Strength of the nervous system
The nature of the individual characteristics of a person is twofold. Such individual characteristics as interests, inclinations are characterized by inconstancy, fluctuations, variability. Therefore, they must be taken into account with a very specific goal - to stimulate their development.
There is another type of individuality. They are pretty stable. It is practically impossible to change them, but it is also impossible not to pay attention to them, because their influence is felt in activity, in behavior, in relationships with others. These features include features associated with individual manifestations of the basic properties of the nervous system.
The constancy of individual behavior in certain situations is the first sign that it is based on the natural properties of the nervous system. Among the natural individual typological properties, strength-weakness (that is, the degree of endurance, performance of the nervous system, its resistance to various kinds of interference) and mobility-inertia (that is, the speed of change and the speed of the processes of excitation and inhibition) are the most studied at present. In the presence of a strong (or weak) nervous system, mobile (or inert), different psychological personality traits may arise in the course of development, under different conditions of life, upbringing, and training.
The concept of the property of the strength of the nervous system was put forward by IP Pavlov in 1922. When studying conditioned reflex activity in animals, it was found that the greater the intensity of the stimulus or the more often it is used, the greater the response conditioned reflex reaction. However, when a certain intensity or frequency of stimulation is reached, the conditioned reflex response begins to decrease. In general, this dependence was formulated as the "law of force".
It has been noted that in animals this law manifests itself in different ways: transcendental inhibition, at which a decrease in the conditioned reflex response begins, occurs in some animals at a lower intensity or frequency of stimulation than in others. The former were referred to the “weak type” of the nervous system, the latter to the “strong type”. Two methods of diagnosing the strength of the nervous system have also arisen: by the maximum intensity of a single stimulus, which does not yet lead to a decrease in the conditioned reflex reaction (measurement of strength through the "upper threshold"), and by the largest number of stimuli, which also does not yet lead to a decrease in the reflex response (measurement strength through her "endurance").
Researchers have found a greater sensitivity of individuals with a weak nervous system compared to those who have it turned out to be strong. Hence, another way of measuring strength arose: through the speed of a person's response to signals of different intensities. Subjects with a weak nervous system, due to their higher sensitivity, respond to weak and medium-strength signals faster than subjects with a strong nervous system. In fact, in this case, the strength of the nervous system is determined by the "lower threshold". Therefore, the strength of the nervous system began to be determined by the level of EEG activation. However, this method is technically difficult for mass surveys.
Until recently, all these methods of measuring the strength of the nervous system did not have a single theoretical justification and therefore were considered independent of each other, revealing various manifestations of the strength of the nervous system, associated, as it seemed, with different physiological mechanisms. Therefore, the requirement to study the typological manifestations of properties by several methods at once was justified. However, a unified explanation of the various manifestations of the strength of the nervous system is possible (EP Ilyin, 1979), which makes the various methods equal in rights, with the help of which the strength of nervous processes is established. The unifying factor turned out to be the level of activation at rest (the judgment of which was made on the basis of the level of energy expenditure at rest): in some people it is higher, while in others it is lower. Hence the differences in the manifestation of the "law of power".
Strength of the nervous system as reactivity. For a visible response to occur (sensation of a stimulus or hand movement), the stimulus must exceed a certain (threshold) value, or at least reach it. This means that a given stimulus causes such physiological and physico-chemical changes in the irritated substrate that are sufficient for the appearance of a sensation or a motor response. Therefore, in order to receive a response, it is necessary to reach the threshold level of activation of the nervous system. But in a state of physiological rest, the latter is already at a certain level of activation, however, below the threshold. In subjects with a weak nervous system, the level of activation at rest is higher (this follows from the fact that at rest they have higher oxygen consumption and energy expenditure per 1 kg of body weight); accordingly, they are closer to the threshold level of activation from which the response begins than individuals with a strong nervous system. To bring this level to the threshold, as follows from the scheme, they need a less intense stimulus. Subjects with a strong nervous system, in which the level of resting activation is lower, require a large amount of stimulus to bring the level of activation to the threshold. This is the reason for the differences between "weak" and "strong" on the lower threshold of irritation.
With an increase in the intensity of single stimuli, the level of activation (excitation) and the magnitude (or speed, as in measuring reaction time) of the response increase. However, subjects with a weak nervous system, having begun to react earlier than those with a strong nervous system, also reach the maximum level of activation earlier, at which the largest and fastest responses are observed. After that, the response effect decreases in them, while in subjects with a strong nervous system it still increases. They reach the activation limit later, with a greater strength of a single stimulus. Consequently, the “upper” threshold for the “weak” is smaller than that of the “strong”, i.e. transmarginal inhibition in the former occurs earlier than in the latter, at a lower intensity of a sufficiently strong stimulus.
To identify these differences in the response of people to stimuli of different intensity, a technique developed by V. D. Nebylitsyn and received short title"slope of the curve". V. D. Nebylitsyn hypothesized that the range between the lower (r) and upper (R) thresholds should remain unchanged from individual to individual:
It follows from the above formula that both strong and weak nervous system must withstand the same magnitude of the gradient (increase) of the suprathreshold stimulus. If we take the absolute threshold as the zero point of reference for the value of the physiological strength of the stimulus, then with an increase in its strength, both the strong and weak nervous systems will react in the same way: the strength of the stimulus will double - the magnitude of the response from both the strong and the weak will increase by the same amount. and weak nervous system.
It should also follow from this that there will be no differences between the latter when the physiological strength of the stimulus is equalized; in both nervous systems, transcendental inhibition will occur at the same physiological strength of the stimulus. This means that the course of the response curve to stimuli of different physiological strengths of the strong and weak nervous systems will coincide. Thus, according to this hypothesis of V.D. Nebylitsyn, differences in the strength of the nervous system are detected because a physical scale of stimulus intensity is used, in which the same physical quantity the latter is a different physiological force for a strong and weak nervous system. The reason for this, as it has now become clear, is their different background activation: the higher it is, the greater the physiological strength of the physical stimulus becomes.
However, this plausible hypothesis by VD Nebylitsyn remains unproven in practice. Moreover, P. O. Makarov (1955) used the difference between the upper and lower thresholds as an indicator of the strength of the nervous system: the greater the range between the thresholds (which the author took as the energy potential), the greater the strength of the nervous system. However, this hypothesis also remained untested experimentally.
The strength of the nervous system as endurance. Repeated repeated presentation of an stimulus of the same strength at short intervals causes the phenomenon of summation, i.e. strengthening of reflex reactions due to the growth of background activation, since each previous excitation leaves a trace, and therefore each subsequent reaction of the subject begins at a higher functional level than the previous one.
Since the initial level of activation in subjects with a weak nervous system is higher than in subjects with a strong nervous system, the summation of excitation and the increase in response associated with it (despite the constant strength of the stimulus in terms of physical parameters) will reach the limit faster in them, and the “inhibitory” will come faster. effect, i.e. decrease in response efficiency. In individuals with a strong nervous system, due to lower rest activation, there is a greater "margin of safety", and therefore the summation can continue for them longer without reaching the response limit. In addition, it is possible that the latter is at a higher level among the “strong” than among the “weak”. (This was not reflected in the diagram, where hypothetically the response limits for the “strong” and “weak” are indicated in the same way; the only thing that does not fit into this diagram is the case when the “weak” response limit will be greater than that of the “strong”. ) Since the magnitude of the summation of excitation is determined by the duration of the action of the stimulus (the time or number of repetitions of irritation), a strong nervous system is more enduring. This means that with repeated presentation of signals (external or internal - self-orders), the decrease in the effect of responding to them (the magnitude or speed of reactions) in the "weak" will occur faster than in the "strong". This is the basis of various methods for determining the strength of the nervous system through its endurance.
Two important points should be noted. First, when diagnosing the strength of the nervous system, weak stimuli should not be used, since they reduce rather than increase the activation of the nervous system, and as a result, individuals with a weak nervous system are more tolerant to a monotonous stimulus. By the way, a dispute arose about this even in the laboratory of IP Pavlov: its head believed that those dogs that quickly fell asleep in the “tower of silence” when they developed conditioned reflexes had a weak nervous system. However, his student K.P. Petrova (1934) proved that these are just dogs with a strong nervous system that cannot withstand a monotonous environment (or, as they would say now, sensory deprivation). In the end, IP Pavlov admitted that the student was right.
Secondly, not every indicator of endurance can serve as a criterion for the strength of the nervous system. Endurance to physical or mental work is not a direct indicator of the strength of the nervous system, although it is associated with it. It should be about the endurance of nerve cells, not a person. Therefore, the methods should show the speed of development of transcendental inhibition, on the one hand, and the severity of the summation effect, on the other.
The manifestation of a negative prognosis depending on the strength of the nervous system
From point of view synergistic approach the origins of individual psychological differences lie in the degree of expression and content characteristics of a number of system properties and functions. Among such functions that have a significant system-saving value, we can include forecast. Moreover, such a value of this function is determined by its place in the implementation of effective (that is, maintaining the integrity of the system) interaction of the system with the extra-systemic space.
The forecast, first of all, ensures the formation of an image of the result of one's own activity, which is necessary for building an action program, organizing current and final control. From the point of view of the psychology of individual differences, it is essential that “the image of the necessary future” [N.A. Bernstein] as some ideal result and the expectation of real results of activity sometimes do not coincide. This is due to the fact that the predicted result is “derived” from the characteristics selected by the subject from the situation in which his activity will unfold, and the expected result is a semantic assessment of the situation that arises on the basis of correlating the situation with the need. Being the result of such an assessment, the expectations of the results depend on the actual need and past experience of its satisfaction, which gives them an individual and peculiar character and allows some scientists to speak of "expectation of the results of activity" as a characteristic of the individual.
In this context, the forecast is aimed at anticipating events that are significant for the organism and, above all, potentially dangerous (threatening the integrity of the system, disturbing the dynamic balance) events that require advanced preparation, i.e. taking special measures aimed at avoiding them or pre-tuning to respond to these events. Describing the emergence of anticipatory reflection in phylogenesis, P.K. Anokhin begins with this form of forecast, in view of the fact that its presence provides direct advantages in the struggle for existence at the earliest stages of life development: “Organisms, having acquired the ability to get ahead of the course external events, thereby began to adapt with the greatest advantage to future often dangerous phenomena of the outside world long before these phenomena take place.
Thus, it can be assumed that “dangerous” events are events that prevent the achievement of goals and cause frustration of basic needs. Therefore, forecasting and advanced preparation of the subject based on the forecast are of significant system-preserving importance. Perhaps, exaggerating a little, we can say that in the course of implementing activity aimed at achieving a certain result, it is most important to foresee possible obstacles on the way to it and adjust the program of action in accordance with this forecast. In this case, a greater severity of the forecasting function will manifest itself in a tendency to predict negative events, which can be called a negative forecast. It must be said that a term close to the concept of "negative prognosis" was proposed by S.G. Gellerstein, who spoke of "negative anticipation" in professional activity, i.e. anticipation of an unfavorable development of events (for example, "vision" of a picture of a possible accident, as well as its consequences).
This means that individual differences in performance expectations can be explained to some extent by the severity and intensity of the negative forecast. A greater severity of a negative forecast will manifest itself in the tendency of a person to pay more attention to possible obstacles, to make more efforts, due to anticipatory preparation for a meeting with possible problems and, as a result, to overestimate the complexity of the goal and underestimate the future result. Thus, a negative prognosis is one of the generalized individual characteristics that gives individual coloring to all human behavior and activities.
At the same time, a living system, including a person, differs from the inanimate ability to experience a state, in this case, a forecast. In humans, this is a presentation in the mind of the nature of the forecast. If the procedural side of forecasting is far from always accessible to consciousness, then the forecast in its effective expression, as a rule, is conscious. Most likely, the forecast can be represented in consciousness in two aspects: first, the forecast as knowledge about the content of future events; and, secondly, prognosis as an experience of the meaning of future events. Accordingly, we can talk about the cognitive and personal-semantic aspects of forecasting.
