The problem of the formation of personal identity in early adolescence is due to the need to solve fundamental problems of social and personal self-determination during this period. The transition from adolescence to adolescence is associated with a sharp change in the internal position, which consists in the fact that aspiration to the future becomes the main focus of the individual, and the problem of choosing a profession and future life path is in the center of attention of the interests and plans of high school students.
The strengthening of the personal approach in psychology has led to the enrichment of its language with concepts reflecting those aspects of the sphere of personality development that previously remained outside the scope of psychological analysis. Such concepts include the concepts of “Self-concept”, the concept of “personal self-determination” or “personal self-determination”, “personal identity”, widespread today in psychological and pedagogical literature.
The methodological foundations of the psychological approach to the problem of self-determination were laid by S.L. Rubinstein. He considered the problem of self-determination in the context of the problem of determination, in the light of the principle he put forward - external causes act, refracted through internal conditions: “The thesis according to which external causes act through internal conditions so that the effect depends on the internal properties of the object means, essentially “that any determination is necessary as determination by others, external, and as self-determination (determination of the internal properties of an object).” In this context, self-determination appears as self-determination, as opposed to external determination; the concept of self-determination thus expresses the active nature of “internal conditions.”
We have to admit that at the level of a specific psychological theory, the problem of self-determination equates “external causes”, “external determination” and social conditions, social determination. In foreign psychology, the category “identity”, introduced into scientific circulation by E. Erikson, serves as an analogue of the concept of “personal self-determination”.
Identity is a set of basic psychological, socio-historical and existential characteristics of a person in the concept of E. Erikson. By personal identity, Erikson understands the subjective feeling and at the same time objectively observable quality of self-identity and integrity of the individual Self, associated with the individual’s belief in the identity and integrity of a particular image of the world and person shared with others. Being the vital core of the personality and the main indicator of its psychosocial balance, personal identity means: a) the internal identity of the subject in the process of his perception of the external world, a sense of stability and continuity of his Self in time and space; b) the inclusion of this I in a certain human community, the identity of personal and socially accepted types of worldview. In addition, the subjective strength of the sense of personal identity, according to E. Erikson, is “a sign of the end of adolescence and a condition for the formation of an adult individual.”
The need to determine one’s place in the world of adults and to feel oneself as an independent and separate person from Others often becomes a prerequisite for the separation process and marks the developing process of individuation.
H. Remschmidt writes that the latest data on the physical, mental, and psychosocial processes of growing up “convince us of the relative independence of this age stage from others.” Thus, maturing people must be considered not only as individuals who have not yet achieved adult status, but also as a special social group with specific departmental needs, problems and difficulties.
Almost nowhere is it reflected that the formation of personal identity in early adolescence involves not only the child’s consistent identification with an adult and awareness of his own worth and competence, but also the experience of self-identity through emotional separation from significant adults.
Thus, personal identity is the resulting vector of the identification process, and also has integrity and structure, which is expressed in the form of a person’s experience of both the identity and variability of the Self over time. This view of identity formation in early adolescence involves a process of self-awareness and self-identification among others. However, it is important to emphasize that during the transition from childhood to adulthood, the adolescent needs a certain autonomy and self-identity in order to be able to assume the rights and responsibilities of an adult.
The formation of a person’s self-awareness is associated with the characteristics of self-identification and self-esteem.
Self-identity is defined as “the persistently experienced identity of the Self across time and space. It presupposes the authenticity of self-perception, a high level of integration of private dynamic and contradictory images of the Self into a single coherent system, due to which a stable, generalized and holistic individual-personal self-determination is formed and maintained, supported and shared by a community of significant others.”
As a result, self-identity involves self-esteem and the assessment of expectations regarding the basic relationships of the self and the social environment.
However, due to the fact that the subject of identification is also a person, achieving complete identity with the object is impossible. A person’s experience of his Self in the process of identification is a manifestation of the content of mental life, an indicator of its presence, and makes it possible to realize his Self and its non-identity with the Other. At a general level, identification appears as the experience of dynamic identity with oneself, acceptance of oneself as a given. This is an integral experience, which is built from individual private experiences and manifests itself in a variety of specific forms, allowing researchers to see this process from different points of view: it acts as self-esteem, as self-concept, as self-awareness, etc.
