Theories and approaches

In the history of psychology there are many scientists whose names and contributions have been forgotten. One poorly studied area in the history of psychology is the psychological views of theologians. Among these is Veniamin Alekseevich Snegirev, a psychologist and theologian at Kazan Theological Academy, whose contributions are not fully appreciated today. The authors identify V.A. Snegirev’s contribution to several fields of psychological science at the end of the 19th century: methodology, theory, general psychology, and the psychology of dreams. The research is based on archival materials, encyclopedia articles, reviews of the activity of Kazan Theological Academy in the 19th century, works of Snegirev and other researchers who have studied his contributions. The authors describe the scientist’s childhood, his student period, and work as a professor. his work at the Kazan Theological Academy and the University of Kazan is discussed in detail: he taught courses on psychology, logic, and metaphysics, was a member of the Academy Council, took part in the functioning of the library, was recognized with several awards and honors. Snegirev’s teaching activity is described by the recollections of his student, the famous philosopher Viktor I. Nesmelov. Snegirev considered psychology to be based in philosophy, because philosophical problems represent the content of human consciousness. A bibliography of Snegirev’s scientific works is provided. The psychological and philosophical views of the Russian scientist are signifi- cant: his main points are to recognize the object of science – the human being – as a “living person”, thinking, feeling, and exercising his will; and the rejection of the idea that a person can be reduced to a sum of mental phenomena. There are several common concepts in the works of Snegirev and European and American philosophers, such as Wilhelm Dilthey and William James. Snegirev participated in the international philosophical and scientific discus- sion, which underlines the importance of studying his work. 

Thought is considered a psychological concept associated with an individual’s mental ex- istence. It is apparent that a great deal of research has been focused on thought as an area of study. however, there is no psychological theory of thought which provides an expla- nation for its nature and structural organization. So far, researchers have mainly looked at the ways this concept is expressed, rather than investigating what it actually is. In this study, however, based on studies of the functions of the psyche, mental processes, and the neurophysiological bases of mental activity, thought is identified as a need-emotion- intentional substance existing in the human being’s inner world. In keeping with this understanding of thought, the hypothesis that thought generation is caused by desire and experience (feeling and emotion) is put forward. An individual’s thought is linked to his behavior or motivation for activity, and is followed by an emotional experience. The process of thought generation is regarded through the mechanism of behavioral motiva- tion. The primary purpose of this mechanism is to define the qualities of the external objects that serve for need satisfaction and functionality in individuals. The ability to generate thoughts is a feature of thinking related to an individual’s mental ability or frame of mind. From this standpoint, a person’s mentality is considered to be the capacity of the individual to generate thoughts and work through thoughts. It is shown that the abil- ity to generate thoughts and establish relationships within a stream of consciousness is characteristic of human intelligence. Some basic propositions toward a development of a psychological theory of thought are introduced. 

Although Lev Vygotsky’s interpretation of human cognition was proposed almost one century ago, new scientific and technological advances have significantly supported many of his ideas and hypotheses. His cultural-historical theory of psychological processes, and his contributions to educational psychology, have continued growing without interruption. In this paper, three of Vygotsky’s hypotheses are examined in light of 21st century scientific developments:

1. The influence of cultural factors on human cognition. A diversity of research studies in different countries has corroborated the crucial impact of culture on cognitive test performance; 
2. The role of language in higher psychological processes. According to Vygotsky’s cultural-historical approach, cognitive processes (“complex psychological processes”) are social in origin, but complex and hierarchical in their structure. Intrinsic to the systemic organization of higher cognitive processes is the engagement of external artifacts (objects, symbols, signs), which have an independent history of development within a culture; and 
3. The hypothesis that thought and general complex cognition is associated with certain “inner speech.” Some contemporary neuroimaging studies (particularly PET and fMRI) analyzing “inner speech” have been carried out. These studies have attempted to find the areas of the brain involved in “inner speech.” These scientific advances significantly support Vygotsky’s interpretation of human cognition. It has been found that inner speech depends on activity in Broca’s area and related brain network activity in the left hemisphere. Hence, inner speech is closely related to grammar, language production, and executive functions.

Vygotsky’s important contribution to the understanding of psychological processes has stimulated, and continues to stimulate, a substantial amount of research in this area.