Even if specific content If the forecast is not fully realized, then its meaning is certainly represented in consciousness through emotional experience, since the function of emotional experiences is that they signal the personal meaning of events. So the meaning of future events must be represented in the mind through emotions.
The emotion of anxiety signals the negative meaning of future events. In the definitions of anxiety (as a state) and anxiety (as a feature), two most important aspects can be indicated, which are most often distinguished by different authors: firstly, anxiety is an anticipatory emotion associated with the forecast of an unfavorable development of events; and, secondly, anxiety is always associated with the frustration of social needs. Consequently, the emotion of anxiety is primarily associated with a negative prognosis for the satisfaction of social needs, and it is likely that the intensity of the experience of anxiety will be associated with the severity of the propensity for a negative prognosis.
The individual-peculiar life manifestations of the forecasting function, apparently, are determined by the degree of severity and content characteristics of the main parameters or properties of the system, among which there are both properties common to all living systems and specifically human characteristics, such as, in particular, the fundamental property of human awareness. activity. Analysis common properties open self-organizing systems suggests that the most initial property of this kind is the energy potential of the system or simply energy content. Indeed, from the point of view of the synergetic approach, among the parameters of functions that describe the behavior of an open self-organizing system, its energy potential comes to the fore, which, when studying human individuality, acts as an “energy level”, “ergy”, the level of activation of the psyche. It can be thought that at the level of the brain this systemic property is fixed in the property of strength-weakness of the nervous system, and more energy corresponds to a weak nervous system.
Both psychological and physiological studies testify in favor of this assumption about the greater energy content of the weak nervous system. So, according to E.P. Ilyin, the factor that unites various indicators of the strength of the nervous system and underlies them is the level of activation at rest. From this point of view, the differences in the reactivity of people with a strong and weak nervous system are explained by the fact that in order to get some response to a stimulus, it is necessary to reach a threshold level of activation of the nervous system. Since individuals with a weak nervous system have a higher level of activation at rest, they are closer to the threshold level necessary for the occurrence of a reaction, and, therefore, the intensity of the minimum stimulus may be less than in individuals with a strong nervous system. Interestingly, in the studies of E.P. Ilyin, the level of activation at rest was assessed by measuring the intensity of energy metabolism (the level of energy consumption at rest), which is higher in people with a weak nervous system. This value (intensity of energy exchange) describes the energy characteristics of the system at the physiological level.
Energeticity should manifest itself, first of all, in the dynamic characteristics of the functioning of the system, namely, the intensity of activity, the severity of functions and the intensity of experiences, etc. Considering the features of forecasting from this point of view, one can assume a greater severity of this function in people with a weak nervous system. Indeed, it has been empirically proven that individuals with a weak type of nervous system use more actively the function of predicting future events, although the interpretation of the results of these studies is opposite to our position. So, according to A.K. Gordeeva and V.S. Klyagin, a weak nervous system is distinguished by insignificant energy resources, as a result of which there is a need to maintain the parameters of its functioning within optimal limits, which requires the implementation of extrapolating behavior programs.
However, energy content as a systemic property fixed at the level of brain activity cannot directly determine the characteristics of the overlying hierarchical levels. In this case, the features of forecasting as a conscious mental process can hardly be derived from the energy characteristics of brain activity. It would be more logical to consider that the properties of a given (psychophysiological) level are manifested in regulatory tendencies that initially exist at the level of the brain and only as a result of the development of the system acquire functional certainty. In the course of development and learning, on the one hand, they are “embedded” in the structure of a holistic individuality, for example, due to the formation of an individual style of activity, on the other hand, formal tendencies are filled with specific content.
From this point of view, a greater propensity to build a forecast among the "weak" means a greater degree of severity of the corresponding regulatory trend due to the high energy potential. Since the forecast of events “harmful” for the system is of particular system-preserving importance, it would be reasonable to assume that the greater energy potential of the weak nervous system is also associated with a regulatory tendency, which creates the basis for a tendency to a negative forecast. In part, this assumption is confirmed by A.K. Gordeeva and V.S. Klyagin's data that drivers with a weak nervous system are more prone to "living, watching and playing" possible negative traffic situations.
At the same time, taking into account that life manifestations are determined not so much by the regulatory tendency itself as by the result of its objectification in the course of learning, one can think that the links between the strength of the nervous system and the features of forecasting may turn out to be more complicated than those simple and obvious dependencies that were mentioned above. . It is likely that the severity of a negative prognosis is determined not so much by the characteristics of brain activity as by the nature of negative experience and features of his understanding. In this case, the significance of regulatory tendencies lies in the fact that the features of awareness, experience and use of a negative forecast formed on the basis of these tendencies depend on them.
During pilot study at the first stage, the assumptions were tested that the strength-weakness property of the nervous system is associated with the severity of the negative prognosis. At the same time, it was assumed that the presence of a negative prognosis in the mind ensures the experience of anxiety. The purpose of the next stage was to study the content features of a negative prognosis in individuals with a strong and weak nervous system.
The results showed that the propensity for a negative prognosis is closely related to personal anxiety, while the relationship with the severity of situational anxiety is rather moderate and statistically insignificant. The tendency to experience anxiety really depends on the severity of the negative prognosis due to the fact that through the state of anxiety the negative prognosis acquires representation in consciousness. At the same time, the intensity of experiencing a negative forecast in the form of anxiety is not determined by its severity.
Further analysis of the results showed that the propensity for a negative prognosis is not associated with an indicator of the strength of the nervous system. In the same way, the strength-weakness of the nervous system is not associated with personal and situational anxiety. From the data obtained, the conclusion suggests itself that the severity of a negative prognosis does not depend on the strength of the nervous system. Nevertheless, the question remains what is the content of the negative forecast in strong and weak subjects, i.e. how it appears in consciousness and manifests itself in behavior.
Indeed, given that the forecast is built by extrapolating into the future the patterns recorded in the past experience, it can be assumed that the strength-weakness of the nervous system will manifest itself not so much in the severity of the negative forecast as in the nature of its content features, the formation of which is mediated by the corresponding regulatory tendencies.
In order to test this assumption, the researchers developed and conducted a series of questionnaires, the content of which was aimed at studying the features of awareness of a negative prognosis and its manifestation in behavior. The responses of the subjects to each of the statements were compared with an indicator of the strength of the nervous system.
As a result, a number of features of the content of a negative prognosis were revealed in subjects with different levels of strength of the nervous system. A negative prognosis in weak subjects has a pronounced preventive character, i.e. is aimed at proactive preparation for future adverse events or their avoidance. Thus, subjects with a weak nervous system significantly more often give a key answer to the statements: “Having thought of some business, I try to foresee all possible obstacles and problems” (the key answer is “yes”); “I avoid difficult tasks and problems” (“yes”); “I willingly take on cases that require great responsibility, as I am sure that I will cope with them” (“no”); “When doing a new or responsible task, I constantly think about how not to make any mistake” (“yes”). At the same time, a negative prognosis in subjects with a strong nervous system does not have a "preparatory" content and is rather in the nature of a statement of the possibility of an unfavorable development of events. This is manifested, for example, in responses to the following statements: “I am worried about possible failures” (“yes”); “When the results of my activities are evaluated by other people, I, first of all, expect criticism” (“yes”); “I feel anxious when the results of my activities are evaluated by other people” (“yes”); “When I find myself in a non-standard situation, I feel anxiety, because I don’t know what to do” (“Yes”).
Attention is drawn to the fact that in the statements characterizing "strong" subjects, a significant place is occupied by descriptions of an emotional reaction to a possible problem in the form of anxiety or anxiety. Probably, the less pronounced emotional assessments in statements characteristic of "weak" can be explained by the fact that the preventive nature of the forecast, as it were, reduces the subjective likelihood of a possible failure or problem. At the same time, a vivid emotional assessment of the “strong” is a reaction to insecurity in the face of possible difficulties and ensures the mobilization of the energy resources of their nervous system.
The analysis carried out allows us to conclude that the “strong” ones most often have a negative prognosis as a statement possible problem and experiencing this fact in the form of anxiety and restlessness. A negative prognosis in subjects with a weak nervous system is of a preventive nature. Its function in the "weak" is the desire to influence the outcome with the help of anticipatory preparation (as, for example, it sounds in one of the questions - "foresee all possible obstacles and problems" - see above) or by avoiding difficult situations.
The occurrence of these features of a negative prognosis in the "weak" can be explained on the basis of a greater severity of the system-preserving function of forecasting due to the higher energy content of the weak nervous system. Indeed, the preventive nature of a negative forecast can arise only on the basis of a greater propensity to forecast in general. Due to a more pronounced propensity to build a forecast, it becomes possible not only to state the possibility of an adverse event, but also to predict probable ways to overcome the problem.
Both the “stating” negative prognosis for the “strong” and the preventive negative prognosis for the “weak” arise as a result of extrapolation into the future of adverse experience. Moreover, it can be assumed that the intensity of the negative prognosis to some extent will be related to the features of awareness of the negative experience (for example, its significance). However, the content of the negative forecast, presented in the mind, and its regulatory significance depend on the individual severity of the forecasting function. Thus, the individual features of a negative prognosis are, on the one hand, a consequence of the varying degree of severity of the forecasting function in brain activity and, on the other hand, the result of a person's adaptation in the course of his interaction with the environment.
Questionnaire to study the severity of negative prognosis.
1. When I need to get down to business, I am always overcome by doubts, since I am not sure of success.
2. In any business, I'm more lucky than unlucky.
3. Whatever I do, I succeed.
4. It seems to me that others are much luckier than me.
5. I am a lucky person.
6. Failures and misfortunes visit me more often than other people.
7. When I start a new business, I worry more about possible failure than about what needs to be done.
8. I rarely ask anyone for anything, because when they refuse me, it humiliates me.
9. When I am asked for something, I usually do not refuse, because I know that in case of refusal, the person will be offended by me.
10. Usually, starting a new business, I am sure that everything will be successful.
11. No matter what I do, in the end, I will fail.
12. In my opinion, I am not the kind of person who can be loved.
13. Most often, people treat me kindly.
14. It often seems to me that it is enough to take one wrong step, and people's attitude towards me will change for the worse.
15. Quite often I notice that people treat me better than I expected.
16. It seems to me that at any moment I can make a person treat me well.
17. Quite often it happens that I do not get down to business, because I know that I will not be able to achieve positive results.
18. I only speak to the person first in case of emergency, as I am afraid that he will not want to talk to me.
19. I quickly make decisions in important matters, as I always succeed.
20. I do not dare to ask anything for a long time, as they will almost certainly refuse me.
KEY: 1 point is assigned for the answer "yes" to questions 1, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, 15, 17, 18, 20 and for the answer "no" to questions 2, 3, 5 , 10, 13, 16, 19.
The strength of the nervous system in everyday life
According to academic concepts, the strength of the nervous system is an innate indicator. It is used to denote the endurance and performance of nerve cells. The strength of the nervous system "reflects the ability of nerve cells to withstand, without going into an inhibitory state, either very strong or long-acting, although not strong, excitation."
If, nevertheless, we move away from the classical definition and use the concept of “strength of the nervous system” in its semi-everyday, everyday, understandable meaning, then pressure and maintaining activity should be considered only one of the manifestations of this force, but not the only one. The strength of the nervous system also reveals itself in the restraint of undesirable elements of activity: the strength of inhibition must balance the strength of excitation. In order for the nervous system to really be able to withstand a sufficiently long excitation, cellular energy must be spent economically and rationally; there must be protective, protective, constructive braking. Braking is a necessary component of the overall Strength. Inhibition coordinates the activity of the nervous system.
