Interest in the science of the soul, which is how the word “psychology” is translated, arose among humanity many centuries ago. And until now it has not faded away, but on the contrary, it is flaring up with renewed vigor. At the same time, over a long period of time, famous psychologists have repeatedly changed, developed and supplemented scientific thought about the inner world of man. Over many centuries, they have written a huge number of monographs, articles, and books on this topic. And of course, famous psychologists, exploring the nuances and subtleties of the science of the soul, made incredible discoveries in it, which are of great practical importance even today. Surnames such as Freud, Maslow, Vygotsky, Ovcharenko are known all over the world. These famous psychologists became true innovators in their field of study. For them, the science of the soul was an integral part of their life. Who are they and thanks to what scientific achievements did they become famous? Let's consider this issue in more detail.
Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)
Austrian psychologist, neurologist, psychiatrist. Creator of the theory of psychoanalysis. He was the first to develop a substantiated three-component theory of personality, define the stages of human psychosexual development, describe many mechanisms of psychological defense, and develop psychotherapeutic methods for interpreting dreams and free associations.
The author of numerous scientific works, Freud had a tremendous influence on medicine, sociology, anthropology, art and literature of the twentieth century, his theories were a breakthrough in psychology and psychiatry, and his treatment methods were far ahead of their time and remain in demand to this day.
Adler Alfred
This man also belongs to the scientific luminaries who left a deep mark on psychology. He was born in Penzing, Austria in 1870. It is noteworthy that Alfred did not become a follower of Freud. He deliberately lost his membership in the psychoanalytic society. The scientist rallied around himself his own team of like-minded people called the Association of Individual Psychology. In 1912 he published the monograph “On Nervous Character.”
Soon he initiates the creation of the Journal of Individual Psychology. When the Nazis seized power, he stopped his scientific activities. The Alfred Clinic was closed in 1938. One way or another, he was the only expert in the field of psychology who defended the idea that the main component of personal development is the desire to preserve and develop one’s own uniqueness and individuality.
The scientist believed that a person’s lifestyle directly affects the quality of experience that he will gain in old age. This experience is strongly interconnected with the feeling of collectivism, one of the three innate unconscious feelings included in the structure of the “I”. The design of a lifestyle is based on a sense of collectivism, but it is not always subject to development and may remain in its infancy. In the latter case, quarrels and conflict situations may arise. The scientist emphasized that if a person can find a common language with others, then he is not in danger of becoming a neurasthenic, and he will rarely dare to act wildly and rashly.
Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961)
Swiss philosopher and psychiatrist, founder of one of the currents of depth psychology, namely analytical. In working with the unconscious, he tried not only to solve the problem of childhood fears, but also to explore the memory of generations, drawing parallels between mysticism, alchemy and psychology. The main theme of his works was the relationship between thinking and culture, biological and cultural-historical factors in the development of peoples, the difference in the worldview of the East and the West, the analysis of myths, tales and legends. He considered the combination of the conscious and unconscious to be the source of culture.
He developed the theory of the collective unconscious, worked using the method of free associations and interpretation of archetypal symbols and images. He introduced the terms “introversion” and “extroversion”, a typology of characters, and considered the main task of psychotherapy to be assistance in realizing the individuality of each person.
Jean Piaget – child psychologist
Jean Piaget became famous for his in-depth study of child psychology. He paid special attention to the development of children's thinking and intelligence, which underlie the formation of the personality of any adult. Jean Piaget studied the following areas:
- characteristics of the child’s psyche;
- adaptive nature of intelligence;
- development of intelligence structures;
- development of the child's thinking.
Before him, the child’s mind was considered a primitive structure that gradually matures and gains experience; Piaget proved that everything is much more complicated. The general theory of developmental stages helped to understand the formation of the thinking of a small child at different ages and understand why they commit the same actions, mistakes and how they help their personality to form. In addition, abnormalities and methods for their treatment were considered. He developed a conversation and diagnostic technique, a list of questions that will help detect the symptoms of developmental disorders, as well as identify the causes of their occurrence. Based on the data obtained, the psychologist develops measures for the child’s adaptation and recovery.
