Each person has an individuality that distinguishes him from other people. Individual character traits of a person are a way of thinking, experiencing and acting that is unique to him. If a person’s pattern of behavior is striking in its dissimilarity and consistency, he is usually said to be a strong personality.

The study of personality examines the following three question:

1. The essence of the concept of personality;

2. Correlation of concepts – “person”, “individual”, “personality”;

3. Personality structure.

Personality is a person who has his characteristic consciousness, thinking and behavior.

The concept of “personality” comes from the Latin persona– role, mask, position, face.

"Lichina" in ancient theater called the mask that the actor put on his face. Variants of it can now be seen on the pediments of theater buildings and theater posters. The mask was characteristic - “hero”, “villain”, “unfortunate”, “lover” and others. She indicated the role that the actor played in the performance.

Personality in psychology – systemic social quality of a person, the main integral characteristic of him inner world. This is a measure of human development as a bearer of consciousness, intelligence, culture, morality, defender and creator of human values. In these hypostases, each person appears as a member of a civilized society, a certain social group, as a citizen and creator. However, different people these characteristics are individualized.

Many psychologists share internal properties person into those related to personal and not related.

In number related to personal usually include: relatively stable acquired or developed properties; properties that define individuality through socially significant traits and actions.

In number not related to personal include: naturally determined properties that do not depend on life in society; psychological characteristics a person in processes of cognition or activity that are not related to attitudes towards people.

The genius of Russian and world literature L.N. Tolstoy is famous for the creation and masterly description of many bright and colorful characters - personalities. Literary heroes Tolstoy, acting in different life situations, manifest their personal traits from high to low, evoking in the reader a wide range of feelings and relationships.

Along with the concept of “personality,” management psychology operates with such terms as “person,” “individual,” and “individuality.” The relationship between these concepts is presented in Figure 3.1.

Figure 3.1 – Correlation of concepts

Human– this is the most comprehensive (broad) concept. It is generic and includes a genetic predisposition to the development of physiological qualities and mental properties inherent in the individual. In the process of work and communication, a person develops specific abilities.

As a living being, man is subject to basic natural laws (physiological), and as a social being – to the laws of social development.

Individual– the concept is narrower than “person”, but it is broader than the category “personality”. The individual is considered as a single representative of the species homo sapiens. An individual contains both morphological characteristics (height, bodily constitution, hair color, eyes) and psychological ones (character, temperament).

Individuality- a specific concept that permeates the terms “man” and “individual”. It is understood as the unity of the unique personal properties of a particular person. Individuality reflects the psychophysical structure of a person: physical and mental characteristics, temperament and character, intelligence and worldview, life experience.

The concept of “individuality” is multifaceted. However, it primarily denotes the psychological (spiritual) qualities of a person. The essence of individuality is manifested in a person’s ability to remain himself in any situation, to be independent and independent.

Formation of individuality occurs during the individualization of a person. Individualization is the process of self-identification and self-separation of an individual, his separation from the community, the design of his uniqueness and originality.

Personality formation can be considered as a process of internal development of a person and his entry into society. This process includes a person’s mastery of his national and tribal essence. The formation of personality is associated with the individual’s acceptance of social roles, functions, norms and rules of behavior developed in society. At the same time, skills for building relationships with other people are formed.

Formed personality is the subject of independent, free and responsible behavior in society, as well as individual life activity.

The inner world of the individual macrostructural relation can be represented in the form of three psychological spheres: directionality, operational and modulation. The spheres operate at two levels: the master and the service. The spheres are interconnected and are in a certain subordination. The macrostructure of the individual’s inner world is presented in Figure 3.2.

Figure 3.2 – Macrostructure of the inner world of the individual

Sphere of focus includes all the internal motivating forces of the individual: views, beliefs, ideals, needs, interests, goals, life plans, inclinations, attitudes, and more. It determines the selective direction of activity and relationships of the individual, involving in them the flows of mental processes: attention, perception, thinking, arising in other mental spheres.

The sphere of focus influences the degree, nature and method of using the opportunities available to the individual. She is responsible for what a person lives for, what attracts him, what he strives for, where he puts his strength, what he achieves.

The sphere of orientation has a system-forming, setting, priority role in mental activity. It characterizes personality to the greatest extent.

