SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY

Social Psychology- a branch of psychology that studies the psychological characteristics and patterns of behavior and activity of people, determined by their inclusion in social groups, as well as the psychological characteristics of these groups themselves.

She examines the patterns of interaction between the individual and society, the formation and development of groups. Social psychology arose at the “crossroads” of two sciences: sociology and psychology, which caused difficulty in defining the subject and range of its problems.

The patterns studied by social psychology are relevant for all spheres of public life: various areas of education, areas of industrial production, the media, management, science, sports.

Item- psychological phenomena that arise in the system of interaction between individuals and groups (small and large), i.e. mental phenomena (processes, states and properties) that characterize the individual and the group as subjects of social interaction. This:

1. Psychological processes, states and properties of the individual, which manifest themselves as a result of his inclusion in relationships with other people, in various social groups: family, groups, and in general in the system of social relations: economic, political, managerial; The most frequently studied manifestations of personality in groups are sociability, aggressiveness, and conflict potential.

2. The phenomenon of interaction between people, i.e. communication: marital, child-parent, psychotherapeutic. Interaction can be personal, interpersonal, group, intergroup.

3. Mental processes, states and properties of various social groups as integral entities that differ from each other and cannot be reduced to the individual. This is the socio-psychological climate of the group and conflict relations, group states, leadership and group actions, teamwork and conflict.

4. Mass mental phenomena, such as crowd behavior, panic, rumors, fashion, mass emotions, mass enthusiasm, apathy, fears.

An object- activities of small and large groups, as well as individuals in the system of social relations, or social psyche, including:

· Mass, group, intergroup, interpersonal and personal moods.

· Mass, group and individual emotions.

· Mass actions.

· Stereotypes.

· Installations.

· Conscious and unconscious, formal and informal sanctions of human activity.

Subsystem social psyche:

1. Public mood.

2. Public opinion

3. Social will

Revealing social psyche occurs at three levels:

· Social

· Group

· Individual

Structure:

1. Specific patterns of direct communication (relations between the means and methods of mutual influence of people; mechanisms of imitation, suggestion, self-affirmation, infection, persuasion).

2. Group mental phenomena, states, processes arising as a result of communication (collective feelings, moods, group opinion, drives, needs, group orientations, traditions, customs).

3. Stable mental characteristics of various social groups (national, professional, demographic, expressed in attitudes, value orientations, in stable social feelings).

4. Mime-conditioned mental states of an individual in a group, socio-psychic mechanisms of control over his behavior (sanctions, role prescriptions, expectations).

Functions:

1. Integration and transmission of social experience. The social psyche ensures control of the processes of translation of social experience, forming a unified direction of thoughts, will and feelings in a given social group. For this purpose, not only the mechanisms of pedagogical, socio-pedagogical, artistic, mass communication are widely used. A special role here belongs to festive communication and its modification – ritual-game communication. Among all peoples of the world, ritual has always been the most important means of socio-psychological integration and transmission of social experience.

2. Social adaptation. The social psyche is capable of bringing individual consciousness into conformity with the principles and norms prevailing in a social group. Every culture develops forms and rules of communication that correspond to the specific conditions of interaction between people and are designed to ensure the most effective achievement of social and individual goals. The social psyche facilitates the mutual adaptation of people and creates the adaptation of the individual to certain patterns of behavior. Social adaptation of a person occurs in the process of his communication with others.

3. Social correlation. The social psyche correlates the behavior of an individual, bringing it into conformity with the conventional norms accepted in a given society.

4. Social activation. The social psyche is capable of strengthening and activating human activity through the influence of group feelings and will.

5. Social control. The social psyche is the bearer of a system of informal sanctions of society, or social groups, i.e. sanctions regulating individual behavior. The social psyche accumulates and transmits normative sanctions, through which it carries out its control function

6. Projective unloading. The presence of unsatisfied desires gives rise to psychological and socio-psychological tension in people. The social psyche is designed to relieve this tension without violating generally accepted norms. Thus, holidays provide a release of aggressive impulses and negative emotional arousal. People can experience ecstasy, a feeling of exaltation, delight, awe, which provides catharsis for their soul, i.e. cleansing from base feelings, animal anger.

Traditionally, social psychology is divided into three areas of study

· Study of individual social behavior.

· Study of dyadic social interaction and communication processes.

· Study of small groups and psychological study of social problems

Processes:

The most actively developed processes in modern research include:

1. Attribution processes.

2. Group processes.

3. providing assistance.

4. Attraction and affiliation.

5. Aggression.

6. Crimes.

7. Installations and their study.

8. Social cognition.

9. Social development of the individual (socialization).

10. Cross-cultural research.

Main sections:

1. Psychology of communication is a branch of psychology that studies the patterns of communication and interaction between people.

2. Psychology of groups - the psychological characteristics of social groups, both large and small, are studied, phenomena such as cohesion, compatibility, leadership, and the decision-making process are studied.

3. Social psychology of leadership - studies the problems of socialization, the formation of social attitudes of the individual.

Branches of social psychology:

· Ethnic psychology – studies the characteristics of people as representatives of various ethnic communities

· Management psychology – the focus is on the analysis of problems associated with the impact on groups and society as a whole.

· Political psychology – studies phenomena and processes related to the sphere of political life of society and political activity of people.

· Psychology of religion – studies the psychology of people who participate in religious activities.

· Psychology of communication – studies the processes of interaction and exchange of information between people and social groups.

· Psychology of conflict relationships (conflictology) - studies the psychological characteristics of conflicts and the possibilities for their most effective resolution.

Social psychology is associated with a number of other sciences: general psychology, sociology. Interdisciplinaryly it is associated with the following branches of knowledge:

1. Philosophy – provides the opportunity for methodological and theoretical justification in understanding the essence of socio-psychological phenomena.

2. Historical sciences - make it possible to analyze the development of the social psyche and consciousness of people at various stages of the formation of society.

3. Economic sciences - make it possible to reveal the essence and originality of the functioning of the economic processes of society and their influence on social relations and their manifestation in the social psyche and social consciousness of people.

4. Culturology and ethnography - allow social psychology to correctly interpret the influence of culture and nationality on the specific manifestation of socio-psychological phenomena.

5. Pedagogical sciences - provide information about the main directions of training and education of people, thereby allowing social psychology to develop recommendations for the socio-psychological support of these processes.

Difference psychological phenomena from mental ones is that psychological phenomena are formed and develop in the structure of communication between people and they are conditioned (their appearance) - socially. And mental phenomena and their appearance are determined by the biological prerequisites of brain activity.

Methodology and methods of social psychology.

Methodology is a system of principles (fundamental ideas), methods, rules for organizing the regulation and construction of theoretical and practical human activity, as well as the doctrine of this system.

The methodology fulfills two main functions:

1. It allows you to describe and evaluate activities from the perspective of internal organization.

In relation to science there are:

· General methodology - a general philosophical approach, a general way of knowing, recognized by the researcher.

· Special scientific methodology – (the methodology of a specific science) – allows one to formulate internally scientific laws and patterns related to the unique functioning of those phenomena that are studied by this science.

· Special methodology of social psychology adapts general philosophical principles in relation to the needs of social and psychological research.

· Particular methodology is a set of methods, methods, techniques, methods, techniques for studying those phenomena that constitute the subject and object of analysis of this science.

There are a number of classifications of social psychology methods, which are divided into:

1. Research methods: A) methods of collecting information - observation, study of documents, questionnaires, interviews, tests, experiment (ascertaining, formative, control);

B) methods of processing the received information - factor and correlation analysis, modeling methods, computer processing techniques of the received data.

2. Methods of influence - socio-psychological training, which is based on active methods of group work and allows you to solve a wide range of problems: increasing competence in communication, achieving a higher level of group cohesion, mastering the skills of confident behavior.

Among the methods of empirical research, the most widely used are: observation, document analysis, survey, sociometry, GOL, tests, scales for measuring social attitudes and instrumental method, experiment.

Subject field(methodology of social psychology):

· Communication as the basis of the social psyche.

· Personality as a subject of communication.

· Small group as a collective subject of communication.

· A small group as a collection of subjects of communication.

· Communication mechanisms.

· Forms of communication.

· Dynamics of communication.

· Social communication technologies.

History of the formation and development of social psychology

History of social psychology abroad

Western experts define social psychology as a science. Studying the interdependence of people's behavior and the fact of their relationships and interactions. This interdependence means that an individual's behavior is seen as both the result and the cause of the behavior of other people.

In historical terms, the process of development of any scientific discipline and socio-psychological ideas is the emergence of socio-philosophical knowledge, the spin-off of two other disciplines - psychology and sociology, which gave direct life to social psychology.

Historically, social psychology arose at the beginning of the 20th century. The year of its origin is considered to be 1908, when the first two books on social psychology were published - “Introduction to Social Psychology” by the English psychologist W. McDougall and “Social Psychology” by the American sociologist E. Ross.

In the history of social psychology, three periods can be distinguished:

1. The period of accumulation of knowledge in the field of philosophy and general psychology (VI century BC - mid-19th century).

2. The period of separation of descriptive social psychology from philosophy (sociology) into an independent field of knowledge (50-60s of the 9th century - 20s of the 20th century).