Abraham Maslow (1908-1970)
American psychologist, founder of the direction of humanistic psychology. Personality theories built on the basis of psychoanalysis, data for which were usually collected when diagnosing people with certain disorders or deviations, were contrasted with the personality theory of a healthy, realized person.
Maslow's most famous theory is the theory of motivation, from which he derived the hierarchy of needs, better known as Maslow's pyramid; put the human need for self-realization at the forefront.
Albert Bandura
Albert Bandura is an American psychologist known for creating social learning theory and the Bobo Doll experiment.
Born on December 4, 1925 in a small village in northern Canada. After graduating from high school, Bandura worked on highway restoration in the state of Alaska. He graduated from the University of British Columbia in 1959, and in 1952 he received a PhD in clinical psychology and began teaching at Stanford University.
Social Learning Theory, written by Albert Bandura, shows the constant interconnection of cognition, behavior and environment. This theory emphasizes the importance of learning through imitation and observation.
The Bobo Doll experiment was conducted in 1961. A group of children were shown a videotape of a woman hitting a Bobo doll and yelling at it aggressively. The children were then allowed to play in the room where the Bobo doll was located. They began to beat this doll and imitate the movements and words of the woman from the video. The experiment showed that the children, without receiving any reinforcement or incentive, simply repeated the behavior that was observed on the video recording. This allowed us to move a little away from behaviorist ideas. Based on his observations and experiments, Bandura wrote the book “Teenage Aggression,” which was translated into Russian.
Albert Bandura's theories made a great contribution to the development of personality psychology and psychotherapy, and he truly can be called the greatest psychologist of our time.
Dale Carnegie (1888-1955)
American educator, psychologist and writer. He was at the origins of the theory of communication, but placed the main emphasis on the practical application of scientific developments, created his own concept of successful communication and a unique system for teaching communication skills. He wrote several books on practical psychology, which remain in demand to this day. The most famous of them is “How to Win Friends and Influence People” (1936). The book was a bestseller for 10 years, which was an absolute record.
Based on personal developments, he created the Institute of Human Relations and Oratory.
Kurt Lewin
Kurt Lewin is a German psychologist and sociologist. Founder of social psychology who pioneered the study of organizational development and group dynamics.
Born on September 9, 1890 in the German city of Mogilno. Since 1910, Levin studied at the University of Berlin. He took part in the First World War, but was demobilized due to injury. At the front, Kurt was also engaged in scientific activities, observing his fellow soldiers and conducting surveys. The main conclusion that the scientist made: soldiers perceive the situation at the front differently than civilians, and a change in perception occurs not only in one soldier, but in a whole group of front-line soldiers.
After returning from the front, Kurt Lewin continued his studies at the University of Berlin. In 1936, he emigrated to the United States and became head of the Group Dynamics Research Center at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
In the United States, Lewin became the first expert on group behavior. In the first half of the 20th century, Kurt Lewin developed Psychological Field Theory. In his theory, he proceeded from the fact that each personality develops in the psychological field of objects surrounding him, which have their own charge. The scientist's observations and experiments showed that for each individual this charge has its own sign. But at the same time, there are objects that have both attractive and repulsive forces for a person. This force causes needs in a person and tension in him. And, being in a state of tension, a person tries to discharge, i.e. satisfy your needs.
Based on the problems of field theory, Kurt Lewin wrote the book “Field Theory in the Social Sciences.” And the book “Resolution of Social Conflicts” contains practical and theoretical research by the scientist on the problems of mass consciousness, interpersonal conflicts, ethnic problems, etc.
Irvin Yalom (born 1931)
Contemporary American psychologist and psychotherapist. Representative of existential psychology (one of the areas of humanistic psychology). The methodology of his work is largely based on psychoanalysis, but Yalom has always been opposed to “therapy for everyone”, based on formal diagnoses, without taking into account the individuality of the patient. He believes that for each person with his unique history and problems, a new therapy should be developed, built on an interpersonal relationship between the patient and the doctor, mutually open and frank.