This work is dedicated to the development of L.S. Vygotsky’s ideas in clinical psychology and the clarification of some basic points of the cultural-historical concept. The paper presents a thesis about the development of man in ontogeny as the result of his interaction with the cultural environment, which transforms natural mental functions into higher mental functions. This process can be attended by a whole range of psychopathologies. The issues discussed include voluntary regulation of higher mental functions, determination of the involuntariness and “post-voluntariness” of functions, the internalization of actions, the differentiation of affect and emotion (including as higher mental functions), the “cultural” socialization of non-mental functions (sex, sleep, excretion), and the discord between natural and “cultural” entities in a person. The basis for the ontological development of man is the genesis of “subjectness”, like all the forms of higher activity that emerge when encountering cultural restrictions and requirements causing specific mental disorders. The supposition is made that there are no significant restrictions to explaining either mental or non-mental functions with the cultural-historical approach. Recommendations for further research are suggested.

The theoretical framework of this analytic study is based on studies in the field of film perception. Films are considered as a communicative system that is encrypted in an ordered series of shots, and decoding proceeds during perception. The shots are the elements of a cinematic message that must be “read” by viewer. The objective of this work is to analyze the existing theoretical approaches to using films in psychotherapy and education. An original approach to film therapy that is based on teaching clients to use new communicative sets and psychotherapeutic patterns through watching films is presented. The article specifies the main emphasized points in theories of film therapy and education. It considers the specifics of film therapy in the process of increasing the effectiveness of communication. It discusses the advantages and limitations of the proposed method. The contemporary forms of film therapy and the formats of cinema clubs are criticized. The theoretical assumptions and empirical research that could be used as a basis for a method of developing effective communication by means of films are discussed. Our studies demonstrate that the usage of film therapy must include an educational stage for more effective and stable results. This means teaching viewers how to recognize certain psychotherapeutic and communicative patterns in the material of films, to practice the skill of finding as many examples as possible for each pattern and to transfer the acquired schemes of analyzing and recognizing patterns into one’s own life circumstances. The four stages of the film therapeutic process as well as the effects that are achieved at each stage are described in detail. In conclusion, the conditions under which the usage of the film therapy method would be the most effective are observed. Various properties of client groups and psychotherapeutic scenarios for using the method of active film therapy are described.

An analysis of Russian and foreign ways of understanding the phenomenon of self-determination has been performed. It has been found that the concept of individual and group self-determination by A.L. Zhuravlev and A.B. Kupreichenko is the most developed in modern Russian psychological science. Using the concept as a basis, the conceptual schemes (made by A.E. Vorobieva and A.A. Akbarova) of studies of personal, moral, social and economic self-determination were considered as the examples of the basic and special types of self-determination. Moral self-determination was studied with questions about ideas of morality, moral strategies and personality orientation, attitude toward unethical phenomena, ability for self-regulation and emotional intellect. Social and economic self-determination were studied with questions that show one’s social level, satisfaction with economic and social status and their dynamics, a valuation of favorable circumstances for an increase of status and economic activity. Value and anti-value, spheres and forms of showing of social and living personality’s activity were also determined. Fundamental differences (variability, success criteria, implementation in behavior, a level of ability to control a process, the role of external factors) and similarities (successfulness, a formation level, a range, dynamics, conceptions, strategy, values, factors) between the components of the conceptual schemes of these types of selfdetermination were identified. The principles of studying (proportion of basic and specific types of self-determination, a display of resultative, procedural and formal-dynamic characteristics, consideration of factors of different levels) of basic and special types of self-determination were suggested.

This is the second in a series of four articles scheduled for publication in this journal. In the previous article I proposed a description of a new so-called existential criterion of normal and abnormal personality that is implicitly present in the works of Erich Fromm. According to this criterion, normal and abnormal personalities are determined, first, by special features of the content of their position regarding existential dichotomies that are natural to human beings and, second, by particular aspects of the formation of this position. Such dichotomies, entitatively existent in all human life, are inherent, two-alternative contradictions. The position of a normal personality in its content orients one toward a contradictious predetermination of life in the form of existential dichotomies and the necessity of searching for compromise in resolving these dichotomies. This position is created on a rational basis with the person’s active participation. The position of an abnormal personality in its content subjectively denies a contradictious predetermination of life in the form of existential dichotomies and orients one toward a consistent, noncompetitive, and, as a consequence, one-sided way of life that doesn’t include self-determination. This position is imposed by other people on an irrational basis. Abnormality of personality interpreted like that is one of the most important factors influencing the development of various kinds of psychological problems and mental disorders — primarily, neurosis. In this article I show that this criterion is implicitly present in the personality theories of Sigmund Freud and Alfred Adler, although in more special cases. In the following articles I will show that this criterion is also implicitly present in the personality theories of Carl Jung, Carl Rogers, and Viktor Frankl.