3. the period of formation of social psychology into an experimental science (20s of the XX century) and its modern development.

Social psychology was prepared by 4 schools:

1. School of social philosophy (Plato, Montesquieu, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau).

2. School of Social Anthropology (Lazarus, Steinthal, W. Wund).

3. School of English evolutionism (C. Darwin, G. Spencer).

4. School of early sociology (Comte, Durkheim).

5. Human Sciences:

Anthropology (Taylor)

Archeology (Morgan)

· Ethnography (Levi-Bruhl)

· General psychology (Baldwin, McDougall, Wund, Ribot).

· Psychiatry (Mechnikov)

· Biology (Golzendorf, Petrazhitsky).

Theoretical and methodological development Western social psychology occurred in line with general psychological knowledge - behaviorism and Freudianism, as well as new social-psychological schools and directions, which include:

1. Neobehaviorism (Eyu Bogardus, G. Allport, V. Lamberg, R. Bales, G. Homens, E. Mayo).

2. Neo-Freudianism (K. Horney, E. Fromm, A. Kardiner, E. Shills, A. Adler).

3. Theory of field and group dynamics (K. Levin, R. Lippit, R. White, L. Festinger, G. Kelly).

4. Sociometry (J. Morin, E. Jenninge, J. Criswell, N. Brondenbrenner).

5. Transactive psychology (E. Cantril, F. Kilpatrick, V. Ittelson, A. Eime).

6. Humanistic psychology (K. Rogers).

7. Cognitive theories, as well as interactionism (G. Mead, G. Blumer, M. Kuhn, T. Sarbin, R. Meron).

The origins of social psychology as scientific discipline occurred initially on the basis of philosophy:

· In ancient (ancient Greek) philosophy, socio-psychological ideas were developed by Socrates, Plato, Protagoras, Aristotle,

· In the philosophy of modern times - D. Locke, J.J. Rousseau, Hegel.

In the 9th century, the prerequisites emerged for the separation of social psychology into an independent scientific discipline. But first there was a separation into independent areas of knowledge:

· Sociology - the founder of the French philosopher Auguste Comte_.

· Psychology – the founder of scientific psychology, German physiologist, psychologist and philosopher W. Wund

Prerequisites The following were used to distinguish social psychology into a separate field of knowledge:

1. The need to organize and manage groups of people engaged in joint functions.

2. accumulation of issues that could not be resolved within the framework of other sciences (psychology, sociology, criminology, ethnography, linguistics).

For the second period in the history of social psychology, the philosophy of the French thinker Comte was of great importance, who was one of the first to draw attention to the need for an objective-instrumental study of social phenomena themselves.

Since the end of the 19th century, social psychology has developed in two directions:

1. Individual psychology (individual psychological direction), where the center of attention is the individual. An attempt was made to explain the life of society through his individual qualities.

2. The sociological direction proceeded from the determining role of social factors and considered the psychology of the individual to be a product of society.

After Comte, the bourgeois development of sociology began to attract representatives of many sciences. The supporters expressed themselves most clearly organic direction led by Spencer. His merit was his introduction of the concept “ social development».

At the same time, Spencer's fellow countryman Henry Buckle put forward the idea that everything in the world is changing - the moral state of a particular society. His works on the “history of human civilization” are called the first ethno-psychological studies, and in many ways socio-psychological.

At the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century, the development of social psychology was influenced by sociology and especially the French sociologists: Durkheim and Lévy-Bruhl.

Direct occurrence descriptive social psychology

It dates back to 1859, when the philosopher Steinthal, together with the ethnographer Lazarus, began publishing the journal “Psychology of Peoples and Linguistics.” These scientists were the founders of one of the first forms of socio-psychological theories - the psychology of peoples, which developed in Germany.

Among the first socio-psychological concepts second half of the nineteenth century include:

1. “Psychology of Nations”, authors: German philosopher M. Lazarus (1824-1903), linguist G. Steinthal (1823-1893), W. Wund (1832-1920). In Russia, the ideas of the psychology of peoples were developed by the linguist, psychologist, ethnographer A.A. Potebney (1835-1891). It developed mainly in Germany in the middle of the 9th century.

The main idea of ​​the concept is that psychology is faced with phenomena, the causes of which should be sought not in the individual consciousness, but in the consciousness of the people. The consciousness of a people or the spirit of the whole is expressed in myths, customs, religion, and art. In this direction, a very valuable idea was formulated: that in addition to individual consciousness, there is also something characteristic of group psychology. The main idea is that the main force of history is the people, who express themselves in art, religion, and language. And individual consciousness is only its product. The task of social psychology is to discover the laws by which the spiritual activity of the people proceeds.

Subsequently, the ideas of “psychology of peoples” were developed by V. Wund. He outlined the idea that psychology should consist of two parts:

· Physical Psychology is an experimental discipline, but experiment, according to V. Wund, is not suitable for studying speech and thinking.

· Starts here "psychology of peoples”, in which an analysis of cultural objects, language, and customs should be used. “Psychology of nations” should be a descriptive discipline that does not pretend to discover laws.

· The main “Psychology of Nations” was idealistic in nature, but this concept raised the question that there is something that characterizes individual consciousness, the psychology of a group.

2. Around the same time, another form of socio-psychological theories, “Psychology of the Masses”, developed in France, authors G. Tarde, Italian lawyer S. Sigele (1868-1913), French sociologist G. Lebon (1841-1931). It developed in the Romanesque countries - Italy, France in the second half of the 19th century. It is based on G. Tarde’s ideas about the role imitation in social behavior. From the point of view of representatives of Siegele and Le Bon, this direction focused on the study of large concentrations of people - “mass”, the main feature of which is the loss of the ability to observe and introspection. Characteristic features of human behavior in the masses are depersonalization, expressed in the dominance of instinctive reactions, the predominance of feelings over the intellect, which causes increased suggestibility, loss of personal responsibility. In this direction, the masses and elites of society were opposed. According to G. Lebon, the masses need a leader; the role of leader in society is called upon to be performed by the elite. This conclusion was made on the basis of isolated cases of mass manifestations, and most importantly in a situation of panic.

3. “The theory of instincts of social behavior”, author of the English psychologist W. McDougall (1871-1938). They were formulated in England and the USA at the beginning of the 20th century: V. Mede in Europe, Alpport - in the USA. Originated in 1908 in England. The work “Introduction to Social Psychology” and this year is considered the year of the final establishment of social psychology as an independent science.

The main concept of the theory of instincts of social behavior was the concept of “instinct”. Human behavior, according to Magdougall, is determined by innate instincts. He identified the instinct of fight, flight, reproduction, acquisition, construction, the herd instinct, the instinct of war. Instincts underlie all social life, in particular: the instinct of struggle is the cause of wars, and the instinct of acquisition determines market relations. This idea is the realization of the desire for a goal that is characteristic of animals and humans. McDougall called his theory “target” or “harmonic” (from the Greek word gormē - desire, impulse). In his opinion, “gorme” acts as a driving force of an intuitive nature, explaining social behavior. “Gorme” is realized as instincts. The inner expression of instincts are emotions. The connection between instincts and emotions has a certain character. McDougall listed pairs of related instincts and emotions:

· Fighting instinct and corresponding anger and fear

· Instinct of reproduction – jealousy and female timidity

Acquisition instinct - a sense of ownership

· Building instinct - a sense of creation

· Herd instinct – a sense of belonging

Flight instinct - a sense of self-preservation

War instinct - aggression

All social institutions are derived from instincts: family, trade, various social processes. First of all, it justifies the conduct of wars, because this realizes the instinct of aggression. Despite the great popularity of McDougall's theory, its role in the history of social psychology turned out to be negative, since the consideration of social behavior from the point of view of spontaneous striving for a goal legitimized the importance of unconscious drives as a driving force not only of the individual, but of all humanity.

The positive significance of the first concepts was that they raised questions about the relationship between the consciousness of an individual and the consciousness of a group (psychology of peoples and psychology of masses), about the driving forces of social behavior (the theory of instincts of social behavior). The disadvantage was the descriptive nature and lack of research practice.

The development of social psychology at the beginning of the 20th century revealed two main areas of research into problems:

1. The relationship between the consciousness of the individual and the consciousness of the group was studied.

2. The driving forces of social behavior were studied.

The impetus for the experimental development of social psychology was the First World War. In the USA, European countries, and Japan, the development of socio-psychological problems aimed at the needs of the army, production, and propaganda begins. This is explained by the fact that during the war, issues of preventing such phenomena as fear, panic, and the cohesion of military groups arise. And all these questions are socio-psychological in nature.

Beginning of the experimental stage of development of social psychology is connected with the works of V. Mede (Europe) and F. Allport (USA), V.M. Bekhtereva (Russia). The attention of these scientists was focused on the study of socio-psychological phenomena in the group. The method used was a laboratory experiment.

The essence of the experiments by V. Mede and F. Allport was that each experiment began with one subject, and then the number of participants increased. The purpose of the experiment was to identify the difference between performing an activity individually and in the presence of a group. Researchers have identified features of the course of cognitive processes when performed individually and in a group setting. They formulated demands for the transformation of social psychology into an experimental discipline and moved on to the systematic experimental study of social-psychological phenomena in groups.

