Developmental psychology crises of all ages. Age-related crises of personality development

Age-related personality crises are alternating, temporary manifestations of changes in a person’s psychological attitude to the surrounding reality, depending on the age period. As a rule, such phenomena are of a negative nature, which can help stimulate not only the stressful effects on the human psyche, but also the development of certain psychopathological conditions and disorders, for example, phobias, and so on.

In some cases, to prevent the development of pathological conditions, it is necessary to intervene with a specialist and administer medications to help the condition. However, it is worth noting that age-related personality crises are a physiologically normal phenomenon that occurs in the majority of people and contributes to the direct development of personality, which is caused by a change in life values. But not all psychologists and psychotherapists agree with this statement; some of them quite confidently believe that the emergence of age-related crises in men and women is a pathological process, due to a number of etiological reasons and dependencies. And this must be treated like any mental disorder or disorder.

The strength of manifestation and the period of age-related crises are always different, although there is a certain link to a certain age. However, it is rather conditional, since only the individual characteristics of a person, surrounding social and microsocial factors, are decisive.

In domestic psychotherapy, the research of L. S. Vygotsky, who did not consider the age crisis as a pathology, plays an important role. He believed that a smooth transition into the next age crisis, especially in childhood, contributes to the formation of a stronger personality with strong-willed resistance to negative manifestations of the environment. However, such a phenomenon is appropriate provided that not only the smooth emergence of the crisis period, but the correct attitude of others, or psychological specialists, if their intervention is necessary.

In addition, according to L. S. Vygotsky, a sharp jump into the crisis phase and its successful overcoming contributes to the formation of a new round of character in human psychology - factors that contribute to giving some descriptive characteristics to the individual.

Some features of the age crisis

Age-related personality crises are of rather decisive importance precisely in childhood, since during this age period the formation of human character, its relationship with society and volitional characteristics take place. For the same reason, the largest number of successive crisis outbreaks occurs in the period of childhood and early adolescence, when the episodes are quite violent.

In general, age-related crises in children do not last long, as a rule, several months and, only in particularly advanced cases, under a certain combination of accompanying circumstances, they drag on for a couple of years. A child is always characterized by a sharp change in attitude towards himself, his parents and the environment. The boundaries of childhood crises are always fuzzy and extremely blurred, the transition will always be smooth, but the middle of the crisis period is always characterized by a sharp emotional outburst and swinging affect.

Externally, a child's age crisis manifests itself as severe difficulties in upbringing, disobedience, the emergence of bad habits, and sometimes antisocial behavior. As a rule, such a picture is always complemented by a decrease in school performance and a vivid manifestation of internal experiences, fixation on any problems that, in fact, cannot be something significant.

A characteristic feature of age-related crises, both in childhood and in older age, is the spontaneous occurrence of so-called new formations in the character of an individual, which determine his attitude to various environmental factors. It should be noted that such neoplasms are of a pronounced temporary nature, quickly appear and also quickly disappear, giving the opportunity to appear next. In a word, not every new formation in personality is fixed in the individual’s character traits, but only those that most firmly, for various reasons, linger in consciousness. Those that bring a positive effect and euphoria to their owner, thanks to which a person understands that he can get some benefit and pleasure. Although often this awareness of usefulness is deeply subjective and is not combined with the norms of generally accepted morality.

D. B. Elkonin made an attempt to somewhat materialize the causality of the manifestation of a crisis state associated with age. He argues that the reason for the emergence of a crisis lies in the conflict between established understandings of a person that arose in the period preceding the crisis, and new factors that gradually appear in life. The critical point of such a conflict, when the knowledge and awareness accumulated in the present reaches its maximum amount, causes the development of crisis symptoms. It’s hard to disagree with such statements, because the concept of “age” necessarily involves dynamics, in this case associated with the number of years lived.

Age associated with the onset of crises

Modern practical psychology has sufficient experience to make an attempt to rank age-related crises depending on the amount of time lived.

Newborn crisis. Despite the insufficient opportunities for the manifestation of verbal and motor dissatisfaction, even at such a young age a person is characterized by some awareness of the crisis situation that arose due to living conditions and adaptation to new conditions of existence. Many psychologists argue that the newborn crisis is perhaps the most severe of the entire set of crises of this kind;

Crisis of the first year of life. This period is very significant for a person, primarily because it becomes possible to verbally express one’s demands, and against the general background of non-verbal manifestations of affective signs;

Crisis of the third year of life. Characterized by the formation and first manifestations of independence. There is a desire to form new ways of communicating with adults, the emergence of contacts with other representatives of the surrounding society - their peers, kindergarten teachers, and so on. A new world of previously unknown possibilities opens up for the child, which quite effectively make adjustments to the possible development of stress factors.

L. S. Vygotsky identifies several main signs of a crisis at the age of three, which are inherent in any physiologically and mentally healthy child. The main one of these signs is - to the requests of others to perform any action, which outwardly manifests itself as being performed exactly the opposite.

The first signs of stubbornness begin to appear precisely at this age - the child first becomes acquainted with a situation where not everything can be done the way he would like and as he considers correct.

Any child aged about three years also has a tendency to demonstrate independence. This could be given a positive assessment if the child could objectively assess his capabilities. But, often, this is impossible, therefore, overestimating his capabilities and the situation that arises as a result of his incorrect actions leads to conflict.