The basis of this article is A. R. Luria’s conception of the qualitative approach in neuropsychology. Attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity is one of the most frequent clinical diagnoses given during preschool age. However, precise qualitative neuropsychological criteria for analysis of this clinical diagnosis do not exist and change from one approach to another. Our objective here is to propose such qualitative criteria for neuropsychological analysis of children with diagnoses of attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity at preschool age. We follow clinical methodology that is traditional for historical and cultural neuropsychology and is an alternative for the psychometrical and cognitive approach. The methodology of the study was qualitative neuropsychological assessment of the syndrome followed by detailed consideration of the types of difficulties in each case. The study analyzes mistakes and typical examples of execution of the tasks of neuropsychological qualitative assessment by regular children and by children with attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity. The results showed differences between these groups of children. The children with attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity made a lot of mistakes during assessments. Their difficulties are related to unfavorable conditions in the three functional brain blocks according to Luria’s conception. We conclude that “attention” cannot be considered the only or the main problem in children who receive this diagnosis by psychiatrists and neurologists.

This is the first of four articles scheduled for publication in this journal on the position people with normal and abnormal personalities take in regard to so-called existential dichotomies. The main objective of this article is to propose a new, existential criterion for normal and abnormal personality implicitly present in the works of Erich Fromm. According to this criterion, normal and abnormal personalities are determined, first, by special features of the content of their position regarding existential dichotomies, and, second, by particular aspects of the formation of this position. Such dichotomies, entitatively existent in all human life, are inherent, two-alternative contradictions. The position of a normal personality in its content orients one toward a contradictious predetermination of life in the form of existential dichotomies and the necessity of searching for compromise in resolving these dichotomies. This position is created on a rational basis with the person’s active participation. The position of an abnormal personality in its content subjectively denies a contradictious predetermination of life in the form of existential dichotomies and orients one toward a consistent, noncompetitive, and, as a consequence, one-sided way of life that doesn’t include self-determination. This position is imposed by other people on an irrational basis. Abnormal personality interpreted like this is one of the most important factors influencing the development of various kinds of psychological problems and mental disorders — primarily, neurosis. In the following three articles it will be shown that this criterion is also implicitly present in the theories of personality devised by Sigmund Freud, Alfred Adler, Carl Jung, Carl Rogers, and Viktor Frankl.

One of the most important and sharply discussed aspects of scientific knowledge is the problem of the possibility for practical applications and results. The application of psychological knowledge in different types of schooling, training, and instruction is a representative illustration of that problem’s current state. The aims of this paper are (1) to consider the possibilities and difficulties of such an application, (2) to analyze the reasons for both success and failure, and (3) to try to work out a path toward the construction of an applied theory to bridge the gap between psychological theory (in particular, learning and developmental psychology) and instructional practice. Specifically, this article considers practical applications of the fundamental psychological theory of Planned, Stage-by-Stage Formation of Mental Actions, or the PSFMA theory, by P. Galperin as the target case.

Lev Vygotsky’s statement on the development of the higher psychological functions— from the interpsychological form to the intrapsychological form—is discussed in the article. I describe the changing of Vygotsky’s interest from nonverbal to verbal communication and his emphasis on verbal communication as an only kind of interpsychological function. I then analyze works that show the importance of nonverbal communication in this process. I raise the questions of what an interpsychological function is and who is its “owner.” I argue that immediate response to the behavior (verbal and nonverbal) of another person is a basis for the psychological functions of a child, and this basis continues to influence processes in later stages of human development, including adulthood. Thus, interpsychological function in the development of the child is inevitably connected with some kind of passivity in reactions to social stimulation.

Jean Piaget’s so-called biological perspective is often paired with the viewpoint of Lev Vygotsky when we speak of learning in humans. Both authors acknowledged the active role of children in the construction of knowledge. However, they differ in that, unlike Piaget, Vygotsky believed that the assimilation of new information does not have to wait for an appropriate level of development but must, on the contrary, produce that development through instruction; thus, cooperation between teacher and student promotes the development of higher psychological functions. The present research presents proof that school instruction is instrumental in this process. Samples of adults who had acquired distinct levels of schooling (from illiterates to university students) are differentiated experimentally through the use of four Piagetian cognitive problem-solving tasks created for adolescents and adults. The present research suggests that instructional level is the distinctive factor in the development of those problem-solving capacities that implicate higher psychological functions.

According to Lev Vygotsky’s theory, every bodily deficiency not only changes a person’s attitude to the world but also entails social consequences, which makes its social and psychological rehabilitation so important. The way in which problems of deformity compensation and supercompensation are solved, is largely determined by a patient`s motivation. The paper deals with stuttering (logoneurosis) as an extreme form of broken communication; it analyses the peculiarities of stutteres and their families, and the specific features of treating this defect; it also dwells on issues involving family co-participation in social rehabilitation. The multilayered system of family group logo psychotherapy - treatment of stuttering children, teenagers and adults - is based on Yu.B. Nekrasova’s method of group logopsychotherapy. It also employs non-traditional techniques: Nekrasova’s dynamic psycho-therapeutic diagnostics and biblio-, kinesi-, symbol-, video- and cinema therapies.