In the development of psychology by this time, three theoretical schools had formed - psychoanalysis, behaviorism, Gestalt psychology, on the provisions and ideas of which social psychology began to rely. Particularly attractive were the ideas of the behavioral approach, which most closely corresponded to the ideal of building a strictly experimental discipline.

Influenced by experimental methodology, which social psychology began to use intensively in the period between the two world wars. The original integrative task of “socialization” of psychology was largely reduced to the study of the influence of a controlled social environment on individual behavior in laboratory conditions.

History of social psychology in Russia

In pre-revolutionary Russia, social psychology did not exist as an independent discipline. Russian psychology was part of world science and, in terms of its level of development, ranked third in the world after the USA and Germany.

Socio-psychological problems were developed in the entire complex of social sciences. Knowledge about individual behavior in a group and group processes was accumulated in military practice, in law and medicine, and in the study of national characteristics.

Representatives of the social sciences, in particular sociologists, had a significant influence on the development of socio-psychological ideas in the pre-revolutionary period.

The most developed socio-psychological concept is contained in the works N.K. Mikhailovsky(1842-1904), one of the founders of sociology in Russia. He had a great influence on the development of science, education, literature, and journalism. Mikhailovsky is responsible for the development of the psychology of mass social movements, one of the varieties of which is the revolutionary movement. According to his views, the active forces of social development are heroes and the crowd. The hero must take into account the public mood of the masses so that they follow him, which is still one of the most convincing explanations leadership phenomenon. Exploring the problem of communication between the hero and the crowd, Mikhailovsky identifies the following mechanisms of communication: imitation, infection, suggestion, opposition. He took precedence in the development of problems of imitation, in comparison with G. Tarde.

In jurisprudence, socio-psychological problems are presented in the works of L.I. Petrazhitsky. He is one of the founders of the subjective school in jurisprudence. According to his views, psychology is a fundamental science and the basis for all social sciences. In reality, only mental phenomena exist, and socio-historical formations are their projections. The development of law, morality, ethics, aesthetics is a product of the people's psyche. As a lawyer, Petrazycki was interested in the question of the motives of human actions and social norms of behavior. He believed that the true motive of human behavior was emotions.

A.A. made a significant contribution to the development of socio-psychological ideas. Potebnya (1835-1891). He developed issues of the theory of folklore, ethnography, and linguistics. According to Potebnya, the main feature of any ethnic group that determines the existence of a people is language. The function of language is not the designation of a ready-made thought, but its creation through the transformation of initial elements into linguistic ones. Representatives of different nations form thought through their national languages ​​in their own way, different from other nations.

Potebnya’s ideas were further developed in the works of his student and follower D.N. Ovsyaniko-Kulikovsky (1853-1920).

Social psychology gradually absorbed various interpretations of people’s social behavior. In this regard, the works of V.M. are of significant interest. Bekhtereva (1857-1927) - Russian physiologist, psychiatrist and psychologist (founded the first experimental psychological laboratory in Russia, and then a psychoneurological institute), who in his work “Collective Reflexology” (1921) tried to explain social behavior through the physiological laws and principles of living things body. This work is considered as the first textbook on social psychology in Russia, which provides a detailed definition of the subject of social psychology. Such a subject, according to Bekhterev, is the study of the activities of meeting participants in the broad sense of the word. He formulates the “Law of Rhythm”, “Law of Periodicity”, invents such principles of behavior as: variability, inertia, differentiation, cohesion, reproduction, selection, to which the individual and society are supposedly subject in their development. Bekhterev found that the group promotes a change in attitudes towards an action and allows one to withstand stronger stimuli. During the experiment, gender, age, education, and natural differences in the course of mental processes in group activities were studied. Bekhterev identified the system-forming characteristics of a team: the commonality of tasks and interests encourages the team to unity of action. The organic attraction of the individual into the community led the scientist to an understanding of the collective as a collective personality. He identifies as socio-psychological phenomena: interaction, relationship, communication. As collective ones - hereditary reflexes, mood, concentration, observation, creativity, coordination of actions. They unite people into teams: mutual suggestion, mutual imitation, mutual induction. Bekhterev summarized a large amount of empirical material obtained through socio-psychological methods of observation, questioning, and the use of questionnaires. And experimental studies of the influence of communication and joint activity on the formation of the processes of perception and memory were the beginning of experimental social psychology in Russia.

The use of the experimental method in the study of groups allowed social psychology to gain strength as a scientific discipline.

After the October Revolution of 1917, interest in social psychology increased sharply. This was due to a number of reasons: the need to comprehend revolutionary changes in society, an acute ideological struggle, the need to solve problems of restoring the national economy, the fight against homelessness, and the elimination of illiteracy.

A characteristic feature of social psychology in post-revolutionary Russia was the search for its own path. In this process, a significant role was played by the assimilation of Marxist ideas and their application to understanding the essence of socio-psychological phenomena. Representatives of various sciences took part in the discussion on the problems of “psychology and Marxism”: philologist and journalist L.N. Voitlovsky, lawyer M.A. Reisner, psychologists A.B. Zalkind, K.N. Kornilov and P.P. Blonsky, psychologist and philosopher G.I. Chelpanov, zoopsychologist V.A. Wagner, neurologist and psychiatrist V.M. Bekhterev. The essence of this discussion is a discussion of the subject of social psychology, the relationship between individual and social psychology, the relationship between sociology and social psychology. G.I. occupied a special place in this discussion. Chelpanov. He spoke about the need for the existence of social psychology along with industrial and experimental psychology. Social psychology, in his opinion, studies socially determined mental phenomena. They are closely related to the ideology and theory of Marxism.

In 1914, on his initiative, the Psychological Institute named after L.G. Shchukina is the first psychological scientific and educational institution in Russia. He defended the point of view according to which psychology should be divided into two parts:

1. Social psychology, which should be developed on the basis of Marxism

2. Psychology itself must remain an empirical science, independent of any worldview.

Against the proposal of G.I. Chelpanov was made by those scientists who shared the idea of ​​restructuring psychology on the basis of Marxism. P.P. Blonsky (1884-1941), A.B. Zalkind (1888-1936), V.A. Artemov. The essence of the objection was that from the point of view of Marxism, all psychology becomes social and, therefore, there is no need to distinguish any other special psychology. Against G.I. Chelpanov was performed by V.M. Bekhterev. He came up with a proposal to create collective reflexology.

M.A. Reisner believed that the way to build Marxist social psychology is “a direct correlation between the physiological teachings of I.P. Pavlov with historical materialism... social psychology should become the science of social stimuli and their relationships with human actions.”

Ideas of L.N. Voitlovsky (1876-1941) regarding the development of social psychology lay outside the direct polemics with G.I. Chelpanov. Voitlovsky believed that the subject of collective psychology (as social psychology was then called) should be the psychology of the masses. He examined a number of psychological mechanisms that, when implemented in a crowd, provide a special type of emotional tension that arises between participants in a mass action. The method of researching mass psychology is analysis of reports from direct participants and observation of witnesses.

A special place in the construction of Marxist social psychology was occupied by the works of G.V. Plekhanov (1856-1918), who gave a definition of the concept of “social psychology” from the position of historical materialism and showed its place and role in the history of society, based on the principles of social conditioning of public consciousness.

Of particular importance for Russian social psychology were the works of L.S. Vygotsky (1896-1934). He is responsible for the creation of the cultural-historical theory of mental development. Culture – creates special forms of behavior, modifies the activity of mental function. He proved that higher mental functions (voluntary attention, memory, abstract logical thinking, will) are socially determined. They cannot be understood as a function of the brain; to understand their nature, it is necessary to go beyond the body and look for the reasons for their development in the life of society.

The 1930s marked the peak of the development of socio-psychological research in applied industries:

– pedology - research was carried out on the problems of the relationship between the collective and the individual, factors in the formation of children's groups, stages of their development, the phenomenon of leadership, psychological problems of street children

Psychotechnics.

In the second half of the 1930s, the situation in the country and in science changed dramatically. The isolation of domestic science from Western science begins, the strengthening of ideological control over science, and the thickening of the atmosphere of decree and administration. And this is: the uselessness of social psychology, highlighting socio-psychological phenomena; social psychology has become one of the pseudosciences; lack of demand for the results of socio-psychological research; ideological pressure on science.

The period of hiatus in the natural development of social psychology lasted until the second half of the 1950s. there was no clarity regarding the subject of social psychology. However, there has not been a complete lack of social psychological research. The main source and area of ​​application of social psychology during this period was the pedagogical research of A.S. Makarenko (1888-1939), who developed the concept of personality formation in a team, considered the needs of the team.

During this period, scientists were attracted by three blocks of problems:

1. The development of methodological problems continued and existed within the framework of general psychology. Through the works of B.G. Ananyeva, S.L. Rubinstein, who developed the methodological principles of psychology - the principle of determinism, the unity of consciousness and activity, development, cultural and historical concepts, laid the theoretical and methodological foundation of social psychology.

2. Other problems concerned the social psychology of the collective, where the image of social psychology during this period was determined by the views of A.S. Makarenko.