It would be more correct to call this crisis a school crisis, since its manifestation is facilitated by the beginning of a person’s school activities. In addition to the fact that the educational process forces you to concentrate on acquiring new knowledge, acquiring new social contacts, getting acquainted with the positions of your peers, who, as it turns out, have their own views on what is happening around them, the school crisis begins to shape the true will of a person, relying on his genetically potential. Thus, it is thanks to school that a person develops the concept of either his inferiority, low self-esteem, insufficient level of intelligence, or, on the contrary, an increased sense of self-worth, selfishness, an irresistible sense of his own competence and social significance.

The predominant number of all schoolchildren occupy one of the two extremes indicated, and only a few, thanks to their genetic inclinations and upbringing, are able to occupy a neutral, middle position, which allows them to learn from the mistakes of others. Such children, as a rule, have a high level of intelligence, against the background of demonstrative incapacity, otherwise known as laziness. The reason for this is very simple - there is the possibility of using one’s peers, who are weaker in emotions, addictions and intelligence.

In addition, during this period, for the first time in life, the child’s inner life begins to form, which leaves a semantic imprint on the nature of his behavior. The little person gradually begins to take advantage of the opportunity to think about the possible consequences of his decisions, thus his physical activities begin to acquire an intellectual background;

Age crisis from 11 to 15 years. The next most important stressful period in a person’s life, this time associated with puberty. This situation opens up new opportunities and new dependencies that can prevail over old stereotypes, so much so that they completely cover them. This period is also called the transitional or pubertal crisis. This is the first opportunity to look at the opposite sex through the hormonal prism of desires and pleasures, and not as ordinary peers.

Sexual desire contributes to the formation of one’s ego - at this time, teenagers begin to pay attention to their appearance and listen to the words of more experienced boys and girls.

The constant desire to be an adult or to seem like one often leads to conflict with parents who have already forgotten about their similar period. Often during a pubertal crisis, the help of a psychologist or psychotherapist is required, especially in problematic, dysfunctional families;

Crisis 17 years. Stimulated by the end of school activities and the transition to adulthood. Depending on the year of graduation from school, the age of crisis can range from 15 to 18 years. It is now possible to divide the problem into age-related crises in men and women. Often, by this time, the first sexual experience is behind us, which can also serve as a separate reason for the emergence of a sexual crisis in women. But, as a rule, this problem is very fleeting - the pleasure received overshadows all negative thoughts and experiences.

This period is characterized by the generation of various fears, for women - the upcoming family life, for men - joining the army. In addition, there is the problem of obtaining vocational education - a step that will determine the future life of each individual.

It occurs, as a rule, in the middle of the journey and is characterized by a deep reassessment of values, weighing the experience gained against the background of the quality of achievements. As a rule, a very small number of people are satisfied with their lives, believing that they have lived their lives insufficiently fully or uselessly. During this period, real growing up begins, maturity, which allows you to evaluate the meaning of your life.

Retirement crisis. Like the newborn crisis, it is one of the most difficult in a person’s life. If in the first case a person is not aware of the critical impact of stress factors, then during the last crisis, the situation worsens with full perception and awareness. This period is equally difficult for both women and men. This is especially true for the acute feeling of lack of demand in the professional arena - a person still retains his ability to work, feels that he can be useful, but his employer is not satisfied with this state of affairs. The appearance of grandchildren improves the situation somewhat; this especially softens the course of the age crisis in women.

Biological aging, a number of serious illnesses, loneliness due to the death of one of the spouses, the understanding of the imminent end of the life process, very often lead to a situation where it begins to be required.

Age-related crises are special, relatively short-term periods of ontogenesis (up to a year), characterized by sharp mental changes.

In a crisis, development takes on a negative character: what was formed at the previous stage disintegrates and disappears. But something new is also being created.

Newborn crisis. Associated with a sharp change in living conditions. The child goes from comfortable, familiar living conditions to difficult ones (new nutrition, breathing). Adaptation of the child to new living conditions.

Year 1 crisis. Associated with an increase in the child’s capabilities and the emergence of new needs. A surge of independence, the emergence of affective reactions. Affective outbursts as a reaction to misunderstanding on the part of adults. The main acquisition of the transition period is a kind of children's speech called L.S. Vygotsky autonomous. It differs significantly from adult speech in its sound form. Words become polysemantic and situational.

Crisis 3 years. The border between early and preschool age is one of the most difficult moments in a child’s life. This is destruction, a revision of the old system of social relations, a crisis of identifying one’s “I”. The child, separating from adults, tries to establish new, deeper relationships with them. The emergence of the phenomenon “I myself,” according to Vygotsky, is a new formation of “external I myself.” “The child is trying to establish new forms of relationship with OCD - a crisis of social relations.”

Crisis 7 years. Discovering the meaning of a new social position - the position of a schoolchild associated with the performance of academic work highly valued by adults. A change in self-awareness leads to a reassessment of values. Profound changes occur in terms of experiences—stable affective complexes. offended pride or sense of self-worth, competence, exclusivity. Childlike spontaneity is lost; the child thinks before acting and begins to hide his experiences and hesitations.

A purely crisis manifestation of the differentiation between the external and internal lives of children usually becomes antics, mannerisms, and artificial tension in behavior.

New formation – arbitrariness and awareness of mental processes and their intellectualization.

Puberty crisis (from 11 to 15 years) associated with the restructuring of the child’s body – puberty. The activation and complex interaction of growth hormones and sex hormones causes intense physical and physiological development. Difficulties arise in the functioning of the heart, lungs, and blood supply to the brain. In adolescence, the emotional background becomes uneven and unstable.

