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Phases of psychological research. Cheat sheet: Organization and conduct of psychological research

INTRODUCTION

There are many subtleties in the work of a research psychologist, in this unusually complex type of professional activity, without taking into account which any great plans may remain unfulfilled. In addition to principles, psychological research also has its own technology. Without knowledge of the fundamentals of the technology of modern psychological research, without the ability to build a research procedure, it is impossible to carry out even a small scientific work. Knowledge of the principles of technology for conducting psychological research is especially relevant in our time.

The research hypothesis follows from the relevance of this problem: psychological research will be successful if the experimenter knows its structure and masters the technology of conducting it.

Target control work- consider the main stages of psychological research.

The object of the test is a psychological study.

The subject of the test is the stages of psychological research.

STAGES OF PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH

Research in psychology, as in any other sciences, is carried out in several stages. Some of them are mandatory, some, in some cases, may be missing, but the sequence of steps must be remembered in order not to make elementary mistakes.

Let us give the main three stages of psychological research and briefly consider their content: 1) preparatory; 2) main; 3) final.

These steps can be broken down, and then we get a more detailed scheme.

I. Preparatory stage

Formulation of the problem.

Putting forward a hypothesis.

Research planning.

II. main stage

Data collection.

III. The final stage

Data processing.

Interpretation of results.

Conclusions and inclusion of results in the knowledge system.

It must be said that the given sequence of stages should not be considered as a rigid scheme that must be taken for steady execution.

It is rather a general principle of algorithmization of research activities. Under certain conditions, the order of the stages may change, the researcher may return to the passed stages without completing or even starting the execution of the subsequent ones, individual stages may be performed partially, and some may even fall out. Such freedom in the execution of stages and operations is provided for in the so-called flexible planning.

PREPARATORY STAGE

Formulation of the problem. A problem (from the Greek problema - task, task) is a theoretical or factual issue that needs to be resolved. This question may arise before the researcher as a gap in the knowledge and skills required in practice, including in scientific practice.

The formulation of a scientific problem involves a certain sequence of actions:

Information deficiency detection.

Awareness of the need to eliminate this deficiency.

Description (verbalization) of the problem situation in natural language.

Competent and qualified execution of the listed points is predetermined by a deep knowledge of the state of affairs in this area, a good orientation in it. This orientation is acquired, as a rule, through two channels: acquaintance with publications on a given topic and exchange of information with colleagues involved in this field. Usually, scientific research is preceded by a presentation of such an acquaintance with the problem in the form of a literature review.

The statement of the problem is inevitably accompanied by the definition of the object and subject of research. The object is the fragment real world to which research activities and efforts are directed. The subject of the study determines the aspect of the study of the selected object and the specifics of the study. In other words, "the object of knowledge is a form of given objective reality to the subject" of knowledge, and "the subject scientific knowledge It is the form of the given of the cognizable object to the cognizing subject.

Putting forward a hypothesis. The definition of the subject cannot be made out of connection with any system of scientific views, concepts. The chosen concept determines the whole direction, the whole ideology of the study: for the sake of what it is being carried out, the goals of the study, the methodological position of the researcher, and hence the methods used, and the ethics of the scientist's behavior.

Based on this or that concept, the researcher puts forward an assumption that, in his opinion, can fill in the lack of information on this problem. This assumption is in the form of a scientific hypothesis and should be tested in the future by research activities. A hypothesis is a scientifically substantiated statement of a probabilistic nature about the essence of the studied phenomena of reality. If the hypothesis is confirmed, then it is accepted; if it is not confirmed, then it is rejected. The accepted hypothesis can subsequently, with appropriate additional evidence of its viability and fruitfulness, be transformed into a theory. A hypothesis put forward before an empirical study is usually called a research or working hypothesis. The working hypothesis provides the first, preliminary draft of the solution to the problem. Depending on the logical path of development, hypotheses are distinguished: inductive and deductive hypotheses. The former are born from the observation of individual facts, the latter are derived from already known relations or theories.

Research planning. At this stage, the entire research process is thought out, organizational issues are resolved. A sequence of actions is planned, their separation in time. A methodological and technical arsenal adequate to the tasks is selected. A specific contingent of subjects or respondents is determined. Stimulation options are being considered.

The choice of methods and techniques of psychological research. Sample for empirical research

The main methods of scientific research are: observation, experiment, modeling. The choice of research methods is due to the characteristics of the object and subject of research and the goals set.

Method - a way of doing something, orderly work with facts and concepts, the principle and method of collecting, processing or analyzing data, as well as the principle of influencing an object.

Methodology - a form of implementation of the method, a set of techniques and operations (their sequence and relationship), a procedure or set of procedures to achieve a specific goal. In psychological research: formalized rules for collecting, processing and analyzing information. With the help of the technique, the characteristics of behavior are fixed and the object is affected. In most cases, different methods can be used to study similar aspects of an object, which provides mutual verification of data obtained by different methods.

The stage of choosing methods and techniques is closely related to the concretization of research hypotheses.

When choosing methods, one should take into account the possibilities and limitations of each method included in the set in terms of accuracy and reliability of fixing the severity of the studied qualities. Preference should be given to those methods that are sufficiently fully described in the guidelines for their use. The degree of development of the methodology is very important. The manual should provide detailed interpretations of the scales, describe the testing of the methodology, reflect the quantitative and qualitative results of the testing, give recommendations on the form and content of the conclusion and other necessary components of the manual in accordance with the requirements of the standards.

When compiling a set of methods, it is advisable to be guided by the principle of addition. Each other should be complemented by qualitative and quantitative data, subjective and objective indicators.

More reliable conclusions are obtained when scientific facts obtained by one method, by one method, can be confirmed, duplicated by data obtained by other methods and by another method.

The main groups of psychological diagnostics include the following methods:

* methods for measuring functional indicators, using psychophysiological indicators of mental phenomena;

* observational methods - methods of observation and introspection;

* praximetric methods based on the analysis of activity products;

* subjective-evaluative, based on the analysis of the answers of the subjects to the questions and judgments of the questionnaires, the analysis of the choice of alternative judgments, the choice of gradation scales, and so on;

* projective, associated with the analysis of the features of the interpretation of externally indefinite material that becomes the object of projection;

* associative, based on the analysis of associative responses and choices of subjects. Color-associative methods associated with the analysis of color choices according to the degree of pleasantness and association with concepts, the list of which is proposed by the diagnostician.

Let us give the main three stages of psychological research and briefly consider their content: 1) preparatory; 2) main; 3) final.

These steps can be broken down, and then we get a more detailed scheme.

I. Preparatory stage

Formulation of the problem.

Putting forward a hypothesis.

Research planning.

The choice of methods and techniques of psychological research.

II. main stage

Data collection.

III. The final stage

Data processing.

Interpretation of results.

Conclusions and inclusion of results in the knowledge system.

It must be said that the given sequence of stages should not be considered as a rigid scheme that must be taken for steady execution.

PREPARATORY STAGE

Formulation of the problem. A problem (from the Greek problema - task, task) is a theoretical or factual issue that needs to be resolved. This question may arise before the researcher as a gap in the knowledge and skills required in practice, including in scientific practice.

The formulation of a scientific problem involves a certain sequence of actions:

Information deficiency detection.

Awareness of the need to eliminate this deficiency.

Description (verbalization) of the problem situation in natural language.

Statement of the problem is accompanied inevitably defining the object and subject of research.

Putting forward a hypothesis. The definition of the subject cannot be made out of connection with any system of scientific views, concepts. The chosen concept determines the whole direction, the whole ideology of the study: for the sake of what it is being carried out, the goals of the study, the methodological position of the researcher, and hence the methods used, and the ethics of the scientist's behavior.