3. Connected with the practical orientations of social psychology: the role of the leader in the pedagogical process and the emergence of practical relationship psychology.

Since the second half of the 50s of the 20th century, a special social and intellectual situation has developed in our country. The reduction of ideological control and relative democratization in all spheres of life led to a revival of the creative activity of scientists. The period of revival of social psychology in our country has begun. The philosophy of dialectical and historical materialism of K. Marx acted as the methodological basis. In the 1950s, psychological science defended its right to independent existence in heated discussions with physiologists. General psychology has become a reliable support for the development of social psychology.

In 1959, an article by A.G. was published in “Bulletin of Leningrad State University” No. 12. Kovalev “On social psychology.”

In 1962, the country's first laboratory of social psychology was organized at Leningrad State University under the leadership of Kuzmin.

In 1963, the Second All-Russian Congress of Psychologists took place, where for the first time a special section was dedicated to issues of social psychology.

Since 1965, the first domestic monographs on social psychology have been published: “Fundamentals of Social Psychology” - Kuzmina; “Questions of man by man” - Bodaleva; “Social psychology as a science” - Parygina.

Since 1967, the publication of textbooks and teaching aids began.

In 1968, the first department of social psychology was opened, the 1st conference of social psychology opened under the leadership of Kuzmin at Leningrad State University.

In 1972, the Department of Social Psychology began working at Moscow State University under the leadership of G.M. Andreeva.

The initiators of the development of domestic social psychology were: Baranov, Kuzmin, Shorokhova, Mansurov, Parygin, Platonov. In general, this stage is characterized by the development of the main problems of social psychology:

· In the field of methodology, the concepts of G.M. are being developed. Andreeva, B.D. Parygiym, E.V. Shorokhova.

· Group studies are reflected in the works of K.K. Platonova, A.V. Petrovsky, L.I. Umansky.

· Research in social psychology of personality is associated with the names of L.I. Bozovic, K.K. Platonova, V.A. Yadova.

· Research into the social psychology of communication was carried out by A.A. Bodalev, L.P. Bueva, A.A., Leontiev, B.F. Lomov, B.D. Parygin.

Currently, social psychology has found its application in various areas of public life: education, industrial production, management, the system of mass media and advertising, politics, and in the field of combating illegal behavior. In recent years, much attention has been paid to the study of social behavior in natural settings, as well as the study of social and cultural context using observational methods and modern correlation techniques.

THE CONCEPT OF GROUPS

A person becomes a person only in the world of people. People in groups behave differently than each individual would behave in a similar situation. A person's membership in a group even influences the course of his physiological reactions. By coming together, people acquire the “quality of integrity,” i.e. a person is a subject of the social world. The social world consists of communities of people united by joint activities. At every moment of time, a person acts in cooperation with other people. Performing various social functions, a person is a member of numerous different social groups, i.e. the point at which various group influences intersect. This is important for personalities, namely:

· Determines the objective place of the individual in the system of social activity.

· Affects the formation of personality consciousness.

To the psychological characteristics of the group refers to: group interests, group opinions, needs, forms, group goals. For a person belonging to a group, the awareness of belonging to it is realized through the acceptance of these characteristics. It is the difference in these psychological phenomena that allows one group to be distinguished from another. Group opinion is the opinion of a small group.

Public opinion is the opinion of a large group.

In social psychology it is customary to distinguish:

1. Conditional groups

2. Real groups

Psychologists mainly focus their attention on real groups. However, among the real ones there are also those that appear in general psychological research as real-laboratory groups. In addition to real laboratory ones, there are real real research groups. Social and psychological research is carried out both in real-laboratory and in real-natural groups.

Kinds. Natural groups number several million (classes, nations, youth, pensioners) and are divided into:

1. Large groups, which are:

A) Organized

B) Unorganized

2. Small groups (American psychologist Moreno studied the sociometry of a small group, believing that the whole world consists of small groups, and the individual himself is in a small group). Numbers from 2 (dyad) to 45 people. This is a fairly established field of social psychology. They are divided:

A) Becoming

B) Teams

The main criterion The existence of a group is not the simple co-presence of people, but their involvement in common activities. An important characteristic of a social group is the presence group norms - these are the rules for the functioning of the group, which all its participants must follow (written and unwritten norms - charter, legislation, religious regulations; not fixed rules).

An important group characteristic is the level group cohesion, reflecting the degree of commitment to a group by its members. With high cohesion in a group, a phenomenon is observed "in-group favoritism", which lies in the fact that, other things being equal, preference is always given to a member of one’s own group (We love any of our children, although there are much more talented and beautiful children....).

In quality indicators of group cohesion are considered two factors are considered:

1. The degree of attractiveness of the group for its members. Moreover, the more in a group there are those who are satisfied with their stay in the group of those who are satisfied with their stay in the group, the more cohesive the group is.

2. The level of mutual sympathy among group members. The greater the number of group members who prefer each other as partners for various forms of activity, the higher the level of cohesion.

Studies of small groups began in the second quarter of the 20th century, constituting the main content of social psychological research in foreign (American and European) psychology.

A small group is a small-sized association of people connected by direct interaction.

In general, social groups can be classified on various grounds:

1. By social status:

A) Formal (official) - have an externally specified structure and legal fixed status, normatively established rights and obligations of its members, appointed or elected leadership. (university).

B) Informal (unofficial) - do not have legal status, are formed on a voluntary basis, personal preferences (the presence of common interests, friendship, sympathy, pragmatic benefit), are characterized by greater structural flexibility (work on a specific problem). As they develop, they can turn into formal ones. They can develop both isolated and within formal groups.

This classification was proposed by Amer. researched by E. Mayo. According to Mayo, formal differs from informal in that it clearly defines all the positions of its members; they are prescribed by group norms. Within formal groups, Mayo discovered informal ones that develop spontaneously, roles are not prescribed in them, and there is no strict power structure. It was not the groups that began to differ, but the type of relationships within them.

2. By level of development:

A) Highly organized (highly developed) - long-existing, characterized by the presence of common interests and goals shared by all participants. Characterized by a high level of cohesion and a developed system of interpersonal relationships.

B) Lowly organized (underdeveloped) - random associations of people who have not yet launched joint activities, and are at the initial stage of their development.

3. By direct contact:

A) Primary groups (contact) - actually co-present in time and space (sports team). Consists of a small number of people between whom relationships are established based on their individual characteristics.

B) Secondary - contacts between participants are maintained through a number of intermediary links (the diplomatic corps of the state: the state’s ambassadors are located in different parts of the globe, but at the same time jointly implement the foreign policy of the state). The emotional connections between them are weakened, their interaction is determined by the desire to achieve a certain goal.

4. By coincidence of values ​​(by value characteristics):

A) Reference groups (standard - on which people are guided in their interests, personal preferences, likes and dislikes. A group that plays the role of a standard for a person. It can be real and conditional, i.e. represented in the human mind (heroes of books, writers - travelers).The reference group can be in opposition to the membership group or as a group emerging within the membership group.

B) Non-referential.

Amer. were first introduced. research Hyman. In his experiments, he showed that some members of certain small groups share the norms of behavior adopted not in this group, but in some other group that they are guided by. Membership groups – in which a person actually belongs. Sometimes membership groups and reference groups coincide.

5. By number –

A) Big ones - people, class, crowd.

B) Small – Family, work collective.

Psychological effects are specific to large and small groups.

6. Natural groups – in which people constantly find themselves in everyday life and activities.

7. Laboratory - created for the purpose of studying certain group processes. They are artificial, since their composition corresponds to the purposes of the study.

8. Real - groups that exist in a common space and time, united by real relationships (school class, family...).

9. Conditional - a set of people united by some common characteristic (gender, age, level of education, nature of activity). Such a community is not a group in the socio-psychological sense, but is called a social category.

10. Open and closed – the basis is the degree of achievement of the group’s influence on the environment and society. When determining the degree of closedness of a group, what is important is how easily a person can become a member of a given group or leave it.

11. Stationary and temporary – the permanence or temporary nature of an existing group is relative. What is important is the perception by group members of the time of its existence.

Most researchers in the field of social psychology note the “specific place” that social psychology occupies in the system of scientific knowledge. The origins of socio-psychological knowledge are found in the works of ancient philosophers; this knowledge concerned issues related to the position of man in society, the influence and management of people, etc. It can be said that already in those days the conditionality of socio-psychological knowledge by the needs of society could be traced. To date, this conditionality has intensified, and scientists state that the needs of social development practice dictate the need for research, especially with regard to border problems at the intersection of psychology and sociology.

Today, scientists note the borderline position of social psychology between psychology and sociology. The history of the formation of this discipline testifies to its maturation in the depths of both psychological and sociological knowledge. Moreover, each of the “parent” disciplines today includes it as an integral part. G. M. Andreeva considers the main reason for this inclusion to be the existence of a class of facts of social life, which themselves can be studied only with the help of the combined efforts of two sciences: psychology and sociology. For example, manifestations of social relations through the activities of people endowed with consciousness and will; or in situations of joint activity, when special types of communication and interaction connections arise.

Considering the question of the “borders” of social psychology with “parental” disciplines, G. M. Andreeva identifies several positions.