This system may serve as a model for forming motivational involvement and intragenic activity by patients and their relatives in social rehabilitation processes. The paper describes the levels and psychological structure of motivational involvement and mechanisms of its formation in logopsychotherapeutic processes. Motivational involvement is understood as a source of a subject’s intragenic (inner) activity, the paper maps out strategies to form intragenic activity. The family group logopsychotherapeutic techniques may also help optimize communication between parent and child, doctor and patient, teacher and pupil, professor and student.

Collaborative project work facilitates social interactions among peers and between them and their teachers. It allows students to work in their zone of proximal development (ZPD), promoting their knowledge appropriation. It empowers adult students, allowing them to express their voices and their cultures. Inter-empowerment mechanisms are part of this process, facilitating the internalization of intra-empowerment mechanisms. Both of them shape students’ life trajectories of participation (César, 2013a). This work is part of the Interaction and Knowledge (IK) project. During 12 years (1994/1995–2005/2006) we studied and promoted social interactions in formal educational scenarios. We assumed an interpretative paradigm and developed an action-research project (three-year alternative curriculum, 7th–9th grades) and a 10-year follow up. The participants were the seven students who completed this course, their teachers, and other educational and social agents. Data collecting instruments included observation, interviews, informal conversations, tasks inspired by projective techniques, students’ protocols, and documents. Data treatment and analysis were based on a narrative content analysis. The results are mainly focused on one student: Ernesto. His legitimate participation in this course facilitated his inclusion in school and in society. It promoted his socio-cognitive and emotional development and allowed him to internalize intra-empowerment mechanisms. This enabled him to improve his life trajectory of participation.

This article illustrates the process of reaching conversation in the case of Anna, a 10- year-old girl, in a countryside Portuguese primary school, through neuropsychological habilitation and psychotherapy. This case identifies the theoretical and methodological concepts from Vygotsky’s cultural historical conceptualization in psychotherapy practice. Vygotsky introduced a new form of thinking in psychology, the concept of play, as a cultural and relational tool on a child’s (consciousness) development. During psychotherapy, Anna progressed through the following stages: 1) not playing (deploying the toys, with no relations between them or awareness of social rules); 2) worldplay (building worlds using wooden blocks and other toys, establishing relations between the characters and their possessions); and 3) imaginary situation (with no toys). At the end of this process, she was able to talk about her issues, communicating in a more adaptive way, especially in a schooled society. When she reached conversation, Anna’s activity was also changed. Therefore, there was a qualitative change regarding her needs, motives and ways of acting and reacting to herself, others, and cultural tools or events.

The contribution of Oleg K. Tikhomirov (1933-2001), his disciples and representatives of Tikhomirov’s school in psychology of thinking is analyzed. Tikhomirov was the initiator of the Personal Meanings Theory of thinking, one of the leading schools of cognitive studies in Russia. Tikhomirov is known outside Russia as well: more than once, he presented his work at international congresses and conferences; his writings have been translated into several European languages. The paper includes brief biographical information about Tikhomirov. The main components of the Personal Meanings Theory are presented, such as the regulative function of (intellectual) emotions during problem solving, the actual genesis of goal-setting, the formation of personal meanings during the processes involved in thinking, and the personality-related determinants of decision making. Tikhomirov’s pioneering ideas in the studies of creativity, including jointparticipation in creative activities, are discussed in the paper. In the last section of the paper, Tikhomirov’s studies of the impact of information and communication technology on the psychological transformations undergone by adepts of high technologies and technology’s effect on their intellectual and communicative activities are discussed; these studies accelerated a new field of research in Russia, namely cyberpsychology or Internet psychology.

The current state of cognitive science is discussed in this article. It is argued that cognitive science as it currently exists is not a separate, independent science. It is represented by a scientific interdisciplinary community focused on meeting the key challenges posed by the present time. The objective of the discourse in this interdisciplinary space is to generate new knowledge that it is impossible to generate within the frameworks of separate scientific disciplines. Some features of this new (transdisciplinary) stage are emerging within on-going interdisciplinary research. One of the signs of the new stage is the outlining of a merger of humanitarian and natural-scientific knowledge. It is claimed that the transdisciplinary approach can be considered as “a creative polylogue” of monodisciplines capable of generating knowledge that is not available to any science and the acquisition of which is beyond the abilities of any science.

