Social psychology and society. History of foreign social psychology Analysis of an article on social psychology

Object of social psychology– an individual from a group, a small, medium or large social group, interpersonal or intergroup interaction.

Tasks of social psychology

Below is a list of the main tasks of social psychology, but in reality the list is much wider; each individual task contains a number of additional tasks:

  • Studying the phenomenon of human interaction, information exchange;
  • Mass mental phenomena;
  • Socio-psychological characteristics of social groups as integral structures;
  • Mechanisms of social influence on a person and his involvement in society as a subject of social life and social interaction;
  • Creation of theoretical and practical recommendations for improving the interaction of people and social groups:
    • Further development of social psychology as a multi-level knowledge system;
    • Research and problem solving in small groups (hierarchy, leadership, manipulation, interpersonal relationships, conflicts, etc.);
    • Research and problem solving in large groups (nations, classes, unions, etc.);
    • Study of the socio-psychological activity of the individual in a team.

Problems of social psychology

A short list of the main problems of social psychology:

  • Intragroup fluctuations;
  • Stages of development of social groups;
  • Intragroup and intergroup leadership;
  • Psychological characteristics of social groups;
  • Communication and interpersonal relationships in a social group;
  • Intergroup social relations;
  • Psychology of large, medium and small social groups and mass media;
  • Mass socio-psychological phenomena (Mass mood, consciousness, mental infection, etc.);
  • Human adaptation and its features in social environments;
  • Management of socio-psychological processes.
  • More details in the article

Methods of social psychology

Social psychology uses methods of general psychology and sociology:

  • survey;
  • interviewing;
  • conversation;
  • group experiment;
  • studying documents;
  • observation (included and not included).

Social psychology also has its own specific methods, for example the method sociometry- measuring the private relationships of people in groups. The basis of sociometry is the statistical processing of test subjects’ answers to questions related to their desire to interact with members of a certain group. The data obtained as a result of sociometry is called sociogram(Fig. 1), which has specific symbolism (Fig. 2).

Rice. 1. Sociogram. Using this sociogram, it is possible to identify the central core of the group, that is, individuals with stable positive relationships (A, B, Y, I); presence of other groups (B-P, S-E); a person who enjoys the greatest authority in a certain respect (A); a person who does not enjoy sympathy (L); mutually negative relationships (M-N); lack of stable social connections (M).

Rice. 2. Sociogram symbols.

History of social psychology

Social psychology as a separate field of psychology took shape only by the middle of the 19th century, but the period of accumulation of knowledge about society and man in particular began long before that. In the philosophical works of Aristotle and Plato one can find socio-psychological ideas, French materialist philosophers and utopian socialists made significant contributions, and later the works of Hegel and Feuerbach. Until the 19th century, socio-psychological knowledge was formalized within the framework of sociology and philosophy.

The first stage in the formation of social psychology as an independent field of psychological science is considered to be the second half of the 19th century, but it was only a theoretical and empirical science, all activity consisted of describing observed processes. This transition period is associated with the emergence of a journal on linguistics and ethnopsychology in 1899 in Germany, founded by Lazarus Moritz(Lazarus Moritz, philosopher and writer, Germany) and Heyman Steinthal(Heymann Steinthal, philosopher and philologist, Germany).

The first outstanding personalities on the path of development of empirical social psychology are William McDougall(McDougall, psychologist, England), Gustave Lebon(Gustave Le Bon, psychologist and sociologist, France) and Jean Gabriel Tarde(Gabriel Tarde, criminologist and sociologist, France). Each of these scientists put forward his own theories and justifications for the development of society by the properties of an individual personality: W. McDougall justified instinctive behavior, G. Lebon - from the point of view, G. Tarde - .

1908 is considered the starting point of Western social psychology, thanks to the publication of the book " Introduction to Social Psychology» W. McDougall.

In the 1920s, thanks to the published works of the researcher V. Mede(Walther Moede, psychologist, Germany), who first used mathematical methods of analysis, began a new stage in the history of social psychology - experimental social psychology(Experimentelle Massenpsychologie). It was V. Mede who first recorded a significant difference in the abilities of people in groups and alone, for example, pain tolerance in a group, sustained attention, etc. The discovery of the influence of groups in the emotional and volitional spheres of a person is also important.

The next significant step in the development of social psychology was detailing the methodology of a mass socio-psychological experiment an outstanding psychologist Gordon Willard Allport(Gordon Willard Allport, USA). This technique entailed a lot of experimental work, which was based on the development of recommendations for the development of advertising, political propaganda, military affairs and much more.

W. Allport and V. Mede set a point of no return in the development of social psychology from theory to practice. In particular, in the USA, social psychology is closely related to the business sphere and is an applied science. Large-scale studies of professional diagnostics, management problems, manager-employee relations and much more.