• 1. Social psychology is a part of sociology.
• 2. Social psychology is a part of psychology.
• 3. Social psychology is a science at the “junction” of psychology and sociology, and the “junction” itself is understood in two ways:
  • a) social psychology rejects a certain part of psychology and a certain part of sociology;
  • b) it seizes “no man's land” - an area that does not belong to either sociology or psychology.

These positions, according to the classification of American social psychologists J. McDavid and G. Harari, can be reduced to two approaches: ingradisciplinary and interdisciplinary, i.e. The place of social psychology is either within one of the “parent” disciplines, or on the borders between them (Fig. 1.1, 1.2).

Regarding the “border” between sociology and social psychology, it is worth pointing out the commonality of interests, firstly, at the level of the general theory of sociology, where problems of the relationship between society and the individual, social consciousness and social institutions, power and justice, etc. are studied. Secondly, in the field of special sociological theories, for example, sociology of mass communications, public opinion, sociology of personality. Thus, the border or the greatest number of points of intersection between sociology and social psychology lies in the field of studying large social groups (Fig. 1.2). As G. M. Andreeva notes, it is in this area that distinctions are especially difficult and the very concept of “border” is very conditional.

Rice. 1.1.Options for defining the “border” of social psychology with sociology and psychology

Rice. 1.2.

According to D. Myers, people often confuse social psychology with sociology, since both sciences have common interests in studying human behavior in groups. The difference is that sociologists study groups (from small to very large societies), and social psychologists study individuals (what a person thinks about others, how they influence him, how he treats them).

Thinking for yourself

As an example, D. Myers considers marital relationships: “... a sociologist would focus on trends in marriages, divorces, and degrees of compatibility, while a psychologist could explore why certain individuals are attracted to each other.”

The specificity of socio-psychological research includes the study of the influence of a group on individuals, and an individual on a group. In addition, one method of research in social psychology is experimentation, which involves some manipulation of a factor (for example, the presence or absence of peer pressure) to see what result it will lead to. The factors that sociologists study (such as economic class) are usually difficult or unethical to manipulate.

Regarding the “border” between general psychology and social psychology, the question is even more complex. This is partly due to the fact that many domestic scientists adhere to the point of view according to which social psychology is the result of the development of a certain aspect of general psychology, which records the results of people’s communication with each other. At the same time, they note the similarities between the phenomena of general and social psychology in their social conditioning and general historical determination. The difference in the social conditioning of socio-psychological phenomena is noted in their more specific, more complex nature, since “... they depend on the microenvironment, on direct contact between people and they are significantly influenced by the microenvironment (all elements of the structure of society).”

At the same time, the connection between social psychology and general psychology is two-way. Here, not only general psychological laws and phenomena are reflected in socio-psychological processes, but also socio-psychological phenomena and laws deepen our knowledge of general psychological processes. Individual characteristics of mental processes (cognitive, emotional, volitional) and properties (temperament, character) are most fully and adequately revealed only in conditions of group, collective activity. These shifts and changes in mental processes and properties in conditions of group activity have been experimentally proven in the works of V. M. Bekhterev, F. D. Gorbov, V. Moede, F. Allport, etc. Thus, the phenomena and laws of social psychology are, as it were, necessary completion of the system of psychological science.

According to the research of G. M. Andreeva, the specific problems of social psychology are closest to that part of general psychology, which is designated as personality psychology. At the same time, in general psychology the personality is studied outside of its social determination, and only social psychology studies this determination. The traditions of the Russian school of psychology indicate that personality is considered from the very beginning as “given” by society. A. N. Leontyev notes in his work that the activity of specific individuals can take place in two forms: in conditions of open collectivity or face to face with the surrounding objective world. But “no matter in what conditions and forms human activity takes place, no matter what structure it acquires, it cannot be considered as withdrawn from social relations, the life of society.” From this point of view, in general psychology the structure of needs, motives of the individual, etc. is studied, and in social psychology it is clarified how exactly the individual acts in various real social groups; why exactly these and not other motives, needs, attitudes were formed in this individual; to what extent all this depends on the group in which this individual operates, etc.

The works of foreign scientists also focus on the problem of similarities and differences in positions on the issue of studying the individual in social psychology and personality psychology. The difference between them lies in the social nature of social psychology.

Thinking for yourself

Personality psychologists focus on individual internal mechanisms and differences between individuals, such as why some individuals are more aggressive than others. Social psychologists focus on the general population of people, how people as a whole evaluate and influence each other. For example, how social situations can cause most people to act humanely or cruelly, to be conformist or independent, to experience sympathy or prejudice.

Domestic scientists V.V. Petukhov and V.V. Stolits define the place of social psychology in the system of psychological sciences as follows. Considering the psyche as a system for controlling human behavior, they propose a diagram of “3 subjects” (Fig. 1.3).

Rice. 1.3. Scheme of "3 subjects" V. V. Petukhov - V. V. Stolin

The first “subject” – the Organism (Fig. 1.3) – is a subsystem responsible for managing behavior related to the provision of the organism. The branch of psychology that studies it is called psychosomatics from lat. soma- body. Psychosomatics– a branch of psychology that studies the influence of psychological factors on health and health on the psyche.

The second “subject” – the Social Individual – is a subsystem for managing social behavior, i.e. interaction with other people is studied by social psychology.

The third “subject” – Personality – is a subsystem responsible for individual development, self-realization, this part of the psyche includes what is unique in a person, peculiar only to him, which is studied by personality psychology, psychology of personality differences, differential psychology

Main branches of social psychology

According to the views of domestic scientists, the following can be distinguished in the structure of social psychology as a science: main sections.

• 1. Social psychology of personality.
• 2. Social psychology of communication and interpersonal interaction.
• 3. Social psychology of groups.

Social psychology of personality covers issues determined by the nature of the individual, his inclusion in various groups and society as a whole (issues of socialization of the individual, his socio-psychological qualities, motivation of the individual’s behavior, the influence of social norms on behavior).

Social psychology of communication and interpersonal interaction examines various types and means of communication between people (including mass communications), the mechanisms of these communications, types of interaction between people - from cooperation to conflict. Closely related to this issue are issues of social cognition (people’s perception, understanding and assessment of each other).

Social psychology of groups covers a variety of group phenomena and processes, the structure and dynamics of small and large groups, various stages of their life, as well as intergroup relations.

The structure of modern social psychology: differentiation of social psychology, integration processes in social psychology

According to researchers in the field of socio-psychological knowledge, the structure of social psychology in each historical period of its development is the result of the interaction of two opposite, but closely related processes: a) differentiation, i.e. separation, fragmentation of social psychology into its component parts, sections; b) its integration with other and not only psychological branches of science, and the integration of social psychology both as a whole and its individual parts.

Differentiation of science is a progressive result of its internal formation, which occurs objectively and contributes to the development of science. Differentiation is a criterion for the independence of a scientific discipline, its differentia specifica- an aspect of reality that only this science can explore, since it has the necessary means for this: theory and method. Historically, the differentiation of science occurs as a result of more or less long-term development. Thus, over the centuries, psychology developed in the bosom of philosophy, then became an independent science, and only at the end of the 19th - first half of the 20th century. began a period of intensive branching of psychological sciences, which continues to this day. “Thanks to the differentiation of psychological science, more and more new aspects of the psyche are identified, the diversity and multi-quality of its manifestations are revealed. In each individual area of ​​psychological science, such specific data are accumulated that cannot be obtained in other areas...”

The processes of division of social psychology occur for many reasons, among the main directions the following are distinguished.

• 1. The leading orientation towards various methods of analysis of socio-psychological phenomena gives rise to theoretical, empirical(including experimental) And practical social psychology.
• 2. As a result of the study of various types of human life and his communities, the corresponding branches of social psychology have emerged: psychology of work, communication, social cognition and creativity, games. In the social psychology of labor, branches have been formed that study certain types of work activity: management, leadership, entrepreneurship, engineering work, etc.
• 3. In accordance with the application of socio-psychological knowledge in various spheres of public life. Social psychology is traditionally differentiated into the following practical branches: industrial, agriculture, trade, education, science, politics, mass communications, sports, art. Currently, they are intensively forming social psychology of economics, advertising, culture, leisure and etc.
• 4. In accordance with the main objects of research, modern social psychology has been differentiated into sections: social psychology of personality, psychology of interpersonal interaction (communication and relationships), psychology of small groups, psychology of intergroup interaction, psychology of large social groups and mass phenomena.

Today, in social psychology, a section is being formed extremely slowly that could be called “psychology of society,” another qualitatively specific object of study. At present, in the study of society, social psychology, in comparison with sociology, does not have specificity in the methods of studying it - this is the main circumstance that complicates the formation of such a section in social psychology.

Integration(from lat. integer– whole) is the consistency, orderliness and stability of the system of internal processes. When considering the processes of integration of social psychology in the system of other sciences, it is important to take into account two main contours of its integration: external and internal.

External psychological contour of integration refers to the unification of social psychology with numerous psychological branches, as a result of which relatively independent sub-branches are formed at the junction - parts of social psychology. For example, social psychology of personality formed as a result of the integration of social psychology with personality psychology, social psychology of work– social psychology with labor psychology, developmental social psychology was the result of the integration of social psychology with developmental psychology, etc. As a result of such integration, by the end of the 90s. XX century About 10 sub-branches of social psychology have already taken shape. Currently, the process of integration of social psychology with other psychological branches continues intensively: socio-economic, socio-ecological, socio-historical and other sub-branches of social psychology are being formed.