The current study investigated the relationships among creativity, tolerance for uncertainty (TU), and emotional intelligence (EI) in a selected sample of undergraduate students (n=145). We found differential patterns of intercorrelations among these constructs in students majoring in psychology, music, and stage directing, and we also established group differences in these constructs in the three groups of students. Thus, the use of emotional information in personal decision making in different subsamples is assumed to be achieved through hierarchies of diverse processes. Overall, creativity, EI, and TU acted as predictors of the use of emotional information in decision making.

The effect of chess skill, age, and conditions for memorization on the efficiency of the recall of sequences of opening chess moves was studied. Thirty-nine chess players of different skill levels (from category 2 to grandmaster) and ages (from 17 to 81 years old) were divided into four groups (ELO > 2000 before and after the age of 40; ELO < 2000 before and after the age of 40). They were asked to remember the sequences of moves under three conditions (passive perception, use of imagination, physical generation of moves) and to recall (reproduce) the sequences by making the moves. It turned out that in the passive-perception condition the younger chess players, on the one hand, and the more highly skilled players, on the other, recalled the moves significantly better than did the other groups. Also, in almost all the groups of players the efficiency of memory grew as the condition for memorization and that for reproduction converged, with the highest growth rate found among chess players older than 40 years with ELO > 2000. The current memory of the chess experts was to a greater extent mediated by opening schemes and knowledge than was that of the intermediate players. A hypothesis about the activity specificity of the coding in episodic memory was confirmed and concretized.

The article “In memory of professor Oleg K. Tikhomirov” offers the personal memories of the authors and the testimony of the students and psychologists from Mexico who had the opportunity of witnessing the presence of Russian psychologist Prof. O.K. Tikhomirov at Puebla Autonomous University in 1994-1995. The article describes the circumstances of arrival and professional work of O.K. Tikhomirov as a lecturer within Mater Program in Neuropsychological Diagnosis and Rehabilitation at Psychology Faculty of Puebla University. The work of Prof. O.K. Tikhomirov in Puebla had positive consequences in academic preparation of students and specialists in psychology and neuropsychology and in fulfillment of theoretical and methodological research in following years. The authors of the article express their gratitude for the opportunity of collaboration with O.K. Tikhomirov and with Psychology faculty of Moscow State University in general. The conclusions reflect the evidence of positive effects of academic contacts and mutual experience on preparation and education of young generation of psychologists in Mexico, particularly within historical and cultural psychology and activity theory.

In the article, we are going to consider the possibilities of a conceptual framework of the semantic theory of thinking, which could allow us to develop a concept of joint and dialogical cognitive activity. This paper demonstrates O.K. Tikhomirov’s creative influence on the development of cognitive activity psychology. The role of aim-forming in thinking as a process of cognitive activity and genesis of reflection is emphasized. The possibilities of joint and dialogical cognitive activity formation as a result of informative purposes assigned to learners are shown. The role of ethnic prejudices as representations of semantic barriers, during the studying of the virtual mono-ethnic subgroups modeling method (in the conditions of a pilot study of the ethno-psychological phenomena) is considered and is specially allocated. In the present article, the mechanisms of psychotherapeutic influence are also considered and possible intervention programs for an emotional condition are described. Evidences of efficiency of formation and the transformation of personality-semantic education are provided in joint and dialogical counseling, realizing a semantic approach and its development, based on the principles of joint and dialogical cognitive activity.

This paper presents the results of an empirical study investigating individual differences in tolerance and intolerance for uncertainty, using a multidimensional approach. We hypothesized that individual differences in attitudes towards uncertainty are rooted in expectations regarding different sources and subjective evaluations of uncertainty. The results of structural equation modeling and latent profile analysis largely supported these hypotheses. Importantly, latent profile analysis identified four distinct profiles of attitudes towards uncertainty that represented, in addition to classically understood tolerance and intolerance for uncertainty, intolerance for uncertainty with respect to different sources of uncertainty (environment vs. personal relationships).

The need for the psychology of computerization as a separate psychological discipline was suggested by Prof. Oleg K. Tikhomirov in mid-1980s. First he tried to initiate this discipline as a by-product of his experiments in the psychology of thinking, which formed the basis of the Personal Meanings Theory of Thinking, to be formulated later; soon Tikhomirov enlarged the field of the psychology of computerization. The aims of the new discipline were to study (1) the differences between human mental activity and the operations performed by computers that constitute the key elements of artificial intelligence systems, and (2) the impact of information technology on the human psyche. With the passage of several decades, the first aim partly lost its importance, while the second acquired a high degree of significance. In the paper it is argued that Tikhomirov’s suggestion that the psychological consequences of computerization be studied happened to germinate into the development of cyberpsychology (the psychology of the Internet) in Russia.