Based on the foregoing, it is obvious that the traditional methodological approach to the study of the identified problem in the context of social regulation of identification processes does not provide a full opportunity to consider the features of intrapsychic regulation of the dynamics of the formation of key aspects of identity. Insufficient attention has been paid to the experience of gender identity, the introjection of external normative and regulatory objects, and the autonomization of a maturing individual. Also, the formation of emotional autonomy of a maturing person in conditions of shifting reference structures outside the family is not actually taken into account. In connection with the above, the question arises in determining the signs of the self-autonomous as the resulting activity in the formation of a holistic structure of self-identification of a maturing individual.
Erik Homberger Erikson is an American psychologist. Born in Frankfurt am Main in 1902. Studied at the Vienna Psychoanalytic Institute. In 1933 he moved to the United States, where he worked in Boston and at Harvard University; later moved to Yale and then to Berkeley, where he worked for more than ten years. In 1950, he published the book “Childhood & Society,” which became a psychological bestseller. With it begins his revision of some of the principles of classical Freudianism and the formulation of his own doctrine of identity. In 1958, Erikson’s book “Young Man Luther” was published, which became the first experience in using the psychohistorical method. This was followed by “Gandhi's Truth”, 1969 and other works. The book about Gandhi brought Erickson the Pulitzer Prize and the US National Prize. Erickson died in Harwich (Massachusetts) in 1994.
The book “Identity: Youth and Crisis” is devoted to the problems of adolescence related to the social development of the individual. The author traces individual life cycles, the sequence of generations and the structure of society. The main concept developed by Erikson is the concept of identity. It denotes a firmly acquired and personally accepted image of oneself in all the richness of the individual’s relationships with the world around him. Identity is, first of all, an indicator of a mature (adult) personality, the origins of which are hidden in the previous stages of ontogenesis. This is a configuration into which constitutional predisposition, characteristics of libidinal needs, preferred abilities, effective defense mechanisms, successful sublimations and fulfilled roles are integrated.
Ages 11-20 are a key period for acquiring a sense of identity. At this time, the teenager oscillates between the positive pole of identification (“I”) and the negative pole of role confusion. The teenager is faced with the task of combining everything that he knows about himself as a son/daughter, school student, athlete, friend, etc. He must combine all this into a single whole, comprehend it, connect it with the past and project it into the future. If the crisis of adolescence is successful, boys and girls develop a sense of identity; if it is unfavorable, they will develop a confused identity, associated with painful doubts about themselves, their place in the group, in society, and with an unclear life perspective. Here Erikson introduces a completely original term - “psychological moratorium” - which denotes the crisis period between adolescence and adulthood, during which multidimensional complex processes of acquiring adult identity and a new attitude towards the world occur in the individual. The crisis gives rise to a state of “diffusion of identity,” which forms the basis of the specific pathology of adolescence.
The sixth stage (from 21 to 25 years) marks, according to Erikson, the transition to solving adult problems on the basis of a formed psychosocial identity. Young people enter into friendships, get married, and have children. The global issue of the fundamental choice between this broad field of establishing friendships and family connections with the prospect of raising a new generation is being resolved - and the isolationism characteristic of people with a confused identity and other, even earlier errors in the line of development.
25 - 50/60 years occupy the lion's share of human life, associated with the contradiction between a person's ability to develop, which he receives on the basis of acquired experience at previous stages, and personal stagnation, the slow regression of the individual in the process of everyday life. The reward for mastering the ability for self-development is the formation of human individuality and uniqueness.
So, during adolescence, every person in one way or another experiences a crisis associated with the need for self-determination, in the form of a whole series of social and personal choices and identifications. If a young man fails to resolve these problems in a timely manner, he develops an inadequate identity. Diffuse, fuzzy identity is a state when an individual has not yet made a responsible choice, for example, a profession or worldview, which makes his self-image vague and uncertain. Unpaid identity is a state when a young man has accepted a certain identity, having bypassed the complex and painful process of self-analysis, he is already included in the system of adult relationships, but this choice was not made consciously, but under influence from the outside or according to ready-made standards.