Based on a particular concept, the researcher puts forward an assumption capable, in his opinion, to fill the lack of information on this problem. This assumption is in the form of a scientific hypothesis and should be tested in the future by research activities. If the hypothesis is confirmed, then it is accepted; if it is not confirmed, then it is rejected. The accepted hypothesis can subsequently, with appropriate additional evidence of its viability and fruitfulness, be transformed into a theory. A hypothesis put forward before an empirical study is usually called a research or working hypothesis. The working hypothesis provides the first, preliminary draft of the solution to the problem. Depending on the logical path of development, hypotheses are distinguished: inductive and deductive hypotheses. The former are born from the observation of individual facts, the latter are derived from already known relations or theories.

Research planning. At this stage, the entire research process is thought out, organizational issues are resolved. A sequence of actions is planned, their separation in time. A methodical and technical arsenal adequate to the tasks is selected. A specific contingent of subjects or respondents is determined. Stimulation options are being considered.

The choice of methods and techniques of psychological research. Sample for empirical research.

The choice of research methods is due to the characteristics of the object and subject of research and the goals set.

The stage of choosing methods and techniques is closely related to the concretization of research hypotheses.

More reliable conclusions are obtained when scientific facts obtained by one method, by one method, can be confirmed, duplicated by data obtained by other methods and by another method.

MAIN STAGE

Data collection. The process of direct research involves the contact of the researcher with the object, as a result of which a set of characteristics of this object is obtained. The obtained characteristics are the main material for testing the working hypothesis and solving the problem. Depending on the subject and purpose of the study, these characteristics can be presented in the form of various parameters of the object (spatial, temporal, energy, information, integration), in the form of relationships between the parts of the object or itself with other objects, in the form of various dependences of its states on various factors etc. The whole set of such information is called data about the object, or rather, primary data, in order to emphasize the direct nature of this information and the need for their further analysis, processing, and understanding. Data is the elements to be analyzed, it is any information that can be classified for the purpose of processing. In a theoretical study data collection means the search and selection of already known facts, their systematization, description from a new angle. IN empirical research subjects understand the reflection of objects, phenomena, signs or connections of objective reality. Thus, these are not the objects themselves, but their sensory-linguistic representations. Real objects are fragments of the world, and data about them is the foundation of science. These data are the "raw material" of scientific research under inductive hypotheses and the goal under deductive hypotheses.

Data collection procedure. Data collection as a whole should correspond to the algorithm of actions outlined at the previous stage in order to avoid both gaps in the required knowledge and unnecessary labor costs. It is very important at the same time to accurately and clearly record all actions and information received. For this, a research protocol is usually kept, special means of fixation are used (video, audio, etc.). The contact of the researcher with the object under study at this stage should not cause harm to the latter, the data collection procedure should be extremely humane. The data collection process is specified depending on the chosen method and research objectives.

THE FINAL STAGE

Data processing. Having collected a set of data, the researcher proceeds to process them, obtaining information of a higher level, called results. It is like a tailor who took measurements (data) and now correlates all the fixed sizes with each other, brings them into an integral system in the form of a pattern and, ultimately, in the form of one or another garment. The parameters of the customer's figure are the data, and the finished dress is the result. At this stage, errors in measurements, ambiguities in the coordination of individual details of clothing may be found, which requires new information, and the client is invited to try on, where the necessary adjustments are made. So it is in scientific research: the "raw" data obtained at the previous stage, by processing them, are brought into a certain balanced system, which becomes the basis for further meaningful analysis, interpretation and scientific conclusions and practical advice. If data processing reveals any errors, gaps, inconsistencies that impede the construction of such a system, then they can be eliminated and filled by repeated measurements.

Interpretation of results. Qualitative data processing is followed by the decisive phase of scientific research - the interpretation of the results. Often this phase is called theoretical processing, emphasizing its difference from empirical statistical processing. This phase is the most exciting stage of research, at which the creative nature of the scientific process is most clearly manifested.

Theoretical processing performs two main functions:

1) transformation of statistically prepared data ("secondary data", results) into empirical knowledge.

2) obtaining theoretical knowledge on their basis. Thus, at this stage, the unity and interconnection of empirical and theoretical knowledge is especially prominent.

Explanation of the results. So, data processing leads only to the statement of certain facts concerning the object under study. The description gives a stating idea of the object as a whole. Next, you should find an explanation for the discovered facts and reveal the essence of the object. It is in clarifying the essence of the object that the meaning of explanation lies, although a considerable number of scientists (especially those of the positivist direction) believe that explanation is the reduction of the unusual to the familiar, the unfamiliar to the familiar. Close to this vision of explanation is the definition given by one of the authorities of psychological science, P. Fress: "To give an explanation means, in each specific case, to determine whether the established type of relationship is a special case of a known and already more or less verified more general law" .

Generalization of results. Generalization- this is the identification for a group of objects (phenomena) of the most significant features that determine their most important qualitative characteristics. Properties specific to individual objects (singular and special) are rejected. From a logical point of view, this is an inductive process: from the particular to the general. The results obtained in research usually relate to some particular situations, specific people, individual phenomena and reactions. These individual facts require, after their explanation, projections onto larger sets. In the language of statistics, this means transferring the results from the sample to the entire population, in the limit - to the general population.

In experimental practice, generalization usually concerns the four main points of the research process: the situation, the responses, the personality of the subject, and the relationship between these components.

Generalization of the situation involves the transfer of results to a wider range of circumstances.

Under the generalization of responses is meant the summing up of various reactions under one common category that unites them. It is necessary to prove that the differences in the types of specific responses are not significant, are of a private nature that does not affect the final result and the relationship between the cause (situation) and the effect (reaction).

Relationship generalization. Establishing a relationship between variables (usually in experimental practice between two variables) can be done at different levels of generalization. At the lowest level, this relationship is descriptive. As the range of links expands, it becomes possible to compare variables for an increasing number of indicators. The generalized form of communication is already becoming an explanatory factor in relation to particular types of behavior. So, the conditioned reflex was at first a private connection: a call is the secretion of saliva in a dog (experiments of I.P. Pavlov). Then a similar relationship was found between a wide range of stimuli and various reactions. The reflex has become a generalized indicator of the relationship between the situation and the response. The expansion of the composition of experimental animals (up to the inclusion of a person here) extended the generalization to the connections between the contingent, the situation and the response. Now we can talk about a conditioned reflex as a universal phenomenon for highly organized animals (including humans).

Conclusions and inclusion of results in the knowledge system. The scientific study ends with the formulation of conclusions. They should reflect the essence of the problem and be concise, i.e., the conclusions, first of all, should be concise. It is necessary that the conclusions be consistent with the goals and objectives formulated at the beginning of the study, that is, the conclusions indicate whether the tasks have been solved, whether the objectives of the study have been achieved, and in the end, whether the problem has been resolved.

In the form of presentation, conclusions do not have to be presented in the form of verbal statements. In some cases it is allowed graphic images, mathematical formulas, physical models, etc. But they, as a rule, are accompanied by brief explanations.

Conducting specific psychological research can be very different. However, usually most of them include some common steps.

So, any research has the following stages:

1) the preparatory (first) stage of the study, during which the literature on the issue of interest is studied and an initial acquaintance with the subjects is carried out. The most commonly used methods for this are observation, conversation, and a questionnaire. This stage ends with the definition of the subject of the study, its main hypotheses and the development of initial positions for constructing the methodology.

2) The second stage is the stage of creating a research methodology. Here the method of research organization is determined (longitudinal or comparative and their possible combinations), the main methods of collecting factual material are selected, and the necessary experimental equipment is prepared.

3) The third stage is the main collection of factual material using the methods chosen for this study.