This article examines the cultural-activity approach to the study of giftedness, which is based on the ideas of L. S. Vygotsky, A. N. Leontiev, and O. K. Tikhomirov. Three basic principles of this approach are described: the principle of polymorphism, the dynamic principle, and the principle of the holistic analysis of the giftedness phenomenon. The article introduces the results of empirical research (including a 10-year longitudinal study), which verifies the efficacy of the cultural-activity approach and its prospects for solving actual problems in the psychology of giftedness in light of the creation of new diagnostic procedures and methods of education and the development of gifted children.

Tikhomirov’s primary works are considered groundbreaking in the activity theory community. In particular, his efforts in understanding the positive effects of computers on the development of creative activity provide valuable instruction to activity theorists, especially with respect to their influence on new goal formation. Tikhomirov’s quests to better understand “how computers affect the development of intellectual activity” are explicitly revealed in the clinical environment. As the intensive care unit is a preeminent environment to observe creative activity in real time, the primary problems of clinical team communication and collaboration, both aspects being related to joint activity, are identified. As one way to approach such a problem, Tikhomirov’s theory on creative activity is explained in the context of information technology. Then, distributed cognition theory and creative activity theory are joined together and extended into distributedcreative activity theory, as an augmentation of complex interpersonal cognition through the use of health information technology.

In the laboratory of O.K. Tikhomirov, the phenomenon of the acute emotional regulation of productive thinking was justified. This regulation is realized by means of the elaboration of the axiological profile of cognition. The following definition of intellectual emotions can be given: intellectual emotions are the appraisals of specific cognitive objects — contradictions, assumptions, probabilities, and the intermediate and final results of operations. The main aspect of the method used in the research consisted of the synchronous registration of an external (tactile) elaboration of problems, skin galvanic response and verbal utterances regarding tasks to be completed in a game of chess. The principle position in Tikhomirov`s group is the following: intellectual emotions represent not only the energetic resource or catalysts for the thinking process, but also the determinants of its structure.

Vygotsky’s name has never been so evoked as it is at the present time, yet the educational scientific community faces an awkward situation. On the one hand, his works have been used as the basis for certain socioconstructivist school reforms that he would surely have completely disapproved of (Vygotsky, 1934/1987, p. 211). On the other hand, the recent collection of his writings (Yvon & Zinchenko, 2012) and other works (Brossard, 1999, 2004; Schneuwly, 2008b) lead us to another interpretation, in which the internal evolution of didactic content is at the forefront of Vygotsky’s precepts. Therefore, although it is unpleasant, we are confronted by different points of view on Vygotsky’s work that need to be investigated and exposed. This article sets out to achieve that objective.

In this article dialectical thinking is regarded as one of the central cognitive processes. Because of this cognitive function we can analyze the development of processes and objects. It also determines the possibilities for the creative transformation of some content and for solving problems.

The article presents a description and the results of experimental studies. This evidence proves that dialectical thinking is a specific line of cognitive development in children and adults. This line can degrade during school time if the educational program follows formal logical principles, or it can become significantly stronger if the pedagogy is based on dialectical methodology.

The article analyzes certain socio-cultural and personal predispositions, which determine the modern diversity of subjective uncertainty and ambiguity manifestations. It stresses that for the creation of ‘realistic’ clinical psychology (in terms of A.R. Luria) one needs to retrace the relations between the resourceful and the psychopathological aspects of the ambiguity phenomenon and the cultural environment with its destructive ideals and mythologems, manipulative media-technologies and all-pervading idea of ‘deconstruction’. Methods for modeling the experiences of ambiguity in experimental settings, in pathopsychological examination and in projective psychological diagnostics are put in comparison. The arguments are adduced for the interpretation of deficient manifestations of subjective uncertainty as a criterion for diagnostics of the severity of personality disorder.

This article considers the potential for applying contemporary philosophical theories (which distinguish classical, nonclassical, and postnonclassical types of scientific rationality) to the specification of theoretical methodological principles in the study of clinical psychology. We prove that psychological syndrome analysis (developed by the Vygotsky–Luria–Zeigarnik school), taken as a system of principles for organizing research as well as for interpreting its results, conforms to the epistemological complexity of the object of study in clinical psychology, which is understood in the postnonclassical scientific view as a self-developing system. We present an example of the formation of a psychosomatic syndrome in 290 patients with mitral-valve prolapse, applying methods of qualitative and statistical data analysis in a longitudinal clinical-psychological study. We prove that the syndrome is system-defined and has a multilevel character, and that its structure is determined by several factors: the motivational factor (with the domination of the failure-avoidance motive and the unsatisfied self-approval need); the factor of the emotional-regulation disorders, represented by both excessive emotional repression and lack of emotional control; and a psychophysiological factor. We argue that a psychosomatic syndrome can be used as a means for approaching not only diagnostic but also prognostic tasks both in clinical psychology and in medicine. We conclude that the results of our empirical study, conducted within the framework of postnonclassical philosophy and using the methods of psychological syndrome analysis, not only expand the scientific background on the nature of a particular disease (mitral-valve prolapse) but also pose further questions whose investigation will broaden our view of the psychological mechanisms of psychosomatic- syndrome genesis.