Internal socio-psychological circuit of integration refers to the development of social psychology itself, manifests itself in the processes of unification of its component parts that have separated as a result of differentiation. Firstly, internal integration concerns the simultaneous application of theoretical, empirical and practical methods of analysis of socio-psychological phenomena, which inevitably gives rise to complex types of research in social psychology, for example, theoretical-experimental, experimental-applied, etc. Secondly, it is clearly manifested in the simultaneous study of various interrelated objects of social psychology, for example: an individual and small work groups (teams) in an organization, small groups in large social groups, an individual (for example, a leader) in a large social group (for example, a party or social movement), etc. Thirdly, the most obvious direction of internal integration is the unification of those parts of social psychology that were differentiated by the types of people’s life activities and spheres of social life. As a result, many interesting and useful scientific and practical areas have emerged, such as: the psychology of teaching staff leadership (at the intersection of social psychology of management and education, research is being conducted under the leadership of R. X. Shakurov), the social psychology of creativity of engineers (E. S. Chugunova, etc. .), psychology of leadership of a scientific team (A. G. Allahverdyan, etc.), psychology of social cognition in the processes of work and communication (O. G. Kukosyan, etc.), etc.

Connection of social psychology with other sciences.

· Social psychology and sociology. What they have in common is that human behavior is considered in social conditions, in a social context, in a group. But sociologists are more interested in statistically large and theoretically defined groups, and social psychologists are more interested in small ones, with direct contact interaction. Sociology examines behavior and interaction in macrosocial conditions, and social psychology – in conditions of direct communication. The subjects of social action and interaction in sociology are large groups and communities, and if we are talking about a person, then he is understood as a representative of a formal group. In social psychology, a person interacts within socio-psychological groups or informal communities. Social psychologists, unlike sociologists, take into account the individual psychological characteristics of the individual when explaining interaction.

· Social psychology and personality psychology. Psychologists focus on individual internal mechanisms and on differences between individuals, asking questions such as why some individuals are more aggressive than others. Social psychologists focus on the general population of people, how people as a whole evaluate and influence each other. They ask how social situations can cause most people to act humanely or cruelly, to be conformist or independent, to experience sympathy or prejudice.

· Social psychology and general humanities disciplines: philosophy, history, cultural studies, political science. Explaining the behavior and interaction of people is impossible without taking into account their views, their worldview, their values ​​(including ideological ones). History provides a description of the cultural and ideological (including political) context of situations. Philosophy analyzes and interprets the essential content and sign-symbolic forms of various pictures of the world. Under the influence of semiotics, such directions in psychology as psychosemantics and cognitive psychology were formed. Psychosemantics studies the processes of sign (including speech, verbal) construction of the meaning of a situation. Cognitive psychology deals with the acquisition, organization and transmission of knowledge. She is interested in how, with the help of which categories and concepts the production, assimilation, classification, and memorization of knowledge can be explained; how can we explain the connection between the psyche and culture; how schemes of joint actions and behavior scenarios are created.

Political science is aimed at identifying current, topical social and group interests of people and describing technologies for their implementation. General humanities disciplines help to understand the semantic context of interaction. Social psychology as a special theory is aimed at describing and analyzing the mechanisms for realizing the motives and meanings of social actions. The latter brings it closer to sociology. They differ in the levels of analysis of motives and meanings: more social or more individual.

	|	next lecture ==>

Any person, unless he has adopted asceticism and lives the life of a hermit, is part of society. He interacts with other people and fulfills his social role. And, as a rule, the communication of different people with each other is always different. All people are different and they may belong to different social groups, occupy different social positions, have different status, etc. Communication and relationships between people are influenced by many factors, and our task, as people striving for self-development and a better understanding of human nature, is to understand what these factors are and what are the general features of people’s interactions and their behavior. And social psychology will help us understand this topic, to which we dedicate the next lesson of our course.

In this lesson we will understand what applied social psychology is, knowledge from the field of which we can successfully apply in practice. We will find out what people's relationships are based on, we will understand what the tasks and problems of social psychology are, we will talk about its subject, object and methods. And we will start by explaining the very concept of social psychology.

Concept of social psychology

This is a branch of psychology that is devoted to the study of human behavior in society and various groups, his perception of other people, communication with them and influence on them. Knowledge of the basics of social psychology seems very important for the psychologically correct education of a person and the organization of interaction between the individual and the team.

Social psychology is a science that is at the intersection of psychology and sociology, and therefore social psychology studies aspects characteristic of both sciences. To be more specific, we can say that social psychology studies:

• Social psychology of personality
• Social psychology of groups of people and communication
• Social relations
• Forms of spiritual activity

Social psychology also has its own sections:

According to Galina Andreeva- the person whose name is associated with the development of social psychology in the USSR, this science is divided into three main sections:

• Social psychology of groups
• Social psychology of communication
• Social psychology of personality

Based on this, we can describe the range of problems of social psychology.

Problems, subject and object of social psychology

Social psychology, considering mainly the individual in society, sets as its task to determine under what conditions the individual assimilates social influences and under what conditions he realizes his social essence. It reveals how social-typical traits are formed, why in some cases they appear, and in others some new ones have appeared. When studying, the system of interpersonal relationships, behavioral and emotional regulation is taken into account. In addition, the behavior and activities of the individual are considered in specific social groups, the contribution of an individual to the activities of the entire group and the reasons influencing the magnitude and value of this contribution are studied. The main guideline in the study of personality for social psychology is the relationship between the individual and the group.

Subject of social psychology- these are the patterns of occurrence, functioning and manifestation of socio-psychological phenomena at the micro, average and macro levels, as well as in different areas and conditions. But this relates more to the theoretical side of science. If we talk about the practical side of social psychology, then its subject will be a set of laws of psychodiagnostics, counseling and the use of psychotechnologies in the field of socio-psychological phenomena.

TO objects of social psychology include the carriers of socio-psychological phenomena themselves:

• Personality in a group and system of relationships
• Human-to-human interaction (relatives, colleagues, partners, etc.)
• Small group (family, class, group of friends, work shift, etc.)
• Interaction between a person and a group (leaders and followers, superiors and subordinates, teachers and students, etc.)
• Interaction of groups of people (competitions, debates, conflicts, etc.)
• Large social group (ethnicity, social class, political party, religious denomination, etc.)

To better understand what social psychology does and what it studies, you might ask questions like why, for example, do some students in a classroom behave in one way and others in another? How does the development of a person’s personality, for example, affect whether he was raised by alcoholic parents or sports parents? Or why do some people tend to give instructions while others tend to follow them? If you are interested in learning the psychological details of people’s communication or the interaction of groups of people with each other, then social psychology will best satisfy your needs in this matter.

And, of course, in order for the study of the subject and object of social psychology to be most effective, and for research to produce maximum results, social psychology, like any other science, must have a certain set of methods in its arsenal. We will talk about them below.

Methods of social psychology

In general, it cannot be said about specific methods of social psychology that they are independent of the general methods of psychology. Therefore, the use of any method must be determined by the specifics of the science presented, i.e. any method must be applied in a certain “methodological key”.

The methods of social psychology themselves have their own classification and are divided into four groups:

• Methods of empirical research (observation, experiment, instrumental methods, sociometry, document analysis, tests, survey, group personality assessment);
• Modeling method;
• Methods of managerial and educational influence;
• Methods of socio-psychological influence.

Let's look at each group of methods briefly.

Methods of empirical research

Observation method. Observation in social psychology means the collection of information, which is carried out through direct, targeted and systematic perception and recording of socio-psychological phenomena in laboratory or natural conditions. The main material on the issue of observation is contained in our second lesson, from which you can learn about what types of observation exist and how they are characterized.

You can learn how the observation method works by testing it through your own personal experience. For example, you would like to know what arouses the greatest interest in your growing child in the course of everyday life. To find out, you just need to observe him, his behavior, mood, emotions, reactions. Most of all, attention should be paid to speech acts, their direction and content, physical actions and their expressiveness. Observation will help you identify some individual interesting traits in your child or, conversely, see that any trends are becoming consolidated. The main task when organizing observation is to accurately determine what you want to see and record, as well as the ability to identify factors that influence this. If necessary, observation can be carried out systematically, certain schemes can be used for it, and the results can be evaluated using any systems.

Document analysis method- this is one of the varieties of methods for analyzing the products of human activity. A document is any information recorded on any medium (paper, photographic film, hard drive, etc.). Analysis of documents allows us to create a fairly accurate psychological description of a person’s personality. This method is very popular among psychologists and ordinary people. For example, many parents, noticing some deviations in the development of their children and trying to find out their cause, turn to psychologists for help. And they, in turn, ask parents to bring drawings that their children drew. Based on the analysis of these drawings, psychologists come to an opinion and give parents appropriate recommendations. There is another example: as you know, many people keep diaries. Based on the study of these diaries, experienced specialists can create a psychological portrait of their owners and even determine what factors influenced the fact that a person’s personality was formed in a particular way.