A distinctive feature of a strong nervous system is the ability to tolerate superstrong stimuli. A weak nervous system does not hold the signal well, burns out like a candle when it cannot answer the offender or hit back.
A person with a weak nervous system not only cannot wait (tolerate), he also has difficulty retaining new information (concerning himself and others) and constantly “leaks” it on the way literally to the first person he meets - he is discharged into the outside.
A weak nervous system is not able to tolerate superstrong stimuli. It either immediately turns off (the inhibitory process prevails over excitation), or it is “carried away” without any brakes, with unpredictable consequences (inhibition does not have time to cope with excitation). A weak nervous system, however, has hypersensitivity, or high sensitivity, the ability to distinguish ultra-weak signals. A weak nervous system is characterized by the ability to finely distinguish similar stimuli. This is its advantage over the strong.
The negative relationship between the strength of the nervous system and the sensitivity of the analyzer equalizes the capabilities of both nervous systems. For example, teachers - owners of a weaker system - are often nervous in the classroom, behave less balanced, but better reflect, in a number of situations, the dynamics of interpersonal relations in the classroom. Teachers - carriers of a strong nervous system - have better endurance and unimpressibility. Children painted a chair with chalk - it does not matter. The chair was pushed under the table. They work calmly and without hysterics. However, they feel the student in the lesson worse.
An increase in the concentration of representatives of the weak nervous system in Lately by no means a random occurrence. In persons with a weak nervous system, conditioned reflexes are formed faster. They are easier to learn, more likely to grasp, which is explained by the high dynamism of the excitatory process. Logically arranged, connected by a common thought educational material a weak nervous system absorbs better. A strong nervous system has the advantage of storing large amounts of information of little use for semantic processing. In a weak nervous system, the rate of enumeration of options for solving a problem per unit of time is higher. She quickly adapts, acclimatizes, adjusts, settles down. Persons with a weak nervous system also tend to continue education to a greater extent.
If we consider in more detail the behavior of the weak and strong nervous systems in the educational process, we can find a number of interesting patterns. Weak nervous system is included in educational process straightaway. With prolonged hard work, she begins to make mistakes and falls out of the process: the student gets tired. For example, in younger adolescents, this is expressed in physical activity, pampering in the classroom, if they do not change the form of tasks after 5-8 minutes. The high endurance and working capacity of a strong nervous system is overshadowed by another circumstance. A strong nervous system does not get distracted during the lesson and does not lose working capacity, only it does not turn on so quickly, the process of working out takes longer.
A student with a strong nervous system should be presented with assignments from simple to complex. For a weak nervous system, tasks should be set in the reverse order (from complex to simple), i.e. do not read morality at the beginning of the lesson, but "take the bull by the horns."
A weak nervous system begins to work quickly, also quickly undermines its energy reserves and therefore continues to work costly. If a weak nervous system is intimidated by the complexity or volume of the upcoming work, then it can work out its resource psychologically or morally even before the start of real activity (having previously scrolled through the “all the horror” of the upcoming test in my head). Secondary teachers educational institutions make a strategic mistake by escalating the situation before the final test or exam. A weak nervous system copes with a test or exam worse than it is able to study during the year, from lesson to lesson. The university system of education does not leave any chances for a weak nervous system at all.
A strong nervous system, whether it be study or some other activity, usually does not work in full force. In order for a strong nervous system to turn on, it is necessary, on the contrary, to create situations of increased motivation: to scare with an exam or by the authorities, to put a couple of "triples" for warning (preferably in public), to hit the table with a fist, to set deadlines, to announce a general mobilization or to issue a Chinese warning. A weak nervous system does not tolerate public forms of censure, takes bad grades hard, cannot continue to work, falls out of the rut, goes into destructive activity, defiantly sabotages orders, accumulates resentment or anger, breaks down. A strong nervous system, organized in time by negative reinforcement, can show simply phenomenal results by the time of control. People with a strong nervous system are just brutally stubborn.
When it comes to the behavior of a leader with a weak nervous system, then the strength of his "cavalry attacks" will decrease from time to time. At first, in relation to a subordinate with a strong nervous system, he (the boss) looks invincible and scary, then he slowly turns sour and begins to think that he, too, “does not need more than anyone”, although he still tries to create a gloomy look. As for the most subordinate with a strong nervous system ... (Why is it necessary for a subordinate? Yes, because people with a strong nervous system are not in a hurry to become bosses.) So, as for a subordinate with a strong nervous system, then God forbid, if such a person will someday become your superiors. At first, everything will be like under Alexei Mikhailovich Tishaish, but when he feels the responsibility, when he gets to know the business qualities of his yesterday's comrades in depth, then with a consistent and methodical pressure in a fairly noble manner, he will "take out all the liver out of you."
People with a weak nervous system have a natural inclination to manage and command. First, they have much less patience to look at "all this stagnation" or "all this mess." Secondly, they have enough sympathy and empathy to have time to enlist the support of the widest possible range of people.
Organizational abilities are entirely built on a weak nervous system, but in order to achieve success in this matter, one must learn to consciously and creatively use one's life energy at a higher level. Because of their lack of self-control, many budding leaders spend their lives struggling with the challenges they create. Self-respect (to one's nervous system), self-awareness (of one's nervous system) and self-control - only this unity can give a person strength that nature did not give him.
Of course, the strength of the nervous system is an innate indicator, but this does not mean that we should give up. Psychologists have come up with as many as 5 strength gradations on this score: “weak”, “medium weak”, “medium”, “medium strong”, “strong”. All variations of the weak-semi-strong nervous system are the result of repeated exposure, getting used to the stimulus, the result of conscious education and self-education. A teacher with a weak nervous system, to whom children constantly paint a chair with chalk, sooner or later will pull himself together and imitate a strong nervous system. If you were born with a weak nervous system, then it will remain with you. And when you once again encounter some unusual, unusual, new strong stimulus, you will again and again demonstrate to yourself and those around you just a weak nervous system. But that's no reason to stop!
To decide on the strength-weakness of the nervous system means to provide a fairly exhaustive description of oneself and others. This means behind several "accidental manifestations of character" of a partner to see such a bunch of properties, such a bunch options behavior, that it allows you to read another person like a book, to predict his actions and intentions; makes it possible to feel in a state of flight, when others are just walking on the ground. Sometimes a few separate episodes, sketches, clashes are enough to know for sure who you are dealing with: you can rely on or not, what to expect in a minute, in a day, in a year, is it possible to approach this or that issue, is it possible to be friends, can whether to love.
Sometimes it is believed that it is necessary to look for ways to change the properties of the nervous system in the desired direction. This point of view cannot be considered correct. First, we still do not know anything about the ways and means of changing the properties of the nervous system, but we know for sure that this change can take place only very slowly and as a result of a change in some biologically essential conditions of life. Secondly, it is not known what should be considered desirable properties of the nervous system. A weak nervous system is a nervous system of low working capacity (in the physiological sense), but of high sensitivity. Who will decide general form the question is which nervous system is better: more sensitive, but less efficient or less sensitive, but more efficient?
There are some activities in which the endurance of the nervous system to super-strong loads is of decisive importance. Such activities require persons with a strong nervous system. But there are also such activities where high sensitivity and reactivity are more important.
A change in the properties of the nervous system should lead, in the end, to the leveling of individuality, to the desire to make all people the same.
Type of nervous activity: temperament
Studies have shown that the basis of individual differences in nervous activity animals is the manifestation and correlation of two main nervous processes - excitation and inhibition.
The ratios of the properties of these two nervous processes formed the basis for determining the type of higher nervous activity in animals. Three properties of the processes of excitation and inhibition were established, which they began to study when determining the type of higher nervous activity of an animal:
1. The strength of the processes of excitation and inhibition.
2. The balance of the processes of excitation and inhibition.
3. Mobility (replacement) of the processes of excitation and inhibition - the ability to quickly respond to changes in the environment.
These properties of the nervous system determine the highest adaptation of the animal organism to environmental conditions, i.e. the perfect interaction of the organism as a system with the external environment, ensure the existence of the organism.
Let us characterize the main properties of higher nervous activity.
The strength of nervous processes is expressed in the ability of nerve cells to endure prolonged and concentrated excitation and inhibition without going into a state of extreme inhibition. This determines the limit of performance (endurance) of the nerve cell.
Each nerve cell has a limiting capacity for work; under the influence of a strong or long-acting stimulus, it weakens, becomes unable to carry out the work that it did before. The limit of the efficiency of the nerve cell in different animals is different, which indicates the strength or weakness of the nervous system.
The strength of the nervous process is characterized by a corresponding adequate reaction to strong stimuli: strong irritations in a strong nervous system also cause strong excitation processes. The stronger the nervous system, the more clearly this pattern manifests itself. A change in the strength of the stimulus entails a change in the strength of the reaction. The reaction time decreases as the strength of the stimulus increases.
The strength of nervous processes is characterized by the ability to develop conditioned reflexes even under the action of strong stimuli: conditioned reflex activity is not disturbed by the action of strong stimuli.
A strong nervous system is distinguished by the ability of a nerve cell to resist the prolonged action of extraneous stimuli.
A weak nervous system is characterized by the inability of nerve cells to withstand prolonged and concentrated excitation or inhibition under the action of strong stimuli - nerve cells go into a state of prohibitive inhibition. Thus, in a weak nervous system, nerve cells are characterized by low efficiency, their energy is quickly depleted. In a weak nervous system, both the process of excitation and the process of inhibition are weak, salient feature weak nervous system - a state of lethargy quickly sets in.
A weak nervous system is highly sensitive: even to weak stimuli, such a nervous system gives an appropriate reaction.
An important property of higher nervous activity is the balance of the nervous processes of excitation and inhibition, i.e. proportion of these processes. Laboratory research made it possible to establish that in some animals these two processes are mutually balanced, while in other animals this balance is not observed: either the process of inhibition or excitation predominates.
An indicator of the predominance of excitation processes over inhibition processes is the rapid formation of conditioned reflexes and their slow extinction, in particular, the slow extinction of the orienting reflex. An indicator of the predominance of inhibition processes is the slow formation of conditioned reflexes and their rapid extinction.
Balance can be in terms of strength (working capacity) and balance in terms of dynamism (speed of closure of positive conditional connections or speed of closure of inhibitory reactions).
One of the main properties of higher nervous activity is the mobility of nervous processes. The mobility of the nervous system is characterized by the changeability of the processes of excitation and inhibition, the speed of their onset and termination (when life conditions require it), the speed of the movement of nervous processes (their irradiation and concentration), the speed of the appearance of the nervous process in response to irritation, the speed of the formation of new conditioned connections, the development and a change in the dynamic stereotype (the speed and strength of the formation of dynamic stereotypes, and if life demands, then breaking them).
Depending on the combination of strength, mobility and balance of the processes of inhibition and excitation, four main types of higher nervous activity are formed.
On the basis of the strength of nervous processes, IP Pavlov distinguished between strong and weak animals. The strong, in turn, he subdivided into strong balanced and strong unbalanced. Strong balanced can be fast (alive) and slow (calm). Thus, a classification of types of higher nervous activity was created.
Weak type. Animals with a weak nervous system cannot withstand strong, prolonged and concentrated stimuli. Under the influence of strong stimuli, the development of conditioned reflexes is delayed or they are destroyed. Violations lead to a disease of the nervous system. Weak are the processes of inhibition and excitation, especially weak are the inhibitory processes (only 15–30 seconds the nervous system of weak animals can tolerate strong inhibitions).
With a weak nervous system, weak irritation can cause strong excitation, strong excitation can cause a weak response, or cause inhibition, and a breakdown of nervous activity is possible, which causes a state of shock.
Under the action of strong stimuli, the development of conditioned reflexes is delayed and, in general, a low ability to develop them is noted. At the same time, there is a high sensitivity (i.e., a low threshold) to the actions of extraneous stimuli.