A further significant event in the development of the methodological field of social psychology was the development and creation of the method sociometry Jacoba Levi Moreno(Jacob Levy Moreno, psychiatrist and sociologist, USA). According to Moreno's work, the framework of all social groups determines the syntonicity (liking/antipathy) of individual members of this group. Jacob Moreno argued that all social problems are solvable with the correct division and unification of individuals into microgroups according to their sympathies, values, behavior and inclinations (if an activity satisfies a person, he does it as well as possible).

In all areas of Western social psychology, the basic element is "cage" of society- microenvironment of society, a small group, that is, the average structure in the standard scheme “Society - Group - Personality”. A person is dependent on his social role in the group, on its standards, requirements, and norms.

In Western social psychology, the field theory Kurt Tzadek Lewin(Kurt Zadek Lewin, psychologist, Germany, USA), according to which the individual is constantly influenced by the field of attraction and the field of repulsion.

The concepts of Western social psychology are based on psychological determinism, unrelated to economic conditions. Human behavior is explained by psychological reasons: aggressiveness, sexuality, etc. All concepts of Western social psychology are divided into four areas:

  1. Psychoanalytic;
  2. Neo-behaviourist;
  3. Cognitive;
  4. Interactionist.

Areas of social psychology

Psychoanalytic direction of social psychology based on the concept and socio-psychological views of Sigmund Freud, on the basis of which modern followers have created several theories, one of which has been put forward Wilfred Ruprecht Bayon(Wilfred Ruprecht Bion, psychoanalyst, England), according to which a social group is a macrotype of an individual, that is, the characteristics and qualities of groups, like individual people. Interpersonal needs = biological needs. All people have a need to be liked by other people and desire to join a group (the need to belong). The group leader has the highest regulatory function.

Neo-Freudians of social psychology seek explanations for interpersonal relationships in the subconscious and human emotions.

Neo-behaviourist direction of social psychology is based on observational facts, excluding specific properties of human behavior, theoretical materials, areas of values ​​and motivations. In the concept of the neo-behavioristic direction, behavior directly depends on learning. According to non-behavioristic judgments, the organism adapts to conditions, but the principle of transforming these conditions as a result of human activity is rejected. The main neo-behaviouristic thesis: the genesis of an individual is determined by the random reinforcements of his reactions. One of the main representatives of the neo-behaviouristic direction is Burress Frederick Skinner(Burrhus Frederic Skinner, psychologist and writer, USA), according to his works, the composition of human behavior depends on the consequences of this behavior (operant conditioning).

One of the most famous theories of the neo-behaviorist direction is the theory of aggression, which is based on the “aggression-frustration” hypothesis (1930), according to which an aggressive state is the basis of the behavior of all people.

Neo-Freudians and neo-behaviorists have the same interpretation of human behavior, which is based on the desire for pleasure, and all the needs and environment of a person are not associated with historical conditions.

At the core cognitivist direction of social psychology(cognition) are the features of people’s cognitive processes, which are the basis of socially determined behavior, that is, behavior is based on human concepts (social attitudes, views, expectations, etc.). A person’s attitude towards an object is determined by its categorical meaning. The main cognitivist thesis: consciousness determines behavior.

Interactionist direction of social psychology is based on the problem of interaction between people in a social group - interactions, based on the social roles of group members. The very concept of " social role» entered George Herbert Mead(George Herbert Mead, sociologist and philosopher, USA) in the 1930s.

Representatives of interactionism Shibutani Tamotsu(Tamotsu Shibutani, sociologist, USA), Arnold Marshall Rose(Arnold Marshall Rose, sociologist and political scientist, USA), Munford Kuhn(Manford H. Kuhn, sociologist, leader of symbolic interactionism, USA) and others attached paramount importance to such socio-psychological problems as communication, reference groups, communication, social role, social norms, social status, etc. Developed by Herbert Mead and other representatives interactionism conceptual apparatus is widely widespread in socio-psychological science.

Interactionism recognizes the social conditioning of the human psyche as the basis of communication. A number of empirical studies conducted by representatives of interactionism have recorded similar behavioral manifestations in similar social situations. However, social interaction is considered by interactionists without specifics in the content of the process of this interaction.

The problem of social psychology of the USSR and Russia

Research in the field of social psychology in the 1920s was based on biopsychological positions, which was contrary to the ideology of the country. As a result, works in the field of social psychology and many other branches of psychology were prohibited, as they were perceived as an alternative to Marxism. In Russia, the development of social psychology began only in the late 1950s. As a result of this “freeze” in the development of social psychology, a single categorical specificity has not been formed, research is conducted at the level of empirics and description, but despite these difficulties, Russian social psychology has scientific data and applies them in various areas of human activity.

Books on social psychology

The term "sociology of conflict"was first introduced by the German philosopher and sociologist G. Simmel (1858-1918), who gave this name to one of his works published at the beginning of our century. In modern social psychology and sociology, the concept of “conflictology” is a collective one, used to designate a special field of research.

