It is necessary to distinguish between mental phenomena and mechanisms.

DEFINITION: Under Psychic Phenomena understand all sorts of features of human behavior and mental life that are available for direct observation.

The term “phenomenon” came to psychology from philosophy, where it usually denotes everything that is perceived by the senses (ie, through sensations). For example, lightning or smoke are phenomena because we can directly observe them, while the chemical and physical processes behind these phenomena are not phenomena themselves, because they can only be recognized through the prism of the analytical apparatus. The same is true in psychology. What can be recognized by any unskilled observer, such as memory or character, are referred to as mental phenomena.

The rest, hidden, is considered Psychic Mechanisms. For example, it may be the features of memory or psychological defense mechanisms. Of course, the line between phenomena and mechanisms is quite shaky. However, the term "psychic phenomena" is necessary to designate that circle primary information what we get about behavior and mental life.
Mental phenomena can be divided into objective and subjective.

Objective Psychic Phenomena available to an external observer (for example, character or many mental states).

subjective mental phenomena are available only to the internal observer (that is, to their owner himself - we are talking about introspection). Subjective phenomena include judgments, ideals, or values. The outside observer's access to this area is very limited. Of course, there are phenomena that can be attributed to both subjective and objective. For example, these are emotions. On the one hand, emotions are perfectly "read" by outside observers. On the other hand, only the owner of the emotion can feel it to the end, and with external similarity, emotions can vary greatly. Moreover, a person often hides his .

In classical Russian psychology, mental phenomena are divided into three classes:

  1. mental processes(memory, attention, perception, etc.),
  2. mental states(fatigue, agitation, frustration, stress, etc.),
  3. Mental properties(character traits, temperament, orientation, values, etc.).

Below each class is deciphered and accompanied by examples.

mental process

it is a component of a holistic mental activity that has its own object of reflection and a specific regulatory function. Memory, for example, as an object of reflection has some information that needs to be stored in time and then reproduced. Its regulatory function is to ensure the influence of past experience on current activity.

Mental processes act as primary regulators of human behavior. They have a definite beginning, course, and end, i.e., they have certain dynamic characteristics, which primarily include parameters that determine the duration and stability of the mental process. On the basis of mental processes, certain states are formed, knowledge, skills and abilities are formed.
For convenience, mental processes are sometimes divided into cognitive ( , And ) And regulatory ( And ). The former provide knowledge of reality, the latter regulate behavior. In fact, any mental process has an "input" and "output", that is, there is both the reception of information and some influence. But this is the essence of psychic phenomena - they are not always what they seem.
In general, of all phenomena, mental processes are perhaps the most mysterious to understand. Take, for example, . We know exactly when we learn something, when we repeat, when we remember. We have the ability to "strain" memory. However, in various neurophysiological studies, even traces of memory as an independent and integral process have not been found. It turns out that memory functions are strongly blurred throughout higher nervous activity.

Another typical example is . Everyone has experienced emotions, but most find it difficult to define this mental phenomenon. In psychology, emotion is usually interpreted as a rather short-term subjective attitude, a person's reaction to a particular event, phenomenon, object. This emotion, in particular, leaves an imprint of values, character and other personality traits. Unskilled observers usually tend to judge emotion as either excitement as the cause of subsequent behavior, or as excitement as a reaction to an event. In any case, emotion is seen as something very integral, because it seems to us so: whole, indivisible. In fact, emotion is a mental process with a rather complex mechanism. The most direct influence on emotion comes from human instincts—innate tendencies to act one way and not another. Behind laughter, sadness, surprise, joy, there are instincts everywhere. In addition, in any emotion you can find a struggle - a clash of different instinctive tendencies among themselves, as well as with the value sphere of the individual, his life experience. If there is no such struggle, then the emotion quickly fades: it goes into action or simply disappears. And, indeed, in emotions one can see not only the motivation for some kind of action (or inaction), but also the result of action (inaction). If a person has successfully completed an action, his behavior is reinforced, almost literally “cemented”, so that in the future he continues to act in the same spirit. Subjectively, this is perceived as pleasure. It is important to understand that we are not given "candy" - we perceive the "cementing" of our behavior as "candy".