Thanks to the rapid growth and restructuring of the body in adolescence, interest in one's appearance sharply increases. A new image of the physical “I” is formed.

A feeling appears adulthood – feeling like an adult, a central neoplasm of early adolescence. In addition to the desire for emancipation, the teenager has a strong need to communicate with peers. Intimate and personal communication becomes the leading activity during this period.

Crisis of 17 years (from 15 to 17 years old). It appears exactly at the turn of the usual school and new adult life. There was a fear of a new life, of the possibility of making a mistake, of failure when entering a university, and for young men - of the army. High anxiety and, against this background, pronounced fear can lead to neurotic reactions, such as fever before final or entrance exams, headaches.

At this time, a system of stable views on the world and one’s place in it—a worldview—is formed. The associated youthful maximalism in assessments and passion in defending one’s point of view are known. The central new formation of the period is self-determination, professional and personal.

Crisis 30 years. It is expressed in a change in ideas about one’s life, sometimes in a complete loss of interest in what was previously the main thing in it, in some cases even in the destruction of the previous way of life.

It arises as a result of the unrealization of life's plans. If at the same time there is a “reassessment of values” and a “revision of one’s own Personality,” then we are talking about the fact that the life plan turned out to be wrong in general. If the life path is chosen correctly, then attachment “to a certain Activity, a certain way of life, certain values and orientations” does not limit, but, on the contrary, develops his Personality.

It is with this period that the search for the meaning of existence is usually associated. This search, like the entire crisis as a whole, marks the transition from youth to maturity.

Some people in adulthood experience another, “unscheduled” crisis. This is the so-called crisis 40 years. It's like a repeat of the crisis of 30 years.

A person acutely experiences dissatisfaction with his life, a discrepancy between life plans and their implementation.

Retirement crisis. Contradictions between continued ability to work, the ability to be useful and their lack of demand. A decrease in one's social status sometimes leads to a sharp deterioration in the general physical and mental state, and in some cases even to a relatively quick death.

35.General characteristic human development during his youth.

As already stated early youth covers the period of life from the end of adolescence from 20-23 years to about 30 years, when a person is “more or less established in adulthood.” The authors extend the upper limit of youth to 35 years. Youth - the time of starting a family, the time of mastering the chosen profession, determining one’s attitude towards public life and one’s role in it. A person is full of strength and energy, the desire to achieve his goals and ideals. In youth, the most complex types of professional activity are most accessible, communication occurs most fully and intensively, relationships of friendship and love are most easily established and most fully developed.

Youth is considered the optimal time for self-realization.

Youth is the age of love. It is characterized by an optimal combination of psychological, physiological, social and other factors favorable to choosing a life partner and starting a family. This is the age of greatest sexual activity. People most easily get acquainted and adapt to the conditions of living together also in their youth. People who did not start a family before the age of 28-30 are no longer able to do this in the future. They get used to living alone, become overly demanding of another person, and develop rigid habits that often make living together very difficult. Starting a family is extremely important for personal development. The overall development of a person - his spiritual growth, the development of abilities - largely depends on how family life develops. The birth of children is of great importance. The entire structure and way of family life changes, spouses have new responsibilities, new aspects of responsibility to each other and a new common responsibility for the fate of the person to whom they gave life. Choosing a life partner and starting a family is one of the sides social development situation in his youth.

Professional activities. Second side social situation development during this period - mastery of the chosen profession. In youth, personal and professional self-determination and the choice of a life path occur. And in youth, a person establishes himself in his chosen field and acquires professional skills. Vocational training ends in youth.

In youth, a person is most productive, withstands the greatest physical and mental stress, and is most capable of mastering complex methods of intellectual activity. The easiest way is to acquire all the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary in the chosen profession, develop special personal and functional qualities (organizational abilities, initiative, courage and resourcefulness, necessary in a number of professions, clarity and accuracy, speed of reaction).

Family relationships and a sense of professional competence are central age-related neoplasms this period.

Social connections "Friendship". Establishing and developing friendships is an important aspect of life in youth. Friendship during this period reaches a new qualitative level.

Crisis 30 years. The problem of the meaning of life. Around the age of 30, most people experience a crisis. People's idea of their life changes, often even their previous way of life is destroyed.

Looking back at the path traveled, the individual sees how, despite an established and outwardly prosperous life, his personality is not perfect. There is a reassessment of values, entailing introspection and critical revision of one’s own personality.

36. Midlife crisis"and its contents.

Midlife crisis is a psychological phenomenon experienced by people who have reached the age of 40-45 years, and consists of a critical assessment and reassessment of what has been achieved in life by this time. Very often this revaluation leads to the understanding that “life has passed meaninglessly and time has already been lost.” As a result, depressive states become dominant in the general background of moods.

IN late adolescence and early adulthood many believe that the best years are already behind them, and in the coming period of life they see it as a kind of “black hole” in which they will spend at least 20 years of their life. These people believe that a person's growth and development stops when he reaches middle adulthood.

Many of the ideas about oneself that form the self-concept during growing up continue to be enriched by the experience of active self-expression as a sexual partner, spouse, parent, professional and citizen.

The normative crisis of 30-33 years is caused by a mismatch between a person’s life plans and real possibilities. A person sifts out the insignificant and revises the value system. Reluctance to make changes in the value system leads to an increase in contradictions within the individual.

It should be noted that the leading development factor during early adulthood is work activity , and the main tasks of age are professional self-determination and creating a family. Self-realization is a complex process of human development as a person, a subject of activity and individuality, and at the same time the result of this development.

