Behavior in psychology: what it is, how science arose, briefly and clearly

The psychology of human behavior and its study is a very complex but interesting process. Why is it pleasant and easy to communicate with one person, while difficult and tense with another? There is a desire to quickly end the conversation and leave, despite the fact that he is a good friend who is always courteous and polite.

We intuitively understand when a person is sincere and when he is disingenuous. That is why we experience conflicting feelings: on the one hand, the person has not done anything wrong, but on the other, there is an inner feeling that tells us that we should stay away from him.

The described situation of interpersonal relationships is explained in psychology.

Definition of the concept

Behavioral psychology is a field of knowledge that explains a person’s nonverbal movements (facial expressions, gestures, intonations) and draws conclusions about how sincere, truthful, confident and open he is.

Very often we make such an assessment unconsciously when we feel uncomfortable when communicating with a familiar person or even avoid him. But in fact, we evaluate his behavioral manifestations, which tell us what he thinks about us, how he treats us, despite the fact that his words may be friendly or neutral.

There are a number of techniques that allow you to determine a person’s true intentions, his emotions, and level of self-esteem. His movements, facial expressions and other features reveal his inner fears, attitudes, complexes, which we catch subconsciously or evaluate consciously if we have certain knowledge and experience.

We perceive the communication process as a general picture; sometimes during a conversation we do not notice what he is wearing, what he is saying, but we pay attention to how he does it, what phrases and words he uses, how he sits and what he holds in his hands. Sometimes some little thing attracts attention and is remembered for a long time: a smell, a speech impediment, an accent, slips of the tongue, incorrect accents, an inappropriate laugh, and so on.

A scientific discipline that helps explain and decipher unconscious nuances in people's behavior that reveal their true intentions is behavioral psychology.

1. What do gestures and facial expressions tell us?

Gestures and facial expressions play a huge role in conversation. But, despite the simplicity of deciphering certain human postures and gestures, they can carry a completely different meaning.

For example, in the psychology of lying there are the main signs of deception: a person does not look into the eyes, touches his mouth, nose, neck. But the interlocutor may touch his nose only because it itches.

Crossed legs or arms - these gestures in the psychology of human behavior are interpreted as distrust, tightness, isolation, but the interlocutor may simply be cold.

Advice on deciphering mannerisms and gestures can often lead to a dead end or put a person in an awkward position. For example, when we see an open posture in our interlocutor, a confident and calm voice, a pleasant, sincere look, we take him for an honest person, but in fact he has fraudulent intentions. Or pick-up artists, how much charm, wit, sincerity, good manners they have - and this is all in order to assert themselves.

2. What does speech and intonation tell us?

Speed of speech, rhythm, volume, intonation greatly influence communication and can tell a lot of additional information about a person, according to behavioral psychology. Science helps to understand the emotional state of a person:

A calm, reasonable, balanced person speaks rhythmically, slowly, with an average level of volume.
Impulsiveness of character is revealed by fast and animated speech.
Those who are insecure or withdrawn speak quietly and uncertainly.

3. Often words are not as important as intonation.

But it should be understood that if a person is in an unfamiliar environment, he may behave differently than in a familiar environment.

Behavioral psychology will allow us to determine the hidden factors that actually influence a person. But in order to see and understand them, you need to be “savvy” with knowledge and attentive to people.

The role of faith

Another important aspect of human behavior is the “core belief” of people. Such belief may manifest itself in religion, philosophy, culture and/or personal beliefs, and often influences the way a person behaves. As of 2012, about 80% of the United States public identifies with a religion, and religion can play a large role in society. It is natural that something that plays a big role in society influences human behavior. Morality is another core belief factor that influences what this article is about. Emotions associated with morality include shame, pride and discomfort - and these can change a person's behavior. Most importantly, shame and guilt have a big impact on behavior.

Deviant behavior and psychology

The phenomenon of such behavior is so complex and widespread that there is a separate science to study it - deviantology, which arose at the intersection of criminology, sociology, psychology and psychiatry.

1. The concept of “deviant” and social behavior in psychology

“Deviation” from Latin means “deviation”. In psychology, behavior that deviates from the norms accepted in society is called deviant or asocial. That is, it is sustainable human behavior that causes real harm to people and society. It is harmful both for others and for the deviant himself.

The psychology of deviant behavior studies such forms of deviation as suicide, crime, prostitution, drug addiction, vagrancy, fanaticism, alcoholism, and vandalism.

Such behavior is associated with malice, violence, aggression, destruction, therefore society has conditionally or legally introduced penalties for violators of social norms, he is isolated, treated, corrected or punished.

