mental processes include mental processes associated with the perception and processing of information. These include sensation, perception, representation, memory, imagination, thinking, speech and attention. Thanks to these processes, a person receives information about the world around him and about himself. However, information or knowledge in itself does not play any role for a person if it is not significant for him. Along with cognitive mental processes, they distinguish as independent ones emotional mental processes. Within the framework of this group of mental processes, such mental phenomena as affects, emotions, feelings, moods and emotional stress.
We have the right to believe that if specific event or a phenomenon causes positive emotions in a person, then this has a beneficial effect on his activity or condition, and, conversely, negative emotions complicate the activity and worsen the person’s condition. However, there are exceptions. For example, an event that causes negative emotions increases a person’s activity and stimulates him to overcome the obstacles that have arisen. Such a reaction indicates that for the formation of human behavior, not only emotional, but also volitional mental processes are important, which are most clearly manifested in situations related to decision-making, overcoming difficulties, managing one’s behavior, etc.
Sometimes another group of mental processes is identified as an independent group - unconscious processes. It includes those processes that occur or are carried out outside the control of consciousness.
Mental processes are closely interconnected and act as primary factors in the formation of human mental states.
2) Mental states characterize general mental state. They, like mental processes, have their own dynamics, which are characterized by duration, direction, stability and intensity. At the same time, mental states influence the course and outcome of mental processes and can promote or inhibit activity. TO mental states include such phenomena as elation, depression, fear, cheerfulness, despondency. It should be noted that mental states can be extremely complex phenomena that have objective and subjective conditioning, but their characteristic common feature is dynamism. The exception is mental states caused by dominant personality characteristics, including pathocharacterological features. Such states can be very stable mental phenomena that characterize a person’s personality.
3) Mental properties of the individual- characterized by greater stability and greater constancy. Mental properties of a person are usually understood as the most significant characteristics of a person, ensuring a certain quantitative and qualitative level of human activity and behavior. Mental properties include orientation, temperament, abilities and character. The level of development of these properties, as well as the peculiarities of the development of mental processes and the prevailing (most characteristic of a person) mental states determine the uniqueness of a person, his individuality.
The phenomena studied by psychology are associated not only with a specific person, but also with groups. Mental phenomena associated with the life of groups and collectives are studied in detail within the framework of social psychology. We will only consider brief description such mental phenomena.
All group mental phenomena can also be divided into mental processes, mental states and mental properties. In contrast to individual mental phenomena, mental phenomena of groups and collectives have a clearer division into internal and external.
Towards collective mental processes, acting as a primary factor in regulating the existence of a team or group, include communication, interpersonal perception, interpersonal relationships, formation group norms, intergroup relationships, etc.
TO mental states groups include conflict, cohesion, psychological climate, openness or closedness of the group, panic, etc.
The most significant mental properties of a group include organization, leadership style, and efficiency.
Thus, the subject of psychology is the psyche and mental phenomena as one specific person, as well as mental phenomena observed in groups and collectives.
The relationship between psychology and modern sciences
We began our acquaintance with psychology by considering the general problems of studying man, on the basis of which it was concluded that man as a subject of study can be viewed from various points of view: how biological object, as a social being, as a carrier of consciousness. At the same time, each person is unique and has his own individuality. The variety of manifestations of man as a natural and social phenomenon has led to the emergence of a significant number of sciences that study man.
For a long time there was a fundamental division between materialistic and idealistic philosophy. Moreover, most often this opposition was antagonistic in nature, that is, there was a constant opposition of views and positions, and a search was carried out for evidence of the inconsistency of one or another conclusion. As a result, a number of psychological schools experienced stagnation scientific thought. Today, when there has been a rapprochement between these main currents of philosophy, we can speak with complete confidence about the equal importance for psychology of both directions. Thus, materialist philosophy was the basis for the development of problems of activity and the origin of higher mental functions. On the other hand, the idealistic direction in philosophy confronts us with such complex problems as responsibility, conscience, the meaning of life, and spirituality. Consequently, the use in psychology of the ideas of both directions of philosophy most fully reflects the dual essence of man, his biosocial nature.
It should be noted that this unity of philosophy and psychology is also due to the fact that psychological science chooses the methodology of scientific research, relying on worldview theories and concepts, which in turn are formed within the framework of philosophy. Thus, in previous sections we talked about the role in psychology of such famous scientists as Aristotle, R. Descartes, J. Locke, D. Hume, etc. However, they are known primarily as major philosophers, founders of philosophical schools. The dominance of one or another worldview is also reflected in the patterns of development of psychological science. For example, the dominance of materialism in Russian psychology predetermined rapid development experimental psychological methods, increased interest in the natural scientific foundations of psychology, the desire to solve the problem of the relationship between the mental and the biological. But at the same time, insufficient attention was paid to the development of moral structures of the individual. This can be confirmed by the spiritual crisis observed in Russia at the end of the twentieth century.