Mental condition

this is a temporary originality of mental activity, determined by its content and the attitude of a person to this content. At least during the day we are in two different mental states of consciousness: sleep and wakefulness. The first state differs from the second in a rather narrowed range of reception, since the sense organs are in a dormant mode. It cannot be said that in the state of sleep a person is completely unconscious or completely devoid of sensations. In a dream, sensations are given to us, but they are strongly inhibited. However, a strong sound or bright light wakes us up easily.
One of the most important parameters of mental state - general functional level mental activity. This level is influenced by many factors. For example, it can be the conditions and duration of activity, the level of motivation, health, physical strength, and even character traits. A hardworking person is able to maintain a high level of activity much longer.
Mental states can be short-term, situational and stable, personal. All mental states can be divided into four categories:

  1. motivational(desires, aspirations, interests, inclinations, passions);
  2. emotional(emotional tone of sensations, emotional response to the phenomena of reality, mood, stress, affect, frustration);
  3. strong-willed(initiative, purposefulness, determination, perseverance);
  4. states different levels organization of consciousness (they manifest themselves in different levels of attentiveness).

The difficulty in observing and understanding mental states lies in the fact that one mental condition can be seen as a superposition of several conditions (eg fatigue and agitation, stress and irritability). If we assume that a person can experience only one mental state at the same time, then it should be recognized that many mental states do not even have their own names. In some cases, such designations as "irritable fatigue" or "cheerful persistence" can be given. However, one cannot say “purposeful fatigue” or “fun stress”. It would be methodologically correct to judge not that one state breaks up into several other states, but that one large state has such and such parameters.
Mental property of personality- this is its manifestation (character trait), which allows you to differentiate the behavior of one person from the behavior of another over a long period of time. If we say that such and such a person loves the truth, then we believe that he very rarely deceives, in a variety of situations he tries to get to the bottom of the truth. If we say that a person loves freedom, we assume that he really does not like restrictions on his rights. And so on. The main essence of mental properties as phenomena is their differentiating power. It makes no sense to put forward such mental properties as "possessing memory" or "like a brook."
It should be noted that the list of mental phenomena is not limited to processes, states and properties. There are at least more

Mental processes are holistic acts of mental activity that differ in reflective and regulatory specificity.

Cognitive - sensation, perception, thinking, imagination, memory

emotional

Mental states Mental properties current originality of mental typical for an individual originality of activity (psychic processes), his mental activity due to soder. (object) Temperament and his personal significance. -individual characteristics psycho...

The specific range of phenomena that psychology studies stands out distinctly and clearly - these are our perceptions, thoughts, feelings, our aspirations, intentions, desires, etc. - everything that makes up the inner content of our life and that, as an experience, seems to be directly we are given.

Indeed, belonging to the individual who experiences them, the subject, is the first salient feature all mental. Psychic phenomena therefore appear as processes and as properties of concrete individuals...

The main mode of existence of the mental is its existence as a process, as an activity. This position is directly connected with the reflex understanding of mental activity, with affirmation.

That mental phenomena arise and exist only in the process of continuous interaction of the individual with the world around him, the incessant flow of the influence of the external world on the individual and his response actions, and each action is due to internal causes ...

Some understand mental influence as a kind of hypnosis, others understand it as a form of persuading an opponent in their point of view, based on the psychological characteristics of people. However, both hypnosis and persuasion psychological tricks, are just particular manifestations of the great variety of the phenomenon, referred to as the mental impact of a person on the world around him.

Effective constancy of PE

Psychic Energy is in constant action. A person may not be aware of the constant work of his chakras, which create and register the surrounding flows of PE or express their activity in the form of useless material deposits, but PE cannot freeze in inaction. PE is always active.

Inexhaustibility of PE

Psychic Energy is inexhaustible, both in qualitative and quantitative terms. Human PE cannot be depleted by age or disease. Only...

PE transmutation

Elevation, expansion and refinement of consciousness will inevitably lead to a change in the work of the chakras, which attract from the cosmos the spatial fire of the corresponding quality. Thus, the chakras are pumped up by the fire of space, which leads to their partial and gradual ignition. Such a systematic process of expansion and refinement of consciousness leads to a new quality of work of the chakras. The centers after each ignition stage operate at higher rotational speeds, generating higher ...

