Question No. 3 Conflict and types of conflict in K. Lewin’s field theory.

Possible reasons

An example of an external reason for the development of an intrapersonal conflict - a person wants to have freedom of action, but is limited by the bars of a prison cell

Considering what factors can influence the occurrence of intrapersonal conflict, we distinguish external and internal causes.

Internal factors are rooted in the contradiction of internal motives and needs. The more complex the structure of a person’s inner world, the more susceptible he is to introspection and internal conflict. Internal factors include:

• inconsistency between social norm and need;
• contradictions of interests, motives and needs;
• contradictory social roles;
• inconsistency of social norms and values.

In order for internal factors to influence the development of intrapersonal conflict, they must have a deep meaning for a particular individual, otherwise the person simply will not attach importance to them. In addition, it is important that these contradictions be approximately equal in the strength of their impact. In another situation, a person will simply choose what is best for him, no conflict will arise.

External factors in the development of intrapersonal conflict are determined by the position of an individual in a group of people, his position in the organization, and his place in society.

If the reasons are due to the position of a particular individual in the group, then the factors provoking the emergence of conflict are:

• physical barriers that prevent basic needs from being met;
• biological limitation - people with physical disabilities or mentally retarded individuals have obstacles in the body itself;
• lack of an object that is necessary to satisfy needs;
• social conditions.

Given the position of the individual at the organizational level, the following contradictions may occur:

• between responsibility and lack of rights in order to realize it;
• between poor working conditions, quality of task performance or strict deadlines;
• between a critical task and poorly defined means for its implementation;
• between the desire for self-affirmation, career, creativity and the opportunities to realize this, for example, people strive to achieve growth in the career ladder, but cannot do this due to the lack of necessary conditions, which is why an intrapersonal conflict develops;
• inconsistency between moral standards and the desire for profit, for example, a person works in a production facility that produces low-quality products;
• between mutually exclusive tasks and requirements, for example, the need to improve product quality while the equipment remains the same;
• incompatibility of social roles, for example, the status of a friend is subject to certain standards of behavior and requirements, and the status of a leader is subject to others;
• between traditions and personal values, for example, working on weekends, frequent corporate events.

The reasons that are determined by the situation in society are associated with the inconsistency that is formed at the level of the social macrosystem.

Ways to resolve intrapersonal conflicts.

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Resolution methods	Contents of actions
Compromise	Make a choice in favor of an option and begin to implement it
Care	Avoiding problem solving
Reorientation	A change in claims regarding the object that caused the internal problem.
Sublimation	Transfer of mental energy into other areas of activity - creative activities, sports, music, etc.
Idealization	Indulging in daydreams, fantasies, escaping reality
crowding out	Suppression of feelings, aspirations, desires
Correction	Changing the self-concept in the direction of achieving an adequate self-image.
Regression	appeal to primitive levels of behavior, thinking, return to a childhood state;
Projection	unconscious identification, transference of one’s own feelings, attractions, thoughts to others;
Rationalization	legalization and rational explanation of one’s feelings, actions, thoughts with the help of justification, even if they are initially irrational;
Reactive education	changing actions, motives, and tendencies that are unacceptable to consciousness to ones that are more acceptable to the individual
Recording behavior	the desire to preserve proven models of behavior, thinking, and stereotypes of perception

Views:

S. Freud (1856-1939).

According to Z.F., man is conflictual by nature. From birth, two opposing instincts struggle in him, determining his behavior. These instincts are: eros

(sexual instinct, instinct of life and self-preservation) and
thanatos
(instinct of death, aggression, destruction and destruction). Intrapersonal conflict is a consequence of the eternal struggle between eros and thanatos. This struggle, according to Z.F., manifests itself in the ambivalence of human feelings, in their inconsistency. The ambivalence of feelings is enhanced by the inconsistency of social existence and reaches a state of conflict, which manifests itself in neurosis.

The conflicting nature of man is most fully and specifically represented by Z. F. in his views on the structure of personality. According to Freud, the inner world of a person includes three instances: It (Id), “I” (Ego) and Super-ego (Super-ego).

It is a primary, innate authority, initially irrational and subordinate to the principle of pleasure. It manifests itself in unconscious desires and drives, which manifest themselves in unconscious impulses and reactions.

“I” is a rational authority based on the principle of reality. The id “I” brings irrational, unconscious impulses into conformity with the requirements of reality, that is, the requirements of the reality principle.

The super-ego is “a censorship authority based on the principle of reality and represented by social norms and values, the requirements that society places on the individual.

The main internal contradictions of the personality are between the Id and the Super-Ego, which are regulated and resolved by the “I”. If the “I” was unable to resolve the contradiction between the It and the Super-Ego, then deep experiences arise in the conscious instance that characterize an intrapersonal conflict.