2. Personality of the deviant, his psychology, behavioral characteristics

Science does not study how and where a person committed an offense; it is interested in general patterns and personality characteristics.

Causes and sources of antisocial behavior:

Physiological: genetic predisposition to aggression; diseases of the endocrine system; chromosomal abnormalities.
Public: imperfect legislation; social inequality; media propaganda of an antisocial lifestyle; hanging “labels”; negative assessments given by relatives.
Psychological reasons: internal conflicts between conscience and desires; special character; mental disorders; dysfunctional family relationships; too conservative, strict, cruel upbringing in childhood.

The character of deviants often contains such traits as conflict, negativism, dependence, anxiety, aggressiveness, and hostility. They often deceive and do it with pleasure; they like to shift responsibility and blame onto others.

A person’s deviant behavior leads to his social disadaptation, that is, he does not adapt to the conditions of society and, as a result, goes against it.

A child’s behavior cannot be antisocial, since self-control in children under 5 years of age is not yet developed and the process of adaptation to society has just begun.

The most dangerous period in terms of the possibility of developing deviation is between the ages of 12 and 20 years.

3. How to deal with problem behavior?

Most often, people with this behavior end up seeing a psychologist in prisons, in children's colonies, and in addiction treatment centers. Society is engaged in the prevention of deviations in hospitals, schools, dysfunctional families, through the media, but the problem is that there is no individual approach, and a person cannot cope with it on his own. But he may realize the need to change his lifestyle and seek help from specialists.

Recommendations

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Psychology of addictive behavior

In psychology, as the science of human behavior, addiction is called attachment to someone or something. It is unacceptable from the point of view of moral or social norms, it threatens health and causes suffering to the person himself.

Addiction harms society and individuals, it limits their development and leads to all sorts of mental illnesses.

More people die from addiction than from crime and war combined. It manifests itself as an escape from problems into an illusory ideal world. Gradually, a person ceases to control his behavior, emotions, thoughts. His entire existence is reduced to an object of dependence, which gradually completely destroys him as a person.

Recently, the spread of drug and alcohol use among young people has become a national disaster. Therefore, the attention of psychologists, psychiatrists, sociologists, narcologists, and lawyers has been drawn to this problem.

Dependent behavior is also called addictive - it is a type of deviant behavior, that is, it is the desire to escape from reality by changing one’s mental consciousness. Behavioral psychology views this as a destructive attitude towards oneself and society.

Addictive behavior is alcoholism, drug addiction, smoking, hypersexuality, gambling, computer addiction, addiction to rich food, shopping.

Dependence has varying degrees of severity: from normal to severe.

Why do some people develop this strong and irresistible attachment, what explains the impulsiveness and insatiability of desire? The answers to these questions are of great importance for society and for each individual.

Social norms

The behavior of people (and other organisms, or even machines) falls within a range, some of which are common and some of which are unusual. That is, some types of behavior are acceptable forms of behavior, and some are unacceptable. In sociology, it generally includes actions that have no meaning, are not directed at other people, and therefore all basic human actions. Behavior in this general sense should not be confused with social behavior, which is more advanced social action specifically directed towards other people. Acceptability of behavior depends largely on social norms. And it is regulated by various means of social control. Human behavior is studied by the specialized academic disciplines of psychiatry, psychology, political science, sociology, economics and anthropology. Standards of behavior are what must be observed when living in society.

A person's behavior is felt throughout his life. It involves acting on various factors such as genetics, social norms, religious belief and relationships. Behavior is influenced by certain traits inherent in each person. The characteristics vary from person to person and can produce different actions or behaviors depending on each individual. Social norms also influence behavior. Due to the inherent conformist nature of human society as a whole, people are pressured to adhere to certain rules and to follow rules for exhibiting certain behaviors in society. Which determines the interaction of people. Different types of behavior are considered acceptable or unacceptable in different societies and cultures. The core belief can be perceived through that person's religion and philosophy. It shapes the way a person thinks. And this, in turn, leads to different behavior among people. Attitude can be defined as "the degree to which a person has a favorable or unfavorable evaluation of the behavior in question." A person's attitude is basically a reflection of the behavior he or she will portray in specific situations. Thus, human behavior is greatly influenced by the habits we use on a daily basis. Deviant behavior is something that receives a negative assessment from society.

Psychology of gestures and facial expressions

The psychology of behavior, gestures and facial expressions is the key to a person’s secrets that he wants to hide. As a result of evolution, man has learned to convey thoughts and feelings using words. But along with this skill, he mastered the art of hiding his true plans and intentions, aspirations. You need to be able to “read” your interlocutor by his body movements. Only in this way can you understand what is on his mind and what can be expected from him.