The need to study PE

The human spirit is born in the Fiery World. According to evolution, the born spirit descends into the material worlds on the subtle and physical planes to gather experience and for the purpose of its own individualization. After successfully passing through all the worlds, the wise and self-conscious spirit must return to its homeland - to the Fiery World.

In order to rise from the dense material layers to the higher worlds, the daytime mind of a person must realize the primary energy, with the help of which he must ...

To denote the mental states of a person in difficult conditions researchers use different concepts, among which the most popular concept is “stress”. It is used to refer to a wide range of not only mental, but also physiological states, for example, physical stress, fatigue, etc., as well as various phenomena related to other areas of knowledge.

The traditional understanding of stress is borrowed by psychologists from physiology. As you know, Hans Selye and his school...

PE and Brotherhood

The meaning of the Brotherhood is to unite the PE. Since time immemorial, people have united in a single desire to advance human evolution in accordance with the laws of the spiritual cosmos. Since then, there has been a Brotherhood whose members have been working tirelessly for the benefit of the entire planet.

The main and strongest means of action of the Brotherhood is the PE, which has been thoroughly studied by the Brotherhood, and the study of which continues to this day, and the study of which will continue further, because the PE is boundless in...

One of the most complex, diverse in its manifestations and the least studied in the human body are mental processes. The table presented in this article clearly divides the phenomena occurring in our psyche into three main groups: according to properties, states and processes. All this is a reflection of reality, which can be traced in dynamics, that is, each such phenomenon has its own beginning, develops and ends with the reaction that follows from this. Mental processes (the table clearly demonstrates this) interact extremely closely with each other. Mental activity continuously flows from one process to another when a person is awake.

mental states

The processes occurring in the human psyche can be caused by external influences that irritate the nervous system, as well as be born directly in the internal environment of the body, depending on the state in which it is at that moment. The table divides mental processes into three main groups: cognitive, emotional and volitional. Here, their components are classified in detail: perception and sensations, memory and representation, imagination and thinking are related to cognitive processes, and active and passive experiences are emotional. The table reveals volitional mental processes as the ability to make decisions, execute and

Consider carefully the graph, which presents the state of the human psyche. Motivational, that is, cognitive mental processes, the table presents the most widely, up to the actualization of needs. The reasons are clear: they can provide the right help to form knowledge and regulate behavior. In a single stream of consciousness, various cognitive mental processes merge, the table of which is presented in the article, since a person is a very complex organism, and the mental component is the basis for any life activity. It is she who ensures the adequacy in the reflection of reality, controlling all types of human activities.

Activity level

The very first tables in general psychology show that the processes of the human psyche proceed unevenly, with different intensity and speed. Mental processes depend entirely on the state of the individual and external influences on it. What is a mental state? Roughly speaking, this is the relative stability of the level of mental activity, which manifests itself in reduced or increased activity. A person can experience a variety of conditions. Anyone can remember that sometimes physical and mental work seemed easy and productive, and at other times the same actions required a lot of work and still did not achieve the desired effect.

Depending on the state of the individual, the characteristics of mental processes also change, the table clearly shows this. The nature of the processes occurring in the psyche is reflex, they arise and change depending on physiological factors, the situation, the course of work, even verbal influences (from praise and censure, the state of the individual clearly acquires new qualities). The comparative table lays out the mental cognitive processes of the individual point by point. It contains the most studied factors of such changes. For example, the level of attention can vary from concentration to absent-mindedness, characterizing the general mental state, and emotional moods especially brightly change the general background of all characteristics - from sadness or irritability to cheerfulness and enthusiasm. Especially a lot of research concerns the main creative state of the individual - inspiration.

personality traits

Mental - stable formations, the highest regulators of activity, which determine the level of the state in the quality and quantity of its components, which is observed in the behavior and activities typical of a particular individual. Comparative table of mental cognitive processes each gradually formed property of the psyche connects with the result of practical and reflective activity. The variety of such properties is rather difficult to classify, even in accordance with the foundations of all already grouped mental processes.