Freud in his theory not only reveals the causes of intrapersonal conflicts, but also reveals the mechanisms of defense against them. He considers sublimation to

, that is, the transformation of a person’s sexual energy into other types of his activities, including his creativity.
In addition, Freud also identifies such protective mechanisms as projection, rationalization, repression, regression, etc.
Intrapersonal conflict, according to K. Horney, manifests itself in relationships:

· Love, affection and disposition of a person (both towards other people and on their part);

· Associated with the assessment of “I”;

· Associated with self-affirmation;

· Associated with aggression;

· Related to sexuality.

K. Horney identifies three main models of behavior as a result of resolving intrapersonal conflict:

· Desire for people – through involvement with others, with society, the individual tries to protect himself;

· Desire from people – is expressed in the desire to get away from people, from communicating with them, to move away from society, while creating your own illusory world;

· Striving against people - acquiring an attitude towards destroying the world, fighting against it.

The behavioral models identified by K. Horney correspond to the types of conflicting personalities:

· Stable;

· Eliminated;

· Destructive.

K. Horney considered intrapersonal conflict as a result of the influence of various social factors on the personality. She pays special attention to the problem of satisfying the needs of the individual, as well as the tendency of an ever-increasing gap between stimulation and the needs of their actual satisfaction.

Analyzing some features of intrapersonal conflicts in women, K. Horney noted that since women strive to act like men in achieving life goals, in this alien dimension they are often insolvent. A woman’s psychology depends on her early childhood memories, the attitude of her parents towards her as a girl, the fulfillment of the role and functions of a wife, mother, her position in society, enshrined in culture and manifested in the intrapersonal conflicts of an adult woman.

The inferiority complex theory of Alfred Adler (1870-1937).

According to the views of A. Adler, the formation of a person’s character occurs in the first five years of a person’s life. During this period, he experiences the influence of unfavorable factors, which give rise to an inferiority complex in him.

Subsequently, this complex has a significant impact on the behavior of the individual, his activity, way of thinking, etc. This is what determines intrapersonal conflict.

Adler explains not only the mechanisms of formation of intrapersonal conflicts, but also reveals ways to resolve such conflicts (compensation for the inferiority complex). He identifies two such paths. Firstly, this is the development of “social feeling”,

social interest.
A developed “social sense” ultimately manifests itself in interesting work, normal interpersonal relationships, etc. But a person can also develop a so-called “underdeveloped social sense,” which has various negative forms of manifestation: crime, alcoholism, drug addiction, etc. n. Firstly, stimulation of one’s own abilities
, achieving superiority over another. Compensation for an inferiority complex through stimulation of one’s own abilities can have three forms of manifestation: a)
adequate compensation
when superiority coincides with the content of social interests (sports, music, creativity, etc.) P.);
b) overcompensation,
when there is an exaggerated development of one of the abilities that has a pronounced egoistic character (hoarding, dexterity, etc.);
c) imaginary compensation
, when the inferiority complex is compensated by illness, prevailing circumstances or other factors beyond the control of the subject.

The doctrine of extraversion and introversion by Carl Jung (1875-1961).

K. Jung, in explaining intrapersonal conflicts, proceeds from the recognition of the conflictual nature of the personal attitude itself. In his book “Psychological Types,” published in 1921, he gave a personality typology that is still considered one of the most convincing and is widely used in both theoretical and practical psychology. K. Jung's typology of personality is based on four bases (personal functions): thinking, sensations, feelings and intuition.

Each of the mental functions, according to C. Jung, can manifest itself in two directions -
extraversion and introversion.
Based on all this, he identifies eight personality types, the so-called psychotypes: extroverted thinker; introverted thinker; the sensation is an extrovert; the sensing person is an introvert; emotional - extrovert; intuitive – extrovert; intuitive - introvert.

The main thing in Jung's typology is orientation - extraversion or introversion. It is this that determines the personal attitude, which ultimately manifests itself in intrapersonal conflict.

Yes, extrovert

initially focused on the outside world.
He builds his inner world in accordance with the outer one. An introvert
is initially self-absorbed. For him, the most important thing is the world of internal experiences, and not the external world with its rules and laws. Obviously, an extrovert is more susceptible to intrapersonal conflicts than an introvert.

The concept of “existential dichotomy” by Erich Fromm (1900-1980).

In explaining intrapersonal conflicts, E. Fromm tried to overcome biological interpretations of personality and put forward the concept of “existential dichotomy.” In accordance with this concept, the causes of intrapersonal conflicts lie in the dichotomous nature of the person himself, which manifests itself in his existential problems: the problem of life and death; the limitations of human life; the enormous potential of man and the limited conditions for their implementation, etc.

Erik Erikson's theory of psychosocial development (1902-1994).