Since the mid-20s of the 20th century, interest in the theoretical analysis of conflict problems has decreased significantly, but since the early 40s it has increased again. An attempt to revive conflict theory is associated with the name of T. Parsons.

Abroad, the problem of conflict is studied within the framework of various scientific schools: social Darwinism, psychoanalysis, Gestalt psychology, interactionism, cognitivism, mathematical modeling, etc.

The subject of conflictologyare the general patterns of occurrence, development and resolution of conflicts. She is mainly interested intwo types of conflicts:intrapersonal and social. TOmain types of conflictsinclude: interpersonal, between small, medium and large social groups, international. However, in real life, conflicts in their “pure” form are very rare.

Conflict - multi-level, multidimensional and multifunctional socio-psychological phenomenon.At the macro, average and micro levels, it represents a social conflict in all its diversity, at the personal level it is intrapersonal (a clash of tendencies, aspects of personality).

There is no single definition of social conflict. In the 80-90s, many works were published in which psychologists proposed various interpretations of the conflict. However, despite the difference in approaches to defining conflict, we can distinguishits main properties:

  • the presence of contradictions, in any case, differences between the interests, values, goals, motives, roles of subjects;
  • opposition, confrontation between the subjects of the conflict, the desire to cause damage to the opponent, to injure the “I”;
  • negative emotions and feelings towards each other as background characteristics of conflict interaction.

The largest number of definitions is available regarding interpersonal conflict. It is believed that a conflict is a collision of opposing goals, interests, positions, roles, opinions, values ​​or views of the participants in the interaction.

As for intrapersonal conflict, the primacy in the field of its study belongs to psychoanalysis, Gestalt therapy, and humanistic psychology.

Naturally, each type of conflict requires a special approach and definition. Family conflicts differ from conflicts in scientific and military units, especially from criminogenic, political and organizational ones.

The structure of the conflict consists of such characteristics as:

  • parties or participants in the conflict (individuals, social groups; states, coalitions of states);
  • number of participants and scale of distribution: global, regional, local, interpersonal;
  • subject of conflict;
  • images of a conflict situation as its internal pictures: participants’ ideas about themselves (their motives, values, capabilities), about the opposing parties; Each participant's idea of ​​how the other perceives him, of the environment in which specific relationships develop.

Based on this, we distinguishfour types of conflict situations:

  • a conflict situation objectively exists, but it is not realized or perceived by the participants. There is no conflict as a socio-psychological phenomenon;
  • a conflict situation exists objectively, and the parties perceive it as a conflict, but with certain significant deviations from reality (the case of inadequate perception of the conflict);
  • there is no objective conflict situation, but nevertheless the relations of the parties are mistakenly perceived by them as conflicting (a case of a false conflict);
  • the conflict situation objectively exists and is more or less adequately perceived by the participants (a case of objective conflict).

In addition, when conflict analysis should highlight:

  • spheres of emergence and manifestation (politics, economics, society);
  • spatiotemporal characteristics (place and time of conflicts);
  • conditions and cause of the collision;
  • frequency - the number of clashes between parties to a conflict over a certain period of time (episodic, chronic, cyclical conflicts);
  • duration - the amount of time from the beginning to the resolution of the conflict (short-term and long-term);
  • means and actions used by participants to achieve their goals (blackmail, disinformation, rumors, etc.);
  • form of manifestation, expressed at the verbal and non-verbal level, openly and hidden;
  • result (outcome) of the conflict.

Conflicts serve a variety of functions, the main ones being destructive, creative and diagnostic.

Destructive (destructive) functionmanifests itself in the negative consequences of the conflict: hostility, emotional tension, mental trauma, violations of the law, morality, discipline, military clashes, pathogenic consequences.

Creative (constructive) functionconflict is to overcome difficulties and crises. Positive conflict promotes the establishment of socially positive norms of communication, an environment of mutual demands, leads to the renunciation of illegal actions, an increase in the level of organization, and an improvement in the psychological climate.

Diagnostic functionassociated with understanding the causes of the confrontation that arose and the motives of its participants.

Conflict as a socio-psychological phenomenon is a process that occurs over time.

The dynamics of the conflict include the following stages:

  • A pre-conflict situation is characterized by “tension” of relations, emphasized by formality, a split of the community into groups, etc. This situation is called a potential conflict or pre-conflict situation. When this is realized, a transition to the next stage of the conflict occurs.
  • Conflict interaction, which can proceed as follows:
  1. Option 1 - exit from the conflict;
  2. 2nd option - conflict;
  3. 3rd option - fight to the bitter end.
  • Conflict resolution is the situation after the conflict (from this point of view, the conflict can be completely, partially resolved and not resolved at all).

Available different classifications of conflicts. Depending on the grounds, real, false, irrational, as well as intrapersonal and social conflicts are distinguished.

There is also a more complex typology of conflicts. Social conflicts are divided into socio-political, which are based on the struggle for the acquisition, preservation and retention of power; socio-economic, etc.