Operational area includes methods and means, as elements of the psyche, that a person possesses. Methods and means are used to achieve goals determined by the scope of focus.

A personality is characterized by what it does. In addition, what is important is how she does it, in what ways she achieves her goal, and by what means she satisfies her needs. This is social significance operational sphere.

Modulation sphere does not define goals or methods. But it has a dynamic influence on their manifestations. Therefore, this area is sometimes called psychophysiological.

The dynamic influence of the modulation sphere is manifested in varying degrees of mobility, speed, flexibility, consistency, emotional coloring of all mental processes and states. In the hierarchy of spheres, the modulation sphere is the lowest, serving. Her social role is minimal.

Based on the essence of the concept of “personality”, its structure can be established. It should include properties that are relatively stable, developed during human life, and have social significance.

Personality structure is a set of internal properties and qualities of an individual in their interrelation.

The structure is a complex formation. It includes two groups of personality properties (qualities).

The first group of personality properties is given from nature, and then a person develops (improves) them in the course of his life. These are abilities, character and temperament.

The second is personal properties that are not given by nature, but are purchased in the course of human life and socialization. These are motives, will and emotions. The two groups together make up the personality structure (Figure 3.3).

Figure 3.3 – Personality structure

To the question "Who am I?" each of us will most likely answer: “a person, a full member of society, a personality,” so it is not surprising that many people are interested in learning more about what elements are components of personality, without what traits and properties an individual will not exist as a full-fledged person in the sociocultural society, how the process of personality formation itself occurs. Personality is a basic concept in psychology; Without a detailed study of its structure and mechanisms of formation, further psychological and sociological research is impossible.

Psychologists define personality as a stable structure of socially significant traits that characterize a person as a member of a particular society. Based on the definition, we can conclude that the process of an individual’s formation as a personality is impossible in isolation from society, and all personality traits and substructures are formed and developed under the influence of society. The structure of personality in psychology has been carefully studied and described by world-famous specialists, and despite the fact that some famous sociologists, psychologists and psychiatrists disagreed about the basic properties and characteristics of personality, there are several generally accepted divisions and classifications of structure elements.

Psychological structure of personality

All personality substructures are inherent in every person living in a sociocultural society, but in different individuals they are at different levels of development. One of the main tasks that psychologists set for themselves when studying the constituent structures is to determine the mechanisms of development and correction of one or another substructure. One of the most complete and detailed descriptions of personality structure in psychology includes 10 substructures, the main of which are worldview, experience, orientation, and character. Let's look at all the substructures in more detail.

Worldview

Worldview is an individual’s subjective perception of the world around him, all current events, and the designation of his place in the world. As a rule, worldview is the result of passing the information received through the prism of one’s own experience and evaluating the external world according to internal criteria. Psychologists consider the most important component of this element of the structure to be the formation of the “I-concept” - the definition of oneself in the external world and in its individual manifestations. The worldview can be pessimistic, optimistic, realistic, mystical, atheistic, idealistic, male, female, childish, but it is impossible to unambiguously classify people’s worldview according to any criteria - each person sees and perceives the reality around him in his own way.

Experience

Experience is the most important component of the personality structure in psychology, which is the totality of habits, skills, knowledge and abilities accumulated in the process of life and development, as well as acquired during one’s stay in society. In the process of accumulating experience, a certain lifestyle is formed. As a rule, the worldview, horizons, breadth of a person’s thinking and the certainty of a person’s orientation depend on the amount of accumulated experience.

Focus

The orientation of a person is the values, aspirations, and guidelines of a person. Realization of oneself in professional activity, finding a place in life, realizing dreams and desires, observing certain moral and ethical rules and norms - all these are the orientations of the individual. Based on criteria such as a person’s ability to set goals for himself independently and without outside assistance, the breadth, stability, and effectiveness of an individual’s orientation, and the degree of influence of society on the formation of his aspirations, the general level of personal development is determined.

Character

Psychologists also call character a psychotype - a set of stable characteristics of a person’s behavior under certain circumstances and his reactions to any situations. As a rule, by the concept of “character,” psychologists mean the most typical personality traits, manifested in the form of a subjective response to objective circumstances; very often character is described with one key word - explosive or calm, decisive or suspicious, impulsive or judicious, etc.