Erikson’s analysis of the topic of the connection between the individual life cycle and the cycle of generations and, in general, the problem of generational dynamics deserves a separate discussion. The concept of identity, in addition to personal identity (constancy in space), also implies integrity (continuity of personality over time), and, therefore, identity is thought of not only as personal, but also as group (racial, social, gender, etc.).
Identity formation is the process of transforming all previous identifications in the light of the expected future. Although identity development reaches a critical point at which a crisis may occur only during adolescence, it begins in infancy. In highly structured societies with mandatory rites of passage to adulthood or rigidly defined roles for adolescents, the identity crisis is less pronounced than in democratic societies.
Trying to avoid an identity crisis, some boys and girls are too hasty with self-determination, resign themselves to the consciousness of predestination and therefore are not able to reveal their full potential; others prolong this crisis and state of vague identity indefinitely, wasting their energy in protracted developmental conflict and doubts about self-determination. Sometimes diffuse identity is expressed as a “negative identity,” in which the individual adopts a dangerous or socially undesirable role. Fortunately, without any serious crisis, most develop one of several possible positive selves.
In addition, adolescents need to be provided with a wide range of positive lifestyle options or functional role models - with the opportunity to experience multiple acceptable roles, get to know themselves better, and be informed about the real chances and options provided by the culture in which they grow up.
Misprocessing of an identity crisis has been found to correlate with a wide range of problems, from difficulties in psychological growth to pathology. Strong diffusion of identity is associated with inability to make decisions, confusion in problems, loss individuality in public, difficulty establishing satisfying relationships with a tendency to isolate, difficulties at work and low ability to concentrate. Since identity is, not without reason, considered one of the fundamental elements of ego development and strength, unsatisfactory resolution of an identity crisis makes the individual less able to cope with the immediate tasks of adjustment.
Although identity crises most often occur during adolescence, people can experience them at any age. Erikson originally used the term “identity crisis” to refer to the experiences of World War II veterans. He later observed similar identity confusion in young people who had become disoriented in life, and concluded that identity crises are part of normal adolescent development. Moreover, Erikson's own experience as an immigrant led him to suggest that even if a person has resolved an adolescent identity crisis, subsequent dramatic changes in life can cause a recurrence of the crisis. In addition to immigrants, many other categories of people can experience an identity crisis:
retired military men who previously occupied the position of everyone's favorites and had the corresponding status;
retired civilians whose identity was built almost entirely on their work;
some people living on the state. benefits and therefore consider themselves “empty space” due to the tendency in our society to define identity through profession;
mothers whose children have grown up and left the parental home (empty nest syndrome);
people who find themselves having to change their plans for the future due to an unexpected disability, etc.
A number of other studies focus on the crisis experienced by the dying. A person’s sense of identity in this state is threatened by numerous losses: business connections, family, friends, bodily functions and consciousness.
From birth to death we go through 8 stages of development, at each of which we are faced with an identity crisis. What is it and what is its danger? What happens to us at specific age intervals? How to help a child survive a turning point? After reading the article, you will not only find answers to these questions, but also find out where the rake is hidden, which you can accidentally step on.
What is an identity crisis
An identity crisis is a period of formation of a person’s personality through the search for one’s place and role in society, awareness of one’s own uniqueness. Research on this phenomenon belongs to the American psychologist Erik Erikson, who identified eight stages of human psychological development. The transition from one stage to another is accompanied by changes in the perception of oneself and the world around us. Most of them occur before the age of 21, but even after this age the revaluation of values continues. Age limits may change or shift, but the order of steps remains the same for the majority.
8 development crises
1. To trust or not?
A person faces the first crisis in the first year of his life. “Is the world a safe place or a hostile environment for me?” – this is the main question now. The child observes the situation and the people around him, studying how consistent, stable, and friendly the actions towards him are.
The most important thing that should happen at the first stage is the emergence of the child’s trust in the world. If you provide your baby with regular care, attention, and care, he will feel safe. And this is the key to harmonious life. In addition, a trusting relationship with the world will help a person cross decisive thresholds more gently in the future.