However, the intellectual, that is, the cognitive, volitional and emotional activity of the individual are quite deeply studied and considered in many complex interactions their synthesis. Thus, the table shows a variety of mental processes. The properties, functions and role of these components in human life will be considered by us within the framework of this material. Of the cognitive functions, for example, it is worth noting observation and a flexible mind, perseverance and determination are volitional, and sensitivity and passion are emotional. The properties and functions of mental processes are different, but they all play important role in our daily life.

Synthesis

The properties of the psyche of a human personality do not exist separately, they act in synthesis, forming the most complex structural complexes. There is a classification of manifestations of the unconscious according to mental processes. A table of such states is presented below.

It includes the following processes, synthesizing with each other:

  • Life position: needs, interests, beliefs, ideals, personality activity and selectivity.
  • Temperament - natural personality traits: balance, mobility, tone, other behavioral characteristics, all that characterizes the dynamics of behavior.
  • Abilities: a whole system of intellectual, volitional, emotional personality traits that can determine creative possibilities.
  • Character - a system of ways of behavior and relationships.

Interrelated neuropsychic acts in their stable and purposeful totality have a certain scheme of transformation of activity to obtain a certain result. These are the mental processes inherent in each individual, which are of the main value for study. For example, memory as a mental process requires the memorization of information, this is its need - conscious and unconscious. Here, the input to the process will be precisely this requirement as a property, and the output or end result will be the information remaining in memory.

Psychic Phenomena

The most common mental processes have been listed above, but let's dwell on these lists in more detail. They vary greatly among authors. Common and noted by all are attention, emotions, memory, will, thinking, perception, speech. In the category of mental phenomena, they are accessible to any direct and unskilled observation.

Most often, not even the observed process itself is interesting, but its deviations from the norm, that is, characteristics. Here, usually, students are helped to understand the classification by the usual table of features of mental processes. Children of all categories are studied especially carefully, but even their cognitive processes can be quite easily distinguished from emotional or volitional ones.

Personality Features

People are endowed with completely different abilities: one is distracted, and the other is attentive, this one perfectly remembers faces, and that one only melodies. In addition, behavior characterizes any mental phenomenon and the degree of balance: a surprise will please someone, surprise someone, and leave some indifferent. People treat each other differently: some love others, while others find humanity disgusting. There are people who are persistent, even stubborn in achieving their goal, as well as those who are indifferent to everything - they always remain apathetic and lethargic.

Attitude towards science

Domestic psychology divides everything into three types: properties, states and processes. The differences between them are not so great and are temporary. Processes are usually fast, but the properties are more stable and long lasting. Modern psychologists believe that through the interconnectedness of mental processes, the psyche itself is formed, which can be divided into components only very conditionally, since there is no theoretical justification for this study. Nevertheless, not only the major phenomena of the work of the psyche, but also the main mental processes, the comparative table for which exists far from being in the singular, have been fairly widely identified and studied.

But since psychology has become a science, scientists are developing methods for its cognition, where the main postulate is an integrative approach to the human psyche, and all classifications in the tables are a propaedeutic and pedagogical value. Similar processes take place in society. Just as in the psyche of an individual, they are extremely interconnected in society: children study, parents raise them, work, athletes train, alcoholics drink, the police catch criminals, and so on. No matter how parallel these processes may seem, sooner or later they all intersect with each other in some way.

Will and emotions

A person throughout his life reproduces his skills, knowledge, skills, trying to connect various forms of behavior with the existing emotional state. Thus, the actualization of connections between various mental processes is built, their transition from latent to active form. Among the emotional states, the most striking is affect. This is a stormy, rapidly flowing emotion of great strength, which is similar to an explosion, therefore it is beyond the control of consciousness and is often pathological.

But the process that concentrates consciousness on a real or ideal object is attention. But it is not emotional. A special ability regulates and self-determines its own activity. This is will. All mental processes can be subordinated to it. Its main properties and functions are the exact choice of goals and motives, the regulation of motives for certain actions, even if there is a lack of motivation, the organization of those mental processes that can fit into the system of adequately performed activities, the mobilization of mental and physical capabilities, if it is necessary to overcome obstacles on the way to the set goal.