Particular attention is paid to the issue of overcoming the existential fear of death.
Alois Alzheimer
The term “Alzheimer’s disease” is probably on everyone’s lips. The name of the famous neurologist and psychiatrist, born in 1864 in Germany, is immortalized in a dozen other symptoms and pathologies of the nervous system. But this is his celebrity “for the general public.”
Alois Alzheimer was engaged in research and scientific activities all his life. Numerous scientific publications were combined by him into the fundamental multi-volume book “Histological and histopathological studies of the gray matter of the brain .
But a significant part of creativity remains accessible only to the mind of a specialist in the form of publications in specialized literature.
Karen Horney (1885-1952)
American psychoanalyst, psychologist. Representative of the neo-Freudian movement. She studied the impact of the cultural environment on human neurotic behavior. According to her beliefs, the cause of any neurosis is the social environment and disturbances in human relationships. Classical psychoanalysis believes that the causes of neuroses are genetic and instinctive.
Horney believed that the goal of therapy was to restore normal relationships between people, which would allow them to get rid of neurotic patterns and find support within themselves.
Yes, there is such an attitude in society that a man must be strong a priori.
Who does he owe? Again, introject: you have no right to be weak, otherwise you will break. We girls can afford to be weak, and we don't break. We are often stronger than men. If we return to strength of materials, it is known that rigid structures break, and flexible ones bend. That is, a rigidly fixed assembly, no matter welding or something else, will break at the junction of two parts. And a flexible structure - it will sag, straighten, deform under load, conditionally under experiences, if we are talking about the psyche. Therefore, the more stable and tough a person tries to be, the more likely it is that someday there will be that last straw that will break him. Being strong is not always good.
Hermann Rorschach (1884-1922)
Swiss psychologist, psychiatrist, author of the Rorschach Blot personality test.
A talented artist, Rorschach nevertheless chose medicine as his profession, namely psychiatry. He studied hallucinations and related phenomena, psychoanalysis, which ultimately led to the emergence of the theory of psychodiagnostics. In 1921, the famous test with tables in the form of inkblots was published.
Rorschach considered psychodiagnostics the key to understanding both the personality and its capabilities, and seriously worked towards the unification of such sciences as history, religion, psychopathology and sociology. But his early death did not allow him to complete a number of scientific developments he had begun.
Melanie Klein
In the “Famous Child Psychologist” category, her person ranks far from last. Melanie Klein was born in 1882 in the Austrian capital. She always recalled with nostalgia her childhood years, which were filled with happiness and joy. Melanie's interest in the science of the soul awoke after she experienced psychoanalysis twice.
Subsequently, Klein would write valuable scientific monographs on aspects of child psychoanalysis. And despite the fact that Melanie’s theory will run counter to the Freudian doctrine of child analysis, she will be able to prove that a simple child’s game can reveal many secrets of the child’s psyche.
Eric Berne (1910-1970)
American psychologist and psychiatrist. Author of transactional and scenario analyses. Based on the classical theory of psychoanalysis, Berne focused on actions that become the basis for interpersonal relationships. In addition to obvious and open motivations, he distinguished the so-called games played by three human ego states: Adult, Parent and Child.
All three states are formed in childhood, in the process of communication between the child and parents, who provide him with images, examples, samples and anti-models of behavior.
Victor Ivanovich Ovcharenko
This outstanding scientist was born in 1943 in the city of Melekess (Ulyanovsk region). His achievements in psychology are incredibly enormous. Thanks to his research, the science of the soul has significantly advanced in its development. Viktor Ivanovich wrote more than one work of fundamental importance. The scientist analyzed sociological psychologism and deeply studied issues of interpersonal relationships.
His monographs were published not only in Russian but also in foreign media.