2. The struggle for independence
From one to three years, a person goes through the next stage of development, the essence of which is the establishment of personal independence and resistance to adult education. The child needs to defend the boundaries of his autonomy and the right to choose at all costs. He strives to use the acquired skills (dressing himself, combing his hair, etc.), persistently improving his skills.
Children who were not limited in exploring themselves or their environment, but, on the contrary, supported their desire for independence, have more. They are ready to defend the borders of their territory, their own opinion, resisting pressure from outside. Harsh criticism, constant control and reproaches like: “Who are you like!”, “Look what you’ve done!”, “All children are like children, and you!” foster self-doubt, cause feelings of doubt and guilt. If you prevent a child from expressing himself, then in the future he will depend on others for everything.
3. Initiative or guilt
From three to five years of age, the self-affirmation phase begins. This is a period of active interaction with children, exploration of one's interpersonal skills and self-organization. The life of a child is now very dynamic - children come up with games, assign roles, take initiative and learn to interact in a team.
If he, feeling safe, can show his organizational skills at this stage, then the door to harmonious growing up will open easily and naturally.
Those parents who are used to criticizing, reprimanding or stopping in order to prevent danger risk causing the child to feel guilty. By suppressing the initiative that has arisen, stopping the “flow of questions,” as well as the child’s demand to explain this or that situation, we risk that the child will feel rejected and unnecessary. Feelings of guilt not only suppress creativity, but also disrupt the process of communication with others. Adults face a difficult but doable task - to balance initiative and natural feelings of guilt.
4. Self-sufficiency versus self-doubt
The period from 5 to 12 years is characterized by active comprehension of knowledge, when a person learns to read, write and process the information received. Now the source of the formation of a sense of self-sufficiency is not parents, but teachers and comrades. Encouragement, support for initiative, and approval provide the individual with self-confidence and self-confidence.
Condemnation of an initiative or excessive criticism from others provokes the appearance of complexes and self-doubt. In addition, the feeling of inferiority that arises on this basis leads to a reluctance to learn and develop further.
5. The path to awareness
At the fifth stage we are between the ages of 12 and 21. During this period of time, there is a transition from childhood to adulthood, the smoothness of which plays an important role in the formation of a holistic personality. Now the priority is to establish a career and personal life. There is a separation from parents and a thorough search for oneself in all areas of life. Who am I? Where do I feel comfortable being? What do I want? These and other questions that cause a psychological crisis ultimately lead to the definition of one’s professional and sexual roles.
If at this stage the person does not have enough strength and experience to identify himself, role confusion may occur. What does it mean? An internally insecure teenager is prone to drastic experiments in search of himself, which are often accompanied by negative consequences. Attempts to curb his ardor and direct him in some direction provoke protest, rebellion, and rejection.
6. Intimacy and love
We go through this stage the fastest, since it is between 21 and 25 years. The period is dedicated to exploring love and your partner. The ability to build long-term trusting relationships, to give, to sacrifice, and to be responsible for another is developed. If it is possible to create a situation of comfort, the personality moves to the next level of ego development, successfully experiencing an identity crisis.
If you deliberately avoid serious relationships for a long time, then there is a risk of getting used to constant internal loneliness, a depressive state, or self-isolating from the outside world.
7. Active development
From the age of 25, according to Erikson, a new stage of human development begins, which is the longest, as it ends by the age of 65. This is the time to start a family, a career, transition into the role of a parent, and so on. The level of self-realization in these areas of life determines how successful a person will feel throughout his life.
If the goals set at the previous stages are not achieved, then there is a possibility of stopping on the path to improvement. The feeling of one’s own unproductivity can lead to a deep psychological crisis, slowing down the further period of development.
8. Wisdom versus despair
At the age of over 65, we begin to analyze the life we have lived, but do not stop studying it. At this time, a person wants to see the fruits of his labors and efforts, realizing that he is successful. But if, instead of a good result, we determine that the past was lived unproductively, goals were not achieved, plans were not realized, then there is a possibility that it will happen.
If the identity crisis at this stage goes smoothly, the person, having gained, will look into the past with a feeling of humility, gratitude, and completeness. This will allow you to approach old age and the end of life without fear.