A person’s self-realization depends on his social position and the breadth of his range of activities.

Self-realization plays an important role throughout the life path of an individual.

The age of 40-45 years is a crisis for many, as there is an increase in contradictions between the integrity of the worldview and the unilinearity of development. A person loses the meaning of life. To overcome the crisis, it is necessary to find a new meaning - in universal human values, in developing interest in the future, in new generations. If a person continues to concentrate his strength on himself, his needs, then this will lead to illness and new crises.

A midlife crisis most often and primarily threatens those who tend to avoid self-analysis. tour of his motivation, shifting the components that form it towards satisfying growing needs. Among them, the main ones are: realizing one’s creative potential, the need to pass something on to the next generation, adjusting one’s activities, caring about maintaining close relationships with family and friends, preparing for a calm and prosperous life in old age.

During middle adulthood, the self-concept of the individual: is enriched with new self-images, taking into account constantly changing situational relationships and variations in self-esteem, and determines all interactions.

The essence of the self-concept becomes self-actualization within the limits of moral rules and personal values.

The leading type of activity is work, successful professional activity that ensures self-actualization of the individual.

Midlife crisis- 40th anniversary crisis. Signs of a crisis, discord in the inner world are a change in attitude towards what previously seemed important, significant, or, on the contrary, repulsive. An identity crisis is expressed in the experience of a feeling of non-identity with oneself, of having become different. A solution is possible based on self-analysis of the need to find a place for yourself and your “I” in new conditions, to develop an appropriate form of behavior and activity.

Way out of the crisis: reframing goals to a more realistic point of view; awareness of the limited time of any person; be content with what you have; be limited in plans for the future; development of a new self-concept; awareness of the limited time of any person; be content with what you have; be limited in plans for the future; development of a new self-concept

37. General characteristics of the maturity period.

Maturity- one of the most long-term periods of a person's life. This is the period rise already graduated its formation of psychological, individual, personal and professional qualities. The chronological boundaries of maturity are called ambiguous .

During the period of maturity, a person has more opportunities; he can set the highest goals for himself and achieve them. His knowledge is quite large and varied, he is able to realistically assess the situation and himself. Maturity can be called a period of individual flourishing.

In adulthood, a person has already taken place in professional activity , took a certain social position. Work (career), family– this is what occupies a person to a greater extent during this period. E. Erickson believes that at this age there is one main problem - the choice that the person himself faces. It consists in a person determining what is more significant for him: career growth or solving personal problems and tasks (this is productivity or inertia).

It is important at this age for a person to understand that he not only has certain opportunities and rights , but also should bear responsibility for their actions, decisions. If before he was responsible only for himself, then with age he becomes responsible for others.

Like any stage of life, the period of adulthood can be accompanied by a crisis. This crisis person 40 liters, distinguished by its characteristics of occurrence, course and cessation.

In professional activity during adulthood, a person, as a rule, has achieved success. He has already achieved a certain position in society, respect from colleagues and subordinates, his professional knowledge has expanded and increased. The person himself feels like a professional person. In his work he finds a source of moral pleasure and the discovery of his abilities.

During this period, a person most often has family. The main family tasks are training and raising children, their development as individuals. The interaction between parents and children is significant. In many ways, it determines the family situation: calm and favorable or turbulent and negative.

Researchers identify the following characteristics of a mature personality:
1) developed sense of responsibility;
2) the need to care about other people;
3) abilities: a) to actively participate in the life of society and to effectively use their knowledge and abilities; b) to psychological intimacy with another person; c) to constructive solutions to various life problems on the path to full self-realization.

The development of a person in the period of maturity is directly related to his active inclusion in the sphere of social production. Failure to successfully engage in it leads to personal stagnation, stagnation.
Problem social situation of development and leading activities in adulthood.
Social situation development in the period of maturity is associated with the active inclusion of a person in the sphere of social production, with the creation of a family, the manifestation of one’s personality and individuality in raising children, creativity, relationships with people in the process of work.
From the perspective of acmeology leading activities In adulthood, we can consider the maximum realization of a person’s essential powers in the course of active inclusion in the productive life of society. The realization of essential forces should be understood as physical, social, moral, professional, mental and many other highest achievements in the development of an adult.

Age-related crises are special, relatively short-term periods of ontogenesis (up to a year), characterized by sharp mental changes. Refer to the normative processes necessary for the normal progressive course of personal development (Erikson).

The shape and duration of these periods, as well as the severity of their occurrence, depend on individual characteristics, social and microsocial conditions. In developmental psychology, there is no consensus on crises, their place and role in mental development. Some psychologists believe that development should be harmonious and crisis-free. Crises are an abnormal, “painful” phenomenon, the result of improper upbringing. Another part of psychologists argues that the presence of crises in development is natural. Moreover, according to some ideas in developmental psychology, a child who has not truly experienced a crisis will not fully develop further. This topic was addressed by Bozovic, Polivanova, and Gail Sheehy.

L.S. Vygotsky examines the dynamics of transitions from one age to another. At different stages, changes in the child’s psyche can occur slowly and gradually, or they can occur quickly and abruptly. Stable and crisis stages of development are distinguished, their alternation is the law of child development. A stable period is characterized by a smooth course of the development process, without sudden shifts and changes in the child’s Personality. Long in duration. Minor, minimal changes accumulate and at the end of the period give a qualitative leap in development: age-related new formations appear, stable, fixed in the structure of the Personality.

