The subject and tasks of psychology. Basic questions of psychology

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

What is the essence of psychology? Speaking somewhat metaphorically, in the development and improvement of detailed instructions for a person and for a person so that he can effectively and environmentally manage himself, his life, his happiness. Distinguish between everyday and scientific psychology. The latter gives more objective and rational knowledge, allowing you to be in harmony with your inner nature and find suitable ways for its successful implementation in society.

Life psychology

The concept of psychology has everyday and scientific meanings, and they differ significantly. Everyday psychology has point knowledge, since it describes specific situations, tasks, and specific people. Such knowledge is very approximate and vague. Formed and accumulated spontaneously.

The way to get them is random experience and its subjective interpretation, moreover, howusually on an unconscious level. Knowledge of worldly psychology is usually transferred with great difficulty. According to the Russian psychologist Yu. B. Gippenreiter, the eternal problem of "fathers and children" lies in the fact that children do not want to adopt the experience of their fathers.

Scientific psychology

Scientific psychology is based on purposeful research and experiments, tends to generalizations, for which special terms and concepts are introduced and used. Such knowledge is quite rational and conscious, moreover, it is accumulated and transferred much more easily. The tasks of psychology include their integration into everyday life and human activities. Scientific psychology has extensive, varied and sometimes unique factual materials that are not fully available to carriers of everyday psychology.

Development of scientific psychology

In 1879 there was a separation of psychology, formerly a branch of philosophy, into an independent direction of science. It was in that year that W. Wundt opened the first psychological experimental laboratory. Thus, from a science, theoretical psychology developed into an experimental one.

What does psychology as a science do? Studies the psyche and mental phenomena of man. The development of scientific psychology took place in several stages, at each of which it was defined differently:

1. The science of the soul, the presence of which tried to explain any incomprehensible phenomena in the life of an individual.
2. The science of consciousness, which was understood as the ability to think, desire,feel. The main method of study was introspection.
3. The science of behavior. The tasks of psychology are to conduct experiments and observe the visible manifestations of a person: reactions, actions, behavior.
4. The science of objective patterns, manifestations and mechanisms of the psyche.

Gradually, the subject and structure of psychology underwent evolutionary transformations. The field studied by psychology expanded and began to include, in addition to conscious, also unconscious phenomena.

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Today, the subject of psychology is the psyche, the mental phenomena of a person and mental phenomena in collectives and groups. Within the framework of general psychology, which studies the most general patterns based on a generalization of theoretical and experimental psychological research, mental processes are described: sensation, attention, perception, imagination, representation, thinking, memory, speech, emotions, will, as well as mental states and personality traits.

Tasks

Like any other science, psychology solves a number of unique and specific problems. Based on the definition of the subject, the following tasks of psychology are distinguished:

1. The study of psychic phenomena.
2. Study of the patterns of their formation and development.
3. Study of physiological processes that cause mental phenomena.
4. Introduction of psychological knowledge into the life of people.

Solving the problems of psychology allows you to identifyways to properly master practical tools for the formation and development of mental processes, states and personality traits, as well as to develop scientific and practical methods for education and training, rationalization of labor processes and the interaction of people in various activities.

Methodology

Research methods are techniques and tools that help to obtain the information needed to build a scientific theory and draw up practical recommendations. The development of science in any industry directly depends on the perfection, reliability and validity of the methods used by it. All this is true in relation to psychology.

She studies complex, diverse and very difficult phenomena for scientific knowledge. Therefore, its success throughout the entire period of development was most directly dependent on the quality of the research methods used.

Since psychology is a relatively young science, it quite often relies on the methods of either more "adult" sciences, such as philosophy, history, physics, biology, mathematics, medicine, physiology, or resorts to more modern methods - computer science and cybernetics. At the same time, any independent science has its own unique methods, such as psychology. All methods of general psychology can be divided into three groups:

1. Subjective: various types of observation - standard, free, external, included, self-observation; surveys - oral, written, free,standard; two types of tests - task tests and questionnaire tests;
2. Objective: tests are projective and objective; experiments - natural and laboratory;
3. Modeling: logical, technical, mathematical, cybernetic.

There are also other methods of studying mental phenomena, such as conversation - as one of the survey options, suggesting greater freedom of the procedure, or a method of studying documents, analyzing human activities. To increase the effectiveness of the study of mental phenomena, the complex use of various methods is recommended.

Branches of Scientific Psychology

In modern psychology, a number of developing relatively independent areas - industries are distinguished. They are usually divided into fundamental and applied. The first include those who study the basic issues of psychology and constitute a certain basis that unites all its branches, such as:

• zoopsychology;
• comparative psychology;
• differential psychology;
• general psychology;
• psychology of personality;
• age psychology;
• neuropsychology;
• psychogenetics;
• psychophysiology;
• psychology of abnormal development;
• social psychology;
• transpersonal psychology.

Applied branches of psychological science include those that have practical application in human life, such as:

• medical psychology;
• pedagogicalpsychology;
• economic psychology;
• political psychology;
• legal psychology;
• family psychology;
• art psychology;
• work psychology;
• sport psychology;
• psychology of religion.

Kedrov BM in his classification of sciences gives psychology a central place. He considers it, on the one hand, as a product of other sciences, on the other hand, as a possible source of explanation for their formation and development.

Age psychology

Acquaintance with developmental psychology is very interesting in that it considers psychological crises as necessary stages for the transition to a new stage of development, and along with this describes natural ways to overcome them. In general, she studies the patterns of human development and the age dynamics of his psyche. According to I. V. Shapovalenko, the main tasks of developmental psychology are as follows:

• Explore the age-related development of the personality, taking into account the historical situation.
• Study the patterns and features of the course of mental processes in different age periods.
• Establish age-related opportunities, features, patterns of learning and the implementation of various activities.
• Study the driving forces, their sources and mechanisms of human mental development throughout his life.
• To determine the age norms for the development of mental functions, to identify the psychological resources and creative potential of a person.
• Create the most accurate periodization of mental development.
• Create age-related and clinical diagnostic methods.
• Promote the establishment of services to ensure the systematic monitoring of mental he alth in the developmental process of children.
• Develop programs for psychological support and assistance to people in crisis periods of their lives.
• Develop the most optimal organization of educational processes for representatives of any age categories.

Today, there are many age periodizations, for example, foreign authors - Z. Freud, K. Jung, K. Horney, J. Piaget, E. Erickson, D. Bromley, and domestic - Vygotsky L. S., Elkonina D. B., Bozhovich L. I., Lisina M. I., Leontyeva A. N. A lot of attention is paid to the solution of problems of developmental psychology, since it reveals the ways of a harmonious and comprehensive development of a person.

Scientific psychology, thanks to a wide industry network, contains a colossal amount of knowledge about the personality of a person and how this knowledge can be applied to various areas of his life. They are just waiting to be used as a guide to improving the quality of life for everyone.