What is the psyche? The development of the human psyche

The psyche is a characteristic of the human condition, a special descriptive feature that includes many different aspects, questions and problems. In this article we will try to answer some questions related to it. In particular, the definition of the psyche, its characteristics, functions, properties, structure and much more will be considered.

Introduction

The psyche is a complex term that exists in such areas of human cognition and activity as philosophy, psychology and medicine. This concept can be interpreted in different ways:

• The total number of phenomena and processes of a spiritual nature (for example, sensation, perception, emotion).
• A specific feature manifested by animals, including humans, and associated with the surrounding reality.
• Active display by the subject of the objective components of reality. It arises during the interaction between highly organized living beings and the external environment. Exercise expresses itself in behavior.
• The psyche is a property characteristic of matter with a high organization. Its essence lies in the active form of display by the subject of the surrounding objective world. It is based on self-regulation of individual behavior and activity of the subject.

The psyche is a definition that is characterized by the concepts of activity, development, self-regulation, communicativeness, adaptation, etc. It is closely related to the whole variety of bodily (somatic) processes. Its appearance is tracked at a certain biological stage of the evolution of the individual. Man has the highest form of the psyche - consciousness. Psychology studies this phenomenon.

Mental health is a safe state that allows a person to realize individual potential, solve problems arising from the influence of stress, carry out fruitful and productive work, and also bring something (both positive and negative components of activity) into the life of society - the environment. It is important to know that the semantic content of the term “psyche” is not limited to the criteria of medicine and psychology, but it also reflects a social and group list of norms governing human life.

The concept of the psyche is closely connected with self-consciousness, which is a subjective perception of the objective world around itself. This is a great form of analysis of all the objects around, which, one way or another, is different from any other person. It is formed with the accumulation and comprehension of experience. Self-awareness determines for the individual a set of needs that are vital, for example, the need for thought, feeling, motive, experience, action.

Origin and development

The history of science has tried differently to define the concept of the psyche in the natural environment of nature. The change of point of view changed during the development of human knowledge.

Panpsychism claims that nature as a whole is animate. Biopsychism believes that this property is characteristic of any living organism, including plants (we exclude cells). Neuropsychistic views tell us that only beings with a nervous system possess the psyche. Proponents of anthropopsychism believe that this phenomenon is inherent only to man, and animals are “automatic machines”.

More modern hypotheses determine the properties of the psyche and its presence in accordance with a set of criteria that depend on the abilities of certain living organisms (for example, search behavior). One of these hypotheses, which has been recognized by many scientists, is the assertion of A. N. Leontyev. He suggested that an objective criterion of the psyche is the body’s ability to respond to a biologically neutral stimulus. This property is called sensitivity. According to Leontiev, it includes a number of aspects, both subjective and objective.

According to Leontyev, the evolution of mental forms is divided into 3 stages, among which:

1. Elementary sensory p-ka.
2. Perceptual n-ka.
3. The psyche of intelligence.

C. Fabry of the three, the above stages of the psyche, left only the first two. And he “dissolves” the stage of analysis of intelligence in the concept of perceptual psyche.

At the first stage, it is assumed that the animal can reflect only a separate series of properties that are associated with external influences. The second stage reflects the state of the external world in the form of integral images in relation to objects and subjects.

Behavior

Mind and behavior are terms that are closely interconnected.

By behavior is meant a certain form of interaction with the outside world. It is formed during the course of life and owes much to the “interception” of experience from other entities. Behavior can change in accordance with a change in the internal and external series of factors that affect the subject. This is a characteristic of the animal level of organization.

Behavior plays an important role in evolutionary development, since it has an adaptive value that allows the animal to avoid any factors that can adversely affect it. This feature is characteristic of unicellular and multicellular living organisms, however, in the latter, the nervous system regulates behavior.

A person can observe and analyze behavior directly. Currently, many disciplines are engaged in this, for example: psychology, ethology, zoopsychology, etc. Performing such operations with the psyche is much more difficult.