A practical use-oriented classification of conflicts depending on the areas of their occurrence and manifestation is as follows:

  • socio-political, including ethnopolitical, conflicts;
  • interethnic conflicts;
  • conflicts in the sphere of management (organizational and managerial);
  • family and marital conflicts;
  • conflicts in production, services and trade;
  • conflicts in scientific and military units;
  • conflicts in conditions of isolation (among the crews of space complexes, long-distance ships, members of Antarctic stations (polar explorers) and among convicts).

Let us dwell on the most typical conflicts: interethnic, industrial, in the army environment and in conditions of isolation.

As a consequence of social tensions that splashed to the surface during the collapse of totalitarian regimes, social (regional, interethnic) conflicts engulfed a significant part of the Eurasian continent. The paradox is that the post-communist, mostly nationalist regimes that come to power not only do not represent a lack of conflict, but in a number of cases they themselves give rise to conflict situations or renew old ones with renewed vigor. A significant cause of interethnic conflicts is the nation’s desire for its homogeneity, “purity,” as well as the discriminatory behavior of representatives of one nationality towards representatives of another nationality.

Interethnic conflicts arean extreme negative form of manifestation of complex underlying contradictions in relations between ethnic communities and groups of people, occurring under the influence of many socio-economic, political, historical, national-psychological, and religious factors. In its pure form, interethnic conflicts do not exist in nature, with the exception of the everyday level. Interpersonal ethnic conflicts arise due to cognitive reasons, clashes of stereotypes, and attitudes. Most often they act as ethnopolitical, ethnoeconomic conflicts.

With the simultaneous existence of the most favorable factors, contradictions between the vital interests of different ethnic communities can reach a critical state and acquire the character of harsh confrontation in the form of open confrontation, which leads to group and mass excesses. The causes of interethnic conflicts are not superficial, but deep, systemic and structural in nature.

Interethnic conflicthas several stages of development. First, there is an increase in tension, an increase in the activity of any one national group, gradually another group is drawn into the confrontation, the organization of movements is formed by nominating leaders and activists, a material base is created, structuring takes place in the following directions: national movement and power; national movement and representatives of other nationalities; national movement and law enforcement agencies.

Social tension, which precedes actual conflictual interethnic interactions, is characterized by confrontation in interethnic relations, the formation of the image of the “enemy”, nationalist, apparatist-minded socio-political associations and movements, the process of their arming, the circulation of rumors, acts of protest: rallies and demonstrations, the presence of discontent.

The stages of conflicting interethnic actions themselves are characterized by mass excesses, armed struggle with elements of civil war between unconstitutional formations.

Interethnic conflicts differ in the specific causes of their occurrence, the severity of the consequences, the number of participants, etc.

Industrial conflicts consist of a wide range of situations - from protracted interpersonal conflicts to “one-time” situations that pass quickly, but require difficult decisions to be made.

The main models for the development of industrial conflicts are:

  1. Business dispute. The area of ​​disagreement is specific and defined. Participants believe in the possibility of reaching an agreement. They “feel” the situation, realize the advantages and disadvantages of common points of view.
  2. Formalization of relations. Characterized by an expansion of the mismatch zone. Participants can refuse to discuss the problem that has arisen, choosing formal methods of decision-making.
  3. Psychological antagonism. Participants sometimes find it difficult to clearly define what they disagree with, but tend to exaggerate existing differences; The hostility of the participants is so significant that it determines the entire development of the situation.

There are several strategies for dealing with conflict:

firstly, “leaving the situation”;

secondly, concluding a compromise;

thirdly, a manifestation of compliance, a complete renunciation of one’s intentions;

fourthly, achieving goals at any cost;

fifthly, orientation towards cooperation.

As for conflicts between and within commercial structures, their causes are related to the struggle for the sales market, pricing and other issues.

Marital conflicts have their own specifics. If in the life of spouses there are areas where their interests, needs, intentions and desires come into conflict, giving rise to especially strong and long-lasting negative states, then such marital unions are called conflicting. However, the marriage union can be maintained for a long time due to other factors.

There is the following classification of marital conflicts:

  • conflicts arising from an unsatisfied need for the value and significance of one’s “I”, violation of the sense of dignity on the part of the other partner;
  • conflicts based on the unsatisfied sexual needs of one or both spouses;
  • conflicts that have their source in dissatisfaction with the needs of one or both spouses for positive emotions;
  • conflicts due to the addiction of one of the spouses to alcoholic beverages, gambling, or drugs;
  • conflicts due to financial disagreements arising from the exaggerated needs of one of the spouses;
  • conflicts over meeting the spouses’ needs for food, clothing, home improvement, as well as expenses for the personal needs of one of the spouses;
  • conflicts due to unsatisfaction of the need for mutual assistance;
  • conflicts based on different needs for recreation and leisure, various hobbies.

Of course, this classification does not cover the entire variety of marital conflicts, but it makes it possible to systematize the main ones.