Temperament

Temperament is a combination of stable personality traits associated with dynamic aspects of activity and determining the type of higher nervous activity of a person. Psychologists distinguish four main types of temperament, which are based on the strength and balance of the processes of excitation and inhibition of the nervous system. The most common classification of temperament types is the identification of four types: sanguine, phlegmatic, choleric and melancholic.

Capabilities

The main abilities of every person are volitional, mental, spiritual and physical; also, all people, to one degree or another, have a number of other abilities - musical, mathematical, artistic, etc. Abilities as a component of the structure are one of the most important tools of the individual, because the more developed the abilities, the more integrated the person is into society and the more he can do something useful for society and yourself.

Cognitive sphere

The cognitive sphere includes all components of the psyche and mind aimed at rational cognition and perception of the world - logical thinking, memory, attention, critical and analytical perception, decision making, etc.

Affective sphere

This area, as opposed to the cognitive one, consists of processes related to emotions, feelings, needs and motivation. This area includes psychological processes that cannot be explained from a rational point of view - impulsive reactions, emotions, feelings, desires, predispositions, experiences, worries, intuition, hidden motives, subjective impressions, etc.

Consciousness and subconsciousness

The structure of personality in psychology also includes all manifestations of consciousness, subconscious and unconscious psychological processes. Consciousness includes all conscious and mind-controlled processes and mental activity, and the unconscious includes those mental phenomena and processes that occur without conscious control. Psychological processes take place in the subconscious, which have a certain logic, but are not amenable to conscious control.

Body drawing

Body image is a substructure of personality, which includes the structure of the body, facial expressions characteristic of a person, habitual gestures, manner of speaking, gait, etc. Body image is defined as a substructure of personality for the reason that many psychologists are of the opinion that there is a connection between the structure body and character of a person. (You can read more about the connection between gestures and facial expressions and psychological processes in the article)

Personality structure in psychology is a holistic system personal qualities and properties, which fully and comprehensively characterizes all the psychological characteristics of an individual. In addition to the elements described above, the personality structure includes many other components - self-esteem, values, willpower, etc. The strength of influence of the physiological, emotional and cognitive components is determined by the level of development the personality is at. In highly developed individuals with a broad worldview, strong will and personality direction, as well as developed abilities, as a rule, conscious and cognitive components based on their own experience take precedence over unconscious manifestations, instincts, emotions and temperament.

The research of ancient thinkers and philosophers regarding man concerned issues of morality and sociality.

Addressing the problem of personality psychology in the 19th century. Psychiatrists are associated with the study and treatment of sick people. The features that were observed in patients and personality patterns were later described in healthy people; the difference between normality and pathology was considered to be a measure of severity (anxiety, excitability, inhibition, etc.).

IN further development theories of personality proceeded in line with answers to key questions: What is human nature? What are its driving forces? What is the type of relationship between personality and social environment? What does optimal personality mean? What is the path of personality development?

In English personality- personality(from lat. persona, which meant the masks that actors wore during a theatrical performance). In Russian, personality is rooted in the “mask,” as the mask of a buffoon was called in Rus'. Thus, the concept of personality contains a component that emphasizes the stability of certain traits (a mask is associated with a certain image), and also indicates that these characteristics are directed outward, towards others.

In the foreign tradition, personality theories focus on structure, motivation, development, psychopathology, mental health and the possibilities of behavior change through therapeutic intervention 1 .

Personality theories are based on a number of hypotheses or assumptions (most often borrowed from philosophy, in particular existentialism, pragmatism, Marxism) about what a person really is. The inexhaustibility of the human phenomenon allows us to interpret the same person in different periods from different positions to understand his nature, life path and so on.

The authors of the modern textbook V.V. Nurkova and N.B. Brezanskaya offers homeostasis (equilibrium) - heterostasis (equilibrium) and orientation towards conflict or agreement as criteria for classifying models of a person’s psychological appearance.