Another important concept related to the psyche is the term “soul”.

Soul means many different properties of a person. For example, religious and philosophical assumptions define it as an immortal substance or intangible essence, which is expressed by the divine nature, giving new beginnings for life in the broadest sense. The soul is closely connected with such concepts as thinking, consciousness, feelings, will, ability to feel, and even life itself. A more rational and objective description of the soul defines it as the specificity and combination of features of the inner, mental world of man.

The properties

The properties of the psyche are special functions that it performs. Among them, several main ones are distinguished:

• Reflection is the main mental property, which is the basis for the concepts of reproduction, objectification, disobjection, introversion and extroversion.
• The concepts of objectification and disobjectivation are the ability of the energy that the psyche possesses to change and change into other forms. For example, a poet objectifies his energy resources from objects and phenomena into the form of a work that the reader will study. The last subject to comprehend the information will be disjointment.
• Intro and extraversion are related to the orientation of the psyche. However, the latter should also show such sides of the studied term as its openness to understanding and analysis of new information.
• Reproduction in psychology is a feature of the subject, through the use of which he can resume previous mental states.

The property of the psyche is reflection, as mentioned earlier, its main feature. If we consider specifically reflection, and not the functions arising from it, then we can say that this is the ability to perceive the world, transfer events around itself, and also subject certain information to meaningfulness. This concept underlies the adaptation of man to the conditions of a new environment or a change in the old.

Functions

The functions of the psyche are a set of tasks that reflect the impact of the surrounding reality on the subject. They also regulate the characteristics of behavioral reactions, human activities and their awareness of their personal place in the world around.

The reflection of the impact of the environment in which the individual is placed is one of the main functions of the term being studied. This task has a number of features, among which:

• Constant progress, development and improvement of various human characteristics that occur by overcoming internal contradictions.
• The constant refraction of external influence through the prism of previously existing features of the perception of information through the psyche.
• Correct interpretation and reflection of the realities of the world. It is important to understand here that the subjective assessment, understanding and transformation of information about objective reality does not deny the existence of reality as such. In other words, regardless of the individual’s opinion, for example, about a red and ripe apple, it will remain so, in spite of other forms of interpretation of data about this object.

With the help of the psyche, a person creates an overall picture of the real world around. This is made possible through the collection of information through various senses, for example, sight, hearing, and touch. It is also important to consider the ability of a person to use the resource of imagination.

Another important function of the psyche is the regulation of behavior and its activities. These two components of a living being are mediated precisely by n-koi. The basis for such a statement is that the collection of information, awareness of motives and needs, as well as setting goals and objectives are developed in the course of individual perception.

The psyche is also a feature of a living being, which includes the function of a person's awareness of an individual place in the world. This task allows us to adapt and navigate in objective reality.

The processes

The structure of the psyche is a complex system. It includes one more important concept - “mental processes”.

They represent a group of special phenomena that can conditionally be distinguished from the integral structure of the psyche. The separation of such component units is a generalized separation without any particular categorical differences. In other words, it is purely conditional. They appeared due to the influence of mechanistic ideas about the structure of the psyche from the point of view of scientists, psychologists and psychiatrists.

Mental phenomena are distinguished by duration and are divided into three groups: processes, states and properties.

Mental processes stand out among all those in that they proceed very quickly and are short-lived. This is a certain actual response to what is happening around.

Modern statements of science indicate that n-processes, in all their diversity, merging, form the structure of what a person calls the psyche. The separation of psychological processes is hypothetical, so it has no weighty arguments yet. Today in the world is the development of integrative approaches to the psyche. They try to classify all processes according to two types: pedagogical and propaedeutic. These two paths should be within the framework of a measure of the development of science.

Wecker distinguished 2 levels of organization of mental processes. He associated the first with a number of nervous processes that are organized by neural connections. They are distinguished only sometimes in the consciousness of the person, since everything happens at the subconscious level, so it is difficult to determine them. The second level is the connection of subconscious processes with conscious ones, their analysis and the establishment of relationships to create the whole picture.