4) The fourth stage is a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the research materials, their interpretation and presentation of the results.

The system of methods is united by the presence of a common methodology of science. Each stage in the development of psychology as a science had its own understanding of research methods. Based on the basic methods, the subject of psychology is often determined.

Requirements for the organization of psychological research
(See figure 1.)

1. Study planning includes the selection and testing of methods and techniques. Versatile and multilevel consideration of issues should take into account the whole variety of factors (external and internal) that affect the course and effectiveness of the mental activity to be investigated. Planning is also the compilation of logical and chronological schemes of the study, the choice of the contingent and the number of subjects or the required number of measurements (observations), it is a plan for mathematical processing and description of the entire study, etc.

2. Location of the study must provide isolation from external interference (at least these influences must be taken into account), meet sanitary and hygienic and engineering and psychological requirements, i.e. provide certain comfort and a relaxed working environment.

3. Technical equipment research should correspond to the tasks being solved, the entire course of the research and the level of analysis of the results obtained.

4. Selection of subjects should ensure their qualitative homogeneity.

5. Researcher(or the experimenter) inevitably influences the course of the work being done at all its stages, from planning to conclusions and recommendations.

6. Instruction drawn up at the planning stage. Instructions should be clear, concise and unambiguous.

7. Protocol research should be both complete and focused (selective).

8. Results processing research is a quantitative and qualitative analysis and synthesis of the data obtained during the research.

The basic principle of constructing a psychological study is the principle of a qualitative analysis of the characteristics of the course mental processes. It is important not only how many and what tasks the subject completed, the main thing is how he worked. What is the nature of the errors?

Basic methodological principles that must be observed with any method:

· the method should proceed from the dialectical-materialistic idea of the subject of science, reflect its specificity;

The scientific method of psychology must be objective;

observance of the genetic (evolutionary) principle;

· the need for scientific generalizations, taking into account individual differences.

In psychology, there are four groups of methods (according to B.G. Ananiev):

I group - organizational methods . These include comparative method(comparison of different groups by age, activity, etc.); longitudinal method(multiple examinations of the same persons over a long period of time); complex method(Representatives of different sciences participate in the study; as a rule, one object is studied by different means. Research of this kind allows you to establish connections and dependencies between phenomena of different types, for example, between physiological, psychological and social development personality).

Group II - empirical methods, including: observation and self-observation; experimental methods, psychodiagnostic methods(tests, questionnaires, questionnaires, sociometry, interviews, conversation), analysis of activity products, biographical methods.

Group III - data processing methods, including: quantitative(statistical) and qualitative(differentiation of material by groups, analysis) methods.

IV group - interpretive methods, including genetic(analysis of the material in terms of development with the allocation of individual phases, stages, critical moments, etc.) and structural(establishes structural links between all personality characteristics) methods.

Observation(see) is usually carried out in natural conditions, without interference in the course of activity. Actions and words are recorded in detail and then analyzed. Scientific observation is characterized not by a simple fixation of a fact, but by a transition from its description to an explanation. Such observation requires a clear plan.

The entry may be solid And selective. A continuous record is used when the personality as a whole is being studied, while a selective record is used where only individual manifestations of mental activity are recorded.

One type of observation introspection.

However, the main method of psychological research is experiment. Let's list its advantages:

The researcher does not expect a random manifestation of the mental processes of interest to him, but he himself creates the conditions to cause them in the subjects;

The researcher can purposefully change the conditions and course of mental processes;

In an experimental study, strict consideration of the conditions of the experiment (what stimuli were given, what are the responses) is mandatory;

The experiment can be carried out with a large number of subjects, which makes it possible to establish general patterns of development of mental processes.

Depending on the degree of intervention of the experimenter in the course of mental phenomena, the experiment is divided into:

· ascertaining, in which certain mental characteristics and the level of development of the corresponding quality are revealed, and

· educational (forming)(see), which involves a targeted impact on the subject in order to form certain qualities in him. He may have teaching and educating character.

The limitation of the ascertaining experiment (the inability to trace the process of acquiring knowledge, the formation of qualities, etc.) is overcome by applying slice method. A slice is a short-term statement of the state of the object under study at various stages of its development. Among psychological methods, there are transverse And longitudinal slices.

Cross sections are reduced to comparing different groups of subjects, but do not allow taking into account individual characteristics and tracing whether individual personality traits are stable or change with age and how they are interconnected.

Longitudinal sections allow you to trace the change in individual mental qualities in the same people over a long period of time, which ultimately helps to study the personality in its entirety.

Advantages tests(see) are that it is possible to obtain comparable data on large arrays of subjects.

The difficulty of using tests lies in the fact that it is not always possible to identify how and by what means the result obtained during the testing process was achieved.

In Western psychology, tests are often used to discriminate against certain groups of the population when applying for a job, in educational establishments etc. In psychology, tests are used as scientific research methods, as well as diagnostic methods in professional selection and solving some other problems.

Experiment. main method research work psychologist is experiment. Well-known domestic psychologist S.L. Rubinshtein(1889-1960) singled out the following qualities of the experiment, which determine its importance for obtaining scientific facts: “1) In the experiment, the researcher he himself causes the phenomenon he is studying, instead of waiting, as in objective observation, until an accidental stream of phenomena affords him the opportunity to observe him. 2) Having the opportunity to cause the phenomenon under study, the experimenter can vary, to change the conditions under which a phenomenon proceeds, instead of, as in simple observation, taking them as chance supplies them. 3) By isolating individual conditions and changing one of them while keeping the rest unchanged, the experiment thereby reveals the significance of these individual conditions and establishes regular connections that determine the process it is studying. The experiment, therefore, is a very fashionable methodological tool for identifying patterns. 4) By revealing regular connections between phenomena, an experiment can often vary not only the conditions themselves in the sense of their presence or absence, but also their quantitative ratios. As a result, the experiment establishes quantitative patterns that allow mathematical formulation. There are three main types of experiment: laboratory, natural and formative.

Laboratory experiment is carried out in a room specially adapted for the precise conduct of the experiment, control of all influences on the subject and registration of his answers and actions. The psychological laboratory is equipped with special equipment, which can be very complex - specially designed installations, equipment connected to a computer - and very simple. Sometimes paper, a pencil is enough to conduct an experiment. And stopwatch. It is important that the equipment ensures the implementation of the basic qualities of the experiment.

natural experiment, proposed by a Russian psychologist A.F. Lazursky(1874-1917), involves conducting research under the control of an experimenter, but in natural conditions. For example, to find out what factors contribute to reducing the fear of exams, the American psychologist I. Sarason conducted several series of experiments immediately before the exams. The subjects were divided into three groups, in each group there were students who were afraid of exams and treated them calmly. In the first group, the experimenter admitted that he himself was afraid of exams, described his experiences that prevented him from concentrating on the answer. In the second, he added to this that he knew how to overcome his fear, and offered some specific methods and techniques. Finally, in the third, he said that he was never afraid of exams. The criterion was the success of the subjects in the exam. It turned out that students who were afraid of exams performed worst of all on the first occasion, when the experimenter only informed them that they were also afraid of exams. best results they achieved when they were offered ways to overcome fear. In this case, they even outperformed students who had no anxiety about exams. The natural experiment is widely used, for example, in social, educational psychology, and management psychology. Both laboratory and natural experiments can be ascertaining And formative.

Ascertaining experiment reveals the facts, patterns that have developed in the course of human development. The above examples refer to ascertaining experiments.