The focus on conflict or agreement comes from the initial premises:

1. Man is naturally obsessed with primitive impulses. In this case, conflict between society and man is inevitable.

2. Man is naturally good, but society forces him to act badly. The conflict can be resolved when society improves.

3. The conflict may not manifest itself in the understanding of human nature as ambiguous, where the development of its positive qualities and the oppression of negative ones depends on society.

4. A conflict-free position is realized by approaching a person as a blank slate (tabula rasa), where society imprints whatever it wants on it.

Homeostatic conflict-oriented theories include classical psychoanalysis. The conflict between instincts and the dictates of society is driving force personality.

Consensus-oriented homeostatic theories view personality as adapting to the external world (behaviorists, cognitive direction). Heterostatic theories focus on personal growth, going beyond oneself, “overcoming oneself.” Crisis situations are considered as additional incentives for development. These are mainly humanistic theories (K. Rogers and A. Maslow). A. Maslow saw innate tendencies towards self-actualization as the main source of personality development. Moreover, the realization of self-actualization is the highest need, which is satisfied after the satisfaction of physiological needs, the need for security and protection of belonging and love, self-esteem.

L.S. Vygotsky believed that personality is a social concept, it embraces the supernatural, the historical in man embraces the unity of behavior. It is not innate, but arises as a result of cultural development.

B.G. Ananyev considered personality as a structure that is built according to two principles simultaneously: 1) subordination, or hierarchical, in which more complex and more general social properties of the personality subordinate elementary and particular properties; 2) coordination, in which interaction is built on parity principles, allowing a number of degrees of freedom for the correlated properties, i.e., the relative autonomy of each of them. He identified four main aspects of personality (biologically determined characteristics, characteristics of individual mental processes, the level of preparedness or experience of the individual, socially determined personality qualities) 1, closely interacting with each other, however dominant position remained with the social side of the individual (worldview, orientation, ideals, etc.).

V.N. Myasishchev, characterizing the personality, noted the dominant attitude (orientation) of the personality to the world, people, his work and himself. The structure of personality, according to Myasishchev, coincides with the definition of character and is an integral property. In addition to the personality structure, Myasishchev highlighted the motivation and tendencies of the individual.

A. N. Leontiev considered personality through the activity of the subject. According to Leontiev, activity is formed in hierarchical relationships, hierarchies of activities - nodes - form the core of the Personality, catalogs of activities are subordinate to the nodes, around which the personality is centered 1.

The concept of the dynamic functional structure of personality was developed by K.K. Platonov. The concept of dynamic structure should be understood as the variability of personality aspects throughout life, associated with development, personality maturation, as well as social decay, age-related degradation and pathological development.

Considering the personality as a whole, K.K. Platonov presents it in the form of subordination of higher and lower structures.

The first substructure, according to the scientist, is the most significant for the personality as a whole. These are socially conditioned personality traits that characterize its orientation (beliefs, worldview, ideals, aspirations, interests, desires), their formation occurs due to upbringing.

The second substructure represents the individual’s experience (habits, knowledge, abilities, skills), which is also affected by the influence of innate biological properties. Personal experience is acquired through learning.

The third substructure - features of mental processes, includes memory, emotions, sensations, thinking, perception, feelings, will. These personality traits largely depend on the individual characteristics of mental processes as forms of reflection of reality and are developed through exercise.

The fourth substructure is represented by biopsychic properties. These include temperament, gender and age characteristics of the personality, as well as pathological changes. In this regard, compensation (replacement of missing functions) and training take place.

K.K. Platonov argued that not only each substructure has its own substructures, but also each personality trait can be considered according to this principle, and also have a relationship with other substructures. Conviction, for example, belongs to the first substructure, but its structure includes will, relevant knowledge and mental skills as elements.

Age physiology

Personality is a specific person with individually manifested unique mental, emotional, volitional and physical properties. Personality arose and developed in the process of social historical development humanity, in the process of labor.

A person’s belonging to society and inclusion in the system determines its psychological and social essence.

A person is a social being, an active figure in social development. The characteristic features of a person are his consciousness, the social roles he performs, and socially useful activities.

One of the aspects of personality is its - a peculiar, unique combination of psychological characteristics of character, temperament, the movement of mental processes (perception, memory, thinking, speech, feelings, will), it.

A person is always a product of his actions and the socio-economic relations in which he participates. The study of personality at its core is a historical study of the process of its formation under certain social conditions, a certain social system.