At the core conflicts in military unitslies the deformation of statutory relations and stratification in the army environment (in other words, “hazing”). Serious conflicts arise in connection with the reduction of the army and its reform. The main cause of conflicts is the everyday instability of officers and their families as a result of the redeployment of units.

Conflicts in conditions of isolation and, moreover, a criminal subculture stand apart.

Conflicts among convicts- this is a struggle between them with the help of mental and physical violence with the aim of occupying a leading position, extracting unearned income, possessing prohibited items, forcibly satisfying needs, revenge for deviation from criminal traditions and norms, etc.


The term “socialization” came to social pedagogy and psychology from political economy. Initially its meaning was “socialization of the land, means of production, tools of labor.” In the mid-20th century, socialization became an independent area of ​​interdisciplinary research: social typology, sociology, political science, philosophy of education, social pedagogy. In the beginning, socialization was understood as human development in childhood, adolescence, and youth. Today this definition is considered limited [...]

“Violence” can be interpreted as: 1) coercion, coercion, oppression, pressure, pressure, use of physical force; 2) to force against one’s will, to compel, to force one to fulfill someone else’s will; 3) unnatural, tense, etc.1. Accordingly, both physical and mental violence will have their own criminal legal content. Physical violence is the actual or potential infliction of physical harm, which is understood as a violation of the anatomical and physiological integrity […]

There are currently 1,311 children being raised in foster families. These are mainly those children who were already raised in institutions for orphans or the category of children who were traditionally sent to be raised in these institutions. 442 children were transferred from institutions to families, including 85 children from orphanages. This made it possible to significantly reduce the number [...]

A person can face violent acts at any time and in any situation: at work, on vacation, in a public place. Family is no exception. An integral part of security is security in the family. “My home is my castle,” says a well-known saying, i.e. it emphasizes that the house is a symbol of security. However, many members […]

In the context of the current systemic social crisis in society, which has affected various aspects of the everyday life of the population, there is a need for an equally comprehensive observation of the social space, analytical study of the management decisions made. This implies the principle of a systemic, integrated approach to solving the problems of information and sociological support for management processes in the social sphere. The nature of crisis conditions and processes in the social sphere often has such […]

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Liberalism in the 19th century as a socio-political worldview was represented by various concepts, and it cannot be presented as a holistic theory. However, we can say that the main postulate of this worldview was associated with the issue of responsibility and moral duty of the state to the individual for the inability to provide all the conditions for his normal existence. The main theoretical problems were related to [...]

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Among the general requirements that social diagnostic methods must meet are validity, reliability, unambiguity and accuracy. There are a number of additional, special requirements for the choice of diagnostic methods in social work. Firstly, the preferred method is the simplest of all possible and the least labor-intensive of those that allow you to obtain the required result. A simple survey technique can sometimes be more effective [...]

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Western experts define social psychology as a science that studies 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, including social psychology, is approximately the same - the emergence of socio-psychological ideas within the framework of philosophy and their gradual spin-off from the system of philosophical knowledge. In our case, this happened through the initial spin-off of two other disciplines - psychology and sociology, which directly gave birth to social psychology.

Historically, social psychology arose at the beginning of the 20th century. as a reaction to the “asocial” nature of general psychology: as if it, social psychology, was charged with the task of socializing psychology and personalizing the study of society. The year of her birth 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.

It is known that research interest in the study of people’s social behavior arose and took shape already in the second half of the 19th century. and was marked by the appearance of works on what is conventionally called “folk psychology,” which analyzes the ways in which the individual and society interact (recognition of the primacy of the individual or the primacy of society). “Psychology of peoples” as one of the first forms of socio-psychological theories emerged in the middle of the 19th century. in Germany (M. Lazarus, G. Steinthal and W. Wundt). “Mass psychology” - another form of the first social-psychological theories - was born in France in the second half of the 19th century. (S. Siegele and G. Le Bon).

The beginning of scientific social psychology in the West is usually associated with the works of V. Mede in Europe and F. Allport in the USA in the 20s. XX century 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 and Gestalt psychology, on the provisions and ideas of which social psychology began to rely. Particularly attractive were the ideas of the behaviorist approach, which were most consistent with the ideal of building a strictly experimental discipline. Under the influence of 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.

The price that social psychology paid for its experimental rigidity was the loss of relevance of the results. Breaking free from the spell of the experimental approach led to a crisis in the 1960s and 1970s, when many alternative approaches to the development of this discipline were proposed. The main effect of this crisis was the liberalization of social psychology and its liberation from the artificiality of the laboratory experiment. In recent years, more 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 correlational techniques.

Annotation. This article aims to consider the influence of society on the formation of personality. The issue of “I-concept” is considered, which shows how a personality is formed due to his behavior in society. Particular attention is paid to the issue of the role of the individual in the social world and how the role influences the person. This article will show you how to become a successful person in the social world. The article contains basic materials about social psychology; after reading the entire article, you will be able to make the right decisions and analyze other people. The publication touches on the topic of man himself and society as a whole. The scientific article is devoted to the research of Z. Freud, D. Myers, M. Andreeva, which is aimed at human social psychology. The problem of man in the social world has not yet been fully studied and requires careful research.