How to survive an identity crisis
A psychological crisis is a condition that requires changes in the previous pattern of behavior of an individual. Such turning points occur periodically in the life of every person and are the norm of development. But if an adult has the strength to cope with his condition on his own, then children, especially in adolescence, need the support and understanding of adults.
How does a psychological crisis manifest itself?
- negative ones are difficult to control (outbursts, sudden, etc.);
- causeless excitement or panic occurs;
- the feeling of one’s own helplessness and inferiority intensifies;
- it is difficult to plan actions and adhere to a certain algorithm;
- awareness of the mistakes made drives you into a dead end, from which it seems that there is no way out.
7 tips to help teenagers survive a psychological crisis
- Praise not only for achievements, but also for aspirations for them;
- Encourage initiatives and the desire to defend one’s own interests;
- Take topics that concern teenagers seriously, even if they seem frivolous or stupid;
- Help in disclosure, referring to the idea that each person is talented in his own way;
- Show respect for the child’s personality, do not impose your views on life;
- Develop the ability to be responsible for one’s actions, thus teaching responsibility;
- Accept the fact of growing up, give the child the opportunity to find himself, if, of course, this does not harm his health.
Identity crisis is a process of self-discovery that knocks on every person's door from time to time. If from birth we are provided with comfortable conditions for passing through turning points, then we will greet subsequent visits of crisis with a smile and open arms. But what if this didn't happen? Resentment against the past will not produce results, but will only provoke internal conflict. You can protect yourself from it by looking around. Some child now definitely needs your support. And, as you know, there are no other people’s children.
The transition from childhood to adulthood is divided into two stages: adolescence and adolescence (early and late). However, the chronological boundaries of these ages in medical, psychological, pedagogical, legal, and sociological literature are defined in completely different ways. In addition, the acceleration process has violated the usual age boundaries of adolescence and youth.
Most often, researchers highlight early adolescence, i.e. senior school age (from 15 to 18 years), and late adolescence (from 18 to 23 years).
So, in adolescence it is customary to distinguish two phases: one is on the border with childhood (early adolescence), the other is on the border with maturity (senior adolescence), which can be considered as the initial link of maturity.
It is during this period that preparation for an independent life of a person is completed, the formation of a worldview, value orientations, the choice of professional activity and the approval of the civil maturity of the individual. As a result and under the influence of these social and personal factors, the entire system of the young man’s relationships with the people around him is restructured and his attitude towards himself changes.
By the age of 15-17, boys and girls already have fairly defined and persistent characteristics of temperament, character, and abilities. But at the same time, these features are not sufficiently recognized by high school students themselves or are incorrectly assessed.
It is in early youth that self-awareness develops intensively in all directions: along the line of awareness of one’s physical existence, one’s own body; self-awareness in activities, in relationships with people.
Thus, self-awareness in adolescence and adolescence becomes one of the most important mechanisms of self-regulation and self-development of the individual.
Psychologists who study issues of personality formation at this stage of ontogenesis associate the transition from adolescence to adolescence with a sharp change in the internal position, which consists in the fact that aspiration to the future becomes the main orientation of the individual and the problem of choosing a profession, further life path is in the center of attention of interests, plans of high school students.
A young man (girl) strives to take the internal position of an adult, to recognize himself as a member of society, to define himself in the world, i.e. understand yourself and your capabilities along with understanding your place and purpose in life.
In practice, it has become generally accepted to consider personal self-determination as the main psychological new formation of early adolescence, since it is in self-determination that the most essential thing that appears in the circumstances of the life of high school students lies, in the requirements for each of them. This largely characterizes the social situation of development in which personality formation occurs during this period.
In foreign psychology, the category “psychosocial identity”, developed and introduced into scientific circulation by the American scientist Erik Erikson, serves as an analogue of the concept of “personal self-determination”. The central point, through the prism of which the entire formation of personality in adolescence, including its youthful stage, is viewed, is the “normative crisis of identity.” The term “crisis” is used here in the sense of a turning point, a critical point of development, when both the vulnerability and the growing potential of the individual are equally exacerbated, and he is faced with a choice between two alternative possibilities, one of which leads to a positive, and the other to a negative one. directions. The word “normative” has the connotation that a person’s life cycle is considered as a series of successive stages, each of which is characterized by a specific crisis in the relationship of the individual with the outside world, and all together determine the development of a sense of identity.