Cognition and intelligence

Representation and imagination serve as tools for adequate reflection and projection of the world surrounding a person. They are closely connected with non-specific structures of the brain at the cortical level and make it possible to build the dynamic characteristics of maturing mental processes. These are speed and quantitative indicators of certain actions and their implementation. The state in which the psyche of the individual is located can be different, hence the high variability of the results of activity.

Speech is in the closest connection with thinking, about as closely as sensations and perception - one follows from the other. These cognitive processes of the psyche are characteristic of any activity, since it is they that ensure its effectiveness. With the help of basic cognitive processes, a person can set the necessary goals in advance, make plans, fill the upcoming activity with content, predict results and manipulate them as the work progresses. The table presented in the article demonstrates mental cognitive processes and their characteristics as intellectual.

conclusions

The psychological process is most easily explained by the ability of a person to remember, think and anticipate. Most often, this concept is associated with the acquisition of knowledge. Cognitive mental processes are always creative and active, not so much reflecting the surrounding world as transforming it. There are two ways of knowing - specific and non-specific. The first uses sensual and rational processes - these are sensations, perception and thinking, in the latter they share the concept, judgment and conclusion.

Universal, or non-specific, processes of the psyche are memory, will, imagination, attention. They operate through a through method, providing connections throughout the duration of the cognitive process, and it is on them that all processes of the behavioral plan that are in synthesis depend. So supported cognitive activity and practical objective activity of the individual, which receives not only individuality, but also originality and uniqueness.

First of all psyche human and animal, which includes many subjective phenomena. With the help of some, such as, for example, sensations and perception, attention and memory, imagination, thinking and speech, a person cognizes the world. Therefore, they are often called cognitive processes. Other phenomena govern it communication with people, direct actions and deeds. They are called mental properties and states of the personality, they include needs, motives, goals, interests, will, feelings and emotions, inclinations and Capabilities, knowledge and consciousness. In addition, psychology studies human communication and behavior, their dependence on mental phenomena and, in turn, the dependence of the formation and development of mental phenomena on them.

A person does not just penetrate the world with the help of his cognitive processes. He lives and acts in this world, creating it for himself in order to satisfy his material, spiritual and other needs, performs certain actions. In order to understand and explain human actions, we turn to such a concept as personality.

In turn, the mental processes, states and properties of a person, especially in their highest manifestations, can hardly be comprehended to the end, if they are not considered depending on the conditions of a person’s life, on how his interaction with nature and society is organized (activity and communication). Communication and activity are also therefore the subject of modern psychological research.

Mental processes, properties and states of a person, his communication and activity are separated and studied separately, although in reality they are closely related to each other and form a single whole, called vitality person.

Studying the psychology and behavior of people, scientists are looking for their explanation, on the one hand, in the biological nature of man, on the other, in his individual experience, and on the third, in the laws on the basis of which society is built and operates. In the latter case, the dependence of the psyche and behavior of a person on the place he occupies in society, on the existing social system, building, methods of training and education, specific relationships that develop in this

that person with other people, from that social role, which he plays in society, from the activities in which he directly participates.

In addition to the individual psychology of behavior, the range of phenomena studied by psychology also includes relations between people in various human associations - large and small groups, collectives.

Summarizing what has been said, we present in the form of a diagram the main types of phenomena that are studied by modern psychology(Fig. 1, Table 1).

On fig. 1 outlines the basic concepts through which the phenomena studied in psychology are defined. With the help of these concepts, the names of twelve classes of phenomena studied in psychology are formulated. They are listed on the left side of the table. 1. In its right part, examples of specific concepts characterizing the corresponding phenomena are given1.

Examples of general concepts and particular phenomena studied in modern psychology

Processes: individual, internal (mental)

Imagination, memory, perception, forgetting, remembering, ideomotorics, in-site, introspection, motivation, thinking, learning, generalization, feeling, memory, personalization, repetition, presentation, addictive, making decisions, reflection, speech, self-actualization, autosuggestion, self-observation, self-control, self-determination, creativity, recognition, inference, assimilation.