Strong unbalanced type, distinguished by a strong nervous system, is characterized by an imbalance in the main nervous processes - the predominance of excitation processes over inhibition processes. In this regard, in animals of a strong unbalanced type, positive conditioned reflexes are quickly formed and inhibitory reflexes are slowly formed.
Strong balanced fast type. Strong irritation causes strong excitement. The processes of inhibition and excitation are balanced, but the speed, mobility, lead to the instability of nerve connections, the rapid succession of nervous processes.
Strong balanced calm type. Nervous processes are characterized by low mobility. Animals outwardly are always calm, even, difficult to excite.
Based on the study of the types of higher nervous activity of animals, I. P. Pavlov came to the following conclusion: “We can rightfully transfer the types of the nervous system established on the dog ... to humans.”
Although the properties of the higher nervous activity of animals and humans coincide, one should be very careful, and only after special studies confirming the identity of the course of these nervous processes in animals and humans, should these properties be transferred to humans, or, conversely, the properties of the human nervous system should be transferred to animals. At the same time, one should always take into account the social conditionality of human activity, its specifically human characteristics.
Since the type of higher nervous activity refers to natural hereditary data, this is an innate property of the nervous system, and therefore, it is not a mental, but a physiological property. On this physiological basis, various systems of conditional connections can be formed, i.e. in the process of life, these conditional connections will be formed differently in different people: this will express the manifestation of the type of higher nervous activity.
Peculiarities mental activity of a person, which determine his actions, behavior, habits, interests, knowledge, are formed in the process of a person's individual life, in the process of education. The type of higher nervous activity gives originality to human behavior, leaves a characteristic imprint on the whole appearance of a person - determines the mobility of nervous processes, their stability (the dynamics of the process of perception, switching and stability of attention, the range of mental activity) - but does not determine either the behavior and actions of a person, or his beliefs or morals.
Establishing the type of higher nervous activity of people is connected with great difficulties. “Many people form the opinion that people are really divided according to the strength or mobility of the nervous system into sharply limited groups: “strong” and “weak”, “mobile” and “fixed”. But in reality, people form such a continuous series according to the strength of the nervous system, such as, for example, according to height or weight ... this is just a way of grouping people according to a separate property. This method makes sense for a better understanding of the issue of temperament, and in practice it has great importance.
The type of nervous activity is usually called temperament.
Temperament is a manifestation of the type of nervous system in human activity, individually psychological features personality, in which the mobility of his nervous processes, strength, balance are manifested.
The body and its metabolic system plus the nervous system (vegetative and central) are involved in the regulation of a person's energy capabilities and his temperament, which is associated with the individual's energy characteristics, ways of accumulating and spending energy.
The word “temperament” (from Latin temperans, “moderate”), translated from Latin, means “proper ratio of parts”, the Greek word “krasis” (“fusion, mixing”), equal in meaning to it, was introduced by the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates. By temperament, he understood both the anatomical and physiological and individual psychological characteristics of a person. Hippocrates explained temperament as a feature of behavior, the predominance of one of the "vital juices" (four elements) in the body:
- the predominance of yellow bile (ancient Greek chole, "bile, poison") makes a person impulsive, "hot" - choleric.
- the predominance of lymph (dr. Greek phlegm, “sputum”) makes a person calm and slow - phlegmatic.
- the predominance of blood (lat. sanguis, sanguis, sangua, “blood”) makes a person mobile and cheerful - sanguine.
- the predominance of black bile (ancient Greek melana chole, "black bile") makes a person sad and timid - a melancholic.
Melancholic (weak type) - easily vulnerable, prone to constant experience of various events, he reacts sharply to external factors. He often cannot restrain his asthenic experiences by an effort of will, he is highly impressionable, easily emotionally vulnerable.
Choleric (strong unbalanced type) - fast, impetuous, but completely unbalanced, with sharply changing moods with emotional outbursts, quickly exhausted. He does not have a balance of nervous processes, this sharply distinguishes him from a sanguine person. Choleric, carried away, carelessly wastes his strength and quickly depletes.
Sanguine (strong, balanced fast type) is a lively, hot, mobile person, with frequent changes in mood, impressions, with a quick reaction to all events happening around him, quite easily reconciled with his failures and troubles. Usually a sanguine person has expressive facial expressions. He is very productive at work, when he is interested, getting very excited about this, if the work is not interesting, he is indifferent to it, he becomes bored.
Phlegmatic (strong balanced calm type) - unhurried, imperturbable, has stable aspirations and mood, outwardly stingy with the manifestation of emotions and feelings. He shows perseverance and perseverance in work, remaining calm and balanced. In work, he is productive, compensating for his slowness with diligence.
This theory of temperament can be called humoral (from the Latin “humor” - liquid), i.e. temperament depends on the ratio of biological fluids in the body. Some of its modern adherents show that the ratio and balance of hormones within the body determine the manifestations of temperament - for example, an excess of thyroid hormones causes increased irritability and excitability of a person, manifestations of choleric temperament.
At the beginning of the XX century. the constitutional theory of temperament arose (Kretschmer, Sheldon), main idea which consisted in establishing its correlation with the innate constitution of the human physique. If we use the traditional names of temperaments, it is easy to see that melancholics mostly have a fragile asthenic physique, choleric people - varying from athletic to asthenic, phlegmatic people - from athletic to picnic (large, calm "bumps"), sanguine people are mostly picnic.
Somatics and nervous system are two circuits of temperament regulation. They may coincide or diverge in each case, and therefore there are two fundamental approaches to the analysis of temperament.
The first approach says that temperament depends on the constitution of a person's physique (Kretschmer, Sheldon) and the characteristics of his biochemical processes (the ratio of hormones or "fluids" - blood, bile, etc., according to Hippocrates); type of physique and related energy features are one of the "circuits" of the regulation of human behavior. According to the second approach, temperament depends on the higher nervous activity of a person, the type of his nervous system.
Characteristics of the main types of temperament. American psychologist Eysenck proposed a method for determining the temperament of a particular individual based on the processing of a psychological test. The test is based on two scales:
1. horizontal scale (from 0 - the extreme left point - to 24 - the right extreme point) - a scale of emotional susceptibility, characterizes the level of sociability of a person
- 2 or less points - a deep introvert - an extremely unsociable, reserved person;
- 10 or less, up to 2 points - introvert, unsociable, reserved person
- 11-13 points - the average level of sociability, a person is not oppressed by either the lack of communication or its excess;
- 14 or more points - extrovert, sociable person
2. vertical scale - a scale of neuroticism (anxiety), characterizes emotional stability - instability of the human psyche
- norm - 11-13 points - the person is moderately emotionally stable. Irritants are perceived adequately: it is necessary - it is disturbed, it is not necessary - it is not disturbed;
- 10 points or less - emotionally unstable person, always anxious, even when it is not necessary to disturb;
- 14 or more points - an emotionally stable person up to emotional coldness.
The combination of indicators of a person's personality, according to the results psychological tests according to the Eysenck method, and characterizes the type of temperament of the individual:
Along with the totality of the properties of nervous activity that determine one or another temperament, the following mental features can be distinguished, which in various combinations are included in the corresponding temperament.
1. Speed and intensity of mental processes, mental activity.
2. The predominant subordination of behavior to external impressions - extraversion or its predominant subordination inner world person, his feelings, ideas - introversion.
3. Adaptability, plasticity, adaptability to external changing conditions, mobility of stereotypes. (Reduced adaptability, inflexibility - rigidity).
4. Sensitivity, sensitivity, emotional excitability and strength of emotions, emotional stability.
Psychophysiological features and choice of profession
As a result of research, B. M. Teplov came to important conclusions that are of great importance for teaching practice. He points out that in the process of education, one should not look for ways to change the student's nervous system (this process is very slow and its paths have not yet been sufficiently studied), but one should find the best forms, ways and methods of education, taking into account the characteristics of the pupil's nervous system.
Then the question is raised, which nervous system should be considered good? Is it possible, for example, to consider a weak nervous system bad?
Obviously, - emphasizes B. M. Teplov, - everything depends on what kind of activity a person is engaged in. If in the process of labor it is necessary to show greater endurance, greater efficiency, a strong type of nervous system is more suitable for such activity; where in the process of activity it is necessary to show high sensitivity, reactivity, the weak type will do better.
From this follows the conclusion, to which B. M. Teplov comes, that positive traits personalities can manifest themselves both with a strong and with a weak nervous system, but they will have a certain originality.
A strong nervous system is characterized by high performance. In other words, nerve cells can perceive and transmit nerve impulses for a long time without going into a state of inhibition, "without getting tired." A weak nervous system is characterized by low efficiency of nerve cells, they are depleted faster. These properties of the nervous system have corresponding manifestations in human activity and behavior. A person with a weak nervous system is most often calm, quiet, cautious, obedient. He cannot participate in noisy, mobile activities for a long time, which is associated with his small reserve of strength, increased fatigue. Often prone to accuracy, characterized by increased impressionability. An unusual environment, the attention of strangers, mental pressure exerted on him - all this can become a superstrong irritant for such a person. In such cases, he is lost, does not find the right words, does not answer questions, does not fulfill the simplest requests. Due to their increased sensitivity, such people are particularly vulnerable, they react painfully to criticism, discontent of others. Often such people lack self-confidence, they are characterized by a fear of failure and a fear of looking stupid, as a result of which it is much more difficult for them to move towards success.
A person with a strong nervous system is seen quite differently by others - most often cheerful, self-confident, not experiencing stress in learning, striking with the ease with which he masters material of considerable volume. He is full of energy, tireless, constantly ready for action. He is almost never tired, lethargic, relaxed. Getting involved in the work, he almost does not experience difficulties; he does not care about additional loads, the transition to an unfamiliar new activity. A person with a strong nervous system is distinguished by great efficiency in the use of time, the ability to accomplish more in the same period of time than others, thanks to his endurance, the absence of stops and failures in work. Another advantage of a strong nervous system is the ability to adequately respond to superstrong stimuli, even those of a frightening nature. In persons with a weak nervous system, the normal functioning of nerve cells under such conditions is disturbed, and, consequently, activity also suffers.
Thus, the strength of the nervous system provides the emotional, psychological stability of a person to the effects of superstrong stimuli and thereby increases reliability in extreme situations. Usually, in a difficult environment, it is easier for people with a strong nervous system to maintain self-control, they are able to make the right decision in the face of time pressure, not to get confused. In a number of professions, this is necessary to ensure trouble-free operation of the entire human-machine system. There are not so many professions in which complex, life-threatening situations may arise (test pilots, astronauts, miners, air traffic controllers, sappers, surgeons, firefighters, rescuers), but the price of a mistake in them can often turn out to be too expensive. As special studies of psychologists show, the correctness of the actions of a professional in an extreme situation depends not so much on length of service and work experience, but on the strength of the nervous system. Only people with a strong nervous system in a non-standard, difficult situation (accidents, explosions, fires, natural disasters) are able to correctly assess the situation, maintain restraint, self-control, and find the best solution to normalize the state of emergency.
Thus, studying the activities of "strong" and "weak" operators of power systems in an emergency, psychologists have found huge differences in their behavior. If the "strong" did not get lost and took all the necessary measures in order to prevent the spread of the accident, to eliminate its consequences, then the "weak" behaved completely differently. They either left their workplace, either committed chaotic actions that in the future could only worsen the development of the situation, or completely lost the ability to perform any actions. In any case, they professional activity collapsed. It had nothing to do with length of service, age, or work experience.