Keywords : person, society, role, experiment, personality, concept, soul, perception, conflict, theory, communitarianism.

How do we understand the concept"society", Many people, upon hearing this word, immediately say one answer - communication. At first glance, it seems that answering this question is not difficult. Indeed, the concept of society has long been firmly established in our scientific and everyday vocabulary. But as soon as we attempt to define it, we immediately become convinced that there can be many such definitions. Let's try to remember stable phrases familiar to us that would include these words, for example, human society, pedagogical society, scientific society, etc. In this case, by society we mean a certain group of people who have united to communicate, cooperate, mutually help and support each other. A person always likes to wait for support from society. If he received it and refuse him once, then he will think of you as a bad person.

A person is also included in larger communities of people. He belongs to a certain social group, class, nation, and is a citizen of a state, sometimes several, if their legislation allows. In the article we will also look at not only society as a whole, but also about the individual himself. The person has many problems with society. It's no secret that society has a strong influence on the individual. A similar trend, for example, underlies fashion, when a person sees something in a person and repeats it after him. We see the same situation when everyone votes “for”, and those who do not want to remain in the minority repeat after them. After all, this example directly shows that a person does not want to stand out among everyone without showing his opinion or choice. First, we will look at the work of the famous social psychologist D. Myers “Social Psychology”. Let's consider the following question: “Who am I really?”Because you are a unique and complex creature, you have many opportunities to complete the sentence “I am...”. (Could you give 5 answers to this question? Which ones?) Taken together, these answers will give what is called your self-concept. The elements of your self-concept—the beliefs by which you define yourself—are your self-schemas. A person decides for himself what to do and think, if the condition of his opinion is met. We all know the famous work “War and Peace” (Author L.N. Tolstoy), the author in his work shows everything in detail about the character and development of the individual as a whole. For example, Pierre Bezukhov (the main character) falls under the influence of secular youth. He has just returned to his homeland, received a huge inheritance, but feels lonely and alien in the world of high society. Therefore, he becomes an easy prey for those who have been moving in society for a long time and know how to profitably use Pierre’s ignorance. This example shows that the person was not fully socialized before, since he did not have long communication with any individual. The self-schemas that make up our self-concept operate in our minds like the Dewey system. If we talk about the essence of a person, then from a philosophical point of view, to comprehend the essence of something means to identify several of its main defining features. Our self-concepts include not only the self-schemas that characterize us at a given moment in time, but also our possible selves, that is, what we can become. To be more precise, thenI include ideas about ourselves as we dream of becoming - a rich, graceful, passionately loved and loving self. Our self-concepts also include those selves that we are afraid to become - the unemployed self, the unloved self and the self that cannot cope with schoolwork. program. Such possible selves push us to achieve certain goals; when these goals are achieved, we can look into the life we ​​strive for. You should never be afraid of difficulties, because fear of difficulties leads your own self into a difficult situation. But at the same time, we should never forget about respect and self-esteem. Is self-esteem (as the most complete self-esteem) the sum of all our present and possible selves? If we think we're attractive, athletic, smart, and deserving of wealth and love, does that mean we have low self-esteem? This is what psychologists often mean when they argue that in order for people to feel better about themselves, they need to feel more attractive, athletic, smart, etc. Every person thinks differently and based on this, many psychologists say that self-esteem can develop into selfishness and narcissism. How can you still develop your Self? The self-concept has become an important subject of social psychological research because it organizes our thinking and controls our social behavior. When we take on a new role—college student, parent, or salesperson—we may feel out of place at first. However, gradually our idea of ​​ourselves absorbs what at first was just a game, a role in the theater of life. For example, while playing certain roles, we can begin to speak out in support of something that we had never thought about before. This happens when we seek to justify our actions. Moreover, self-observations can be revealing: we may, say, believe that we hold the views we claim to hold. Pathological research has concentrated our interest too exclusively on the repressed. Since we know that the “I” can be unconscious in the proper sense of the word, we would like to know more about it. Until now, in our research, the only reference point has been the sign of consciousness or unconsciousness; and finally we have seen how polysemantic it can be. All our knowledge is always connected with consciousness. After all, we can recognize the BSZ only by making it conscious. But how is this possible? What does it mean to “make something conscious”? How does this happen? We already know where to look for the starting point for this. We showed that consciousness is the surface of the mental apparatus, that is, we attributed it as a function of one system, which is spatially closest to the external world. However, spatially not only in the sense of function, but this time also in the sense of anatomical division. Our investigation must also take this perceptual surface as its starting point.