States: individual, internal (mental)

Adaptation, affect, attraction, attention, arousal, hallucination, hypnosis, depersonalization, disposition, desire, interest, love, melancholy, motivation, intention, tension, mood, image, alienation, experience, understanding, need, distraction, self-actualization, self-control, inclination, passion, desire, stress, shame, temperament, anxiety conviction, claim level, fatigue, setting, fatigue, frustration, feeling, euphoria, emotion.

Properties individual, internal (mental)

Illusions, constancy, will, inclinations, personality, inferiority complex, personality, giftedness, prejudice, performance, decisiveness, rigidity, conscience, stubbornness phlegm, character, egocentrism.

Processes: individual, external (behavioral)

action, activity, gesture, a game, imp-ringing, facial expressions, skill, imitation, deed, reaction, exercise.

States: individual, external (behavioral)

Willingness, interest, installation.

Phenomena studied by psychology

Concepts characterizing these phenomena

Properties: individual, external (behavioral)

Processes: group, internal

Identification, communication, conformity, communication, interpersonal perception, interpersonal relationships, formation of group norms.

States: group, internal

Conflict, cohesion, group polarization, psychological climate.

Properties: group, external

Compatibility, leadership style, rivalry, cooperation, group performance.

Processes: group, external

Intergroup relations.

States: group, external

Panic, openness of the group, closeness of the group.

Properties: group, external

Organization.

Most of those listed in Table. 1 concepts and phenomena are revealed in the textbook. However, for the most general preliminary acquaintance with them, one can refer to the dictionary-index of psychological terms available at the end of the book.

All mental phenomena are inextricably linked, but traditionally they are divided into three groups:
1) mental processes;
2) mental states;
3) mental properties of the personality.

Mental processes should be considered as basic phenomena, and mental states and personality traits as a temporary and typological modification of mental processes. In their totality, all mental phenomena form a single stream of reflective-regulatory activity.

Let's give a short general characteristics these three groups of mental phenomena.
I. Mental processes are separate integral acts of reflective-regulatory activity. Each mental process has its own object of reflection, its own regulatory specifics and its own patterns.

Mental processes represent the initial group of mental phenomena: mental images are formed on their basis.

Mental processes - active interaction of the subject with the object of reflection, a system of specific actions aimed at its cognition and interaction with it.

Mental processes are divided into: 1) cognitive (sensation, perception, thinking, imagination and memory), 2) volitional, 3) emotional.

Such is the traditional, coming from I. Kant, classification of mental phenomena. It underlies the construction of traditional psychology. However, this classification suffers from an artificial isolation of mental processes from mental states and typological properties of a person: cognitive, volitional and emotional processes are nothing but certain mental capabilities (abilities) of a person, and mental states are the current originality of these capabilities.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Psychic Phenomena are brain responses to external ( environment) and internal (the state of the organism as a physiological system) influences. Mental phenomena are constant regulators of activity that occurs in response to stimuli that are acting now (sensations, perceptions) or were once, that is, in past experience (memory), generalizing these effects and foreseeing the results to which they will lead (thinking, imagination), strengthening or weakening, activating activity under the influence of some influences and inhibiting it under the influence of others (feelings and will), revealing differences in people's behavior (temperament, character, etc.).

There are currently three major groups of mental phenomena Keywords: mental processes, mental states, mental properties.

1. mental processes is a dynamic reflection of reality in various forms mental phenomena. This is the course of mental phenomena that have a beginning, development and end, manifested in the form of a reaction. The end of one mental process is connected with the beginning of a new one, which leads to the continuity of mental activity in the waking state of a person. All mental processes are divided into: cognitive (sensations, perceptions, memory, thinking, imagination, representation, attention); emotional (active and passive experiences); volitional (decision, execution, willpower and so on.). They provide the primary formation of knowledge and the primary regulation of human behavior and activities.