Crises do not last long, a few months, and under unfavorable circumstances they can last up to a year or even two years. These are brief but violent stages. Significant developmental shifts; the child changes dramatically in many of his features. Development can take on a catastrophic character at this time. The crisis begins and ends imperceptibly, its boundaries are blurred and unclear. Exacerbation occurs in the middle of the period. For the people around the child, it is associated with a change in behavior, the appearance of “difficulty in education.” The child is out of the control of adults. Affective outbursts, whims, conflicts with loved ones. Schoolchildren's performance decreases, interest in classes weakens, academic performance decreases, and sometimes painful experiences and internal conflicts arise.

In a crisis, development takes on a negative character: what was formed at the previous stage disintegrates and disappears. But something new is also being created. New formations turn out to be unstable and in the next stable period they are transformed, absorbed by other new formations, dissolved in them, and thus die off.

D.B. Elkonin developed the ideas of L.S. Vygotsky about child development. “The child approaches each point in his development with a certain discrepancy between what he has learned from the system of person-person relations and what he has learned from the system of person-object relations. It is precisely the moments when this discrepancy takes on the greatest magnitude that are called crises, after which the development of the side that lagged behind in the previous period occurs. But each side prepares the development of the other.”

Crisis 3 years. The border between early and preschool age is one of the most difficult moments in a child’s life. This is destruction, a revision of the old system of social relations, a crisis of identifying one’s “I”, according to D.B. Elkonin. The child, separating from adults, tries to establish new, deeper relationships with them. The emergence of the phenomenon “I myself,” according to Vygotsky, is a new formation of “external I myself.” “The child is trying to establish new forms of relationships with others - a crisis of social relations.”

L.S. Vygotsky describes 7 characteristics of a 3-year crisis. Negativism is a negative reaction not to the action itself, which he refuses to perform, but to the demand or request of an adult. The main motive for action is to do the opposite.

The motivation for the child’s behavior changes. At the age of 3, he first becomes able to act contrary to his immediate desire. The child’s behavior is determined not by this desire, but by the relationship with another, adult person. The motive for behavior is already outside the situation given to the child. Stubbornness. This is the reaction of a child who insists on something not because he really wants it, but because he himself told adults about it and demands that his opinion be taken into account. Obstinacy. It is directed not against a specific adult, but against the entire system of relationships that developed in early childhood, against the norms of upbringing accepted in the family.

The tendency towards independence is clearly manifested: the child wants to do everything and decide for himself. In principle, this is a positive phenomenon, but during a crisis, an exaggerated tendency towards independence leads to self-will; it is often inadequate to the child’s capabilities and causes additional conflicts with adults.

For some children, conflicts with their parents become regular; they seem to be constantly at war with adults. In these cases they talk about protest-rebellion. In a family with an only child, despotism may appear. If there are several children in a family, instead of despotism, jealousy usually arises: the same tendency to power here acts as a source of a jealous, intolerant attitude towards other children who have almost no rights in the family, from the point of view of the young despot.

Depreciation. A 3-year-old child may begin to swear (old rules of behavior are devalued), throw away or even break a favorite toy offered at the wrong time (old attachments to things are devalued), etc. The child's attitude towards other people and towards himself changes. He is psychologically separated from close adults.

The crisis of 3 years is associated with the awareness of oneself as an active subject in the world of objects; for the first time the child can act contrary to his desires.

Crisis 7 years. It may begin at age 7, or may progress to age 6 or 8. Discovering the meaning of a new social position - the position of a schoolchild associated with the performance of academic work highly valued by adults. The formation of an appropriate internal position radically changes his self-awareness. According to L.I. Bozovic is the period of the birth of socialism. "I" of the child. A change in self-awareness leads to a reassessment of values. Profound changes occur in terms of experiences—stable affective complexes. It appears that L.S. Vygotsky calls it generalization of experiences. A chain of failures or successes (in school, in general communication), each time experienced approximately equally by the child, leads to the formation of a stable affective complex - feelings of inferiority, humiliation, wounded pride or a sense of self-worth, competence, exclusivity. Thanks to the generalization of experiences, a logic of feelings appears. Experiences acquire a new meaning, connections are established between them, and a struggle between experiences becomes possible.

This leads to the emergence of the child's inner life. The beginning of differentiation of the child's external and internal life is associated with a change in the structure of his behavior. A semantic orienting basis for an action appears—a link between the desire to do something and the unfolding actions. This is an intellectual moment that allows you to more or less adequately evaluate a future action from the point of view of its results and more distant consequences. Meaningful orientation in one’s own actions becomes an important aspect of inner life. At the same time, it eliminates the impulsiveness and spontaneity of the child’s behavior. Thanks to this mechanism, children's spontaneity is lost; the child thinks before acting, begins to hide his experiences and hesitations, and tries not to show others that he feels bad.

A purely crisis manifestation of the differentiation between the external and internal lives of children usually becomes antics, mannerisms, and artificial tension in behavior. These external characteristics, as well as the tendency to whims, affective reactions, and conflicts, begin to disappear when the child emerges from the crisis and enters a new age.

New formation – arbitrariness and awareness of mental processes and their intellectualization.

Puberty crisis (from 11 to 15 years) associated with the restructuring of the child’s body – puberty. The activation and complex interaction of growth hormones and sex hormones causes intense physical and physiological development. Secondary sexual characteristics appear. Adolescence is sometimes called a protracted crisis. Due to rapid development, difficulties arise in the functioning of the heart, lungs, and blood supply to the brain. In adolescence, the emotional background becomes uneven and unstable.