The essence of Erikson's theory is that he put forward and substantiated the idea of ​​stages of psychosocial development of the individual, at each of which each person experiences his own crisis. But at each age stage, either a favorable overcoming of a crisis situation occurs, or an unfavorable one. In the first case, there is a positive development of the individual, his confident transition to the next stage of life with good prerequisites for successfully overcoming it. In the second case, the person moves into a new stage of life with the problems (complexes) of the previous stage. All this creates unfavorable preconditions for the development of the individual and causes internal experiences in her.

Stages of psychosocial development of personality according to E. Erikson:

Stage	Age	Contents of the crisis	Positive resolution
0 - 1 year newborn	Trust - mistrust	Confidence
1-3 years early childhood	Autonomy – shame, doubt	Autonomy
3-6 years “playing age”	Initiative - guilt	Initiative
6-12 years old junior school age	Hard work – feeling of inferiority	Hard work
12-19 years old middle and high school age	Self-identity – role confusion	Identity
20-25 years early maturity	Intimacy - isolation	Proximity
26-64 years old average maturity	Generation, creativity - stagnation	Creation
65 years – death late maturity	Integration - despair	Integration, wisdom

Motivational conflicts according to Kurt Lewin (1890-1947).

The classification of internal conflicts according to Kurt Lewin is of great practical value for identifying intrapersonal conflicts and determining ways to resolve them:

Conflict type	Cause	Resolution model
Equivalent (approximation – approximation)	Selecting two or more equally attractive and mutually exclusive objects	Compromise
Vital (avoidance – avoidance)	Choosing between two equally unattractive objects	Compromise
Ambivalent (approach – avoidance)	Choosing an object that simultaneously has attractive and unattractive sides	Reconciliation

K. Levin proposed a classification of intrapersonal conflicts by type:

Type I – equivalent

(approximation - approaching). A conflict arises when a subject must complete two or more important things for him. The usual model of conflict resolution is compromise, partial substitution.

Type II – vital

(avoidance - avoidance). The subject is forced to make decisions that are equally unattractive to him, for example, quit his job, start looking for a new job, or continue to do uninteresting and low-paying work.

Type III – ambivalent (

approaching - moving away). A conflict arises when the same actions or results simultaneously attract and repel, for example, recognition of a person’s high professionalism and a negative attitude towards his personal qualities. Resolution of such an intrapersonal conflict is possible only on the basis of compromise.

Type IV - frustrating

(approach - avoidance). Conflict arises when the desired result and actions aimed at achieving it are not approved by society, its norms and rules. An intrapersonal conflict of this type can be resolved in different ways - aggression, substitution, reorientation, compromise, avoidance of a decision.

Examples of conflicts within the individual

An example of an intrapersonal conflict is a housewife’s desire to buy a washing machine when there is no money to buy it.

1. A person wants to go to the cinema, but at this time he needs to prepare for exams.
2. You need to take a walk with your child, but at the same time you have deadlines at work, so you need to stay late at work.
3. A man who is at war is forced to kill his opponents, at the same time he must observe the commandment “thou shalt not kill.”
4. A prisoner who wants to travel, but cannot move freely due to being in a cell.
5. A small income does not allow a housewife to purchase a washing machine, which is so necessary.
6. When there is no coffee at home and the shops are closed for the holidays.
7. The person was given a new position, obliged to carry out a large number of functions, but at the same time his rights remained the same.
8. When you need to urgently complete a task in production, but the necessary equipment constantly breaks down.
9. When the boss demands that something be done, he does not care about the means and methods. Must be done at any cost.

Formation of role conflict

Interpersonal conflict - what is it in psychology

It has become characteristic of modern society that a person has to fulfill many social roles, often with conflicting demands and expectations. However, the character and abilities of an individual are not always appropriate for the chosen role.

It is useful to choose roles according to your temperament, abilities, character, or, conversely, adapt to them yourself. For example, it is difficult to choose a profession or a social group that suits yourself – it is difficult to become a musician without musical abilities.

Or everyone at least once had to adapt to a new position, for example, joining the army, becoming a student, a young husband, or starting an activity. Some processes occur simultaneously, but at different speeds and intensities, which can give rise to conflict.

Consequences

Neurosis is a possible consequence of intrapersonal conflict

If an intrapersonal conflict is not resolved in time, then over time it will accumulate and lead to serious consequences. The most powerful of them are stress, neurosis and frustration.