Thus, modern psychology and philosophy are still developing in close unity, mutually complementing each other. There is an integration and interpenetration of the knowledge of these sciences at the theoretical and methodological level.
Another science that has many interests in common with psychology in the development of problems related to society and personality is sociology. Here, too, there is mutual support in the development of science, but at the level of research methodology. Thus, sociology borrows from social psychology methods of studying personality and human relations. At the same time, psychology widely uses collection techniques in its experimental studies. scientific information, which are traditionally sociological. These methods primarily include surveys and questionnaires.
In addition, there is an interpenetration of various theories developed within these sciences. For example, the concept of social learning, developed primarily by sociologists, is generally accepted in social and developmental psychology. On the other hand, theories of personality and small group developed by psychologists are widely used in sociology.
There are also many problems that psychologists and sociologists are trying to solve together. Such problems include: relationships between people, national psychology, psychology of economics and state politics. This should also include problems of socialization and social attitudes, their formation and transformation.
Let's consider the solution to one of the most significant problems for psychology and sociology - socialization. It should immediately be noted that the solution to this problem became possible only thanks to the joint developments of psychologists and sociologists. Thus, in sociology the problem of socialization is considered within the framework of the theory of social learning, and in psychology - within the framework of the problem social adaptation individual. It should be noted that human adaptation is a central problem for many sciences, since this problem is very multifaceted. In turn, social adaptation is one of the facets of human adaptation. At the same time, two aspects are distinguished in social adaptation: the socialization of the individual and his activity.
Personal socialization is the process of assimilation and reproduction of social experience by an individual, as a result of which he becomes an individual and acquires the psychological qualities, knowledge, skills and abilities necessary for life, including speech. Thanks to speech, he, in turn, gets the opportunity to communicate with his own kind, that is, to interact with the people around him. Socialization is an individual’s knowledge of the civilization created by people, the acquisition of experience of social life, the transformation from a natural into a social being, from an individual into a personality. Socialization includes the assimilation of moral norms, the culture of human relationships, rules of behavior among people, as well as social roles, types of activities, and forms of communication.
Socialization is a multifaceted process that has various aspects, but special attention mechanisms of socialization deserve, that is, the ways by which a human individual becomes involved in culture and acquires the experience accumulated by other people. The main sources of human socialization are public associations (organizations), family, school, literature, art, print, radio, television.
The mechanisms of human socialization are studied within the framework of social learning theory. From the point of view of this theory, human behavior is formed in the process of his interaction, communication and joint activities with different people in different social situations, observing and imitating the behavior of other people, as well as training and education. It should be emphasized that the theory of social learning denies the exclusive importance for the formation of human behavior biological factors, characteristics of the body and its functional state. This theory emphasizes the role of not so much biological as social factors eg family, school environment. From this statement follows the second main position of the theory of social learning: human behavior is formed under the influence of factors in the social environment.
Thus, the scientific developments of sociologists are in very close connection with the work of psychologists, since it is in psychology that the interaction of a person and the social environment is considered. In turn, a variety of aspects of socialization are of independent interest to psychology. For example, such an aspect of socialization as identification is very important. What is meant by this term?
In the process of his physical and social development, a child learns a large number of norms and forms of behavior. It is quite understandable that he cannot develop a form of behavior that is significantly different from the behavior of his immediate social environment. Therefore, the main example for shaping a child’s behavior is his parents, friends, and acquaintances. In the process of assimilation social norms a person begins to identify himself, that is, to relate with representatives of a certain social or age group, as well as with people of a certain gender. As a result, he acquires the skills of appropriate role behavior characteristic of the society in which he lives.
No less important for psychology are such problems of socialization as social facilitation (the positive stimulating influence of the behavior of some people on the activities of others), imitation, suggestion, conformity and adherence to norms. At the same time, all these problems developed by psychological science are used in the research of sociologists. Thus, sociology and psychology are in close relationship both at the level of theoretical research and at the level of using certain methods. Developing in parallel, they complement each other's research in studying social manifestations man and human society.