In 1996, Ovcharenko came up with the idea of rethinking the historical periods of domestic psychoanalysis before the scientific community. He initiated the publication of publications in which he reflected the biographies of about 700 eminent people, including psychologists, philosophers, and cultural experts.
Lev Semenovich Vygotsky (1896-1934)
Famous Soviet psychologist, founder of the cultural-historical concept of the development of higher mental functions of a person, author of many literary publications and works on pedology and cognitive development of the child.
He distinguished between lower and higher mental functions, the former believed to be the result of biological evolution, the latter - the result of the historical development of society.
In the last years of his life, he paid a lot of attention to the study of the relationship between thought and speech; instead of the dyad consciousness - behavior, he proposed the triad consciousness - culture - behavior, becoming the founder of domestic psycholinguistics.
Hakob Pogosovich Nazaretyan
The merits of this scientist in the field of psychology of mass behavior and in the field of cultural anthropology cannot be overestimated. Hakob Nazaretyan is a native of Baku. The scientist was born in 1948. Over the years of service to science, he wrote a huge number of monographs, where he explored the problems of the theory of social development.
In addition, Akop Pogosovich became the author of the assumption that there is a techno-humanitarian balance in the world, which is in close relationship with technical progress and culture.
Erich Fromm (1900-1980)
German sociologist, philosopher, social psychologist, psychoanalyst. He highly valued classical psychoanalysis, but argued that it does not answer the question of how to live and what to do. He proposed considering psychoanalysis as one of the natural sciences, and he himself tried to shift the emphasis from biological motives of behavior to social factors, including ethics in the range of issues to be considered.
Fromm believed that the main moral problem of the modern world is man’s indifference to himself. And the main task of humanistic psychoanalysis is a person’s knowledge of the truth about himself, the determination of psychological guidelines, the awareness of moral problems as fundamental, because man is the only creature with a conscience.
Fromm's works are devoted to the philosophical, ethical and socio-psychological aspects of human nature, the question of his place in the world and the meaning of existence.
Share link
Bluma Vulfovna Zeigarnik
This is also a world-famous scientist. The famous female psychologist Bluma Vulfovna Zeigarnik was born in 1900 in the Lithuanian town of Preny. She studied with such eminent psychology specialists as K. Levin, E. Spranger, K. Goldstein. Zeigarnik shared the scientific views expressed in Gestalt psychology. Opponents of this theory repeatedly tried to dissuade Bluma Vulfovna from attending Levin’s classes, but she remained adamant. The woman became famous for identifying a unique pattern, which later became known as the “Zeigarnik effect.”
Its meaning is simple. A female psychologist performed a simple experiment. She gathered a certain number of people and asked them to solve a particular problem within a specific period of time. As a result of the experiments, Bluma Vulfovna came to the conclusion that a person remembers unfinished actions much better than completed ones.
Ivan Pavlov
Born in Ryazan in 1849. In 1860-1869 he studied at the Ryazan Theological School. In 1870 he entered the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics at St. Petersburg University. His hobby was the study of physiology. Pavlov studied the digestive system of dogs. One day he discovered that animals salivate before eating. After this, he decided to conduct an experiment on a dog on which he performed surgery on the salivary glands. The dog was given food immediately after the metronome counted down a certain time. Next, the scientist monitored the dog’s conditioned reflexes. After many repetitions, the dog salivated only after the sound of the metronome. For the work he did, Pavlov received a calling. In 1904 he received the Nobel Prize.
His greatest work was “Conditioned Reflexes,” which appeared in 1923. Later a book was created: “Reflexes of Freedom”
What are the most common problems now?
Panic attacks, depression, bipolar disorders, anxiety disorders, panic-anxiety disorders, anxiety-depressive disorders... Panic and phobic disorders have especially worsened amid the pandemic, when people are deprived of guidelines, rules are dictated, and they change every time. This is generally such a good psychological method of demoralizing society, when a person does not know under what rules he will wake up tomorrow, how many meters from home he can go, whether he will have to put a barcode on his forehead in order to have the right to go to work, whether he will be fired whether he will be vaccinated against his will.