Formative experiment reveals patterns, conditions, psychological mechanisms development of certain qualities, abilities, properties through their active formation. For example, a well-known domestic psychologist P.Ya. Galperin, studying attention, he put forward a hypothesis that attention can be understood as an activity of mental control and it can be formed through the development of a person's ability to control himself, his actions. The criterion for the correctness of the hypothesis was that the skill formed in this way would correspond to the signs of attention.

Trainings(from English. train- to teach, educate, train) - forms of group work aimed at developing communication skills, self-regulation, professional skills, etc. The most common training of interpersonal interaction is the development of skills to solve problems that arise in communication, to understand and predict the thoughts, feelings, actions of other people, training of self-confidence. Trainings related to the development of professionally significant qualities are widespread in the systems of training and advanced training. So, in the preparation of teachers, the most common trainings are pedagogical communication and pedagogical competence.

group psychotherapy, or group psychocorrection, - a form of psychological work that uses the patterns of interpersonal interaction in groups to implement personal changes, provide psychological assistance, or for therapeutic purposes. The content of the work of the groups is determined by the theoretical views of the psychologist (Gestalt therapy, group psychoanalysis, psychodramas, transactional analysis, etc.), as well as the prevailing types of occupations. There are many types of group psychotherapy. Meeting groups focused on the development of relations between people based on openness, sincerity; V art therapy groups participants express themselves through drawing, modeling, choreotherapy groups, or dance therapy. IN body-oriented therapy group members learn to be aware of their bodily sensations, understand how needs and feelings manifest themselves in various bodily states, and also master the best ways to overcome adversity, resolve conflicts, etc. In practical child psychology, including the psychology of education, play psychotherapy and fairy tale therapy are widely used. And others

Special mention should be made of the methods suggestive psychotherapy and psychocorrection(from lat. suggestio- suggestion). These methods are based on the use of the word for suggestion And self-hypnosis. In psychology, suggestion is a form of interpersonal interaction in which a person passively, without critical evaluation, assimilates thoughts, images, ideas expressed by a psychologist. The most famous form of suggestion hypnosis(from Greek. hypnos- sleep) is an artificially induced temporary state of consciousness, characterized by a narrowing of the amount of attention and focus on the state of suggestion carried out by the hypnotist. Self-hypnosis is a suggestion addressed to oneself. Self-hypnosis is widely used in autogenic training - a system of techniques that allow a person to relax, achieve a state of peace of mind, and concentrate attention. The highest form of autogenic training is autogenic meditation.

Meditation(from lat. meditate- thought moving towards the center) is a state of concentration that allows a person to go beyond his own psyche, to look at himself from the outside. The Indian scientist Chowdhurry described meditation in the following way: “... the radical approach begins with the decision not to think about anything, not to make any effort; one must completely relax and allow the mind and body to come out of the ever-changing stream of thoughts and sensations, to observe even the onslaught of this stream. Metaphorically, one can say - watch the flight of your thoughts, feelings and desires across the sky, like a flock of birds. Let them fly freely, just watch. Don't let the birds take you to the sky." Meditation is widely used in many religions, such as Buddhism. In psychology and psychotherapy, it is used as a method that allows a person to relieve neuropsychic stress, distance himself from his problems, look at them as if from the outside.

The implementation of all methods of suggestive therapy requires special training. Thus, hypnosis for psychotherapeutic purposes can only be carried out by specialists with medical education. Mastering the techniques of autogenic training and meditation is possible only under the guidance of an experienced specialist.

Of course, the methodological arsenal of pedagogical science and practice is not limited to the listed methods, it is much richer. We focused only on those that are the most common and references to which are more common in the literature.

Tests can be:

Individual And group; verbal And efficient.

Answers to test questions may be different. These are free answers, and the choice of one of several proposed, etc.

As an example of the tests used to determine the general level of ability, below is one test consisting of 40 tasks, from the book of the famous English psychologist, Professor G. Eysenka.

One of the most successful modern classifications of psychological research methods is given.

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Topic 1

METHODS OF PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH

Psychological research: requirements for the organization and its stages

Characteristics of the main empirical methods psychology

Possession of methods for studying the psychology of personality is one of the necessary components of the professional activity of a lawyer. A lawyer must be able to identify, analyze and take into account individual psychological personality traits(witness, suspect, accused) goals of their actions and deeds, hidden motives of behavior. The choice of methods for studying the personality of subjects of various legal relations in the professional activities of a lawyer, as well as the adequacy of the methods themselves, largely depends on the goals that he faces and on the nature of the issues that need to be resolved.

Psychological research:
requirements for the organization and its stages

The method of obtaining objective knowledge about the surrounding reality is scientific research.Psychological research− it is a way of scientific knowledge of the essence of mental phenomena and their laws.

Psychological research includes a number of mandatory steps (Fig. 1) .

Any scientific research, including psychological research, must meet a number of strict requirements:

Study planning involves the development of a logical and chronological scheme of research, consisting of a detailed design of all its stages.
Locationresearch should provide isolation from external interference, meet sanitary and hygienic and engineering and psychological requirements.

1. Studying the state of the problem. Statement of the problem, choice of object and subject of research

2. Development or refinement of the general initial research concept. Hypothesis

3. Study planning

4. Data collection and factual description. In a theoretical study - the search and selection of facts, their systematization

5. Data processing

Determination of the goals and objectives of the study

Definition of experimental plans

Choice of research methods and techniques

Definition of mathematical processing methods data

6 . Evaluation of the results of hypothesis testing, interpretation of the results within the framework of the original research concept

7. Correlation of results with existing concepts and theories. Formulation of general conclusions. Assessment of the prospects for further development of the problem

Rice. 1. The main stages of psychological research

3. Technical equipmentshould correspond to the tasks to be solved, the entire course of the study and the level of analysis of the results obtained.

4. Selection of subjectsdepends on the objectives of the particular study andshould ensure their qualitative homogeneity.

5. Instruction must be clear, concise and unambiguous for the subjects.

6. Protocol research should be both complete and focused (selective).

7. Results processingresearch includes quantitative and qualitative methods for analyzing the empirical data obtained during the study .

Classification of research methods

Methods of psychologyname the main methods and means of cognition of mental phenomena and their patterns.

It should be noted that, although all methods aim to reveal the laws of the psyche and human behavior, each method does this in accordance with its inherent characteristics.

Future lawyers need to clearly understand the features of each method in order to actively use them in their professional activities. In psychology, there are four groups of research methods (Fig. 2) .

organizational methods.This group includes comparative, longitudinal and complex methods, which are used throughout the study and represent various organizational and research approaches.

Comparative methodinvolves a comparison of the studied objects according to various features, indicators.

Longitudinal methodinvolves multiple examinations of the same persons over a long period of time.

Complex methodresearch is to consider the object from the standpoint of various sciences or from different points of view.

Classification

Methods of psychological research

Organizational

Data processing methods

Interpretation methods

empirical

Comparative

Phylogenetic

ontogenetic

Typology

Methods of mathematical and statistical data analysis

Qualitative analysis methods

Genetic

Structural

Complex

Longitudinal

Analysis of processes and products of activity

Biographical

Observation

Experiment

Psychodiagnostic methods

Method of expert assessments

Rice. 2. Classification of methods of psychological research
B.G. Ananyeva

empirical methods.These are, first of all, observation and experiment, as well as psychodiagnostic methods (conversation, questioning, testing, etc.), the method of expert assessments, the method of analyzing the process and products of activity, and the biographical method (Fig. 3).

Main

Auxiliary

Psychodiagnostic
methods:

conversation
questioning
testing

Observation

Observation:

open
hidden
passive
active
laboratory
natural
random
systematic
included
unincluded
continuous
selective
longitudinal
periodic
single

Experiment:

laboratory
natural
ascertaining
formative

Method of expert
ratings

Process and product analysis method
activities

biographical method

Empirical Research Methods

Observation

Rice. 3. Basic empirical methods of psychology

Data processing methods.These include quantitative(statistical) and qualitative(differentiation of material by groups, its analysis) methods.