1. Stress is a condition that occurs in response to emotional stress. It can manifest itself both at the psychological, physiological and behavioral level. Stress itself quite often stimulates the development of conflict or gives rise to new ones, since, trying to get rid of it, a person begins to lash out at his neighbors and throw out his anger.
2. Neurosis is a neuropsychic disorder that is psychogenic in nature. The impossibility of resolving an internal conflict is accompanied by the emergence of painful and painful experiences, failure, unattainability of goals, unfulfilled needs, and loss of meaning in life. In such a situation, we are talking about the development from an intrapersonal to a neurotic conflict.
3. Frustration is a human state that is caused by objective or subjective difficulties that arise on the way to achieving a goal. May be considered a form of psychological stress.

Over time, intrapersonal conflict will lead to the development of destructive indicators that will become a dead end in personal development. The first signs of this condition are:

• human disorganization, both physically and mentally;
• a constant state of stress, anxiety, increased suspiciousness, dependence on the opinions of other people;
• active participation and effectiveness in any type of activity is noticeably reduced;
• there is no opportunity to fully perform one’s personal and public functions;
• a person may experience polar actions, or submissiveness, or aggressiveness, there will be confidence that he is worthless, inferior, and there will be a lack of confidence in his abilities.

Unproductivity, as a consequence of internal conflict, can spread to relationships in society:

• there is a desire to isolate yourself from other members of the group, criticism is not accepted;
• blaming others for your mistakes and failures or increased self-criticism;
• an inadequate reaction to people’s behavior; such a person may also exhibit abnormal behavior and behave demonstratively; this is especially characteristic of adolescence. A person may comply with the norms of communication, but at the same time there will be a lack of internal balance.

You can also consider the positive consequences of conflicts within the individual:

• the mental state becomes more resistant to internal and external influences;
• a person who, over time, will be able to deal with the inner world, will be able to get out of the internal conflict, will be able to cope with new conflicts more easily, and will be closer to achieving the ideal self;
• constructive influence in a conflict situation consists of self-improvement, self-development and self-affirmation;
• By struggling with internal contradictions, a person’s will and character can be strengthened. People who were able to overcome internal obstacles better mobilize their personal resources and get to know themselves.

Types of intrapersonal conflict

Now I will give several more types of psychological illness, which differ depending on the place of origin. However, the general features of all these types are similar to each other.

Moral

This is the most common type of contradiction, which develops due to moral principles and the desire to violate them. For example, a man sitting in a subway car understands that he must give up his seat to an elderly person, but he is so tired from work that he cannot overcome his fatigue and get up. The whole trip he is tormented by confrontation: his mind insists on his selfish behavior, and fatigue does not allow him to do the right thing.

Sexual

It is formed mainly in people prone to embarrassment and shame. For example: a man wants to diversify his intimate life with his wife, but he does not dare to do so, because he is afraid of a negative reaction and of being a pervert in the eyes of his wife. He is ashamed to tell his other half about his desires because of shyness. Because of this, cognitive dissonance appears, which leads to satisfaction of sexual needs on the side, and then divorce.

Religious

Faith is a powerful tool that helps to distinguish evil from good and to commit unscrupulous acts. But all the covenants are difficult to follow; even people who have formed strong religious beliefs often face temptations and seductions, provoking their confrontation with morality.

For example, a religious teenager experiences passionate sympathy for a girl, he begins to produce hormones, this pushes him to romantic actions and passion. However, he realizes that these actions will lead to sin and are contrary to his beliefs and rules.

Political

Internal conflict is a mental disorder that also occurs in people who fight for territory and to defend people's interests. Such individuals experience constant fear, because they have to risk their lives to defend their beliefs.

Love

Constant confrontation between mind and heart is typical for lovers. They form the habit of constantly spending time together, which does not allow them to break off the relationship. Each partner experiences breakups in their own way, some become the initiators of the breakup, others realize its inevitability. But even full awareness of what is happening pushes a person to various stupid actions: alcohol, harassment, calls, finding out the reasons.

Cognitive dissonance due to self-esteem

Often people experience self-doubt due to certain complexes and shortcomings. For example: excess weight, excessive thinness, birthmarks. Often, due to low self-esteem, a person tries to change himself, and this does not always work. She cannot come to terms with her shortcomings and love herself, this gives rise to contradictions. Devastation also occurs from a bad haircut, excess weight after pregnancy, or an accident in which one’s appearance was damaged.

Social

It comes from a relationship with one specific person or with a specific group of people. In most cases, teenagers face such a conflict and become outcasts in the classroom. Every day they have to fight judgment. Often this gives rise to internal complexes, the child begins to doubt himself and his strengths, and experiences loneliness.

Existential

This is the most complex and severe form of conflict. It mainly appears among maximalists. People in this category cannot understand their purpose. They constantly question the relevance of their lives. Also, confrontation is formed if an individual loses the meaning of existence and the ability to express himself.

This condition often manifests itself in adolescents in adolescence, as well as in a person who is experiencing a crisis at 30 years old. This disorder is accompanied by drastic changes: work, style, image, divorce, infidelity.