American psychologist Meyerabian Albert believes that when communicating we convey 7% of information verbally, 38% by intonation and tone of voice, and 55% by non-verbal signals.

The main rule of the psychology of gestures and facial expressions says that there is no person in the world who can completely control body movements during a conversation, even if he wants to deliberately mislead the interlocutor.

A person on a subconscious level reacts almost identically to certain situations. Involuntary facial expressions and gestures of a stranger allow you to hear and see what is hidden behind the screen of words.

The most important nonverbal cues:

Protection. In dangerous or uncomfortable situations, when there is a desire to isolate themselves from their interlocutor, people lean back, cover themselves with a book, folder or other object, cross their legs, cross their arms over their chest, and clench their fists. Their eyes are constantly watching the one from whom they expect a dirty trick. This behavior indicates wariness and tension, as well as a lack of readiness for constructive dialogue.
Openness. The body is tilted towards the interlocutor, open palms, a benevolent smile - these signals indicate a predisposition to communicate.
Interest. The absence of gestures, the sparkle in the eyes speak of passion, the person is completely attentive, he is leaning forward and tries not to move so as not to miss a word.
Boredom. A dull look, rhythmic swinging of a leg, fiddling with something in his hands, drawing, yawning. In sign language in the psychology of communication, this means that the listener has no interest in the topic of the conversation.
Skepticism. The person agrees with the interlocutor, but makes it clear that he does not trust him with such gestures as rubbing his neck, scratching his ear, cheek, forehead, grinning, resting his chin with his palm.

Psychology of human behavior teaches us to understand the wisdom of non-verbal symbolism and correct mutual understanding of each other.

Offense

An offense is a social and legal antipode to lawful behavior; their social and legal characteristics are opposite. Delinquency is a type of antisocial illegal behavior.

In the social sense, this is behavior that contradicts or can cause harm to the rights and interests of citizens, their teams and society as a whole; it complicates and disorganizes the development of social relations.

Thus, the crimes provided for by the Criminal Code encroach on the foundations of the state system, on the individual, his political and economic or social rights, public order and other social benefits. Other offenses, although not so socially dangerous, still cause harm to social relations, the individual, the natural environment, etc.

Of course, individual offenses cannot pose a danger to society as a whole. However, taken together, they pose a significant danger to him and violate the regime of legality and the established legal order.

A mass phenomenon consisting of a set of crimes committed in a state in a certain time period is called crime.

The increase in crime creates a serious threat to the state and society, life, health and property of citizens. To combat crimes, it is important to determine their nature and characteristics, the reasons for their commission, and on this basis to outline ways to reduce their number.

An offense is a socially dangerous or harmful unlawful guilty act (action or inaction) of a person capable of delinquency, entailing legal liability.

Legal behavior and delinquency

What can nonverbal speech tell about a person?

Most people underestimate the role of facial expressions and gestures in communication. But it is with the help of non-verbal signals that the first impression of a person is created. And it will be remembered for a long time. Gestures help or distract listeners from the conversation; even their absence carries information about the person speaking.

So, what do these or other gestures mean:

a limp handshake speaks of a person’s shyness and uncertainty, and vice versa, a strong one speaks of a desire to impose one’s opinion;
if a woman straightens her hair, it means she is preening;
if a person gestures with only one hand, this indicates his unnaturalness;
touching the forehead, mouth, nose is regarded as deception;
crossing your arms indicates the interlocutor’s skepticism and distrust of the person speaking;
Slouching and hunching indicate a person’s low self-esteem and uncertainty.

It is necessary to develop observation skills; it helps to collect additional information about the people with whom you have to communicate.

The main thing in psychology regarding human behavior is the ability to listen and see. After all, the sound of the voice and its intonation, gestures and facial expressions of the interlocutor are of great importance.

Behavior as a moral category

Behavior is a set of human actions that an individual performs over a long period of time under given conditions. These are all actions, not individual ones. Regardless of whether actions are performed consciously or unintentionally, they are subject to moral evaluation. It is worth noting that behavior can reflect both the actions of one person and an entire team. In this case, both personal characteristics and the specifics of interpersonal relationships influence. Through his behavior, a person reflects his attitude towards society, towards specific people, and towards the objects around him.

What does a man's behavior tell us?

The psychology of the strong half of humanity is always associated with the performance of certain actions: to conquer, to obtain, to win. Therefore, in their games from childhood there is always a spirit of competition in endurance, strength of character, and strength.