E. Erikson believes that adolescence is built around an identity crisis, consisting of a series of social and individual choices, identifications and self-determinations. If a young man fails to solve this problem, he develops an inadequate identity, the development of which can proceed along four main lines:
- 1) avoidance of psychological intimacy, avoidance of close interpersonal relationships;
- 2) erosion of the sense of time, inability to make life plans, fear of growing up and change;
- 3) erosion of productive, creative abilities, inability to mobilize one’s internal resources and concentrate on some main activity;
- 4) the formation of a “negative identity”, the refusal of self-determination and the choice of negative role models.
The main task that faces an individual in early adolescence, according to Erikson, is the formation of a sense of identity as opposed to the role uncertainty of the personal “I”. The young man must answer the questions: “Who am I?” and “What is my path forward?” In the search for personal identity, a person decides what actions are important to him and develops certain norms for evaluating his own behavior and the behavior of other people. This process is also associated with awareness of one's own worth and competence.
An analysis of works devoted to the study of the characteristics of adolescence allows us to assert the existence of an increased interest of a teenager in his own “I” and high sensitivity to others’ assessments of his personality. By adolescence, self-awareness reaches a high level, because It is then that a person’s worldview appears.
Youth is a period of personality stabilization. A system of stable views on the world and one’s place in it is emerging - worldview. The central personal new formation of the period becomes self-determination, professional and personal.
Youth (Early - 15 - 17 years old. Late - 17 - 21 years old)
In adolescence, significant morphofunctional changes occur, and the processes of physical maturation of a person are completed. Life activity in youth becomes more complex: the range of social roles and interests expands, more and more adult roles appear with a corresponding degree of independence and responsibility. At this age there is a lot critical social events; obtaining a passport, the onset of liability conditions, the possibility of exercising active suffrage, the opportunity to get married. Many young people at this age begin to work; the task of choosing a profession and future life path faces everyone. In adolescence, the independence of the individual is strengthened to a greater extent. In youth, the time horizon expands - future becomes the main dimension. The basic orientation of the individual is changing, which can now be designated as a focus on the future, determining the future path of life, choosing a profession. Looking to the future, building life plans and prospects- the “affective center” of a young man’s life. Social situation of development in early adolescence - "threshold of independent life."
Transition from early to late adolescence is marked by a change in the emphasis of development: the period of preliminary self-determination ends and the transition to self-realization takes place.
In the psychological periodizations of D. B. Elkonin and A. N. Leontiev, the leading activity in youth is recognized as educational and professional activities.
According to D.I. Feldshtein, in adolescence the nature of development is determined by work and study as the main activities.
Other psychologists talk about professional self-determination as a leading activity in early youth. In high school it is formed psychological readiness for self-determination.
Formation at a high level of psychological structures: theoretical thinking, the foundations of a scientific and civil worldview, self-awareness and developed reflection;
Development of needs that provide meaningful fulfillment of the personality (moral attitudes, value orientations, etc.)
The formation of the prerequisites for individuality as a result of the development and awareness of one’s abilities and interests, and a critical attitude towards them.
Communication in youth
1) The need for informal, confidential communication with adults;
2) Friendship;
3) Establishing relationships with people of the opposite sex;
4) Love.
Intellectual development in youth
The characteristic level of cognitive development in adolescence and youth is formally - logical, formally - operational thinking. This is abstract, theoretical, hypothetico-deductive thinking, not related to specific environmental conditions, existing at the moment. By the end of adolescence, general mental abilities have already been formed, but they continue to improve throughout adolescence.
For boys and girls, the establishment of cause-and-effect relationships, systematicity, stability and criticality of thinking, and independent creative activity become characteristic.
Psychological neoplasms
1) The need for self-determination;
2) Readiness for personal and professional self-determination;
3) Life plans;
4) Sustainable self-knowledge;
5) Identity;
6) Value orientations;
7) Worldview is the internal position of a man (or woman).