Interpretation methods.This group includes genetic (analysis of material in terms of development with the allocation of individual phases, stages, critical moments, etc.) and structural(revealing the relationship between all personality characteristics) methods.

Characteristics of the main empirical methods
psychology

Observation method

Observation - one of the main empirical methods of psychology, consisting in a deliberate, systematic and purposeful perception of mental phenomena in order to study their specific changes in certain conditions and search for the meaning of these phenomena, which is not directly given .

The description of phenomena based on observation is scientific if the psychological understanding of the inner side of the observed act contained in it gives a natural explanation of its external manifestation.

Only exteriorized (external) manifestations of verbal and non-verbal behavior are available for observation:

pantomime (posture, gait, gestures, postures, etc.);
facial expressions (facial expression, its expressiveness, etc.);
speech (silence, talkativeness, verbosity, laconism; stylistic features, content and culture of speech; intonation richness, etc.);
behavior in relation to other people (position in the team and attitude to this, the method of establishing contact, the nature of communication, communication style, position in communication, etc.);
the presence of contradictions in behavior (demonstration of different, opposite in meaning ways of behavior in situations of the same type);
behavioral manifestations of attitude towards oneself (to one's appearance, shortcomings, advantages, opportunities, personal belongings);
behavior in psychologically significant situations (task completion, conflict);
behavior in the main activity (work).

Factors that determine the complexity of knowing the internal through observation of the external are:

the ambiguity of connections between subjective psychic reality and its external manifestation;

There is the following classification of types of observation
(Fig. 4) .

From a chronological perspective of the organization observations

depending

From position

observer

By order

depending

from

regularity

Depending on activity

observer

Active

Random

Systematic

selective

continuous

Random

Hidden

passive

open

Laboratory

natural

Clinical

single

periodic

Longitudinal

Observation

Not included

Included

Not included

Rice. 4. Classification of types of observation

Depending on the position of the observer:

open - observation, in which the observed are aware of their role as the object of research;
hidden - observation, which is not reported to the subjects, carried out unnoticed by them.

2. Depending on the activity of the observer:

passive – observation without any direction;
active - observation of specific phenomena, the absence of interference in the observed process;

laboratory (experimental)– observation in artificially created conditions. The degree of artificiality can be different: from the minimum in a casual conversation in a familiar environment to the maximum in an experiment using special rooms, technical means and coercive instructions. In medical practice, this type of observation is often referred to as clinical observation, i.e. monitoring the patient during his treatment;
natural (field)– observation of objects in their natural conditions Everyday life and activities.

3. Depending on the regularity:

random – observation not planned in advance, performed due to unexpected circumstances;

systematic– intentional observation carried out according to a premeditated plan and, as a rule, according to a predetermined schedule;
included - observation, in which the observer is a member of the group under study and studies it, as it were, from the inside;
unincluded – observation from the outside, without the interaction of the observer with the object of study. This type of observation, in fact, is an objective (external) observation.

4. By order:

random - observation not planned in advance, performed due to unexpected circumstances;
continuous – continuous observation of the object without interruption. It is usually used for short term studies or when it is necessary to obtain the most complete information about the dynamics of the phenomena under study;
selective – observation carried out at separate time intervals chosen by the researcher at his own discretion;
systematic- intentional observation, carried out according to a premeditated plan and, as a rule, according to a predetermined schedule.

5. From the point of view of the chronological organization of observation:

longitudinal – observation for a long time;
periodic – observation during certain intervals

kov time;

single – description of a particular case.

The observation method has its own characteristics (Fig. 5).

Features of the application of the observation method

The wealth of information collected (analysis of both verbal information and actions, movements, deeds)

Subjectivity (the results largely depend on the experience, scientific views, qualifications, interests, work capacity of the researcher)

Preservation of the naturalness of the conditions of activity

It is acceptable to use a variety of technical means

It is not necessary to obtain the prior consent of the subjects

Significant loss of time due to passivity of the observer

Inability to control the situation, intervene in the course of events without distorting them

Rice. 5. Features of the application of the observation method

The description of phenomena based on observation is scientific if the psychological understanding of the internal (subjective) side of the observed act contained in it gives a natural explanation of its external manifestation. The traditional way of recording data is the observation diary, which is a special record of the observer, reflecting the facts from the life of the observed person.

Requirements for recording data in the observation diary:

adequate transmission of the meaning of the observed phenomena;
accuracy and figurativeness of formulations;
a mandatory description of the situation (background, context) in which the observed behavior took place.

The method of observation is widely used in legal practice. For a psychologist and a lawyer, external observation is one of the main methods of studying not only a person's behavior, but also his character and mental characteristics. By external manifestations, the investigator judges the internal causes of a person’s behavior, his emotional state, difficulties in perceiving, for example, a witness to a crime event, the attitude towards the participants in the investigation, justice, etc. This method is used in legal practice and for educational purposes (for example, by an investigator during investigative actions). During a search, interrogation, investigative experiment, the investigator has the opportunity to purposefully observe the behavior of persons of interest to him, their emotional reactions, and, depending on this, change the tactics of his observation.

The development of the "behavioral portrait" method by legal psychologists and lawyers allows you to create a more complete picture of specific person, which is being monitored (mental state of a person, character traits, social status). A behavioral portrait helps investigators and operatives in identifying suspects, accused, witnesses and victims, in searching for and apprehending criminals in hiding.

Self-observation (introspection)- this is the observation of one's own internal mental processes, but at the same time, the observation of their external manifestations.

In legal practice, the testimonies of victims, witnesses are actually self-reports about their states and experiences. Self-observation can be used by a lawyer as a method of self-knowledge, allowing him to identify his characterological features, personality traits in order to better control his own behavior, neutralize in time, for example, the manifestation of unnecessary emotional reactions, outbursts of irritability in extreme conditions caused by neuropsychic overload. kami.

Experiment

Experiment is a method of collecting empirical data in specially planned and controlled conditions in which the experimenter influences the phenomenon under study and registers changes in its state . The following types of experiment are distinguished: laboratory, natural, ascertaining, forming (Fig. 6, Table 1).

Experiment

Natural

(carried out in real
living conditions)

Laboratory

(carried out under conditions
laboratories)

b

Experiment

Formative

(provides for the purposeful influence of the experimenter on the studied mental phenomenon)

stating

(limited to stating changes in the studied
mental phenomena)

Rice. 6. Classification of types of experiment:

A – depending on the conditions of the experiment;
b - depending on the position of the experimenter in the study

Psychic Phenomena

Table 1.

Features of the use of laboratory and natural experiment

Laboratory experiment	natural experiment
Ensures high accuracy of results	Relative accuracy of results
Repeated studies under similar conditions are possible	Repeated studies under similar conditions are excluded.
Almost complete control over all variables	Lack of full control over all variables
The conditions of the activities of the subjects do not correspond to reality	Operating conditions correspond to reality
Subjects are aware that they are the subjects of the study.	Subjects are unaware that they are subjects of research

A psychological experiment, unlike observation, involves the possibility of activeinterference of the researcher in the activity of the subject (Table 2) .

table 2

Comparative analysis of observation and experiment

Observation	Experiment
Depending on the nature of the questions
The question remains open. The observer does not know the answer or has a vague idea about it.	The question becomes a hypothesis; implies the existence of some relationship between the facts. The experiment aims to test the hypothesis
Depending on the control of the situation
Observation situations are defined less strictly than in experiment. Transitional steps from natural to provoked observation	The situation of the experiment is clearly defined
Depending on registration accuracy
The procedure for recording the actions of the subject is less strict than in the experiment	The exact procedure for recording the actions of the subject

In the practice of psychological and legal research, both laboratory and natural experiments have become widespread. The laboratory experiment is distributed mainly in scientific research, as well as during the forensic psychological examination. When conducting a laboratory experiment, complex laboratory equipment is used (multichannel oscilloscopes, tachistoscopes, etc.).