All their actions are aimed at the final result. From childhood, their self-esteem is based on abilities and achievements.

The words and actions of men and women are different. Therefore, when talking with them, you need to pay attention to their general demeanor. If during a conversation he crosses his legs or arms, sits half-turned, it means he is not listening, he seems to be shutting himself off from the information. If he looks into your eyes and periodically glances at your lips, it means he is interested in the conversation.

If a man adjusts his tie, frequently changes his position, has high eyebrows and wide eyes, he is interested in the woman he is talking to.

If he avoids looking, fiddles with buttons or other small parts of clothing, covers his mouth with his hand, straightens the collar of his shirt, this means the interlocutor is trying to hide something.

It should be remembered that all these non-verbal signals are statistical averages. The psychology of the stronger sex is much more complex and depends on the person and his emotional fullness.

Signs of an offense

Let's consider the main signs of an offense.

Firstly, it has an illegal, unlawful nature, i.e. contrary to the rules of law. This is either a violation of prohibitions or a failure to fulfill duties. The sign of illegality characterizes the offense from the formal legal side.
Secondly, it is socially harmful (for example, truancy) or socially dangerous (attack on the life of a citizen). Social harmfulness (misdemeanor) and social danger (crime) are the main objective signs that distinguish lawful behavior from unlawful behavior.
Thirdly, it is expressed in an act - this can be an illegal action (theft, robbery, slander) or inaction (negligence, truancy, leaving a person in a helpless state). Thoughts, feelings, political and religious views that are not expressed in actions cannot be considered offenses. Qualities, personality traits, nationality, and family ties of a person are not considered offenses.
Fourthly, only volitional actions are considered offenses, i.e. actions depending on the will and consciousness of the participants, carried out by them voluntarily. Behavior that is not controlled by consciousness, or behavior committed in a situation that deprives a person of the choice of a behavior other than an illegal one, cannot be called an offense. Therefore, offenses are behavior options of only capable (tortuous) people. The law does not consider minors and the mentally ill to be tortious.
Fifthly, he is guilty. Only a guilty act is recognized as an offense, i.e. an action that expresses the offender’s negative internal attitude towards the interests of people, causes damage to society and the state through its action (or inaction) and contains guilt. Guilt is a person’s mental attitude towards his act and its consequences. by committing which, the individual is aware that he is acting unlawfully, that by his act he is causing damage to public interests, and that he is acting guilty.
Sixthly, it is punishable, i.e. entails the application of government measures to the offender, measures of legal liability in the form of deprivations of a personal, organizational and material nature.

So, any offense harms the interests of the individual, society, state (property, social, moral, political, etc.).

Damage or destruction of property, death of a person, violation of his dignity, loss of working time, defective products - all these are negative consequences of an offense. The act may not cause real harm, but only put social values at risk (such as, for example, a drunk driver).

The degree of social harmfulness of an act may vary, but its presence is mandatory for classifying it as an offense. The absence of at least one of these signs does not allow the act to be considered an offense. Consequently, a behavior option that, although it violates legal regulations, does not cause damage and is socially useful, is not an offense.
An action, although socially dangerous, but carried out within the framework of legal regulations, is also not considered an offense, just as an illegal action of an incompetent person is not considered such.

Legal behavior and delinquency

What do children tell us with their antics?

The psychology of child behavior is based on three basic principles:

a sense of belonging to the family system;
emotional connection with parents;
own importance.

When the child's basic needs are satisfied (sleep, food, water), he has a desire to satisfy emotional ones. He needs to have some responsibilities assigned only to him. That is, something that depends only on him. This increases his self-esteem. He must feel that he is making a contribution to the life of the family, know that his opinion is taken into account, that he also controls events.

How to help a child and satisfy his need for significance and involvement?

First of all, it is necessary to form a close emotional connection with mom, dad and other relatives. And involve the child in discussing family problems and making decisions.

If a conflict arises with a child, talk to him; perhaps he lacks parental attention. It is necessary to let him know that he is very important and needed.

Spend time with your child at least 20 minutes a day, but it should be devoted only to him. Children love to fool around and play with their parents, this is how the strongest emotional connection is established. Do not teach him how to play with certain toys, it is better to remain non-judgmental. He must have an area of life in which he alone must make decisions. Try to become a friend, not a teacher.

The Science of Survival

Individuals always compete with other individuals for limited resources, including food, territory, and mates. Conflict occurs between predators and prey, between rivals and comrades, between siblings, partners, and even between parents and offspring. Roles of behavior are a special niche that the subject occupies in this permanent conflict with everyone.