I will say in advance that self-consciousness (SC) is all perceptions that come from the outside (sensory perceptions), and from the inside – what we call sensations and feelings. But what about those internal processes that we can—roughly and imprecisely—generalize as thought processes? They flow somewhere in the depths of the apparatus in the form of displacements of psychic energy on the way to action, but do they reach the surface, which allows consciousness to arise? Or does consciousness reach them?[2, p.193]. Elsewhere I have already suggested that the real difference between the BSZ and PSZ representations is that the former occurs on some material that remains unknown, while the latter (PSZ) adds a connection with verbal representations. This is the first attempt to give both systems, PSZ and BSZ, distinctive signs other than their relation to consciousness. The question is - how is something realized? – is more expediently expressed as follows: how is something preconscious? And the answer would be: by connection with the corresponding verbal representations. To become a successful person, you must always rely only on yourself and your work, and you cannot trust many people in society. Society shows us that each person is individual and has his own sphere of communication and activity. Let's talk about the success and failure of a person in society. The material for building our self-concept is not only our roles, social identity and the results of comparisons with other people, but also our everyday experience. Setting challenging but achievable goals and following through on them makes you feel more competent. . As I already talked about respect and self-esteem, the principle “success fuels self-esteem” has led some researchers to the question: is it possible through positive “messages” such as “You’re great!”, “You can do everything!” increase self-esteem and stimulate achievement? Sometimes people tell lies about another person's success.

Indeed, low self-esteem sometimes creates problems. Compared to those who underestimate themselves, confident people are happier; they have a more stable nervous system, are less likely to get stomach ulcers and suffer from insomnia, there are fewer alcoholics and drug addicts among them, and they endure failures more courageously, but in society there are also people with a weak psyche who have difficulty coping with failures, losses, misfortune and etc. However, according to critics of this interpretation, the diametrically opposite explanation is at least equally probable: problems and failures lead to low self-esteem. Reality is primary, feelings are secondary. As we overcome challenges and gain skills, our successes nurture a more optimistic attitude and greater self-confidence. Children gain self-esteem not only through praise, but also through achievements that are backed by hard work.

Now we can talk about the opinions of others in society. If a person has achieved a lot, then recognized achievements have a positive effect onSelf-concept , because we see that others evaluate us positively. It's easier for us to think good about ourselvesif that’s what others think about us. Children who are perceived as gifted, hardworking, or helpful tend to “incorporate” these assessments into their self-concepts and behavior. If ethnic minority students feel threatened by stereotypes about their intellectual abilities, or if women perceive that they are not expected to excel in either math or science, they can begin to behave in accordance with these expectations. They would rather not refute these prejudices, but rather realize their capabilities in other areas. Our habit of using others as a mirror through which we perceive ourselves was called by sociologist Charles Cooley"reflected self" What we appear to others is what we perceive as reflections of ourselves, Cooley wrote. ( American social psychologist).Since we all tend to find it easier to praise others than to criticize them, our self-assessments based on excessive praise may be somewhat inflated. As will be clear from the following discussion, people living inWestern countries.

It can also be said that the fate of our ancestors depended on what others thought about them. Protection from the groups to which they belonged increased their chances of survival. If groups made it clear to them that they did not approve of them, they had enough biological wisdom to feel shame and have low self-esteem. We are their descendants and have an equally deep-seated need to belong to a group; if we are socially ostracized, we experience the same pain because it deprives us of the opportunity to respect ourselves, notes Mark Leary (1998). He calls self-esteem a psychological measuring instrument with which we monitor how others evaluate us and respond to this evaluation.

How does society influence the formation of a person? Firstly, human development is directly influenced by his social sphere and with whom he interacts. Secondly, formation occurs through human actions and behavior. Behaviorists said that human behavior depends on upbringing and social conditions. You can also talk about the human soul. The soul and body of a person, his spiritual and physical sides are inextricably linked (however, representatives of various sciences who study man do not always take this connection into account: biologists and doctors often do not pay attention to socio-cultural characteristics, humanists often overlook physiological and neurobiological foundations of human activity). Thanks to his special physical and mental organization, a person becomes a person capable of purposeful, systematic actions, creative achievements, among which the creation of human forms of communication comes first. On this basis, speech and writing develop, the ability to name things and generalize their properties in concepts, to work together not only to develop natural resources, but also to create a new socio-cultural environment. Reflections on the fate of the social sciences and their relationships with society are today a global task for all social scientists. The basic concept of social psychology is the role of man. A person can play any role in society based on his concepts, opinions and activities. In addition, a social role always bears the stamp of social evaluation: society can either approve or disapprove of some social roles (for example, such a social role as “criminal” is not approved); sometimes this approval or disapproval can differentiate among different social groups , role assessment can take on completely different meanings in accordance with the social experience of a particular social group. It is important to emphasize that it is not a specific person who is approved or disapproved, but primarily a certain type of social activity. Thus, by pointing to a role, we “attribute” a person to a certain social group and identify him with the group. A person chooses a role himself, whether he wants it or not, since the formation must be complete. In reality, each individual performs not one, but several social roles: he can be an accountant, a father, a trade union member, a football team player, etc. A number of roles are assigned to a person at birth (for example, to be a woman or a man), others are acquired during life. However, the social role itself does not determine the activity and behavior of each specific bearer in detail: everything depends on how much the individual learns and internalizes the role. .