With the help of a laboratory experiment, in particular, such professional quality lawyer, as attention, observability, etc. The natural experiment is widely used by officials involved in the fight against crime, primarily by investigators. However, its application should in no case go beyond the scope of criminal procedural norms. This refers to the conduct of investigative experiments, the purpose of which is to test certain psycho-physiological qualities of victims, witnesses and other persons. IN difficult cases It is recommended to invite a specialist psychologist to participate in them.

Conversation

Conversation - an auxiliary method of obtaining information based on verbal (verbal) communication. The researcher asks questions, and the subject answers them. The form of the conversation can be a free or standardized survey (Fig. 7).

Standardized Poll

Free Poll

Errors in the formulation of questions are excluded

The resulting data is harder to compare with each other

The data obtained are easily comparable with each other.

Bears the imprint of artificiality (reminiscent of an oral questionnaire)

Allows you to flexibly adjust the research tactics, the content of the questions asked, and receive non-standard answers to them

Rice. 7. Features of the use of standardized and free survey

Standardized Poll− a survey characterized by a predetermined set and order of questions.

Free survey in form approaches the usual conversation and is natural, informal. It is also conducted according to a certain plan, and the main questions are developed in advance, but during the course of the survey, the researcher can ask additional questions, as well as modify the wording of the planned questions. A survey of this type allows you to flexibly adjust the research tactics, the content of the questions asked, and receive non-standard answers to them.

In legal practice, this type of conversation can be used as an anamnesis (an anamnesis is information about the past of the subject, obtained from him or, with an objective anamnesis, from people who know him well).

A casual conversation allows the investigator to study the main personality traits of the interlocutor, develop an individual approach and make contact with the interrogated. Such a conversation very often precedes the main part of the interrogation and the achievement of the main goal - obtaining objective and complete information about the crime event. During the conversation, the investigator should pay attention to establishing personal contact with the interlocutor. A climate favorable for conversation is created by:

clear, concise and meaningful introductory phrases and explanations;
showing respect for the personality of the interlocutor, attention to his opinion and interests;
positive remarks (any person has positive traits);
a skillful manifestation of expression (tone, timbre of voice, intonation, facial expressions, etc.), which is designed to confirm a person’s conviction of what in question his interest in the issues at stake.

Conversation of the psychologist of the department internal organs with the victim as a result of the crime can and should cause a psychotherapeutic effect. Understanding the emotional states of another person, expressing sympathy for him, the ability to put yourself in his place, demonstrating sympathetic attention to the vital needs of a person is an important condition for contact with the interlocutor.

Conducting a conversation is a great art that both psychologists and lawyers must master. This method requires special flexibility and clarity, the ability to listen to the interlocutor, understand his emotional states, respond to their changes, fix the external manifestations of these states. In addition, the conversation helps the lawyer to demonstrate his positive qualities, the desire to objectively understand certain phenomena. The conversation is an important tool for establishing and maintaining psychological contact with witnesses, suspects, etc.

Questionnaire

Questionnaire - this is a collection of facts on the basis of a written self-report of the subject according to a specially compiled program. Questionnaire is a questionnaire with a pre-compiled system of questions, each of which is logically related to the central hypothesisresearch. The survey procedure includes three stages:

1 . Determination of the content of the questionnaire. This may be a list of questions about the facts of life, interests, motives, assessments, relationships.

2 . Choice of question type. Questions are divided into open, closed and semi-closed.Open questionsallow the subject to build a response in accordance with their desires, both in content and in form. Processing responses to open-ended questions is difficult, but they allow you to discover completely unexpected and unintended judgments.Closed questionsprovide for the choice of one or more answer options placed in the questionnaire. These kinds of responses are easily processed quantitatively.Semi-closed questionsinvolves the choice of one or more answer options from a number of proposed ones, at the same time, the subject is given the opportunity to independently formulate an answer to the question. The type of question can affect the completeness and sincerity of the answer.

3. Determine the number and order of questions to be asked.

When compiling the questionnaire, you should adhere to a number of general rules and principles:

the wording of questions should be clear and precise, their content understandable to the respondent, consistent with his knowledge and education;
complex and polysemantic words should be excluded;
there should not be too many questions, as interest is lost due to increasing fatigue;

include questions that test the degree of sincerity.

The method of questioning is widely used in the study of the professiogram of officials, their professional suitability and professional deformation. Currently, this method is widely used to study some aspects of the causes of crime (for example, the mechanism of formation of criminal intent, etc.).

Test method

Testing is the collection of facts about psychic reality using standardized tools - tests.

Test - a method of psychological measurement, consisting of a series of brief tasks and aimed at diagnosing the individual severity of personality traits and states . With the help of tests, you can study and compare the psychological characteristics of different people, give differentiated and comparable assessments.

Depending on the area to be diagnosed, there are intellectual tests; achievement and special ability tests; personality tests; tests of interests, attitudes, tests that diagnose interpersonal relationships etc. There are a large number of tests aimed at assessing personality, abilities and behavioral characteristics.

There are the following types of tests:

test questionnaire - is based on a system of preconceived, carefully

carefully selected and tested for validity and reliability

questions, the answers to which can be used to judge the level of severity of personality traits;

test task - includes a series of special tasks, following the results

the implementation of which is judged on the presence (absence) and the level of severity of the studied properties;

projective test- it contains a projection mechanism, according to

to which a person tends to attribute unconscious self-qualities to the unstructured stimulus material of the test, such as inkblots. In various manifestations of a person, whether it be creativity, interpretation of events, statements, etc., his personality is embodied, including hidden, unconscious impulses, aspirations, experiences, conflicts. Test material can be interpreted in a variety of ways, where the main thing is not its objective content, but the subjective meaning, the attitude that it causes in a person. It should be remembered that projective tests impose increased requirements on the level of education, intellectual maturity of the individual, and also require high professionalism on the part of the researcher.

The development and use of any tests must meet the following basic requirements:

standardization, consisting in the creation of a uniform procedure for conducting and evaluating the implementation test items(linear or non-linear transformation of test scores, the meaning of which is to replace the original scores with new ones, derivatives that make it easier to understand the test results, using the methods of mathematical statistics);
reliability, meaning the consistency of the indicators obtained from the same subjects during repeated testing (retest) using the same test or its equivalent form;
validity (adequacy) - the extent to which the test measures exactly what it is intended for;
practicality, those. economy, simplicity, efficiency of use and practical value for many different situations (subjects) and activities.

The features of the test include poor predictability, “attachment” of the results to a specific testing situation, the attitude of the subject to the procedure and the researcher, the dependence of the results on the state of the person being studied (fatigue, stress, irritability, etc.).

The results of the test, as a rule, give only an actual cut of the quality being measured, while most of the characteristics of personality and behavior are capable of changing dynamically. Thus, testing a person accused of committing a crime (being in a pre-trial detention center), when solving the problems of a forensic psychological examination, can give an incorrect, distorted idea of \u200b\u200bthe personality in connection with a state of anxiety, possible depression, despair, anger, etc.

The use of tests by specialists implies that they comply with a number of procedural requirements, which a lawyer should be aware of when evaluating the test results set forth in the act of forensic psychological examination. Testing should be carried out in favorable conditions for the subject in terms of time, the situation of the examination, his well-being, the attitude of the psychologist towards him, professionally competently setting tasks for him and conducting the examination.

