Many people know the famous psychologist and specialist in psycholinguistics, the author of numerous works that significantly influenced the development of Russian science, Alexei Alekseevich Leontiev. The biography of this outstanding scientist is quite rich, as is his professional activity. He went a long scientific path from philology to psychology and pedagogy.
Having received a basic philological education, A. A. Leontyev gravitated toward an interdisciplinary space in the field of humanitarian knowledge. Over time, the central issue of his research became the topic of communication, which he regarded as general theoretical and having influence on other disciplines related to psychology.
Leont'ev is one of the first Russian researchers among those involved in the development of the theory of “Pedagogical communication” in didactics. Despite the huge number of his own works known to science (about 900 works and 30 books), Alexei Alekseevich became the first publisher of some of the works of such famous scientists as I. A. Baudouin de Courtenay, L. S. Vygotsky, E. D. Polivanov, A. N. Leontiev and L.P. Yakubinsky.
Leontief family
On January 14, 1936, the Leontyevs had a son Alexei. His family - mother Margarita Petrovna (1905-1985), father Alexei Nikolaevich (1903-1979) and his parents, Alexandra Alekseevna and Nikolai Vladimirovich, then lived in Moscow.
According to their friends, family relationships were very warm. This concerned both relations with the parents of Aleksey Nikolaevich and the spouses among themselves. Margarita Petrovna devoted her life to the family and the support of her great husband, was for him a reliable rear and support until the last day of his life.
Father. Professional activity
Father - an outstanding Russian psychologist Alexei Nikolaevich Leontyev. The biography of A. N. Leontyev is extremely full of scientific activity. Under the leadership of Lev Semenovich Vygotsky (1896-1934) together with Alexander Romanovich Luria (1902-1977), whom Leontyev met at the Institute of Psychology, having come to work after graduating from Moscow State University, they developed a well-known cultural-historical theory and conducted numerous experimental studies aimed at to study the mechanisms of formation of psychological processes.
In collaboration with them, as well as with a number of other colleagues, he worked out in detail the problems of the relationship between practical activity and consciousness, understanding, and communication through activity. Thus, in the 30s he formed a general psychological concept of activity, which to this day has a great influence on the development of theoretical directions in the psychology of both domestic and foreign researchers.
Thus, A.N. Leontyev is rightfully considered the creator of an extensive scientific psychological school and numerous works that have influenced not only the development of psychology, but also pedagogy, philosophy, cultural studies, and other humanities. The famous scientific work, which was published in 1975 by senior Alexei Leontyev, “Activities. Consciousness. Personality ”is a generalizing work on the theory of activity.
Childhood
Given the fact that Alexei Alekseevich’s childhood was in the pre-war years, his childhood memories are somehow connected with the war, bomb shelters and a trip to Ashgabat (at the end of 1941) and Sverdlovsk (in the middle of 1942), where Moscow State University was evacuated. The family was able to return to their house only in 1943.
Even before A.A. Leontyev began to study at school, he was engaged in a children's group for the study of the German language. The preparation was quite serious, and the tasks were difficult (for example, translation of texts). Upon entering school No. 110, Aleksei Alekseevich was determined not in the first grade, but immediately in the second. Moreover, according to the results of studies conducted among students, he was enrolled in the list of geeks. The result of training at school was a gold medal.
Institute years
According to Alexey Alekseevich himself, back in 1953, when he graduated from school, it was absolutely clear that to engage in science was his true calling. Among the various options for admission, he considered various humanities and even organic chemistry.
As A. Leontyev recalls, psychology was undoubtedly among the sciences that attracted him. But he did not enter this faculty. Of course, one of the main reasons was the fact that his father headed the department of psychology at Moscow State University. Lomonosov. As a specialty in other educational institutions, psychology was either absent or was just beginning to appear. Therefore, A. A. Leontiev chose the faculty of philology.
Beginning of professional work
Alexey Alekseevich successfully graduated from the university with a degree in linguistics in 1958. His graduation thesis was highly appreciated by teachers and became the basis for 2 publications. The result of this work was the offer of a teaching position at the Institute of Linguistics of the USSR Academy of Sciences.
During his work, he became the author and co-author of publications that differed in a variety of areas. In addition, by 1963 he defended his candidate for the general linguistic views of Ivan Alexandrovich Baudouin de Courtenay.
Psycholinguistics
In addition to outstanding philological abilities and knowledge, Alexei Alekseevich was attracted by other humanities. His work confirmed that Alexei Leontyev is a psychologist, psycholinguist and teacher. His main theme of that period of scientific work was psycholinguistics (the book was published in 1967). At the same time, the Faculty of Psychology was founded at Moscow State University, where the eponymous subject was introduced. In addition to this course, which Alexey Alekseevich taught for the rest of his life, he also developed and read other disciplines of psychological, socio-psychological, psycholinguistic, pedagogical, forensic and other areas.
Alexey Alekseevich became a doctor of philosophical sciences in 1968. It should also be noted that the release of this doctoral dissertation on psycholinguistic modeling of speech was preceded by 9 monographs of different thematic areas, which do not lose their relevance in our time. The doctorate allowed Alexei Alekseevich in 1969 to organize a psycholinguistic research group at the Institute of Linguistics.
The area of interest of this outstanding scientist is quite large, but the unifying problem for him was the problem of communication. A. A. Leont'ev saw in it a general theoretical aspect, which is manifested in many humanities. The result of his many works and studies was the promotion of a multilevel interdisciplinary theory of human communication and a book on the psychology of communication, published in 1974.
Transition from linguistics to pedagogy
Over time, for Alexei Alekseevich linguistics began to fade into the background, and he turned his attention to education. Confirmation was a doctorate in the psychology of verbal communication (1975). After that, he went to work in the then-created Russian Language Institute. A.S. Pushkin, and in 1976 became a professor.
Also, at certain periods of his life, he worked in the methodological center of the Russian language of Moscow State University, headed various councils. In 1986, he was a professor at the Moscow State Pedagogical Institute. In 1988-1991 - Head of the Laboratory for Language Education, in 1990 - Secretary General of the International Association for the Assistance in the Study of Languages. In 1992, Leontiev was elected a full member of RAO.
In 1994, he headed the Institute of Languages and Cultures. Leo Tolstoy, who himself created. Since 1995 he became a member of the Russian Language Council. Since 1997, he led the "School 2000". In parallel with another job in 1998, he became a professor at Moscow State University. In 2000, he began cooperation with the Center at RAO.
Decent change
Aleksei Alekseevich has a son Dmitry (born in 1960), who also became a successor to the family. Now he is a rather famous psychologist, doctor of sciences, professor of Moscow State University, director of the Institute of Existential Psychology and Life-Creating.
A. A. Leontiev also has a daughter, but, unfortunately, nothing is known about her, except that she also studied at Moscow State University.