Crisis of transition to adulthood (18 - 20 years old)
"Severance from parental roots."
61. Development of self-awareness in adolescence
Early youth is characterized by a focus on the future. In this period – period of creation life plan - issues are being resolved " who to be?"(professional self-determination) and " what to be?"(personal and moral self-determination).
Self-determination, both professional and personal, becomes central neoplasm of early adolescence(the concept of self-determination used in Russian psychology is close to the concept of “personal identity” by E. Erikson).
This new internal position, including awareness of oneself as a member of society, acceptance of one’s place in it.
Self-determination is associated with new time perception. Now time perspective is realized.
Observed general stabilization of personality.
The moral stability of the individual develops.
Adolescence is the age of developing a worldview.
There is a change in learning motivation.
62. Criteria for a mature personality.
A personality is an individual who has his own views and is able to defend these views (Ya.A. Kamensky).
There are very specific criteria for a mature personality.
A person can be considered a person if there is a hierarchy in his motives. In other words, if he is able to overcome his immediate urges for the sake of something else. It is assumed that the motives by which immediate impulses are overcome are socially significant. The child learns this in preschool age. There is a well-known experiment called the “bittersweet effect.” A preschool child receives from an experimenter an impossible task: to get, without getting up from his chair, an object that lies at the other end of the room. The experimenter leaves, continuing to observe the child from the next room. After unsuccessful attempts, the child gets up, takes the right thing and returns to his place. The experimenter enters, praises him and offers him candy as a reward. The child refuses her, and after repeated offers begins to cry quietly. The candy turned out to be “bitter” for him.
What does this experiment indicate? The child was placed in a situation of conflict of motives. One of his motives is to take the thing of interest (immediate urge); the other is to fulfill the adult’s condition (“social” motive). In the absence of an adult, immediate impulse took over. However, with the arrival of the experimenter, the second motive became actualized, the significance of which was further enhanced by the undeserved reward. The child’s refusal and tears are evidence that the process of mastering social norms and subordinating motives has already begun, although it has not yet reached its end.
The second necessary criterion for personality is the ability to consciously guide one’s behavior. It is formed in adolescence and is expressed in the desire to be aware of one’s motives and manage them.
63. Personality development in early adulthood
Central neoplasms of early maturity, in accordance with the functional-stage periodization of Yu. N. Karandashev (1991):
Claims to master a specialty (20–24 years);
Aspirations to master a profession (24–28 years old).
During early adulthood:
Under construction own way of life,
Happening mastering professional roles,
Happening inclusion in all types of social activities,
The system of subjective personality properties includes life plans a person, his motives and goals of activity.
The three systems of adult development involve dynamic interactions between three selves: as an individual, as a family member, and as a worker. These interactions take place within the broader context of society and culture
E. Erikson (1968) believed that whatever the source of identity acquisition, the main event of adulthood is the achievement generativity. He interprets generativity as the attempt to perpetuate oneself by making a lasting and meaningful contribution to the world around us through professional activity, artistic creation, or raising children.
Tasks of early adulthood:
Choosing a spouse;
Preparation for married life;
Starting a family;
Parenting;
Housekeeping;
Beginning of professional activity;
Acceptance of civil responsibility;
Finding a congenial social group.
64. Personality development in middle adulthood
Despite the onslaught of external changes, internal changes occur gradually and, as a rule, occur along with important life events. Understanding and re-evaluating life in midlife occurs precisely in the context of these changes and the preservation of continuity. These reflections and re-evaluations occur in the context of three interconnected worlds - the personal world, the family world and the professional world.
Central neoplasms of middle maturity in accordance with the functional-stage periodization of Yu. N. Karandashev (1991):
Claims to master a social role (28–30 years old);
Claims to master social status (32–34 years).
During middle adulthood comes consolidation of social and professional roles(D.B. Bromley, 1966) . The main dilemma of development in a middle-aged adult, in accordance with the point of view of E. Erikson, is dilemma of restlessness (generativity). Restlessness is a concept close to self-actualization, which A. Maslow defines as the desire to become as good as possible.