Deviations from these mandatory requirements may indicate insufficient scientific competence of a specialist psychologist and adversely affect the assessment of his conclusion by the court.

Method of expert assessments

Method of expert assessmentsconsists in conducting by experts an intuitive-logical analysis of the problem with a quantitatively justified judgment and formal processing of the results.

One of the most important points in using this method is the choice of experts. Experts can be persons who know the subject well and the problem being studied: a juvenile inspector, parents, friends, etc. An expert assessment is displayed as a quantitative assessment of the severity of the studied properties. The researcher summarizes and analyzes the assessments of experts.

In legal practice, this method allows you to collect as much independent information as possible about the personality of the accused in order to form an objective opinion about him. So, for example, in order to fully characterize the accused, one characteristic with his last place work is not enough. Therefore, it is very important for the investigation to consider the characteristics from the places where the accused studied or worked, the opinion of neighbors, work colleagues, relatives and acquaintances about him.

Method of analysis of the process and products of activity

This method involves the study of the materialized results of a person's mental activity, the material products of his previous activity. In the products of activity, a person’s attitude to the activity itself, to the world around is manifested, the level of development of intellectual, sensory, motor skills is reflected. This method is most often used as an auxiliary one, since on its basis it is not always possible to reveal the whole variety of human mental activity. In legal practice, the method of analyzing the process and products of activity, in conjunction with other methods, is used to study the identity of wanted criminals. So, according to the results of criminal activity, they judge not only the degree of social danger of the deed, but also certain characterological features of the personality, the mental state of the accused at the time of the crime, the motives for the crime, intellectual abilities, etc.

biographical method

biographical method− it is a way of research and design life path personality, based on the study of documents of her biography ( personal diaries, correspondence, etc.). The biographical method involves the use of the content analysis method as a method of quantitative and qualitative processing of documentation.

In legal practice, the purpose of this method is to collect information about facts and events of psychological significance in a person's life, from the moment of birth to the period that interests the investigator and the court. During the interrogation of witnesses who know the subject well, and during a conversation with him, the investigator himself finds out the information necessary for the investigation: about his parents, about his relationship with others, work, interests, inclinations, character, past diseases, injuries. In necessary cases, various medical documents, personal files, diaries, letters, etc. are studied.

For future lawyers, teachers of law, the study and application of the methods of scientific psychology is of great practical value. They are essential in working with adolescents, social groups, personnel; in addition, they help to build professional, business and everyday interpersonal relationships correctly, and are also designed to help in self-knowledge in order to rationally approach own fate and personal growth.

Topic 1.1. Introduction to psychology.

Question 1.1.1. The subject and tasks of modern psychology. Methods of psychology. Basic categories of psychology.

Questions to study:

1. The concept of psychology as a science.

2. Stages of development of science.

3. General concept of the psyche.

4. Scientific and everyday psychology.

5. Methodological and theoretical foundations of psychology.

6. Communication of psychology with other sciences. The structure of modern psychology.

7. Tasks of psychology.

8. Methods of psychology.

9. Stages of psychological research.

The concept of psychology as a science.

Psychology is the science of the laws of origin, development and manifestation of the human psyche. The subject of psychology, in the classical sense, is content of a person's inner life (psyche) directly given to him in sensations, images, thoughts, feelings, and other objective manifestations.

Stages of development of science.

STAGE 1	STAGE 2	STAGE 3	STAGE 4
Psychology as a science of the soul	Psychology as a science of consciousness.	Psychology as a science of behavior.	Psychology as a science that studies the facts, patterns and mechanisms of the psyche.
This definition of psychology was given more than 2 thousand years ago. The presence of the soul tried to explain all the incomprehensible phenomena in human life.	Begins in the 17th century. in connection with the development of the natural sciences. The ability to think, feel, desire was called consciousness. The main method is self-observation and description of facts.	Begins in the 20th century. The tasks of psychology are observation of what can be directly seen: behavior, actions, reactions of a person. Motives that cause actions were not taken into account.	It was formed on the basis of a materialistic view of the world. The basis of modern Russian psychology is the understanding of the theory of reflection.

General concept of the psyche.

The traditional definition of the psyche within dialectical materialism sounds like this: the psyche is a property of living highly organized matter, which consists in the ability to actively reflect the surrounding world in its connections and relationships.

In the light of a systematic approach the psyche is a multi-level, self-organizing, dynamic and open system, characterized by a number of specific properties and characteristics.

The psyche as a holistic, dynamic and expedient system can be assessed by 3 characteristic parameters (psychic phenomena):

mental states;
mental processes / functions;
mental properties.

Mental state is a set of indicators of the functioning of the psyche at a particular point in time. These include activity, passivity, cheerfulness, fatigue, apathy, etc.

The mental process is a dynamic aspect of the functioning of the psyche, expressed in the successive change of its states in time; mental processes provide the primary reflection and awareness of human impacts of the surrounding reality. Mental processes are divided into cognitive, emotional and volitional.

Mental properties are the most stable and constantly manifesting personality traits, providing a certain qualitative and quantitative level of behavior and activity typical for a given person. The most studied mental properties are temperament, character, abilities and orientation of the personality.

4. Scientific and everyday psychology.

IN modern sciences about cognition, the existence of two qualitatively different ways of cognizing reality is noted, namely scientific organized according to certain methodological principles and rules, and everyday, everyday, which is spontaneous in nature and depends on common ideas shared in society.

Distinctive characteristics life psychology:

-concreteness, those. attachment to specific situations, people, tasks of human activity;

-intuition, indicating a lack of awareness of their origin and patterns of functioning;

-limitation , i.e. weak ideas of a person about the specifics and areas of functioning of specific psychological phenomena;

Knowledge is based on observation and reflection , therefore, are not subjected to scientific comprehension;

- limited materials, i.e. a person who has this or that worldly psychological observations cannot compare them with those of other people.

Peculiarities life psychology:

- generalization , i.e. the meaningfulness of a particular psychological phenomenon based on the specifics of its manifestation in many people, in many conditions, in relation to many tasks of human activity;

-rationalism, indicating that scientific psychological knowledge is maximally researched and realized;

- unlimited , i.e. they can be used by many people;

Based on experiment, those. scientific psychological knowledge obtained in various conditions;

-weak limitation in materials , meaning that scientific psychological knowledge has been accumulated and comprehended in special branches of psychological science over decades of its development.

Methodological and theoretical bases of psychology.

Methodology- this is a doctrine about the ideological positions of science, logic and methods of its research. In its turn, theory- this is a set of views that are the result of knowledge and understanding of the practice of life, allowing you to build specific reasoning about the phenomena and processes under study.

Special methodology psychology are its methodological principles:

The principle of determinism those. the causal conditionality of mental phenomena means that they are mediated by natural and social conditions and change with changes in these conditions.
The principle of unity of consciousness and activity means that consciousness and activity are not opposite to each other, but they are not identical either, but form an inseparable unity. Consciousness arises, develops and manifests itself in activity. Activity acts as a form of activity of consciousness, and consciousness itself ensures the active nature of activity.
Development principle means that the psyche can be correctly understood and adequately explained if it is considered as a product of development and in the process of this development.
The principle of personal approach focuses researchers on the study of all individual and socio-psychological characteristics of a person.

private methodology Psychological science is supported by its methods (observation, experiment, surveys, tests, generalization of independent characteristics, analysis of performance results, etc.) and methods of studying specific psychological phenomena.