The meaning of social behavior depends in part on the animal's neighbors. Behavior is something that is often consistent with surrounding members of the same species. For example, the more likely a rival male is to abandon a threat, the more value the second male gains from the threat he supposedly poses. However, to protect the group, males can also act as a team. When a population exhibits a series of interacting social behaviors such as this, it can develop a stable pattern known as an evolutionarily stable strategy (or ESS). This term, derived from economic game theory, became prominent after John Maynard Smith (1982) recognized the possible application of the concept of Nash equilibrium to model the evolution of behavioral strategies.

Psychology of women

The psychology of the fair half of humanity is based on several circumstances:

Character type. Most women are sanguine. They are active, they are characterized by mood swings, they know how to manage feelings, and subordinate circumstances to their desires.
Upbringing is what parents instilled in a little girl that determines her actions and behavior.
Experience - if she has faced negativity all her life, she stops trusting people and becomes lonely. Her behavior is different from the standard.

The psychology of a woman’s behavior is determined by her attitude towards a man. Psychologists believe that women have a natural ingenuity that helps them in life. But they primarily direct their ingenuity to relationships with men. For example, they try to appear strong and independent, they always have some hobbies and hobbies, often planned personal time, and so on.

Composition of the offence.

Due to the formal certainty of the law, its norms clearly establish not only the rule of behavior itself (necessary or prohibited), but also other factors that make it possible to characterize an act as an offense.

The system of signs of an offense in the unity of its objective and subjective aspects, necessary and sufficient to impose legal liability, is defined as the composition of the offense.

The offense includes:

subject of the offense
object of the offense
the objective side of the offense
subjective side of the offense

Subject of the offense

The subject of the offense may be a tortious individual or organization. In criminal law, this is only an individual. The subject of the offense is enshrined in the hypothesis of a legal norm.

Object of the offense

The object of the offense is what it is aimed at, i.e. those values and benefits that are damaged by the offense - property, life, health of citizens, public order, etc. The object (as well as the subject) is clearly enshrined in the legal norm.

The objective side of the offense

The objective side of the offense is characterized by: the outwardly expressed act, its socially harmful consequences and the necessary causal relationship between them. Like other elements of the composition, the objective side is quite clearly enshrined in the law.

For example, bodily injury can be serious, less serious, or minor. Each of them forms an independent crime under the Criminal Code.

The subjective side of the offense

The subjective side of the offense is associated with the concept of guilt. The degree of guilt of the subject is determined by the guilt of foreseeing or not foreseeing the consequences of his act, his attitude towards the act and its consequences.

Guilt can be in the form of intent or negligence. The latter assumes that the individual foresaw the onset of socially dangerous consequences, but not only did not want them to occur, but also frivolously hoped for their prevention (arrogance), or did not foresee, but should have foreseen according to the circumstances of the case (negligence).

Offenses, like acts of lawful behavior, are very diverse. They differ in the degree of social harm, the duration of the commission, the subjects, the scope of the legislation violated, the objects of encroachment, etc.

According to the nature and degree of social harm, all offenses are divided into crimes and misdemeanors.

Legal behavior and delinquency

Forms of human behavior

Based on socionics and Dellinger’s theory of psychoforms, forms of human behavior were identified:

Dominant is the behavior of leaders, realists, and practitioners.
Creative - characteristic of people with abstract-imaginative thinking. They rely more on intuition, have ingenuity, premonition, imagination, and are completely divorced from reality.
A harmonizing form of behavior is characteristic of people who are endowed with empathy, ethics, and subtle diplomacy.
Normalizing is the behavior of logical people capable of analyzing facts.

Usually people have a combination of two types of behavior, one of which is more pronounced.

Hierarchy of equality

Animal families exhibit varying degrees of hierarchy. The individual is looking for a specific reaction among its fellows in order to become a leader.

If it were not possible to achieve emotions of recognition from family members, then the individual would not bother. It turns out that if an individual seeks the attention of others, then it tries by any means to become a leader, that is, it achieves its goals through bellicose behavior.

People's behavior is almost the same - as soon as those around them provide their emotions with recognition, one of the members of society becomes a leader. For example, emotions of recognition go to authoritative people who have somehow attracted the attention of society. People brought up in a strict home hierarchy display aggressive behavior towards members of their family or towards weaker people.

Crime

A crime is a socially dangerous criminal act.

Public danger is a clear danger of an act to society, the most significant interests of the state, and the individual. The increased social danger of crimes also predetermines their formal and legal side.

Criminal acts are established exclusively by law. No other regulations can do this. Moreover, they are enshrined in the Criminal Code with exhaustive completeness.