The human psyche interconnects, for example, processes such as memory, attention, thinking, perception. There are many similar abilities of our brain. Among them are: cognitive (sensations, perceptions, memory, thinking, perception, attention resources, speech and imagination), emotional (feelings, emotions, stability and perception of stress, affects) and volitional (struggle between motives, goal setting and decision making ability )

Structure

The structure of the psyche is a rather complex system formed by individual subsystems. Elements of this concept are organized hierarchically and can often change. The main property of the psyche is a holistic form and system.

The development of this science made it possible to create a certain organization in it, which distinguishes such concepts as mental processes, states and properties in the general structure. Below we consider the processes.

Mental processes occur in the human brain and reflect the dynamically changing "picture" of the phenomenon. They are divided into cognitive (the phenomenon of reflection and transformation of information), regulatory (responsible for the direction and intensity of the temporal organization of behavior) and communicative (provide the phenomenon of communication between subjects, as well as the manifestation and perception of feelings and thoughts).

Concept of consciousness

The levels of the psyche include several basic classification “units”: the subconscious, preconscious, conscious, superconscious.

The subconscious is a set of desires, aspirations, and ideas that have gone out of consciousness or perceived by the psyche as a signal, but could not penetrate the sphere of perception of consciousness.

The preconscious is an intermediate link between the concepts of the unconscious and the conscious. It exists in the form of a “stream of consciousness” —a random movement of thoughts, their comprehension, the presence of images and associations. Also this level is represented by emotions.

Consciousness is a component that includes every higher p-th function (thinking, resources of memory, imagination, the ability to imagine and also the will).

The evolutionary development of the human psyche allowed him to create a definition for the highest level of reflection of reality on this planet. This is a materialistic position characterizing one of the forms of the human mental “beginning”. However, the history of psychology shows that the problem of consciousness was the hardest and least understood. And even today, this question has not been fully studied, and many psychologists are puzzling over it.

Among the psychological characteristics of consciousness, there are:

• subjective sensation and self-knowledge;
• the ability to imagine unreal reality through thought processes;
• the ability to be responsible for their own mental and behavioral types of state;
• ability to perceive information accepted from the surrounding reality.

Superconsciousness is a mental series of formations that a person is capable of forming in himself by means of a focused application of efforts.

Domestic psychology interprets consciousness as the highest form of mental reflection of objective reality. It is also the ability to self-regulation. Tautology: “consciousness in the form in which a person possesses it is accessible only to him”, states that the mental development of a person is an order of magnitude higher in comparison with other animals.

The psyche is an ability available to the central nervous system. It can be used only by humans and some species of complexly developed animals. With the help of the psyche, we can reflect the world around us and respond to changing conditions in the environment. The difference between consciousness and the psyche lies in the fact that consciousness has a certain higher level, in contrast to the psyche, its forms and structure.

Consciousness is a certain, continuously changing set of images perceived mentally and sensitively in the inner world of the subject. Here, a synthesis of visual and sound images with impressions and memories, as well as diagrams and ideas.

Child psyche

The development of the human psyche begins in childhood.

Each baby’s innate reflex is regulated by a number of nerve centers. The cortex of the hemispheres of the baby is not fully formed, and the nerve fiber is not covered by a protective sheath. This explains the quick and sharp agitation of newborns. A feature of the processes taking place at this age is that the rate of their development exceeds the development of control over the body. In other words, vision and hearing form much faster. This allows the formation of orientational reflexes and conditioned reflex connections.

Up to four years, the process of the formation of the psyche is very active. Therefore, it is necessary to pay at this time the greatest attention to the baby and approach the issue of education extremely responsibly.