Methodological foundations of psychology.	Theoretical basis psychology.
Dialectical-materialistic approach to understanding the surrounding reality and the psyche.	The idea of the psyche as a function of the brain.
The idea of the primacy of matter and the secondary nature of consciousness.	The idea of consciousness as the highest stage in the development of the psyche.
Ideas about the driving forces of the development of the surrounding reality and the psyche.	Ideas about the essence of the manifestation of the psyche.
Understanding the unity of external, material, activity and internal, mental.	The concept of the methodology of psychological science.
Awareness of the social conditioning of the human psyche.	Ideas about the methods and techniques of studying psychological phenomena.

Communication of psychology with other sciences. Structure

Modern psychology.

Relationships of psychology with other branches of scientific knowledge are strong and regular.

On the one side, philosophy, sociology and other social sciences provide psychology with the opportunity to methodologically accurately and theoretically correctly approach the understanding of the human psyche and consciousness, their origin and role in the life and activities of people.

historical sciences psychology shows how the psyche and consciousness of people developed at various stages of the formation of society and human relations.

Physiology and Anthropology allow psychology to more accurately understand the structure and functions nervous system, their role and significance in the formation of the mechanisms of the functioning of the psyche.

Science of labor activity orient psychology in the directions of correct understanding of the functioning of the psyche and consciousness in conditions of work and rest, their requirements for the individual and socio-psychological qualities of people.

medical sciences help psychology understand pathology mental development people and find ways for psychocorrection and psychotherapy.

Pedagogical Sciences provide psychology with information about the main directions of training and education of people, allowing it to develop recommendations for the psychological support of these processes.

On the other side, psychology, studying the conditions and specifics of the course of mental phenomena and processes, allows the natural and social sciences to more correctly interpret the laws of reflection of objective reality, to specify the causality of social or other phenomena and processes.

By investigating the patterns of functioning of the individual in peculiar socio-historical circumstances, psychology provides certain assistance and historical sciences.

medical sciences at present, they also cannot do without the results of psychological research, since many diseases, as the results of the most latest research are of psychological origin.

Psychology gives recommendations to managers and organizers economic production what psychological means and methods can improve the efficiency of labor activity, reduce conflict in the course of it, etc.

Psychology is of particular importance for pedagogy, because knowledge of the patterns of personality development, age and individual differences of people serves as a theoretical justification for developing the most effective methods of training and education.

Numerous sections and branches of scientific psychology are classified on various grounds, which are:

1) the purpose of scientific activity is the acquisition or application of knowledge; according to this criterion, fundamental (basic) sections and special (applied) branches are distinguished;

2) areas of application of the acquired knowledge in social practice or specific systems of human activity, the optimization of which is achieved through the growth of scientific data (labor psychology, military psychology, engineering psychology, medical and pedagogical psychology, creativity psychology, sports psychology, legal psychology, etc.);

3) stages and levels of development of the psyche in phylogenesis and ontogenesis (zoopsychology, age-related psychology, child psychology, psychology of adolescence, geriatric psychology, etc.)

4) the structure of socio-psychological relations between a person and the community, individuals and groups (communication psychology, group psychology, ethnopsychology, mass psychology, etc.);

5) interdisciplinary connections, interaction with other sciences (psychophysiology, medical psychology, psycholinguistics, etc.).

TO fundamental sections Psychology typically includes:

general psychology,
differential psychology (psychology of individual and typological differences),
developmental psychology,
social Psychology,
psychology of Personality,
psychophysiology,

and history of psychology, allowing to reveal the historical patterns of the formation and development of psychological knowledge, their gradual formation into an independent science.

The theoretical and methodological core of modern psychology is general psychology.

General psychology- a fundamental discipline, the purpose of which is to find answers to the fundamental questions that confront psychological science as a whole; is a set of theoretical and experimental studies that reveal the most general laws and mechanisms of functioning of the psyche, determining theoretical principles and methods of psychological knowledge, the basic concepts of psychology and its categorical structure.

7. The tasks of psychology.

The main task of psychology as a science is the study of the objective laws governing the functioning of mental processes and phenomena as a reflection of objective reality.

At the same time, psychology puts before itself a number of other tasks:

1. The study of the qualitative (structural) features of mental phenomena and processes, which is not only of theoretical but also of great practical importance.

2. Analysis of the formation and development of mental phenomena and processes in connection with the determinism (conditionality) of the psyche by the objective conditions of life and human activity.

3. The study of the physiological mechanisms underlying mental phenomena, since without their knowledge it is impossible to correctly master the practical means of their formation and development.

4. Assistance in the systematic introduction of scientific knowledge of psychology into practice (development of scientific and practical methods of training and education, rationalization of the labor process in various types of human activities).

8. Methods of psychology.

Method is a way, a way of knowledge. There are many classifications of methods of psychology.

1. In one of them, two groups of methods are distinguished: basic and auxiliary. TO main include observation and experiment. Observation- deliberate, systematic and purposeful perception of the external behavior of a person for the purpose of subsequent analysis and explanation. Everyday and scientific observations are distinguished (see topic 1.1.), included and non-included (depending on the participation of the researcher in the activity he is observing). Experiment is characterized by active intervention in the situation by the researcher, systematic manipulation of one or more variables (factors) and registration of accompanying changes. The experiment can be

1) laboratory (carried out under artificial conditions, often using special equipment) and natural (under normal conditions for the subjects); 2) ascertaining (determining the presence or level of development of a particular mental phenomenon), forming (active influence on the subject in order to change the psyche) and control (in order to check any addictions).

Helper methods:

The method of generalizing independent characteristics is the identification and analysis of opinions about certain psychological phenomena or processes received from various people.

Analysis of products of activity is an indirect study of psychological phenomena based on practical results, in which the creative forces and abilities of people are embodied (drawings, verbal creativity).

A test is a method of psychological diagnostics that uses standardized questions and tasks that have a certain scale of values.

The biographical method is the study of the characteristics of a person's psychology according to his biography (for example, the psychology of historical figures).

Polls - obtaining information in the process of direct communication between the researcher and the subject. Oral surveys - conversation and interviews, written - questionnaires and questionnaires.

Sociometry is a method of studying the microstructure of a group and determining the status of its members.

The method of sections - a longitudinal section - the study of any psychological characteristics in the same subjects for a long time and the analysis and comparison of the age-related changes that have occurred; cross section - the study of the comparison of certain psychological characteristics in different (by age, specific development) groups of subjects over a short period of time.

2. B.G. Ananiev distinguishes the following groups of methods:

Organizational - a comparative method (comparison of groups by age, activity, etc.), longitudinal (multiple examinations of the same persons over a long period of time), complex (study of one object by representatives of different sciences and various means).

Empirical - observation and self-observation, experiment, psychodiagnostics (tests, surveys, sociometry), analysis of activity products, biographical).

Data processing methods - quantitative (statistical), qualitative (analytical).

Interpretation - genetic (analysis of the material in terms of development with the allocation of individual phases, stages, critical moments, etc.), structural (identification of structural relationships between all personality characteristics).

3. L.A. Karpenko identifies methods of observation in accordance with the following criteria:

By contact, there are direct (contact) and indirect (for example, through video cameras) observations.

According to the conditions of activity - laboratory and field.

By the nature of interaction with the object - included - not included; hidden (incognito) - open.

By goals - purposeful - random.

According to the ordering of activities - selective - continuous (in time), structured - arbitrary.

By fixing the results - evaluating - ascertaining.

Stages of psychological research.

Preparatory - the study of the state of the issue, the definition of tasks and the working hypothesis of the study, the development of a methodology.
Gathering evidence to support the credibility of conclusions. For this, various methods and division into a number of stages - series are used.
Qualitative and quantitative processing of research data - determination of average values, correlation coefficients, plotting.

4. Interpretation of data, formulation of conclusions, practical recommendations, forecast of the development of phenomena for the future.

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