Emotional instability increases the sexual arousal that accompanies the process of puberty.

Gender identification reaches a new, higher level. An orientation towards models of masculinity and femininity is clearly manifested in behavior and the manifestation of personal qualities.

Thanks to the rapid growth and restructuring of the body in adolescence, interest in one's appearance sharply increases. A new image of the physical “I” is formed. Because of its hypertrophied importance, the child acutely experiences all the flaws in appearance, real and imaginary.

The image of the physical “I” and self-awareness in general is influenced by the pace of puberty. Children with late maturation are at the least advantageous position; acceleration creates more favorable opportunities for personal development.

A feeling of adulthood appears - a feeling of being an adult, a central neoplasm of early adolescence. A passionate desire arises, if not to be, then at least to appear and be considered an adult. Defending his new rights, the teenager protects many areas of his life from the control of his parents and often comes into conflict with them. In addition to the desire for emancipation, the teenager has a strong need to communicate with peers. Intimate and personal communication becomes the leading activity during this period. Teenage friendships and association in informal groups appear. Bright, but usually alternating hobbies also arise.

Crisis of 17 years (from 15 to 17 years old). It appears exactly at the turn of the usual school and new adult life. May shift by 15 years. At this time, the child finds himself on the threshold of real adult life.

Most 17-year-old schoolchildren are focused on continuing their education, a few are focused on finding a job. The value of education is a great benefit, but at the same time, achieving the set goal is difficult, and at the end of 11th grade, emotional stress can increase sharply.

Those who have been going through a crisis for 17 years are characterized by various fears. Responsibility to yourself and your family for your choice, real achievements at this time is already a big burden. Added to this is the fear of a new life, of the possibility of making a mistake, of failure when entering a university, and, for young men, of the army. High anxiety and, against this background, pronounced fear can lead to neurotic reactions, such as fever before final or entrance exams, headaches, etc. An exacerbation of gastritis, neurodermatitis or other chronic disease may begin.

A sharp change in lifestyle, inclusion in new types of activities, communication with new people cause significant tension. A new life situation requires adaptation to it. Mainly two factors help to adapt: family support and self-confidence and a sense of competence.

Focus on the future. Period of personality stabilization. At this time, a system of stable views on the world and one’s place in it—a worldview—is formed. The associated youthful maximalism in assessments and passion in defending one’s point of view are known. The central new formation of the period is self-determination, professional and personal.

Crisis 30 years. Around the age of 30, sometimes a little later, most people experience a crisis. It is expressed in a change in ideas about one’s life, sometimes in a complete loss of interest in what was previously the main thing in it, in some cases even in the destruction of the previous way of life.

The crisis of 30 years arises due to the unrealization of life plans. If at the same time there is a “reassessment of values” and a “revision of one’s own Personality,” then we are talking about the fact that the life plan turned out to be wrong in general. If the life path is chosen correctly, then attachment “to a certain Activity, a certain way of life, certain values and orientations” does not limit, but, on the contrary, develops his Personality.

The crisis of 30 years is often called a crisis of the meaning of life. It is with this period that the search for the meaning of existence is usually associated. This search, like the entire crisis as a whole, marks the transition from youth to maturity.

The problem of meaning in all its variants, from particular to global - the meaning of life - arises when the goal does not correspond to the motive, when its achievement does not lead to the achievement of the object of need, i.e. when the goal was set incorrectly. If we are talking about the meaning of life, then the general life goal turned out to be erroneous, i.e. life plan.

Some people in adulthood experience another, “unplanned” crisis, not confined to the border of two stable periods of life, but arising within a given period. This is the so-called crisis 40 years. It's like a repeat of the crisis of 30 years. It occurs when the crisis of 30 years has not led to a proper solution to existential problems.

A person acutely experiences dissatisfaction with his life, a discrepancy between life plans and their implementation. A.V. Tolstykh notes that added to this is a change in attitude on the part of work colleagues: the time when one could be considered “promising”, “promising” is passing, and the person feels the need to “pay bills”.

In addition to problems associated with professional activity, the crisis of 40 years is often caused by the aggravation of family relationships. The loss of some close people, the loss of a very important common aspect of the life of the spouses - direct participation in the lives of children, daily care for them - contributes to the final understanding of the nature of the marital relationship. And if, apart from the children of the spouses, nothing significant binds them both, the family may fall apart.

In the event of a crisis at the age of 40, a person has to once again rebuild his life plan and develop a largely new “I-concept”. Serious changes in life may be associated with this crisis, including changing professions and starting a new family.

Retirement crisis. First of all, the disruption of the usual regime and way of life has a negative impact, often combined with an acute sense of contradiction between the remaining ability to work, the opportunity to be useful and their lack of demand. A person finds himself, as it were, “thrown to the sidelines” of a current life without his active participation. A decrease in one’s social status and loss of the rhythm of life that has been preserved for decades sometimes lead to a sharp deterioration in the general physical and mental condition, and in some cases even to a relatively quick death.

The retirement crisis is often aggravated by the fact that around this time the second generation—the grandchildren—grows up and begins to live an independent life, which is especially painful for women who devote themselves mainly to their families.

Retirement, which often coincides with the acceleration of biological aging, is often associated with a worsening financial situation and sometimes a more secluded lifestyle. In addition, the crisis may be complicated by the death of a spouse or the loss of some close friends.

Phenomena of mental development.

Specificity.