Dans le texte, il s’agit de sources de la compréhension des concepts du signe et du symbole dans la théorie historico-culturelle ainsi que de leur rôle dans le développement de l’enfant et dans le processus de la médiation. On y parle aussi de limites de l’approche historico-culturelle en ce qui concerne la compréhension du signe et du symbole et d’autres concepts liés avec eux.

Since the late 1950s, a significant number of authors tried to use Galperin’s approach (which is well-known as the “Theory of planned stage-by-stage formation of mental actions”, or the PSFMA Theory) to improve schooling processes and results. Looking back at the more than fifty‑year history of Galperin’s approach, one may note that the 1960s and the early 1970s were the periods of the great optimism concerning effectiveness and efficiency of its practical application. It seemed possible to transform radically the way and the traditional results of learning/teaching process. To compare the 60s-70s and the 80s-90s publications one could easily discover a significant decrease of a wave of optimism concerning the PSFMA’s application. Besides the obvious social‑economic and social‑psychological reasons there exists a methodological reason concerning the ways and means of the Galperin’s approach use. Historically, the substantial pedagogical results of planned stage‑by‑stage formation of mental actions first came to the fore. However, the proponents’ enthusiasm about really unusual and hopeful results had a reverse side: it led to the serious misunderstanding of the status of Galperin’s approach and transformed the last to some absolute knowledge like a sort of “philosophers’ stone”. The successful application of the statements of PSFMA does not mean a literal reproduction of some abstract general procedure, but a creative design of a system of necessary and sufficient psychological conditions adapted to a concrete schooling situation. The elaboration of such a procedure occupies an intermediate position between the fundamental psychological knowledge and the real process of schooling. The three-model system is considered to bridge a gap between the fundamental knowledge introduced by Galperin and the real circumstances of learning/teaching situation.

Russian psychology has brought into the world science at least two great ideas: the conditioned reflex (Pavlov) and the zone of proximal development (Vygotsky). These concepts were formulated before “iron curtain” fell. Since then Russian science dropped out from the view of western colleagues for decades. Now it is challenged to re-join international mainstream. Are we in a position to contribute? A key concept for Russian psychology is personality impact on psycho-physiological functions and causal approach to self-determination. The concept of selfdetermination appeared in Western theories in 1980-es and since then it has been developed in the context of teleological humanitarian approach. In Russian science the concept of self-determination dates back to 1934, when it was defined by Rubinstein as “sub’ekt”. Self-determination of ontogenesis of psychophysiological functions resulting from confluence of ontogenesis and social development was explicated by Russian scientists whose theoretical reasoning and empirical results are compared to Western counterparts.

The psychology of corporeality is a new and intensively elaborated branch of science. The theoretical foundations of its subject differ significantly from those of medical psychosomatics. In a given article some new concepts of this approaching discipline are introduced and the role of symbolic mediation in genesis of different psychosomatic diseases is discussed.

Cultural-historical theory of LS. Vygotsky is viewed in the paper through the prism of tendencies of psychology development, which are revealed by the trans-spective analysis understood as a tool of cognition of regularities of emergence of open self-developing systems to which science can be attributed. It is argued that cultural-historical psychology can be placed among the theories of post non-classical level; i.e. having declared itself at the age of emergence of non-classical psychology, the theory left its time behind. This fact significantly hindered (and is still hindering) comprehension of the multidimensional logic applied by LS. Vy­gotsky. It is shown that today this logic is becoming much more accessible for comprehension as science has started to embrace the ideals of post non-classical rationality. System anthropological psychology is considered as a modern version of cultural-historical psychology development, which has retained the original multidimensional logic applied by LS. Vygotsky.

The present study is aimed to examine the role of the concept of social situation of development, suggested by L.S. Vygotsky, to define determinants of psychological development of a child in modern developmental psychology. Its heuristic character is exposed by the fact that further elaboration of fundamental and applied as­pects of developmental psychology does not make the concept less urgent New studies still enrich its content, opening perspectives for further research.