Survey method, and in particular interviews and questionnaires, are widespread in modern society. Moreover, not only in psychological circles. Interviews are taken from people from completely different social strata in order to obtain various types of information. Questionnaires are conducted in the same way. If you, for example, are the head of a department in an organization and are trying to find an opportunity to improve the performance of your department or make the team environment more friendly, you can conduct a survey among your subordinates, having previously compiled a list of questions. A subtype of interview can be safely called an interview for employment. As an employer, you can create a list of questions, the answers to which will give you an objective “picture” of the applicant, which will help you make the right decision. If you are an applicant applying for a serious (and not only) position, then this is a reason to prepare for an interview, for which today there is a lot of useful information on the Internet.

Sociometry method refers to methods of socio-psychological research into the structure of small groups and a person as a member of a group. This method is used to study relationships between people and within a group. Sociometric studies can be individual or group, and their results are usually presented in the form of sociometric matrices or sociograms.

Group personality assessment method (GAL) consists in obtaining characteristics of a person in a certain group, based on a survey of members of this group relative to each other. Using this method, experts assess the level of expression of a person’s psychological qualities, which are manifested in his appearance, activity and interaction with others.

Test method. Like some other methods of psychology, tests have already been discussed by us in one of the first lessons, and you can get acquainted in detail with the concept of “tests” there. Therefore, we will touch only on general issues. Tests are short, standardized and, in most cases, time-limited. Social psychology tests are used to determine differences between people and groups of people. During the tests, the subject (or a group of them) performs certain tasks or selects answers to questions from a list. Data processing and analysis are performed in relation to a certain “key”. The results are expressed in test indicators.

Scales that measure social attitudes are among the tests that still receive special attention. Social attitude scales are used for a variety of purposes, but most often they are used to characterize the following areas: public opinion, the consumer market, the choice of effective advertising, people’s attitudes to work, problems, other people, etc.

Experiment. Another method of psychology that we touched on in the lesson “Methods of Psychology”. An experiment involves the researcher creating certain conditions of interaction between a subject (or a group of them) and certain situations in order to restore the patterns of this interaction. An experiment is good because it allows you to simulate phenomena and conditions for research and influence them, measure the reactions of subjects and reproduce the results.

Modeling

In the previous lesson we already touched on the modeling method in psychology and you can familiarize yourself with it by following the link. One has only to note that in social psychology modeling develops in two directions.

First- is a technical imitation of processes, mechanisms and results of mental activity, i.e. mental modeling.

Second- this is the organization and reproduction of any activity, through the artificial creation of an environment for this activity, i.e. psychological modeling.

The modeling method allows you to obtain a wide variety of reliable socio-psychological information about a person or group of people. For example, in order to find out how employees of your organization will act in an extreme situation, will be under the influence of a state of panic, or will act together, simulate a fire situation: turn on the alarm, notify employees about the fire and observe what is happening. The data obtained will allow you to determine whether it is worth paying attention to working with employees on behavior in the workplace in emergency situations, understand who is the leader and who is the follower, and also learn about those qualities and character traits of your subordinates that you may be aware of. , did not know.

Methods of managerial and educational influence

Management and educational methods mean a set of actions (mental or practical) and techniques, the implementation of which can achieve the desired results. This is a kind of system of principles that provides guidance for organizing productive activities.

The influence of educational methods is manifested through the direct influence of one person on another (persuasion, demand, threat, encouragement, punishment, example, authority, etc.), the creation of special conditions and situations that force a person to express himself (express an opinion, do something action). Influence is also exerted through public opinion and joint activities, transmission of information, training, education, and upbringing.

Among the methods of managerial and educational influence there are:

• Beliefs that form certain mental manifestations (views, concepts, ideas);
• Exercises that organize activities and stimulate positive motives;
• Assessment and self-esteem that determine actions, stimulate activity and assist in regulating behavior

An excellent example of managerial and educational influence is the upbringing of a child by his parents. It is through education that the basic traits and properties of his personality are born and formed in a person. It is not difficult to guess that if you want your child to grow up to be an independent, self-confident and successful person with a set of positive qualities (responsibility, determination, resistance to stress, positive thinking, etc.), then he should be raised properly. In the process of upbringing, it is important to conduct confidential conversations, be able to direct the child’s activities and behavior, reward him for success and make it clear when any offense has been committed. It is necessary to provide compelling arguments, arguments, and examples. Set examples of authoritative people and outstanding personalities. It is also important to always try to give the correct assessment of your child’s behavior, actions, actions and results, and to form adequate self-esteem in him. These are, of course, just a few examples. But it is important to understand that only in case of correct managerial and educational influence on a person’s personality it becomes possible to have a positive and constructive influence on him.

And the last group of methods of social psychology are methods of socio-psychological influence.

Methods of socio-psychological influence

Methods of socio-psychological influence are a set of techniques that influence the needs, interests, inclinations of a person, his attitudes, self-esteem, emotional state, as well as the socio-psychological attitudes of groups of people.

Using methods of socio-psychological influence, you can influence people’s needs and their motivation, change their desires, aspirations, emotions, mood, and behavior. By skillfully using these methods, you can change people's views, opinions and attitudes, as well as create new ones. By exerting the correct socio-psychological influence on a person, it is possible to ensure the most favorable position of a person in society, make his personality more resistant to the influence of various factors, and form a healthy worldview and attitude towards people, the world, and life. Sometimes methods of socio-psychological influence are used with the aim of destroying existing personality traits, stopping any activity, motivating the search for new goals, etc.

As we can see, the methods of social psychology are one of the most complex topics in psychological science. To understand these methods in detail, you need to spend more than one month studying them. But, despite this, one precise conclusion can be made: taking into account all the methodological difficulties, any socio-psychological study must have the ability to clearly identify and delimit the tasks to be solved, select an object, formulate the problem under study, clarify the concepts used and systematize the entire range of used for research methods. This is the only way to make socio-psychological research as accurate and effective as possible.

But in order for you to now begin to implement the acquired knowledge into your life, without engaging in in-depth study of specialized materials, you should know several important laws and patterns of social psychology that influence a person’s life in society and his interaction with this society and others. people.

People always perceive those around them in one way or another.

We usually attribute certain properties to the people we come into contact with, which relate to social stereotypes. Stereotypes can be attributed to people on anthropological grounds, that is, based on the characteristics of the race to which the person belongs. There are also social stereotypes - these are images attributed to people occupying certain positions, having different statuses, etc. Stereotypes can also be emotional, i.e. associated with the physiological properties of people.

Therefore, when communicating with different people, you must understand that your perception of them may be subconsciously based on stereotypes. So, for example, a beautiful person may turn out to be someone with whom it is better not to mess with, while an unattractive person in appearance may amaze you with the beauty and depth of his soul. If you are prejudiced against people of a certain race, this does not mean that they are what you think they are. After all, people of any skin color, gender, religion, worldview can be both good and bad. It is important to learn to perceive people not based on stereotypes, but only on personal experience. As they say, don’t judge by your clothes, but judge by your mind.

People easily assume social roles imposed on them.

A person who is in constant interaction with society builds his behavior according to the social role assigned to him by this society. This can be easily seen in the example of a person who has suddenly been promoted: he becomes very important, serious, communicates with people from above, those who yesterday were on an equal footing with him are no longer a match for him today, etc. Social roles imposed by society can make a person weak-willed and powerless to change anything. People who are affected by such an influence can “sink” to the most vile actions (even murder) or raise themselves to heights.

We must always remember that social roles imposed by society have a strong influence on a person. In order to be able not to “bend” under the pressure of a social role and remain yourself, you need to be a strong personality, have an inner core, have beliefs, values ​​and principles.

The best communicator is the one who knows how to listen.

Conversation is an integral part of human communication. When we meet other people, we start a conversation: about how someone is doing, about news, about changes, interesting events. The conversation can be friendly, business, intimate, formal or non-binding. But many people, if you pay attention to this, like to talk much more than listen. In almost every company there is a person who constantly interrupts, wants to speak out, insert his word, but does not listen to anyone. Agree, this is not very pleasant. But this is a pronounced need for conversation. In other people it may be less pronounced, but, in any case, it always exists.

If a person is given the opportunity to talk incessantly, then after saying goodbye to you, he will experience only the most pleasant emotions from communication. If you constantly talk, then he will most likely become bored, he will nod his head, yawn, and communicating with you will become an unbearable burden for him. A strong personality is a person who is able to control his emotions and desires. And the best interlocutor is the one who knows how to listen and not say a word, even if he really wants to. Take this into account and practice - you will see how pleasant it will be for people to communicate with you. In addition, it will train your self-control, self-discipline and attentiveness.

People's attitudes influence their perception of reality and those around them.

If a person has a pre-formed predisposition to react to something in a certain way, then he will do it in accordance with it. For example, you must meet some person and you were told something very bad about him in advance. When you meet, you will experience acute hostility towards this person, reluctance to communicate, negativity and rejection, even if this person is actually very good. Anyone, even the same person, can appear before you in a completely different light if you are given a certain attitude towards their perception beforehand.