Thus, when choosing a profession, the property of strength - the weakness of the nervous system - must be taken into account. The "weak" are not recommended to choose professions in which the occurrence of emergency, extreme, life-threatening situations is really possible. Therefore, when conducting a professional consultation, restrictions may be introduced on the choice of a certain range of professions for people with a weak nervous system. However, a radical restructuring of plans for the future is not always required. The student himself can be recommended another specialty in the same profession, or, as professional consultants say, another job post. Even in the profession of a pilot there are jobs that do not impose too strict requirements on a person - this is an agricultural pilot, a helicopter pilot. In the profession of a doctor, people with a weak nervous system are contraindicated in such specializations as a resuscitator and surgeon. But they can be recommended specialties of a therapist, sanitary doctor, pharmacist, dentist. I must say that people with a weak nervous system have certain advantages. Thus, many “weak” people have a much higher sensitivity than “strong” ones, they are focused on high accuracy, thoroughness in performing activities, on stricter control over the quality of performance, they cope with monotonous monotonous work much better, more productively and at lower cost. They may be recommended jobs that require high accuracy, thoroughness, strict adherence to a given algorithm (jeweler, cutter, dental technician, chip assembler, programmer). With the high sensitivity of a weak nervous system, apparently, the fact that in the musical and artistic professions there are many people with a nervous system of this type is found. This indicates the advantages of the “weak” in mastering professions in which the main thing is relationships with other people, communication (that is, the type of “person-to-person”).
For many occupations, taking into account the properties of strength-weakness is extremely important. For some professions, the presence of a strong nervous system is a prerequisite for the formation of professional suitability; in this case selection is necessary. For others, persons with a weak nervous system could be more suitable, it is they who can work here most efficiently and efficiently. Nevertheless, in the vast majority of professions, taking into account natural features is necessary not for selection, but for finding the most suitable work post or developing an optimal individual style of activity that allows you to maximize the exploitation of natural data and compensate for shortcomings.
For example, observations of motor transport drivers have shown that the style of work of the “strong” and “weak” differs significantly. Thus, the “weak” practically do not get into emergency situations due to the fact that they prepare the car for the flight more carefully, trying to predict any malfunction and breakdown, predicting the possibility of adverse situations on the way. They drive much more carefully. Psychologists, studying the drivers of passenger buses, discovered the following fact: in the group of drivers with a high level of safety violations (the presence of accidents), representatives of the weak type were completely absent. However, the total number of drivers with a weak type of nervous system was small in the sample. Apparently, this difficult profession is more often chosen by people with a strong type, i.e. with higher performance and resistance to stressful situations. High speed performance of different types of activity is provided by such a feature of the nervous system as mobility and lability (high pace, quick switching from one type of work to another, speed, good distribution of attention between different types of activity).
Opposite qualities are possessed by people with inert nervous processes. They are characterized by slowness, slowness, thoroughness both in the performance of any activity, and in movements, speech, expression of feelings. They carefully consider any action, word, remark, slowly respond to requests, do not immediately understand the instructions. It is clear that it is much more difficult for them to do work that requires quickness, quickness, frequent switching, and making responsible decisions in the face of time pressure. However, their individuality has a number of advantages. They work more thoughtfully, they are characterized by solidity, painstakingness, clear planning of actions, striving for order. At the same time, "mobile" have, along with positive features, a number of negative ones. They are characterized by haste, negligence, the desire to quickly move on to another type of work, without completing the matter, they delve less deeply into the essence of problems, often grasp only a superficial layer of knowledge. All these features are not necessarily inherent in "mobile" and "inert", since training and education, self-regulation, self-discipline and self-correction of behavior and activity are of great importance.
Psychologists who have specially studied the peculiarities of performing different types of activities by "moving" and "inert" have found that for the latter there is a certain limit in the possibilities of high-speed performance of motor tasks. But after all, the circle of professions that impose strict requirements on speed characteristics is small. In the vast majority of professions, finding a suitable work post, choosing the most appropriate occupations, developing an individual style help both "mobile" and "inert" people to successfully cope with various types of activities. For example, among turners there is such a division as a speed turner and a precision turner. The former prefers jobs that require very high speeds. Being "mobile", such workers love a high pace, quick transitions from one task to another. The “inert” ones, on the other hand, cannot cope with the need to work at a high pace and choose tasks for themselves that must be completed slowly, carefully, with high accuracy and good finish. They are much more comfortable, easier to work slowly and painstakingly. Experienced craftsmen, when distributing tasks to workers, take into account their individual characteristics, since this ultimately ensures high quality and efficiency of all activities.
The same applies to the development of an individual style of activity. This was very clearly manifested in the study of representatives of the weaving professions. Indeed, these professions require a very high pace, because the efficiency of labor depends on how long the machine works without stopping. Stops are most often caused by thread breakage and the need to change the shuttle. The faster these operations are performed, the more efficient the work. It would seem that mobile weavers have an advantage here. Special observations of the work of both showed, however, that "inert" weavers also successfully cope with their duties and in terms of labor productivity, the quality of work is not inferior to "mobile", and sometimes even surpasses them. But the high efficiency of their work is ensured by its special organization, when most of the working time is devoted to preparatory, preventive operations that reduce the likelihood of thread breakage. Knowing their individual characteristics, they do not allow the occurrence of extreme situations, since it is more difficult for them to cope with them.
The circle of professions that require very high speeds of work (for example, a musician, a circus juggler) is quite narrow. In most professions, success can be achieved by people with different indicators of the speed of mental processes. However, in order for the chosen work not to be a burden, it is necessary to take into account the peculiarities of the nervous system. It is clear, for example, that the profession of a dispatcher or a salesperson will be easier and faster to master for mobile people, since it requires constant switching. "Inert" is better to choose for themselves such professions that are performed according to rarely changing algorithms, do not require haste and decision-making in conditions of time pressure.
Another property of the nervous system is balance, which depends on the degree of correspondence between the excitatory force and the inhibitory force, on their balance. Excessive excitability with weak inhibition processes is undesirable in those professions where there is often nervous tension. Such a person is prone to the most unexpected breakdowns, so he needs a quieter job. And, conversely, excessive braking is bad where a fast pace, frequent changes, etc. are needed. In children, the innate features of the structure and activity of the nervous system are already early manifested, which are such properties of nervous processes as excitation and inhibition, namely: their strength, mobility and balance. Temperament is based on these qualities.
Russian psychologists believe that the characteristics of temperament cannot be considered in isolation from the profession. Not every type of temperament is suitable for every job. V. Merlin claims that there are professions for which people with certain qualities of temperament are not suitable. So, for example, for the profession of an operator of the control panel of a power plant, the weakness of nervous processes characteristic of a melancholic is contraindicated. Depending on the characteristics of nervous processes, 24 types of temperament can be theoretically derived, but in practice, the four types that are known to us from the classical teaching on temperaments are most often observed. The sanguine type of temperament is characterized by energy and great capacity for work, he is suitable for work in which there is a lot of variety, which constantly sets new tasks for him, he is ready to act all the time and organize something, therefore leadership positions are suitable for him. When working, he can easily concentrate and just as easily switch from one job to another, but he is not able to delve into details and does not tolerate monotony. Choleric is characterized by irascibility and impetuosity, performs work with great internal stress, very energetically, completely surrendering to his activity, however, he distributes his huge energy unevenly, therefore cyclic activity is suitable for him, periodically requiring a large, but periodic expenditure of energy, associated with stress and danger, alternating with calmer work. The phlegmatic is calm and balanced, he is a stubborn and diligent worker, but only in the area to which he is accustomed. He does not like work that is diverse, but monotonous activities (for example, work on a conveyor) do not present difficulties for him. He works slowly, but can achieve good results due to his firmness, perseverance and thoughtful organization of his work. Melancholic is characterized by a low threshold of sensation and increased sensitivity to external stimuli. He has low efficiency, he does not want to take on obligations, he is afraid that he will not be able to fulfill them. Prefers to work alone. Due to his high sensitivity, he easily captures and understands the subtleties in the behavior of people, the world around him, as well as in art, literature, music. A melancholic is suitable for work that requires attention, the ability to delve into and work out the smallest details. He is contraindicated in activities that require significant stress, significant stress, associated with surprises and complications.
Blood group and character of a person
Modern scientists are trying to explain the properties of blood (or rather, belonging to a particular group according to the ABO system) not only the warehouse of the individual, but also family happiness, career growth, intellectual potential, and stress resistance. In their opinion, temperament and character by blood group is a reality. For several years, a survey of several thousand people was carried out and certain patterns were identified in the behavior of people with the corresponding blood types.
1 blood group. The oldest, "hunting" group. It is assumed that this blood type was possessed by all mankind at the dawn of its existence, when primitive people fought for survival with the elements. It is from that time, according to the authors of the "blood" theory, that the modern owners of the first group inherited optimism, self-confidence, remarkable health, penetrating qualities and all the properties of natural leaders, including a tendency to take risks, harshness, cruelty and the ability to walk on heads. Statistics show that more than half of US presidents had the first blood type. By the way, these are the same properties that supporters of astrological knowledge attribute to Leo and Aquarius: and adherents of the sibling theory to older brothers.
2 blood group. It is assumed that this, the second oldest group, arose at a time when people switched to a settled way of life and for the first time in history they had the need to compromise, negotiate with neighbors, and perform common affairs for the common good. On the one hand, these are the most socially adapted people, those for whom the words “decency” and “fairness” are not an empty phrase, who honor the rules more than others and do not forget what is good and what is bad. But, on the other hand, second-handers are most exposed to stress, which they carefully hide for a certain time until they “break through”. Such people strive to make everyone feel good, but since this is unlikely in reality, they often give way to the first roles of representatives of other bloodlines. By the way, astrologers endow Taurus and Capricorn with such features.
3 blood group. It is the third blood group from the point of view of the theory of temperament and character according to the blood group that is the synthesizer group. People with this group combined in their personalities the traits of both the first (courage, purposefulness) and the second (emotional susceptibility, intelligence) blood groups. All this makes them the most flexible and perhaps the most successful in achieving personal goals. More than a third of self-made people have exactly the third blood group. Researchers explain their ability to survive in the most difficult conditions by the fact that the nomadic peoples of Asia, who first had this blood type, were less attached to the place and society, they needed to constantly adapt to changing conditions, literally “roam” behind the most fertile pastures and optimal climate. By the way, these are the properties of Libra and Pisces, as well as middle (not older and not younger) siblings. The explanation of "everything in the world" through antigens that determine the blood type is especially popular in Japan. Back in the first half of the 20th century, a book was published on the relationship between the properties of blood and character. Later, other studies appeared, but the most popular publication on this topic was Toshitaka Nomi's You Are Your Blood. After its release in 1980, the question “what is your blood type?” in the Land of the Rising Sun surpassed in popularity the traditional "who are you according to your zodiac sign?". But, which is inevitable with nationwide popularity, the idea began to imperceptibly simplify and transform into another “fortune telling by coffee grounds”, very far from really serious ones. scientific research Dr. Nomi and his colleagues. So it is not worth absolutizing the binding of character to blood.
4 blood group. Main characteristic the fourth type of blood, which occurred later than others from the merger of representatives of the second and third groups (roughly speaking, during the time of the Tatar-Mongol yoke in Rus' and the Arab conquest of Spain, when nomads occupied the ancestral territories of farmers) - to take everything from life. It is believed that these are the most multifaceted, most attractive to others, but at the same time the most impossible personalities for a permanent life with them. The fourth group is credited with the properties of complete scoundrels (which, of course, is not at all true) and, at the same time, born diplomats. Representatives of the fourth group do not remember the evil - neither the one that was caused to them, nor what they themselves allowed, they do not think about the consequences, they are not interested in small details. These are not tactics at all, however, strategists are also far from always obtained from them. Statistics show that "fourths" often live tragic fates(like, for example, Marilyn Monroe), but are remembered by people who had to live next to them forever ... By the way, Gemini, Scorpio, Sagittarius have this character. Partly - Aquarius. And the youngest members of the family. The phenomenal popularity of the “blood-characteristic” theory is understandable. She seems to be promising: just pick the people, activities and circumstances (and along with the diet) that match your blood type, and everything in life will magically work out. In addition, it is tempting, just having found out the blood type of the interlocutor, to think that you already know everything about him. Of course, in practice, everything is much more complicated. In addition, the definitions of the four types of characters themselves are drawn up in such a way that everyone, if desired, will find the corresponding features in any carrier of one of the four groups - there would be a desire. But this is despite the fact that blood simply cannot but influence us - after all, we cannot live without it.