In the theory of L.S. Vygotsky, this concept denotes a transition in age development to a new qualitatively specific stage. Age-related crises are caused primarily by the destruction of the usual social development situation and the emergence of another, which is more consistent with the new level of psychological development of the child. In external behavior, age-related crises are revealed as disobedience, stubbornness, and negativism. In time, they are localized at the boundaries of stable ages and manifest themselves as a newborn crisis (up to 1 month), a crisis of one year, 3 years, a crisis of 7 years, an adolescent crisis (11-12 years) and a youth crisis.

Psychological Dictionary. THEM. Kondakov. 2000.

Age crises

AGE CRISES (With. 122) (from the Greek krisis - turning point, outcome) - a conventional name for the transition from one age stage to another. In child psychology, the unevenness of child development and the presence of special, complex moments in personality development have been empirically noted. At the same time, many researchers (S. Freud, A. Gesell, etc.) considered these moments as “developmental diseases”, a negative result of the collision of a developing personality with social reality. L.S. Vygotsky developed an original concept in which he considered age-related development as a dialectical process. Stages of gradual changes in this process alternate with age-related crises. Mental development is carried out through a change of so-called stable and critical ages (see: -). Within the framework of a stable age, mental new formations mature and become actualized in the age crisis. Vygotsky described the following crises: the neonatal crisis - separates the embryonic period of development from infancy; crisis of 1 year - separates infancy from early childhood; crisis of 3 years - transition to preschool age; the 7-year-old crisis is the connecting link between preschool and school age; The crisis at age 13 coincides with the transition to adolescence.

At these stages, a radical change occurs in the entire “social developmental situation” of the child - the emergence of a new type of relationship with adults, the replacement of one type of leading activity by another. Age crises are natural and necessary stages of child development; Thus, the concept of “crisis” in this context does not have a negative connotation. However, crises are often accompanied by manifestations of negative behavioral traits (conflict in communication, etc.). The source of this phenomenon is the contradiction between the increased physical and spiritual capabilities of the child and previously established types of activities, forms of relationships with others, and methods of pedagogical influence. These contradictions often take on an acute form, giving rise to strong emotional experiences and violations of mutual understanding with adults. At school age, as part of age-related crises, children experience a decline in academic performance, weakening interest in schoolwork, and a general decrease in performance. The severity of crises is influenced by the individual characteristics of the child.

For example, the crisis of 3 years, when a previously obedient child can suddenly become uncontrollable, and the crisis of adolescence, which is dangerous due to unexpected forms of protest against real or imaginary pressure from adults, have a strong negative connotation.

Negative manifestations of age-related crises are not inevitable. A flexible change of educational influences, taking into account the changes occurring in the child will significantly soften the course of age-related crises.

Popular psychological encyclopedia. - M.: Eksmo. S.S. Stepanov. 2005.

See what “age crises” are in other dictionaries:

Age Crises- a theoretical concept denoting a transition in age development to a new qualitatively specific stage. According to L.S. Vygotsky, age-related crises are caused primarily by the destruction of the usual social situation of development and... ... Psychological Dictionary

AGE CRISES- AGE CRISES. The development of the human personality does not represent a uniformly progressing process, but in certain periods is interrupted by rapid shifts, each of which marks the beginning of a new phase of the life cycle; These shifts are usually called... Great Medical Encyclopedia

AGE CRISES- – ontological characteristics of human mental development. In the theory of L. S. Vygotsky, this concept denotes a transition in age development to a new qualitatively specific stage. V. k. are caused, first of all, by the destruction of the usual... ...

AGE CRISES- English age crises; German Lebensalterkrisen. Transitional stages from one age period to another, accompanied by sudden changes and negative phenomena in the behavior of an individual due to difficulties in adapting to new age roles.... ... Encyclopedia of Sociology

- (English age crises) the conventional name for the transitional stages of age development, occupying a place between stable (lytic) periods (see Age, Periodization of mental development). K.v. are considered in concepts, recognized... Great psychological encyclopedia

AGE CRISES- special, relatively short-term (up to a year) periods of ontogenesis, characterized by sharp psychological changes. Unlike crises of a neurotic or traumatic nature, age-related crises are normative... ... Dictionary of career guidance and psychological support

AGE CRISES- – special, relatively short-term (up to a year) periods characterized by sudden psychological changes. K.v. are a normal process necessary for the development of a young person’s personality. K.v. may arise during the transition from... Terminological juvenile dictionary

Age-related crises- (from the Greek crisis, turning point, outcome) a conventional name for the transition from one age stage to another. In child psychology, the unevenness of child development and the presence of special, complex moments of development have been empirically noted... ... Pedagogical terminological dictionary

AGE CRISES- (from the Greek krisis, turning point, outcome), a conventional name for the transition from one age stage to another. In children psychology empirically noted the unevenness of children. development, the presence of special, difficult moments in the formation of personality. At… … Russian Pedagogical Encyclopedia

age-related crises- special, relatively short-term periods of ontogenesis, characterized by sharp psychological changes. 8 psychosocial crises have been identified. Depending on the passage of crisis periods, a person’s attitude towards ... ... Encyclopedic Dictionary of Psychology and Pedagogy

Books

Spiral of fate. Cycles, crises and overcoming them, Andre Nadezhda, Svetlana Nekrasova. Philosophers, sages, and scientists have repeatedly tried to describe the laws of human life and existence. They tried to describe human life in a variety of ways. Human life is studied by medicine, psychology,...