It is important to remember that for the psyche of the child, the whole world seems to be a game. Therefore, for him, the leading way of learning and personality formation is imitation, which will be adopted from adult behavior. It is necessary to realize that the experience captured in infancy and early childhood can be rooted at the subconscious level in the brain of the baby for life. A child of seven years already has a pronounced temperament. At this age, it is important to give him the opportunity to spend time with his peers. , , .

Mental disorders

– , (, , ). , , «». , (, ). .

. , , , . , , .

A disease of this nature leads to a change and disruption of the processes of sensation of feelings, thinking and behavioral reactions. There is also an opinion that mental problems cause certain somatic dysfunctions of the body. To create medical and psychological means of eliminating mental problems is possible only with the close cooperation of such areas of activity as medicine and psychology. We must also not forget about the importance of considering the object of psychology - the psyche - from various points of view.

The processes of the psyche are disturbed in every fourth to fifth person on the planet. WHO has such data. Various behaviors can be the cause of behavioral or mental disorders. The very essence of the occurrence of the disease is not clear. Psychology specialists have created many ways to deal with them and determine them. If there are certain symptoms in the subject, he needs to consult a specialist.

Currently, there is an active criticism of the identification of the concepts of mental disorder and disease. This is due to the presence in psychiatry of a complex set of criteria for determining the nature of the disease (biological - bodily pathology, medical - the quality of the living conditions and life threats, social - problems in the social sphere of functioning). Most often, the assumption is made that mental disorder is caused by the presence of a problem in the bodily functioning of a part of the brain. Based on this, specialists at the tenth revision of the International Classification of Diseases approved that instead of 2 terms (“fifth disease” and “fifth disease”), the concept of “mental disorder” can be used.

Often distinguish the state of the psyche (psychiatric and mental disorders, as well as those treated by psychiatrists) as a convention, wearing a conventional, non-medical type of description of a person. For example, some types of disorders refer to pathological practice only figuratively. Such reactions, which are atypical for everyday life, become pathologies. However, they can turn out to be saving and manifest themselves in certain extreme situations.

The forms of the psyche can be distinguished among themselves by the type of disorder. From this point of view, they classify:

• Syndromological principle, which is based on the existing concept of the presence of "a single psychosis.
• Nosological p-p is based on the division of diseases according to their etiological community, and is also associated with issues of pathogenesis and the similarity of clinical pictures.
• Pragmatic p-p is a consequence of establishing a connection in development between national and international health organizations.

Such features of the psyche as its disorders allow us to divide them into various structural units that form a single and whole department of science. It is described in the fifth section of the international classification of diseases of the tenth revision and was developed by WHO (it was adopted in the Russian Federation in 1997). Section provisions distinguish:

1. F00 - F09 is an organic type of disease that includes symptomatic disorders.
2. F10 - F19 is a psychic type of disorder that is common to behavior associated with the use of psychoactive drugs and substances.
3. F20 - F29 - Schizophrenic, schizotypic and delusional disorders.
4. F30 - F39 - mood disorder (affective r-in).
5. F40 - F49 - neuropathic r-in, associated with stress and somatoform disorders.
6. F50 - F59 - a behavioral series of syndromes associated with physiological problems that arose on the basis of physical factors.
7. F60 - F69 - r-in personality and behavioral reactions in adulthood.
8. F70 - F79 - mental retardation of the subject.
9. F80 - F89 - r-in mental "growth".
10. F90 - F98 - emotional and behavioral solutions that began as a teenager or child.
11. F99 - mental r-in without an additional number of refinements.

Different diseases have a number of descriptive characteristics that distinguish certain phenomena in specific groups. For example, schizophrenia is characterized by the breakdown of mental and emotional processes. Such disorders are characteristic in that they allow the consciousness of the subject to perceive something “atypical” for the majority as the norm. This applies primarily to dangerous manifestations of aggression and cruelty. Schizophrenia often involves auditory or visual hallucinations. Mild forms of such a disease are inherent in a rather large part of the world's population, but in this form they can hardly be detected without proper knowledge. However, people with mild forms of schizophrenia are often creative people and possess some distinctive features.