The first blood group - 45% of the world's population
a) are less likely to suffer from schizophrenia;
b) get sick with influenza A less often;
c) are predisposed to diseases of the lungs and bronchi;
d) suffer from peptic ulcer (due to the peculiarities of cell membranes, to which the bacterium Helicobacter pylori easily adheres, provoking the development of an ulcer);
e) prone to allergies, asthma, psoriasis;
f) have a tendency to skin diseases, as well as hypertension, hemophilia, nephrolithiasis.
The blood of the first group is a kind of protection against cardiovascular diseases, it also gives resistance to caries.
The second blood type -40% of the population
a) a tendency to tumor diseases, which is why one should refrain from working in pulp, paint and chemical enterprises;
b) rheumatic diseases;
c) the risk of coronary heart disease;
d) severe course of purulent-inflammatory diseases of the soft tissues of the face;
e) predisposition to gastritis with low acidity;
f) rapidly progressing pathological processes in the hard tissues of the teeth;
g) thyroid disease.
Third blood type - 11% of the population
The owners of this blood type have a strong immune and balanced nervous system, resistance to myocardial infarction is observed. Increased survival. Possibility to get pneumonia, sciatica, osteochondrosis, predisposition to colon tumors, urinary tract infections, especially if the infection is provoked by Escherichia coli, since similarities between the structure of antigens were noted coli and 3 blood groups.
Fourth group -4% of the population
Hyperemia, elevated level cholesterol, atherosclerosis, obesity, as well as diseases associated with increased blood clotting: thrombosis, thrombophlebitis, obliterating endarteritis of the lower extremities, psychosis.
Temperament as a manifestation of the elements
According to the information that has come down to us, the first of the Greek philosophers who developed the doctrine of the four temperaments was the ancient Greek philosopher and physician Empedocles of Agrigentum [c.487-c.430 BC]. BC.]. In his hylozoistic natural philosophy, he proposed a scheme for building the world from four eternal and unchanging primary substances, elements, or "roots": fire, air, water and earth, including an active and a passive principle, and driving forces? love (the force of attraction) and enmity (the force of repulsion).
Element of Fire. Permanent element. Key words: force, energy, dynamics. People with a dedicated element of Fire correspond to the temperament of a choleric. The element of Fire is one of the most powerful elements. People with a pronounced element of Fire have a huge energy potential, which is desirable to use for creative realization. When the psyche of such people is exposed to too strong stimuli, they can lose control over their emotions, undergo severe emotional breakdowns. Possible hysteroid reactions with a tendency to outbursts of aggression. To avoid such states, representatives of the element of Fire need to learn how to manage their emotions, to properly spend their vital energy.
Earth Element. Permanent element. Key words: static, solidity, accumulation. Corresponds to the temperament of the phlegmatic. Representatives of this element have a stable emotional background. The reaction to external stimuli is somewhat slow, it is difficult to shake such people emotionally. Unconscious reactions are formed very slowly, but for a long time. On the background severe stress in people with a predominance of the elements of the Earth, depressive states are possible. To avoid trouble with the mental state of health, the representatives of this element should strive to reveal their emotional sphere.
Air Element. Unstable element. Key words: contact, mobility, interaction. Corresponds to the temperament of a sanguine person. Representatives of this element perform the function of intermediaries in the transfer of information. People with a pronounced element of Air have a mobile type of nervous system, their emotions quickly arise and do not last long. The reaction to external stimuli in such people is quite even. It is important for representatives of the elements of Air not to overload the nervous system with a large flow of information, otherwise mental state disorders in the form of neurasthenia and even manic-delusional ideas are possible.
Element of Water. Unstable element. Key words: instability, elusiveness, sensitivity. Temperament type - melancholic. People with a pronounced element of water have excellent intuition and high sensitivity of the nervous system. They are highly responsive to cosmic rhythms, especially to the phases of the moon. The psyche of such people is mobile and changeable, it reacts not only to external stimuli, but also to changes in its own body. Since people with a pronounced element of Water have a weak type of nervous system, it is advisable for them to avoid strong mental overload, otherwise they may enter a state of prolonged depression. To avoid mental disorders, it is desirable for representatives of the element of Water to strengthen their nervous system, learn to adequately respond to stressful situations, develop intuition and psychological abilities.
Representatives of the element of Fire (will)? overflowing with vital energy (prana). Was this symbol of fervor seen as a high external and internal activity? expansion (diastole), expansion and interaction, influenced the choleric temperament. Fire signs (Leo, Sagittarius and Aries) were associated with short-term illnesses, attacks, exacerbations and inflammatory processes.
The element Earth (ego) is associated with everything dense in the body. External and internal passivity is characteristic: the absence of expansion and interaction, the personification of cold and phlegmatic temperament. In turn, fire and air were considered a symbol of the active (male) element, and earth and water? passive (female) element. There is a tendency to salt deposition and hypertrophied bone growth.
Element Air (mind) - associated with nerves, external passivity and internal activity? expansion, but lack of interaction, forms a sanguine temperament. Representatives of air signs (Aquarius, Libra and Gemini) often suffer from lung diseases, neurosis, vegetative dystonia.
The element Water (feelings) is associated with the fluids within the body, the endocrine system and gastric juice. Predominance of external activity and internal passivity? active interaction, but lack of expansion and expansion, represents a melancholic temperament. Characterized by edema, metabolic disorders, gastrointestinal diseases and genitourinary disorders.
So, with a pronounced element of Fire, the features of a choleric are more inherent in a person, with the predominance of the elements of the Earth - phlegmatic; the element of Air corresponds to the type of sanguine, and the element of Water corresponds to the type of melancholic. The predominance of one of the elements is rarely found in the horoscopes of people. More often there are mixed options when two or more elements are expressed. With the severity of one element, a person often needs psychological correction.
The uniformity of the mixture of four elements or the predominance of one over the other in it, the magnitude, connection and mobility of Empedocles explained the level of mental abilities and characterological characteristics of the personality of inherent diseases. All the innumerable properties of bodies, including mental ones, were derived from mixing the four elements listed above in various proportions. It was the proportion and nature of their interaction in man that Empedocles explained the level of mental abilities and characterological features of the individual.
Since the human body is a microcosm, it carries the manifestation of the four main cosmic elements: fire, earth, air and water. In accordance with a certain element, the signs of the Zodiac and the planets are divided into the following groups.
Signs and planets corresponding to the elements of Fire: Aries, Leo, Sagittarius (Mars, Sun and Jupiter are the rulers of these signs).
Signs and planets corresponding to the elements of the Earth: Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn (Venus, Proserpina, Saturn).
Signs and planets corresponding to the elements of Air: Gemini, Libra, Aquarius (Mercury, Chiron, Uranus)
Signs and planets corresponding to the elements of Water: Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces (Moon Pluto Neptune).
Knowledge about the predominance of a certain element in a person's horoscope, as well as the type of temperament, can be useful to psychologists, psychiatrists and psychotherapists for correcting behavioral reactions, as well as preventing possible pathological changes in the human psyche.
Can temperament be changed?
From all of the above, a strong impression is created that the temperament, the character of a person cannot be changed. As you were born - so you will die! Is it really?
If we approach the problem from an energy point of view, then we can confidently say that energy is available to all people equally. There are no natural barriers to obtaining energy from the external environment. Fire, earth, air and water are available to every person.
Another thing is if artificial restrictions are imposed on access to energy. A person can be deprived of freedom of movement, limited access to water, forced to live in a deadly environmental situation and so on. All these are examples of energy withdrawal by society. Social organization has always been a double-edged sword. On the one hand, a person can only survive in an environment of his own kind. On the other hand, he sometimes has to pay an unreasonably high price for the comfort provided by this environment. The ability to balance between the interests of society and personal interests is not an easy task. But after all, the intellect is given to a person in order to solve complex problems!
By properly managing his energy, not wasting it on trifles and replenishing it in a timely manner in case of large energy costs, a person can live in relative harmony with the people around him. The power of the intellect plays a decisive role here. It is thanks to the intellect that a person arranges his life as he wishes, while not bringing his relations with others to the extreme. Only the intellect saves him from all kinds of psychic attacks and enemy attacks.
The ability to adapt to the conditions of the external environment is, in its purest form, a change in temperament. By his own will, a person is able to be proactive if necessary, and cautious and inconspicuous in case of danger. In conditions of excessive psychological stress, he can take a number of compensatory measures, switch to the mode of saving his own energy. Adaptation and self-regulation are the two mechanisms that govern the manifestation of a person's temperament. But for them to work properly, you need to properly manage your energy.
Certainly, physiological features play a role in the process of energy metabolism. But thanks to higher mental activity, a person can control this process, leveling these or those physical shortcomings. So a blind person is able to make up for this deficiency with increased sensitivity of touch, smell and hearing. Compensation of auditory functions in a child born deaf occurs due to greater involvement of visual, kinesthetic, olfactory and other systems in the work. An important role in compensating for deafness is played by vibrational movements.
Compensation (compensation, balancing) is the replacement or restructuring of disturbed or underdeveloped body functions. Intersystem compensation - increased sensitivity of intact sensory organs, trying to replace the damaged analyzer. This is a complex, diverse process of adaptability of the body due to congenital or acquired anomalies.
The compensation process relies on significant backup capabilities higher nervous activity. This process is typical in violation or loss of any function, being a manifestation of the biological adaptability of the organism, which establishes its equilibrium with the environment.
The specific development of a person, caused by a violation of one of the systems of the body and its functions, takes place against the background of the activation of protective means and the mobilization of reserve resources that resist the onset of pathological processes. This is where the potential for compensation comes into play.
In abnormal children, in the process of compensation, new dynamic systems of conditional connections are formed, impaired or weakened functions are corrected, and personality develops.
In this regard, L.S. Vygotsky spoke about the law of the transformation of a defect minus into a compensation plus. “The positive originality of a handicapped child is created, first of all, not by the fact that he loses certain functions observed in a normal child, but by the fact that the loss of functions brings to life new formations, representing in their unity the reaction of the personality to a defect, compensation in the process development". At the same time, the optimal development of the functions of preserved organs that replace the affected organ, L.S. Vygotsky explains it by active functioning caused by vital necessity.
This article briefly describes scientific and esoteric approaches to the study of the strength of the nervous system and the typology of temperaments of higher nervous activity. All these studies are of undoubted interest for those who are interested in various manifestations of the human psyche. However, one should not think that a person can easily be “packed” into one or another descriptive framework. If a person is fluent in the techniques of self-control, then it is unlikely that even the most talented researchers will be able to create his truthful psychological picture. Personality manifests itself in many ways. A strong personality constantly adapts to the challenges of the external environment and develops preventive measures in response to unfavorable forecasts. Its energy exchange is always best adapted to the environment.
Partial ways to manage life energy are described in a number of articles published on our blog.
Good day everyone! Dear accomplices! Maybe you can help. I've completely messed up something. I guess I should try psychotherapy or something...
I have a weak nervous system, always have. It is easy to unbalance me, I often get nervous, cry. I have endlessly - all my life - psychosomatics. I am 50 years old. Last years are given to me quite hard. I see and hear worse. My memory got worse, my reactions slower. I think worse, I lose everything and forget.
My work is related to information, large flows, different languages. I have to be always online. I coordinate people. Along the way, I learn 2 languages. It's very hard for me to do this. Begins - the neurosis has already begun. The sight of the computer shakes me. With any minor breakdowns of gadgets or with an unstable connection, panic begins. Communication on non-native language exhausts me. In a month I plan to start another project in parallel with the first one. And I'm already scared that I won't pull it because of my weak nervous system. Due to low stress resistance.