The crisis of age-related development has different designations. It is called a development crisis, an age crisis, a crisis period. But all this is a conventional name for transitional stages of age-related development, characterized by sharp psychological changes. Regardless of a person's desires and circumstances, such a crisis comes suddenly. But for some it is less painful, and for some it is open and violent.

It should be noted that a crisis of age-related development should be distinguished from a crisis of a person’s personality. The first arises in connection with the age-related dynamics of the psyche, and the second - as a result of the created socio-psychological circumstances into which a person finds himself unexpectedly and experiences negative experiences in them, which entail an internal restructuring of the psyche and behavior.

In developmental psychology, there is no consensus on crises, their place and role in the mental development of a child. Some psychologists believe that child development should be harmonious and crisis-free. Crises are an abnormal, “painful” phenomenon, the result of improper upbringing.

Another part of psychologists argues that the presence of crises in development is natural. Moreover, according to some ideas, a child who has not truly experienced a crisis will not fully develop further.

Currently, in psychology they are increasingly talking about turning points in the development of a child, and the actual crisis, negative manifestations are attributed to the characteristics of his upbringing and living conditions. Close adults can soften these external manifestations or, conversely, strengthen them. Crises, unlike stable periods, do not last long, a few months, and under unfavorable circumstances they can last up to a year or even several years.

The age crisis is considered, on the one hand, as a stage of development (see p. 7), and on the other, as a mechanism of development (see p. 16). Both of these characteristics of the development crisis were substantiated by L.S. Vygotsky. They are interconnected, since crisis acts as a development mechanism at a certain stage of mental development. It operates through the contradictions between existing needs and new social demands that appear in a person’s life during the transition from one age to another. The essence of the crisis lies in the restructuring of internal experiences, in changes in needs and motivations when interacting with the environment. Thus, the crisis of age-related development has the following characteristics:

This is a natural stage of mental development;

Completes (separates) each age period and appears at the junction of two ages;

The basis is the contradiction between the environment and the attitude towards it;

The result of a developmental crisis is a transformation of the psyche and behavior.

The development crisis has two sides. The first is the negative, destructive side. She says that during a crisis there is a delay in mental development, the withering away and curtailment of early acquired mental formations, skills and abilities. The time of crisis itself proceeds restlessly with the appearance of negative emotions and experiences in a person’s behavior. In addition, with an unfavorable course of the crisis, negative characteristics of personality and interpersonal interaction can be formed, and failure to satisfy new needs introduces a person into a repeated (or prolonged) crisis state of development. In the pathological course of the crisis, a distortion of the normal age dynamics may occur.

The other side of the crisis of age-related development is positive, constructive, which signals the emergence of positive changes (new formations and a new social situation of development) that make up the meaning of each turning point. A positive transformation of a person’s psyche and behavior occurs when the crisis progresses favorably.

Thus, it can be noted that a developmental crisis is a sensitive stage for the transformation of the psyche, where the line between its normal and impaired development is very thin. In which direction the crisis will be resolved most often depends on the productivity of the person’s (child’s) interaction with the environment, which determines the individuality of the course of the age-related crisis.

Developmental crises were also studied by L. S. Vygotsky’s student, D. B. Elkonin. He discovered the law of alternation in the course of a child's mental development. The scientist identified types of activities that are different in orientation, which periodically replace each other: activities oriented in the system of relations between people (“person - person”) are followed by activities where the orientation is on ways of using objects (“person – object”). Each time, contradictions arise between these two types of orientations, which become the cause of a developmental crisis, since action cannot develop further if it is not built into a new system of relations and without raising the intellect to a certain level, new motives and methods of action will not develop. Taking into account the above orientations of the leading activities of D.B. Elkonin explained the contents of the isolated L.S. Vygotsky's crises of development. Thus, during the newborn period, at 3 years and 13 years, relationship crises occur, and at 1 year, 7 and 17 years, worldview crises occur, which also alternate.

In Russian psychology, the prevailing point of view is that developmental crises inevitably appear at the junction of any two age periods. The timing of crises in childhood, established by L.S. Vygotsky are disputed, but the sequence of their occurrence remains relevant, since it reflects the normative patterns of mental development.

L. S. Vygotsky identifies the following stages of the development crisis.

I. Pre-crisis. A contradiction arises between the environment and a person’s attitude towards it. The pre-crisis state is characterized by a transitional internal state, where indicators of the affective and cognitive spheres become oppositely directed. Intellectual control decreases and at the same time sensitivity to the outside world, emotionality, aggressiveness, psychomotor disinhibition or lethargy, isolation, etc. increase.

II. Actually a crisis. At this stage, there is a temporary maximum aggravation of psychological problems of a personal and interpersonal nature, where a certain degree of deviation from the age norm in psychophysical development can be observed. Low cognitive activity, psychological lability (instability), decreased communication, loss of mental stability, swings in mood and motivation often occur. In general, it is difficult to influence a child or an adult at this time, come to an agreement, reorient, etc.

III. Post-crisis. This is the time of resolving contradictions through the formation of a new social situation of development, harmony between its components. As a result of this harmony, a return to a normal state occurs, where the affective and cognitive components of the psyche become unidirectional. “Old formations” go into the subconscious, and new mental formations move to a new level of consciousness.

In conclusion, we note that the crisis of age-related development appears suddenly and also disappears. Its boundaries are blurred. It is short-term compared to stable periods. The resolution of the crisis is associated with the establishment of new social relations with the environment, which can be productive or destructive in nature.

Crises occur not only in childhood, but also during adulthood.

The mental changes that appear at this time in a child or adult are profound and irreversible.