They look at it differently.

Some believe that in the personality structure it is advisable to consider only its psychological components (cognitive, emotional-volitional, orientation), while others highlight biological aspects in it (typological features of the nervous system, age-related changes in the body, gender), which cannot be ignored in the process personality education.

However, it is impossible to contrast in personality. Natural traits exist in the personality structure as its socially determined elements. The biological and social in the structure of the personality create unity and interact with each other.

Man is a natural being, but the biological one has changed in the process of historical development under the influence of social conditions and acquired unique specific human characteristics.

In the personality structure, a distinction is made between typical and individual.

Typical is the most general thing that is characteristic of every person and characterizes the personality in general: its consciousness, activity, intelligence and emotional-volitional manifestations, etc., that is, the way in which one person is similar to other people. Individual is what characterizes an individual person: his physical and psychological characteristics, orientation, abilities, character traits, etc., that is, what distinguishes one person from another.

Psychologist K.K. identifies four substructures,
First - : moral qualities, personal attitudes, her relationships with others. This one is determined. substructure of human social existence.

The other is the substructure of experience (knowledge, abilities, skills, habits). Experience is acquired through the process of training and education. The leading factor in acquiring experience is the social factor.

The third is the substructure of reflection forms. It covers individual characteristics that are formed in the process of social life and are specifically manifested in the cognitive and emotional-volitional activity of a person.

The fourth substructure is the biologically determined side of the mental functions of the individual. It combines typological properties of personality, gender and age characteristics and their pathological changes, which largely depend on the physiological and morphological characteristics of the brain.

Very complex and multifaceted.

Cognitive, emotional-volitional activity of the individual, his needs, interests, ideals and beliefs, etc. - components of the spiritual life of the individual.

They are in complex interaction and in their unity they represent her “I”, guiding her inner life and its manifestations in activity and relationships with others.

Man is a creature with a very complex mental organization. He is born and develops according to the laws of biology and genetics, and in parallel with this, the formation of his personality and self-awareness occurs under the influence of society. In addition, a person is a subject of activity in almost all spheres of life - social, spiritual, economic and political.

The concept of personality and its structure

It is impossible within the framework of one science to embrace all the diversity of facets of human essence, which is why there are many theories about what constitutes a personality. This term is used in modern psychology along with such terms as “individual” and “individuality”; the difference between them is that the latter two definitions are more specific and cover only one or another side of the personality. In a broad sense, personality is a set of qualities of an individual acquired by him in the process of development and manifested in relationships with other individuals or in various spheres of conscious activity. As can be seen from the definition, the concept of personality characterizes a person mainly in social terms. The structure of personality in psychology is represented by many different classifications; the most common of them will be presented below.

Personality theory in psychology according to Freud

In the 20s of the twentieth century, the great German psychologist developed his concept

anatomy human soul. The personality structure in Freudian psychology consists of three components: “Id” - It (unconscious), “Ego” - I (conscious) and “Super-Ego” - Super-I (conscience, ideal attitudes). The id occupies a central place in the personality structure throughout an individual’s life; its main principle is receiving pleasure from the immediate satisfaction of one’s irrational desires. The ego is a kind of regulator, trying to satisfy the needs of the id, while at the same time not violating the laws and traditions of society. The superego plays the role of a promoter of high moral ideals, is formed in the process of education.

Personality structure in psychology according to Rubinstein

Soviet psychologist and philosopher S.L. Rubinstein proposed his concept of the history of human personality. He also identified three components:

2. Knowledge, abilities and skills (KUN) acquired as a result of cognitive

activities.

3. Individual characteristics expressed in character traits, temperament, abilities.

Personality structure in psychology according to Platonov

K.K. Platonov considered personality as a set of biosocial properties, among which he identified four substructures:

1. Socially oriented qualities (moral qualities, social connections).

2. Experience (habits and knowledge).

3. Individual biologically determined traits (character, temperament, inclinations, needs).

4. Forms of reflection of mental processes (thinking, will, feelings, sensations, memory).

As you can see, Platonov’s classification largely coincides with Rubinstein’s classification, but it is more detailed. This model significantly influenced the development of Soviet psychology.