The next question will be about personality theory. Many psychologists have said about the individual that he is the main figure in society and is independent of anyone. You can consider the personality theories of such famous psychologists as: Jung, K. Rogers, J. Kelly, B. Skinner, A. Maslow. Let's talk about the first theory of personality - Analytical theory of personality. His theory is based on “archetypes,” that is, these are primary ideas that are passed down through generations. Some archetypes are universal, for example, the ideas of God, good and evil, and are common to all peoples. But there are archetypes that are culturally and individually specific. Jung suggested that archetypes are reflected in dreams, fantasies and are often found in the form of symbols used in art, literature, architecture and religion (Jung K., 1994). The meaning of every person’s life is to fill the innate archetypes with specific content. But about the humanistic theory of personality, we can say that psychologists consider innate tendencies towards self-actualization. Personal development is the development of these innate tendencies. According to K. Rogers, there are two innate tendencies in the human psyche. The first, which he called a “self-actualizing tendency,” initially contains in a collapsed form the future properties of a person’s personality. The second – “organismic tracking process” – is a mechanism for monitoring the development of personality. Based on these tendencies, a person develops a special personal structure in the process of development. “I”, which includes the “ideal I” and the “real I”.. But the Cognitive Theory of Personality, it is similar to the humanistic theory. But the difference is that the main source of personal development, according to Kelly, is the environment, the social environment, that is, society itself. Cognitive theory of personality emphasizes the influence of intellectual processes on human behavior. In this theory, any person is compared to a scientist who tests hypotheses about the nature of things and makes predictions about future events. The behavioral theory of personality in society shows the internal aspect of a person. What is going on inside him, he shows it in society, i.e. behavior. The main source of personality development, according to both directions, is the environment in the broadest sense of the word. Personality has nothing of genetic or psychological inheritance. Personality is a product of learning, and its properties are generalized behavioral reflexes and social skills. Having discussed personality theories, we can say that if you collect all theories into one and at the same time perform all functions, you can becomea fully formed and successful person. Conflicts often occur in society due to the characters of people, gossip, disputes, unnecessary chatter, etc. In psychology there is such a term as “Communitarianism”. Many social conflicts are the result of contradictions between individual rights and the rights of society. An individual's right to own a firearm conflicts with the right of his neighbors to live in safety. One person's right to smoke conflicts with the right of others to breathe smoke-free air. The right of an individual to engage in uncontrolled business violates the right of residents of nearby houses to environmental safety. .Hoping to combine the best individualist and collectivist moral values, some sociologists and social psychologists, including myself, seek to create the concept of communitarianism, designed to balance individual rights with society's right to collective well-being. In the second halfXXV. Western individualism strengthened its position. Parents welcome the independence and independence of their children and are not very concerned about their obedience (Alwin, 1990; Remley, 1988). Clothing styles and manners have become more diverse, personal freedom is practically unlimited, and there are no longer common moral values ​​(Schlesinger, 1991). Until very recently, rising individualism was accompanied not only by an increase in the number of people suffering from depression, but also by a rise, in most Western countries, in other indicators of social ill-being—divorce, teen suicide, juvenile delinquency, and the number of children born out of wedlock. I would like to make a reservation right away: such trends are due to many reasons. The very fact of the existence of a correlation between growing individualism and the decline of public morality does not yet prove that one is a consequence of the other. And of course, none of the communitarians feel nostalgia for the past, in particular for gender inequality, which existed precisely in the 1950s. .

If you have read this entire article from beginning to end, then you have been introduced to social psychology for society. In the preface, I expressed the hope that my article “will be both strictly scientific and humane, impeccable from the point of view of the factual material presented in it, and fascinating.” It is up to you, not me, to judge whether I was able to realize this plan. But I must admit that working on the article gave me, its author, great pleasure. If it brings you, my readers, at least part of the pleasure, benefit and satisfaction that it brought me, my joy will be even greater. I am convinced that knowledge of this article can curb intuition with critical thinking, illusion with understanding, and the tendency to make hasty judgments with empathy. We tried to answer some fascinating questions. Who am I? How to become successful? What is conflict? What theories of personality exist? Why society at all? Why do people help each other in some cases and harm each other in others? What gives rise to social conflicts and what needs to be done in order for the fist to unclench and turn into a palm extended for a handshake? Answers to these questions broaden our horizons. And as I saidOliver Wendell Holmes , “consciousness, enriched by some significant thought, never returns to its original state.” I myself was convinced of this from my own experience. Perhaps you will agree with me when you begin to understand the essence of society itself and what kind of person you need to be in it.

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