Tasks of middle adulthood:
Achieving civic and social responsibility;
Achieving and maintaining an appropriate standard of living;
Choosing suitable ways to spend leisure time;
Helping children become responsible and happy adults;
Strengthening the personal aspect of marital relationships;
Accepting and adapting to midlife physiological changes;
Adjusting to interactions with aging parents.
Among the specific life tasks of adult life, R. Pack identifies the most important problems, or conflicts, in the development of an adult in middle age:
As vitality decreases and health weakens, switch most of your energy to mental activity instead of physical activity. R. Pack calls this adjustment recognition of the value of wisdom versus recognition of the value of physical strength.
Balancing – on a new level – social vs sexual beginnings in human relations. Physiological changes force people to redefine their relationships with both sexes, emphasizing communication and companionship rather than sexual intimacy or competition.
Cathexis(emotional) flexibility versus cathexis impoverishment. Emotional flexibility underlies the adjustments that middle-aged people must make when families fall apart, friends leave, and old interests cease to be the focus of life.
Mental Flexibility vs. Mental Rigidity – fighting the tendency to stick too stubbornly to your life rules and be distrustful of new ideas.
Midlife crisis involves a significant change in personality and life prospects for individuals entering midlife. According to Levinson (1986), the typical age for this crisis is between 40 and 45 years, according to Jagues (1965) or Gould (1978) - about 37 years. In an extensive review of the literature, Kearl and Hoag (1984) noted that the onset of the crisis is most often dated to 37.7 years of age.
Characteristics midlife crisis:
Decrease in physical strength and attractiveness;
Awareness of the discrepancy between a person’s dreams and life goals and the reality of his existence;
“socialization”, accepting other people as individuals, as potential friends.
During a mid-life crisis,
On the one hand, there is a revaluation of the past and dissatisfaction with the present,
On the other hand, new opportunities arise to follow personal dreams and choose a new direction for your own efforts.
It can be concluded that the midlife crisis is a process of intense and difficult transition caused by the realization that the adaptation style, which was adequate at the age of early adulthood, has become inadequate at the age of middle maturity. This process involves a change in the temporal view of the future from “time of birth” to “time left to live,” a review of past and present achievements and losses, and a reassessment of personal goals.
65. Personality development in late adulthood, old age and old age.
Central neoplasms in accordance with the functional-stage periodization of Yu. N. Karandashev (1991):
Claims to completeness of life plans (36–40 years);
Claims to expand life plans (40–44 years).
Own The “I” is increasingly deprived of its exclusive position. Transformations of the inner world and relationships are the result mainly of conscious self-regulation of actions by the person himself as a result of a critical attitude towards himself and reassessment of one's values. There is an increasing tendency to be content with what we have and to think less about things that we will most likely never achieve. Noted a distinct tendency to feel one's own situation is quite satisfactory.
Research by J. Rosen and B. Neugarten (1960) proved that social activity increases with age, but it weakens and decreases after 60 years of life.
The aging period has its own characteristics. It is characteristic that the extinction of the physiological capabilities of the body does not go in parallel with psychological and personal involutionary processes.
Characteristic for an elderly person is:
Shifting a number of leading needs to the lower levels of the hierarchy;
“protrusion” of individual needs (attachment needs, fear of loneliness, needs for order, stability), which violates the dialectic of needs and complicates the overall process of self-regulation;
The emergence of “double needs”.
Problems of old age (R. J. Havighurst, 1953):
Adaptation to declining physical strength and deteriorating health;
Adjusting to retirement and reduced income;
Adjusting to the Death of a Spouse;
Establishing strong connections with your age group;
Fulfillment of social and civil obligations;
Ensuring satisfactory living conditions.
R. C. Peck (1968) identifies the most important problems, or conflicts, in the development of an adult in late adulthood:
Ego differentiation versus role absorption. There is a re-evaluation of one’s own “I” in addition to its professional role, which for many people remains the main one until their retirement.
Transcendence of the body versus absorption in the body. A change relating to an individual's ability to avoid focusing on the ailments that accompany aging.
Ego transcendence vs. ego absorption. It is especially important in old age. People who face old age without fear and despair step over the imminent prospect of their own death through participation in the younger generation.