Another social science closely related to psychology is pedagogy. At first glance, these sciences are inseparable from each other, since the upbringing and teaching of children cannot but take into account the psychological characteristics of the individual. Following this logic, one cannot doubt the truth of this judgment. However, in practice the situation is somewhat different. If psychology developed within the framework of philosophy, then pedagogy was initially formed as an independent science. As a result, psychology and pedagogy were organizationally formed as independent sciences and exist separately. Unfortunately, in practice there is still no close mutual understanding between psychologists and teachers.
Today it is very difficult to give an unambiguous answer to the question about the reasons that caused the defeat of the very promising science. There are probably three main reasons. First, the idea behind pedology was that different people have different abilities. To a large extent, this is due to genetic differences, so the pedagogical process should be structured differentially, taking into account the individual characteristics of students, and contribute not only to the harmonious development of the individual, but also to the priority development of those abilities that are most clearly represented in the child. Consequently, representatives of pedology argued that already from birth people have different capabilities due to their genetically determined physiological and mental characteristics. Such a statement to a certain extent contradicted the dominant ideology of the time, which argued that Soviet people live in a society of equal opportunities, that is, everyone can achieve success in any business they choose. This point of view is most clearly reflected by the well-known thesis: “ Irreplaceable people No. Therefore, it is likely that the difference in the views of pedology and government structures on human abilities was one of the reasons for the defeat of this scientific direction.
On the other hand, the representatives of pedology themselves are to a certain extent to blame for everything that happened. Testing craze, widespread test material led to the fact that psychodiagnostic methods began to be used by people who were not competent enough, which contributed to the distortion of the essence of not only pedology, but primarily psychology.
Thirdly, we have the right to assume that the development of pedology met with strong opposition from teachers, since the teacher within the pedological direction was not considered as a central figure in the learning process, but was only one of its participants. In turn, pedagogy within this direction was not considered as the basic science of educating the younger generation, but was only the science of teaching, that is, the transfer and assimilation of knowledge. It is likely that many teachers did not want to put up with this state of affairs and opposed the development of pedology. Unfortunately, a certain gap between psychology and pedagogy has been observed to this day, despite the fact that every year psychology penetrates more and more into the educational process.
Thus, based on the above material, we can say that psychology is closely related to the social sciences. This statement is also true for history. There are examples of a deep synthesis of history and psychology in the creation of a general scientific theory. One such example is the theory of cultural and historical development of higher mental functions of a person, developed by L. S. Vygotsky. To others, no less famous example The relationship between history and psychology is the use of the historical method in psychology. The essence of this method is that in order to understand the nature of any mental phenomenon, it is necessary to trace its phylo- and ontogenetic development from elementary to more complex forms. In order to understand what the highest forms of the human psyche are, it is necessary to trace their development in children. Consequently, the main and most valuable idea that underlies the rapprochement of psychology and history is the idea that modern man with his psychological qualities and personal properties is a product of the history of human development.
Thus, having become acquainted with the relationships and connections between psychology and the social sciences, we can conclude that psychology is a social science. Having made this conclusion, we will be right, but only partially. The main feature of psychology is that it is connected not only with social sciences, but also with technical and biological ones.
The connection between psychology and technical sciences is due to the fact that a person is a direct participant in all technological and production processes. It is almost impossible to organize the production process without human participation. Man was and remains the main participant in this process. Therefore, it is no coincidence that psychological science considers a person as integral part technical progress. In the research of psychologists involved in the development of sociotechnical systems, a person acts as the most complex element of the “man-machine” system. Thanks to the activities of psychologists, samples of technology are created that take into account the mental and physiological capabilities of a person, otherwise technical samples could be created that, due to their ergonomic characteristics, could never be used by a person.
Psychology is no less closely related to the medical and biological sciences. The connection between psychology and these sciences is due to the dual nature of man as a social and at the same time biological being. Most mental phenomena, and above all mental processes, have a physiological basis, therefore the knowledge obtained by physiologists and biologists is used in psychology in order to better understand certain mental phenomena. Today the facts of psychosomatic and somatopsychic mutual influence are well known. The essence of this phenomenon is that the mental state of an individual is reflected in his physiological state, and in certain situations mental characteristics can contribute to the development of a particular disease, and vice versa, a chronic disease, as a rule, affects the mental state of the patient. Considering the close connection between the mental and somatic, in modern medicine active development received methods of psychotherapeutic influence using the “medicinal properties” of the word.
Thus, modern psychology is closely related to various areas of science and practice. We can rightfully assert that wherever a person is involved, there is a place psychological science. Therefore, it is no coincidence that psychology is becoming increasingly popular and widespread every year. In turn, the rapid development of psychology, its introduction into all areas of practical and scientific activity led to the emergence of various branches of psychology.