2. mental states- this is a relatively stable level of mental activity that has been determined at a given time, which manifests itself in increased or decreased activity of the individual. Mental states are of a reflex nature: they arise under the influence of the situation, physiological factors, the course of work, time, and verbal influences (praise, censure, etc.). There are 4 types of mental states: motivational (desires, aspirations, interests, passion); emotional (emotional tone of sensations, emotional response to the phenomena of reality, mood, stress, affect, frustration); strong-willed (initiative, purposefulness, determination, perseverance); the state of different levels of organization of consciousness (mindfulness, observation). 23

3. Mental properties- these are sustainable formations that provide a certain qualitative-quantitative level of activity and behavior, typical for this person. Personality properties are diverse and are classified in accordance with the grouping of mental processes on the basis of which they are formed. It is possible to single out the properties of the intellectual, or cognitive, volitional and emotional activity of a person. Mental properties do not exist together, they are synthesized and form complex structural formations of the personality. .

The human psyche is complex and diverse in its manifestations. Usually, three large groups of mental phenomena are distinguished, namely:

1) mental processes, 2) mental states, 3) mental properties.

mental processes- dynamic reflection of reality in various forms of mental phenomena.

mental process- this is the course of a mental phenomenon that has a beginning, development and end, manifested in the form of a reaction. At the same time, it must be borne in mind that the end of a mental process is closely connected with the beginning of a new process. Hence the continuity of mental activity in the waking state of a person.

Mental processes are caused by both external influences and stimuli. nervous system coming from the internal environment of the body.

All mental processes are divided into cognitive- these include sensations and perceptions, representations and memory, thinking and imagination; emotional- active and passive experiences; strong-willed- decision, execution, volitional effort; etc.

Mental processes provide the formation of knowledge and the primary regulation of human behavior and activities.

In a complex mental activity, various processes are connected and form a single stream of consciousness that provides an adequate reflection of reality and the implementation of various kinds activities. Mental processes proceed with different speed and intensity depending on the characteristics of external influences and states of the individual.

Under mental state one should understand the relatively stable level of mental activity that has been determined at a given time, which manifests itself in increased or decreased activity of the individual.

Every person experiences different mental states on a daily basis. In one mental state, mental or physical work proceeds easily and productively, in another it is difficult and inefficient.

Mental states are of a reflex nature: they arise under the influence of the situation, physiological factors, the course of work, time, and verbal influences (praise, censure, etc.).

The most studied are: 1) general mental state, for example, attention, manifested at the level of active concentration or distraction, 2) emotional states, or moods (cheerful, enthusiastic, sad, sad, angry, irritable, etc.). There are interesting studies about a special, creative, state of the individual, which is called inspiration.

Personality properties are the highest and stable regulators of mental activity.

Under mental properties a person should be understood as stable formations that provide a certain qualitative-quantitative level of activity and behavior that is typical for a person.


Each mental property is formed gradually in the process of reflection and is fixed in practice. It is therefore the result of reflective and practical activity.

Personality properties are diverse, and they must be classified in accordance with the grouping of mental processes on the basis of which they are formed. So, it is possible to single out the properties of the intellectual, or cognitive, volitional and emotional activity of a person. For example, let's give some intellectual properties - observation, flexibility of the mind; strong-willed - determination, perseverance; emotional - sensitivity, tenderness, passion, affectivity, etc.

Mental properties do not exist together, they are synthesized and form complex structural formations of the personality, which include:

1) the life position of the individual (a system of needs, interests, beliefs that determines the selectivity and level of activity of a person); 2) temperament (a system of natural personality traits - mobility, balance of behavior and tone of activity, characterizing the dynamic side of behavior); 3) abilities (a system of intellectual-volitional and emotional properties that determine the creative possibilities of the individual) and, finally, 4) character as a system of relationships and behaviors.

In addition to the individual psychology of behavior, the range of phenomena studied by psychology also includes relations between people in various human associations - large and small groups, collectives.

Summing up what has been said, let us present in the form of a diagram the main types of phenomena that modern psychology studies (Fig. 2, Table 1).

On fig. 2 outlines the basic concepts through which the phenomena studied in psychology are defined. With the help of these concepts, the names of the twelve classes of phenomena studied in psychology are formulated. They are listed on the left side of the table. 1. In its right part, examples of specific concepts are given that characterize the corresponding phenomena 1 .

Rice. 2. General concepts that describe the phenomena studied in psychology