I have hypertension and take antihypertensive drugs. But still, when I'm nervous, my blood pressure rises, my heart starts to hurt and pound. Two days ago I had a trouble, not fatal and not so terrible. But it really hit me, headache, constant tears, palpitations, pressure ... I want to say that I recently had a doctor's examination, passed all the tests and everything is fine. It is necessary, in short, to be less nervous, to rest more, to relax, not to think about the bad .. So the question is - how to implement it?
How can I relax? How to work but not overwork? How not to panic from glitches in the program, unstable connection or your own stupidity when you forget simple words and moo like a degenerate?
I do not refuse from pills, I drink a sedative. But I want to ask - can a psychologist or a psychotherapist via Skype help here? I don't have such experience. If there are contacts of a good specialist - but not very high in price - please send me a PM, please. Skype only, I don't live in Russia.
Also please talk to me! How to increase stress resistance? How to learn to rest? Where to find energy? I have catastrophically little of it, I'm tired all the time and barely alive. And then there are plans with the second project, which is very interesting to me and I don’t want to miss it!
Thank you!!!
upd Thank you very much everyone! I am very touched that so many people responded and showed so much kindness and participation! Your words helped me! I lay down for three and now I'm much better. So to speak, the soldier is back in the ranks! Sorry for not answering!
At present, the laboratory for the study of types of higher nervous activity of a person at the Research Institute of Psychology, headed by Professor B.M. Teplov, has accumulated material that explains the characteristics of the nervous system of a weak type. In the light of the obtained data, the nervous system of a weak type is not a bad nervous system, but a system with a high reactivity (sensitivity). Due to increased reactivity in nerve cells, the supply of functional substance is rapidly consumed. However, with a properly organized regime of work and rest, the stock of reactive substances is continuously restored, due to which high productivity of the nervous system of a weak type can be ensured. Research by Soviet psychologists V.D. Nebylitsyna, N.S. Leites and others confirm this point of view, first expressed by B.M. Teplov in the form of a hypothesis.
What are the functional benefits of a weak nervous system?
It is very significant that the weakness of the type, as established by special studies, expresses not only the lack of strength of the excitatory and inhibitory processes, but also the high sensitivity and reactivity associated with this. This means that a weak type of nervous system has its own special merits.
According to Teplov and Nebylitsyn, a weak nervous system is also characterized by the sensitivity of analyzers: a weaker nervous system is also more sensitive; it is able to respond to stimuli of lower intensity than strong ones. This is the advantage of a weak nervous system over a strong one. The value of this approach lies in the fact that it removes the previously existing evaluative attitude to the properties of the nervous system. At each pole, the presence of both positive and negative (from a biological point of view) sides is recognized.
What is the balance of nervous processes?
In the study of the school of Teplov and Nebylitsyn, the balance of nervous processes began to be considered as a set of secondary (derivative) properties of the nervous system that determine the ratio of excitation and inhibition indicators for each of its primary properties (strength, mobility, lability, dynamism of the nervous system). Along with a new interpretation of the balance of the nervous system, a new term was proposed - the balance of nervous processes.
Is it possible to talk about the irrelevant value of the psychological characteristics of temperament?
In the history of the science of temperament, the question of the value of psychological types of temperament has been repeatedly raised. Aristotle, for example, considered the most valuable melancholic temperament, predisposing to deep thinking. The German philosopher Kant favored a phlegmatic temperament. The phlegmatic, in his opinion, slowly flares up, but burns brightly and for a long time, is able to show great will and endurance, can achieve a lot without offending the essence of other people. It is possible that the personal temperament of these thinkers also played a certain role in assessing temperaments, of which the first was melancholic, and the second phlegmatic.
In some of his statements, I.P. Pavlov attached too much importance to the type of nervous system, and, consequently, to temperament. Such, for example, is his assessment of the sanguine temperament as the most perfect, since the underlying one is strong; a balanced and mobile type of higher nervous activity provides an accurate balancing of all possibilities environment; Pavlov spoke of a weak type as a "disabled life type", which can normally exist only in especially favorable conditions, in a greenhouse environment. It should not be forgotten that Pavlov's views refer mainly to animals, and not to man. In addition, it should be borne in mind that his views on the value of types of higher nervous activity changed significantly as the relevant material accumulated in his laboratories.
What is the two-aspect nature of the psyche, its subject-content and formal-dynamic sides?
Another important question the study of temperament is the question of the correlation of the biological properties of a person, his organic basis with the psychological "filling" of temperament. In the works of Teplov, Nebylitsyn, V.S. Merlin, the concept of the two-aspect psyche was developed, the essence of which is to distinguish two aspects in the human psyche: subject-content and formal-dynamic.
The formal-dynamic characteristics of the mental are the features and properties of the human psyche that underlie his activity, regardless of its specific motives, goals, methods, relationships and manifested in the "external picture of behavior" (I.P. Pavlov). The dynamic features of the psyche are determined by the neurophysical properties of the human body.
The formal dynamic features of the human psyche constitute what we call temperament.
Is the evaluative approach to the types of temperament legitimate?
From the understanding of temperament as a formal dynamic characteristic of the mental, the axiological (“evaluative”) approach to it follows. There are no "good" and "bad" temperaments, each temperament in specific activities has both its advantages and disadvantages. Often a weak type of nervous system is evaluated negatively. However, Teplov's research showed an important advantage of the weak type of the nervous system - high sensitivity, which is absolutely necessary in situations of activity that require fine differentiation of stimuli. V.S. Merlin specifically noted the equivalence of "properties of the general type of the nervous system" and the widest possibilities for compensating a person with different types GNI to various types of professional activity.
How is the type of temperament related to the productivity of the individual?
In fact, each of the temperaments has its own strengths and weaknesses.
So, the liveliness, mobility, emotionality of a sanguine person allow him to quickly navigate in an environment, easily establish contacts with people, and do several things at the same time; but these same qualities often become the cause of his rash decisions, hasty conclusions, lack of patience, the habit of leaving things unfinished.
If a choleric person is able to develop great energy, work hard and hard, then he often lacks endurance and composure in a responsible situation.
Excessive calm and slowness of the phlegmatic are good in circumstances where endurance and composure are required, but in other cases, the phlegmatic surprises those around him with his equanimity, which is similar to indifference.
The deep impressionability of a melancholic serves as the basis for the development of such character traits as responsiveness, sensitivity, constancy in friendship; but the slight inhibition of the melancholic may be the cause of timidity and self-doubt.
The initial properties of temperament do not predetermine what they will develop into - into advantages or disadvantages. Therefore, the task of the educator should not be to try to convert one type of temperament into another (and this is not possible), but to promote the development through systematic work. positive aspects of each temperament and at the same time help to get rid of those negative moments that may be associated with this temperament.
In what psychological properties of an individual does temperament manifest itself?
Temperament manifests itself in different areas of mental activity. It appears especially brightly in 1) the emotional sphere, in the speed and strength of emotional excitability. There are people who are emotionally responsive, impressionable. Even minor events find an emotional response in them. They warmly respond to the events of public and personal life work with passion and dedication. On the other hand, there are people with reduced excitability, unimpressive. Only especially important events cause them joy, anger, fear, etc. They treat everyday events without excitement, work energetically, calmly.
Temperament also acts in 2) the speed and strength of the flow of mental processes - perception, thinking, memory, etc. There are people who quickly establish their attention, quickly think, speak, and remember. Others have a slow, calm flow of mental processes. They are sometimes called slow-witted. They think slowly, they speak slowly. Their speech is monotonous, inexpressive. Slowness is found in them in other mental processes and also in attention.
Temperamental differences are also manifested in 3) features of motor skills: in body movements, in gestures, facial expressions. Some people have fast, energetic movements, plentiful, sharp gestures, expressive facial expressions. In others, the movements are slow, smooth, gestures are mean, facial expressions are inexpressive. The first is characterized by liveliness, mobility, the second - motor restraint. 4) Finally, temperament is reflected in the characteristics of moods and the nature of their change. Some people are most often cheerful, cheerful; their moods change often and easily, while others are prone to lyrical moods, their moods are stable, their change is smooth. There are people whose moods change abruptly and unexpectedly.
How to diagnose temperament by its external manifestations?
To assign a student to a certain type of temperament, you should make sure that he has one or another expression, first of all, of such traits:
1. Activity. It is judged by the degree of pressure (energy) with which the child is drawn to the new, seeks to influence the environment and change it, to overcome obstacles.
2. Emotionality. She is judged by her sensitivity to emotional influences, by her disposition to find reasons for an emotional reaction. The ease with which emotion becomes the motivating force of actions is indicative, as well as the speed with which one emotional state changes to another.
3. Features of motor skills. They act in speed, sharpness, rhythm, amplitude and a number of other signs of muscle movement (some of them also characterize muscle motility). This side of the manifestations of temperament is easier to observe and evaluate than others.
On what basis is the psychological characterization of temperament given?
The psychological characteristics of the main types of temperament stem from its psychological essence and are closely related to its definition. They reveal the features of emotional excitability, features of motor skills, the nature of the prevailing moods and the features of their change. The characteristics reveal the originality of the dynamics of the mental activity of the individual, due to the corresponding type of higher nervous activity.
Pavlov's doctrine of the types of nervous activity is essential for understanding physiological basis temperament. Its correct use involves taking into account the fact that the type of nervous system is strictly physiological concept, and temperament is a psychophysiological concept, and it is expressed not only in motor skills, in the nature of reactions, their strength, speed, etc., but also in impressionability, emotional excitability, etc.
Each type of temperament has its own ratio of mental properties, first of all, different degrees of activity and emotionality, as well as certain features of motor skills. A certain structure of dynamic manifestations characterizes the type of temperament.
In accordance with this approach, criteria are distinguished for attributing one or another psychological property to temperament. So, V.M. Rusalov identifies seven such criteria.
Considered psychological property:
1. does not depend on the content of activity and behavior (is independent of the meaning, motive, purpose, etc.);
2. characterizes the measure of dynamic (energetic) tension and the relationship of a person to the world, people, himself, activity;
3. universal and manifests itself in all spheres of activity and life;
4. manifests itself early in childhood;
5. sustainable for a long period of human life;
6. highly correlates with the properties of the nervous system and the properties of other biological subsystems (humoral, bodily, etc.);
7. is researchable.
Psychological characteristic types of temperament is determined by its following main properties: sensitivity, reactivity, activity, the ratio of reactivity and activity, the rate of reactions, plasticity - rigidity, extraversion - introversion, emotional excitability.
How does temperament manifest itself in the emotional sphere?
Temperament is reflected in emotional excitability - in the strength of emotional excitement, the speed with which it covers the personality - and the stability with which it persists. It depends on the temperament of a person how quickly and strongly it lights up and how quickly it then fades away. Emotional excitability manifests itself, in particular, in a mood elevated up to exaltation or lowered up to depression, and especially in more or less rapid mood changes directly related to impressionability. Each of these temperaments can be defined by the ratio of impressionability and impulsiveness as the main psychological properties of temperament. The choleric temperament is characterized by strong impressionability and great impulsiveness; sanguine - weak impressionability and great impulsiveness; melancholic - strong impressionability and low impulsiveness; phlegmatic - weak impressionability and low impulsiveness. Thus, this classical traditional scheme naturally follows from the correlation of the main features with which we endow temperament, while acquiring the corresponding psychological content. The differentiation of both impressionability and impulsiveness in terms of strength, speed and stability, outlined above, opens up possibilities for further differentiation of temperaments.
For temperament, the impressionability of a person and his impulsiveness are especially significant.