You shouldn’t take on faith everything you hear, see, or learn from someone else. The main thing is always to trust only personal experience and check everything yourself, taking into account, of course, everything that you have learned, but not based on it. Only personal experience will allow you to find out reliable information and make objective judgments about other people, events, situations, things, etc. In this case, the saying “Trust, but verify!” is ideal.

People's behavior is often influenced by how others perceive them.

In psychology this is called reflection. This is not common to everyone, of course, but to many. There are people who are entirely dependent on how others perceive them. An exaggerated sense of the importance of someone else’s opinion leads to the fact that a person begins to feel constant discomfort, emotional stress, dependence on another person, the inability to defend his position, express his opinion and many other rather unpleasant sensations. Moreover, these sensations can manifest themselves in different ways: from small mood swings during the day to prolonged and deep depression.

To avoid such situations, you need to understand that someone else’s opinion is just someone else’s opinion. It’s not for nothing that successful people say that someone else’s opinion will never feed you and your loved ones, buy you clothes, or bring you success and happiness. Quite the contrary, almost always someone else’s opinion makes people give up, stop striving for something, developing and growing. How others perceive you is their own business. You don't have to adapt to anyone and should always remain yourself.

People tend to judge others and justify themselves.

Situations in life are different, as are the people who find themselves in them. But the reactions evoked in people who find themselves in these situations can be perceived by us in completely different ways. For example, if you are standing in line to make a purchase and there is a person in front of you who has been buying something for a very long time, this causes negative emotions in you, you may begin to express dissatisfaction, rush the person in front, etc. At the same time, if for some reason you are delayed at the checkout, and the person standing behind you begins to reprimand you for something, you will begin to give completely reasonable arguments as to why you are standing for so long. And you'll be right. People find themselves in situations like this almost every day.

A significant advantage for you in terms of your development will be mastering the skill of critically assessing the situation and the people who find themselves in it (others and yourself). Whenever you feel that you are beginning to experience negative emotions, irritation, or a desire to express dissatisfaction towards another person due to some circumstances, abstract yourself for a while. Take a look at the situation from the outside, critically evaluate yourself and others, think about whether the other is to blame for the current situation and how you would behave and feel in his place. Most likely, you will notice that your reaction is not entirely correct and you should behave calmer, more tactfully, more consciously. If you do this practice systematically, life will become much more enjoyable, you will be less irritated, you will begin to experience more positive emotions, you will become more positive, etc.

People often identify with other people.

In social psychology this is called identification. Very often our identification with others occurs during our communication with someone: a person tells us some story or describes a situation in which he was a participant, but we subconsciously put ourselves in his place in order to feel what he felt. Identification can also occur while watching a movie, reading a book, etc. We identify with the main character or other participants. In this way, we dive deeper into the information we study (watch, read), understand the motives of people’s actions, and evaluate ourselves with them.

Identification can be done consciously. This helps a lot both in non-standard, difficult life situations, and in the process of ordinary life. For example, if in some situation you find it difficult to make the right decision, you don’t know what to do best, remember the hero of your favorite book, movie, person who is an authority for you, and think about what he would do in your place, what he said or did. A corresponding image will immediately appear in your imagination, which will lead you to the right decision.

People form their first impression of a person within the first five minutes.

This fact has long been proven by psychologists. We make our first impression of another person within the first 3-5 minutes of communication with him. Although first impressions can be deceiving, this point should be given special attention. When meeting a person for the first time, we look at his appearance, posture, behavior, speech, and emotional state. Also, the first impression is influenced by whether we feel that a person is superior to us in some respects, how attractive his appearance is, what attitude the person shows towards us. Other people form impressions of us using the same criteria.

You need to be able to make a first impression. And for this it is necessary to take into account all the above factors of its formation. Therefore, whenever you know that you are planning a first meeting with a person (an interview, a meeting in a friendly company, a date, etc.), you must prepare for this: look neat, behave confidently, be able to find something to say, observe manners decency and etiquette rules, speaking clearly, etc. Remember that the first impression is the foundation for building all future relationships.

A person attracts into his life what corresponds to his thoughts.

This is called variously: the law of attraction, “like attracts like” or “we are what we think.” The meaning is this: throughout a person’s life, he meets people and events happen that resonate with him: correspond to his thoughts, expectations, and beliefs. If a person radiates negativity, then more troubles happen in his life, he experiences failures, and meets bad people. If positive vibrations emanate from a person, then his life will be filled, for the most part, with good news, good events, and pleasant people.

Many successful people and spiritual personalities say that everything in life depends on how we think. Therefore, if you want your life to change for the better, more positive events to happen, good people to meet, etc., then, first of all, you must pay attention to your way of thinking. Rebuild it in the right way: from negative to positive, from the position of a victim to the position of a winner, from a feeling of failure to a feeling of success. Don't expect immediate changes, but try to be positive - after a while you will notice changes.

In a person's life, what he expects often happens.

You've probably noticed this pattern more than once: what you fear most happens with enviable regularity. But the point here is not at all that this is something bad, but how strong an emotional coloring you attach to it. If you constantly think about something, worry about it, expect something, then there is a high probability that it will happen. Any expectations you have can have an impact on the people around you. But negative emotions (fear, apprehension, apprehension), as is known, take hold of people’s consciousness to a much greater extent than positive ones. That's why what we don't want happens more often than what we want.

Reorganize yourself - stop thinking about what you fear and expecting it, start expecting only the best from life and those around you! But the main thing here is not to overdo it, so as not to feel disappointed. Create a habit for yourself to expect only good things, but do not idealize your expectations. Move away from negativity and tune into a positive mood, but always remain realistic and look at the world soberly.

There are a lot of patterns that operate in communication between people, because psychology is a science that has a huge number of features. To make your life better, and to make communication with other people and interaction with society more pleasant and effective, you need to develop attentiveness to everything that happens around you: people’s behavior, their reactions, the reasons for certain situations and events. No theory will change you and your life on its own. Only the practical application of new knowledge, honing your communication skills and training your personal qualities can influence you and change what you want to change.

As for the person himself in social psychology, we can say with confidence that the person, as a mature personality, plays the main role here. It is social and psychological characteristics that allow such a science as social psychology to exist at all. And the knowledge about it that we now have, we want to deepen and strive to apply in practice, gives us the opportunity to identify, recognize and understand the factors that influence the development of personality, the specifics of the interaction of people among themselves and in groups (as well as these groups). And this already allows us to make our lives, both as individuals and as parts of society, more comfortable and conscious, and the results of our actions and actions are better and more effective. It is for these reasons that we must master the basics of social (and not only) psychology and make their use part of our daily life.

Literature

For those who have a desire to dive deeper into the study of the topic of social psychology, below we present a small but very good list of literature that makes sense to consult.

• Ageev B.S. Intergroup interaction: socio-psychological problems. M., 1990
• Andreeva G.M. Social psychology M., 2003
• Bityanova M.R. Social psychology M., 2002
• Bodalev A.A. Perception and understanding of man by man M. Moscow State University, 1982
• Bodalev A.A. Personality and communication M., 1995
• Dontsov A.I. Psychology of the collective M., 1984
• Leontyev A.A. Psychology of communication M., 1998
• Kolomensky Ya.L. “Differentiation of social psychology and some problems of developmental psychology” - St. Petersburg: Peter, 2000
• Myasishchev V.N. Psychology of relations Moscow-Voronezh, 1995
• Fundamentals of socio-psychological theory / Ed. A.A.Bodaleva, A.N. Sukhova M., 1995
• Parygin B.D. Social psychology M., 1999
• Personality psychology and lifestyle / Rep. ed. E.V. Shorokhova M. Science, 1987
• Rean A.A., Kolomensky Ya.L. Social educational psychology St. Petersburg, 1998
• Robert M., Tilman F. Psychology of the individual and group M., 1988
• Sekun V.I. Psychology of activity. Minsk, 1996
• Semenov V.E. Method of studying documents in socio-psychological research L., 1983
• Modern foreign social psychology Texts / Ed. G.M.Andreeva et al. M., 1984
• Social psychology / Ed. A.N. Sukhova, A.A. Derkach M., 2001
• Social psychology and social practice / Ed. E.V. Shorokhova, V.P. Levkovich. M., 1985
• Social psychology of classes / Ed. G.G.Diligensky M., 1985
• Spivak D.L. Altered states of mass consciousness St. Petersburg, 1996
• Stankin M.I. Psychology of communication Course of lectures M., 1996
• Stefanenko T.G., Shlyagina E.I., Enikolopov S.N. Methods of ethnopsychological research. M., 1993
• Stefanenko T.G. Ethnopsychology. Vol. 1. M., 1998
• Sukharev V., Sukharev M. Psychology of peoples and nations. M., 1997
• Freud 3. Group psychology and analysis of “EGO” M., 1991
• Shevandrin N.I. Social psychology in education M., 1996
• Shikhirev P.N. Modern social psychology in Western Europe M, 1985

Test your knowledge

If you want to test your knowledge on the topic of this lesson, you can take a short test consisting of several questions. For each question, only 1 option can be correct. After you select one of the options, the system automatically moves on to the next question. The points you receive are affected by the correctness of your answers and the time spent on completion. Please note that the questions are different each time and the options are mixed.