The following article aims to explain why including a new principle - a meta-sys-tem approach principle - in methodological principles of psychological research is of crucial importance. In developing main points of system methodology this approach simultaneously appears to be a more general one, because it permits to overcome a number of limitations and, first of all, to incorporate a qualitatively unique class of systems - systems with an "embedded" meta-system level - in the sphere of research. Besides, the article covers main issues and methodological sources for applying the meta-system approach to psychological studies. It is the purpose of this article to demonstrate efficiency of the approach in understanding basic structural principles and content of the highest psychical level - the meta-system level.

The author views dialectic cognition as an integral and unique process, which is based on dialectical logic - the logic of operating opposites. The development of this logic takes place during the preschool years through transformation of contradictory situations. The transformation process is carried out by dialectical cognitive actions.

This research is devoted to the investigation of the role of conscious self-regulation in human development and activity. The concept of conscious self-regulation of a subject's voluntary activity and the history of its research conducted in Psychological Institute RAE are discussed. The results of the research dedicated to the typology of individual styles of self-regulation and their relationship with educational and professional activity effectiveness are presented. Personal dispositions have specific influence on the individual peculiarities of regulatory profile. It is concluded that the integrated system of individual self-regulation includes dynamic and content aspects of a personality, its conscious and subconscious structures for development and achievement of goals

This article is devoted to Lev Vygotsky’s and Alexander Luria’s contribution to the theory and methods of neuropsychology, and particularly, developmental neuropsychology. The first part of the article covers the principle foundations of neuropsychology as elaborated by Vygotsky and Luria. The goal of the second part is to show what interpretation of learning disabilities can be derived from it.

The present work suggests an analysis of B.W. Zeigarnik’s contribution into development of pathopsychology as a branch of clinical psychology. There are considered the main theoretical and methodological problems of pathopsychology which were elaborated in B.W. Zeigarnik’s works. The problems of coordination between pathopsychology, general psychology and psychiatry, formulated by B.W. Zeigarnik, as well as specific features of the subject matter of pathopsychology are also discussed.

The paper defines remediating education, its peculiarities against trasitional education, main tasks and principles, based upon the cultural-historical theory of L.S. Vygotsky. Base functional systems formed during remediation are discussed. Peculiarities of individual, group and dyadic methods of remediation are described with regard to its potential for mediating child’s activity.

This article presents an analysis of Vygotsky’s work on the psychology of art and his use of the image of Hamlet in the psychological analysis of personality. It also describes the capabilities of the dialectic method for assessing psychological problems. Reference to three dialectical oppositions—of the story and the plot, of the main character’s spinelessness and his insanity, and of subject and personality—allows the development of a theoretical analysis of the psychology of personality in its relationship to culture. Culture is defined as the system of normative situations. Keywords: image of Hamlet, dialectic method, culture, normative situation, personality, subject.

The work presents historiographic and theoretical methodological study of establishment of fundamental theses of L.S. Vygotsky’s cultural-historical concept within the field of clinical psychology.

We prove potency in application of contemporary philosophical concepts, which help distinguish between the types of scientific rationality (classical, nonclassical, and postnonclassical), for scientific reflection over the development of psychology and designation of paradigmatic status of cultural-historic concept suggested by L.S. Vygotsky and Vygotsky-Luria syndrome approach at the contemporary stage of science.

Present study of scientific works of L.S. Vygotsky and his followers demonstrated that fundamentals of cultural-historic conception suggested by L.S. Vygotsky and further developed in methodology of Vygotsky-Luria syndrome approach, these fundamentals presented the origins of not only non-classical, but as well post-nonclassical model of scientific rationality. They are characterized by post-nonclassical understanding of the object and method of psychological study and post-nonclassical mode of thinking of the scientists.

As it was showed, in works of L.S. Vygotsky there formulated general methodological requirements to organization of mental studies, which, on the whole, go in tune with the requirements introduced for study of complex self-developing systems. There were produced arguments to prove that the concept of Vygotsky-Luria syndrome approach describes mental syndromes as dynamic structures, which display the features of self-organization, self-determination and adaptive rationality. Hence, they can be regarded as open self-developing systems.

We assume and verify the hypothesis that the syndrome analysis, due to the features of post-nonclassic modeling of scientific rationality it reveals, may be regarded as theoretically productive methodological approach at the modern stage of science.

The article describes various aspects of symbolic mediation and is aimed at showing its specificity. The author views a situation of uncertainty as a structural element of a symbol and introduces the notion of a symbol being a special tool for orientation in such situations. On the one hand, a symbol is contrasted to a sign, and on the other, is regarded as a transitional form in the process of its mastering. Author pays special attention to understanding the role of symbol in connection with understanding of play and its role in child’s development. Emotional and cognitive functions of symbol are defined and illustrated by examples.