The temperament of a person is manifested, first of all, in his impressionability, which is characterized by the strength and stability of the impact that the impression has on a person. Depending on the characteristics of temperament, impressionability in some people is more, in others less significant; in some, according to Gorky, it is as if someone "ripped off all the skin from the heart," they are so sensitive to every impression; others - "insensitive", "thick-skinned" - react very weakly to their surroundings. For some, the impact is strong or weak - which makes an impression on them, spreads with great speed, for others at a very low speed into the deeper layers of the psyche. Finally, for different people, depending on the characteristics of their temperament, the stability of the impression is also different: for some, the impression - even a strong one - turns out to be very unstable, while others cannot get rid of it for a long time. Impressibility is always individually different affective sensitivity in people of different temperaments. It is essentially connected with the emotional sphere and is expressed in the strength, speed and stability of the emotional reaction to impressions.
Another central expression of temperament is impulsivity, which is characterized by the strength of excitations, the speed with which they take possession of the motor sphere and pass into action, the stability with which they retain their effective force. Impulsivity includes the impressionability and emotional excitability that determines it in relation to the dynamic characteristics of those intellectual processes that mediate and control them. Impulsiveness is that side of temperament by which it is connected with striving, with the origins of will, with the dynamic force of needs as motives for activity, with the speed of the transition of motives into action.
According to academic concepts, the strength of the nervous system is an innate indicator. It is used to indicate the endurance and performance of nerve cells, and we completely agree with this. The strength of the nervous system "reflects the ability of nerve cells to withstand, without going into an inhibitory state, either very strong or long-acting, although not strong, excitation." With this definition, we are offered to classify all persons - quick-tempered, impatient, impulsive, prone to emotional breakdowns - as a strong nervous system: after all, their nerve cells withstand short-term excitation, "without going into a state of inhibition." With this we can no longer agree.
If, nevertheless, we move away from the classical definition and use the concept of “strength of the nervous system” in its semi-everyday, everyday, understandable meaning, then pressure and maintaining activity should be considered only one of the manifestations of this force, but not the only one. The strength of the nervous system also reveals itself in the restraint of undesirable elements of activity: the strength of inhibition must balance the strength of excitation. In order for the nervous system to really be able to withstand a sufficiently long excitation, cellular energy must be spent economically and rationally; there must be protective, protective, constructive braking. Braking is a necessary component of the overall Strength. Inhibition coordinates the activity of the nervous system.
A. I. Solzhenitsyn argued that people with a strong nervous system survived in the Stalinist camps. Its distinctive property is the ability to endure superstrong stimuli. A weak nervous system does not hold the signal well, burns out like a candle when it cannot answer the offender or hit back. Remember wonderful scenes school life: he takes you to the side with a compass, and you hit his head with a book. And it doesn’t matter what the teacher arranges for both of you now! By the way, if events developed according to such a scenario and the teacher took Active participation in "combat operations", then he definitely had a weak nervous system.
A person with a weak nervous system not only cannot wait (be patient), he also has difficulty retaining new information (concerning himself and others) and constantly “leaks” it on the way literally to the first person he meets. That is why a psychologist, when organizing personal growth training, seeks to build a schedule of classes as tightly as possible and keep clients as long as possible within this group, inside this room (about six hours), preventing people with a weak nervous system from simply being discharged outside.
Looking at the history of the country, one comes to the conclusion that our ancestors had a predominantly strong nervous system. Our great-grandfathers and grandfathers had a predominantly strong nervous system, but they were controlled by people, for the most part, with a weak nervous system! And no matter how much each individual modern person would like to look “strong”, every year, with each new generation, the concentration of people who are carriers of a weak nervous system increases. It's just that a weak nervous system has its own indisputable advantage, which we deliberately kept silent about above.
A weak nervous system is not able to tolerate superstrong stimuli. It either immediately turns off (the inhibitory process prevails over excitation), or it is "carried away" without any brakes, with unpredictable consequences (inhibition does not have time to cope with excitation). A weak nervous system, however, has an increased sensitivity, or high sensitivity, the ability to distinguish super-weak signals. A weak nervous system is characterized by the ability to finely distinguish similar stimuli. This is its advantage over the strong.
The negative relationship between the strength of the nervous system and the sensitivity of the analyzer equalizes the capabilities of both nervous systems. For example, teachers - owners of a weaker system - are often nervous in the classroom, behave less balanced, but better reflect, in a number of situations, the dynamics of interpersonal relations in the classroom. Teachers - carriers of a strong nervous system - have better endurance and unimpressibility. Children painted a chair with chalk - it does not matter. The chair was pushed under the table. They work calmly and without hysterics. However, they feel the student in the lesson worse.
The recent increase in the concentration of representatives of the weak nervous system is by no means an accidental phenomenon. In persons with a weak nervous system, conditioned reflexes are formed faster. They are easier to learn, more likely to grasp, which is explained by the high dynamism of the excitatory process. A weak nervous system learns the educational material logically designed, connected by a common idea, better. A strong nervous system has the advantage of storing large amounts of information of little use for semantic processing. In a weak nervous system, the rate of enumeration of options for solving a problem per unit of time is higher. She quickly adapts, acclimatizes, adjusts, settles down. Persons with a weak nervous system also tend to continue education to a greater extent.
If we consider in more detail the behavior of the weak and strong nervous systems in the educational process, we can find a number of interesting patterns. A weak nervous system is included in the learning process immediately. With prolonged hard work, she begins to make mistakes and falls out of the process: the student gets tired. For example, in younger adolescents, this is expressed in physical activity, pampering in the classroom, if they do not change the form of tasks after 5-8 minutes. The high endurance and working capacity of a strong nervous system is overshadowed by another circumstance. A strong nervous system does not get distracted during the lesson and does not lose working capacity, only it does not turn on so quickly, the process of working out takes longer.
A student with a strong nervous system should be presented with assignments from simple to complex. For a weak nervous system, tasks should be set in the reverse order (from complex to simple), that is, do not read morality at the beginning of the lesson, but "take the bull by the horns."
A weak nervous system begins to work quickly, also quickly undermines its energy reserves and therefore continues to work costly. If a weak nervous system is intimidated by the complexity or volume of the upcoming work, then it can work out its resource psychologically or morally even before the start of real activity (having previously scrolled through the “all the horror” of the upcoming test in my head). Middle school teachers make the strategic mistake of escalating the situation before a final test or exam. A weak nervous system copes with a test or exam worse than it is able to study during the year, from lesson to lesson. The university system of education does not leave any chances for a weak nervous system at all.
A strong nervous system, whether it be studying or some other type of activity, usually does not work to its full potential. In order for a strong nervous system to turn on, it is necessary, on the contrary, to create situations of increased motivation: to scare with an exam or by the authorities, to put a couple of "triples" for warning (preferably in public), to hit the table with a fist, to set deadlines, to announce a general mobilization or to issue a Chinese warning. A weak nervous system does not tolerate public forms of censure, takes bad grades hard, cannot continue to work, falls out of the rut, goes into destructive activity, defiantly sabotages orders, accumulates resentment or anger, breaks down. A strong nervous system, organized in time by negative reinforcement, can show simply phenomenal results by the time of control.
When it comes to the behavior of a leader with a weak nervous system, then the strength of his "cavalry attacks" will decrease from time to time. At first, in relation to a subordinate with a strong nervous system, he (the boss) looks invincible and scary, then he slowly turns sour and begins to think that he, too, “does not need more than anyone”, although he still tries to create a gloomy look. As for the most subordinate with a strong nervous system ... (Why is it necessary for a subordinate? Yes, because people with a strong nervous system are not in a hurry to become bosses.) So, as for a subordinate with a strong nervous system, then God forbid, if such a person will someday become your superiors. At first, everything will be like under Alexei Mikhailovich Tishaish, but when he feels the responsibility, when he gets to know the business qualities of his yesterday's comrades in depth, then with a consistent and methodical pressure in a fairly noble manner, he will "take out all the liver out of you." People with a strong nervous system are just brutally stubborn.
People with a weak nervous system have a natural inclination to manage and command. First, they have much less patience to look at "all this stagnation" or "all this mess." Secondly, they have enough sympathy and empathy to have time to enlist the support of the widest possible range of people.
Organizational abilities are entirely built on a weak nervous system, but in order to achieve success in this matter, one must learn to consciously and creatively use one's life energy at a higher level. Because of their lack of self-control, many budding leaders spend their lives struggling with the challenges they create. Self-respect (for one's nervous system), self-awareness (for one's nervous system) and self-control - only this unity can give a person strength that nature did not give him.
Of course, the strength of the nervous system is an innate indicator, but this does not mean that we should give up. Psychologists have come up with as many as 5 strength gradations on this score: “weak”, “medium weak”, “medium”, “medium strong”, “strong”. All variations of the weak-semi-strong nervous system are the result of repeated exposure, habituation to the stimulus, the result of conscious education and self-education. A teacher with a weak nervous system, to whom children constantly paint a chair with chalk, sooner or later will pull himself together and imitate a strong nervous system! If you were born with a weak nervous system, then it will remain with you. And when you once again encounter some unusual, unusual, new strong stimulus, you will again and again demonstrate to yourself and those around you just a weak nervous system. But that's no reason to stop!
To decide on the strength-weakness of the nervous system means to provide a fairly exhaustive description of oneself and others. This means behind several "random manifestations of the character" of a partner to see such a bunch of properties, such a bunch of possible behaviors that it allows you to read another person like a book, to predict his actions and intentions; gives you the opportunity to feel in a state of flight, when others are just walking on the ground! Sometimes a few separate episodes, sketches, clashes are enough to know for sure who you are dealing with: you can rely on or not, what to expect in a minute, in a day, in a year, is it possible to approach this or that issue, is it possible to be friends, can whether to love.
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A strong nervous system is characterized by greater endurance, i.e. long work without noticeable fatigue, without reducing the effect. True, repeated experiments, which revealed the possibility of achieving significant success in the work of adolescents with a strong and weak nervous system, showed that in the groups of "successful" there were approximately the same number of people with a strong and weak nervous system. But in the groups of "not successful" subjects with a weak type of nervous system turned out to be six times more. This means that you can work well regardless of the strength or weakness of the nervous system.
A weak nervous system does not interfere with the achievement of high labor productivity. But representatives of this group require great volitional efforts to master the profession and successfully fulfill their duties.
In a calm environment, people with a weak nervous system do much more control and preventive actions than their more “strong” comrades. They have a more pronounced state of anxiety. In a more difficult situation (when, for example, a car does not start in front of comrades, although it has just worked normally), the weak have a significant decrease in orienting and executive actions. For the strong, the number of orienting acts somewhat increases, while the number of control and preventive actions decreases, but not to the same extent as for the weak.
Thus, in case of malfunctions, the behavioral tactics of strong and weak people are not the same. The former have a fast and uninhibited tactic, the latter have a slow, but more faithful one. Strong ones act quickly, despite an unclear diagnosis, while weak ones act much more slowly, but they more accurately clarify the diagnosis. But only if they are not limited in time. (Here and below, we are only talking about extreme expressions of one quality or another, but, of course, there are a number of intermediate steps where certain deviations are much less pronounced.)
When performing various types practical work, "strong" willingly work in a team, "weak" prefer individual forms of work. "Strong" perform new, unfamiliar work with great satisfaction. The "weak" prefer to do what they know well, what they are used to. They like monotonous work with an unchanging rhythm, such as assembly on a conveyor.
In living, mobile, impulsive personalities, positive motivation prevails (impulsivity is a feature of behavior, a direct reaction to an external stimulus, action without prior deliberation). They are self-confident, not afraid to take risks, sociable, like to work in large groups. In case of failures, they do not get upset, but are again accepted for failed or new, often more difficult work.
They do not like to plan in advance, and control over the results is carried out in the course of actions. When they hear a question, they immediately begin to answer. Willingly perform the same work only if each time something new is included in the labor process. Excitatory processes in them in most cases prevail over inhibitory ones.
Most often they have a strong nervous system - a high level of claims (the level of success that a person claims).
