In modern psychology, abilities are usually understood as special individual-specific formations of a person, which include knowledge, abilities and skills of a person structured in a special way, developed on the basis of innate (biologically determined) inclinations. Abilities are a single whole that determines an individual’s potential in mastering a particular type of activity.
Most researchers suggest distinguishing between:
- general abilities that determine an individual’s success in a wide variety of activities, that is, without reference to any one of them; General ones include mental abilities, developed memory and logical thinking, well-developed speech, subtlety and accuracy of manual movements, abilities in interacting with people, and many others;
- special abilities that manifest themselves in specific specific types of activities; the development of special abilities (for example, musical, mathematical, linguistic, technical, etc.) requires inclinations of a special kind, which are formed in a limited number of people.
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Researchers have proven that if a subject has general abilities, the development of special ones is not excluded, and vice versa, and they even complement each other. In addition, the effectiveness of any type of activity is influenced not by any one ability, but by a combination of various abilities, and this combination can produce the same result, but in different ways.
The extent to which an individual will be able to develop natural inclinations into abilities depends on a number of factors. Firstly, on the quality of mastery of certain elements of knowledge and skills, on the nature of their grouping into a single whole, as well as on the quality of the structure of this whole. For example, the dynamics of ability development drops significantly with low-quality and incomplete training, and when working with incompetent teachers. Secondly, on the natural inclinations of a person, on the quality of those primary nervous mechanisms of elementary mental activity with which a child is born. And thirdly, from the greater or lesser training of the brain cells themselves involved in the implementation of cognitive and psychomotor processes. Based on the analysis of the interaction of these factors, it is possible to distinguish:
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- high levels of development of special abilities;
- average level, at which the individual does not stand out significantly from his environment (applies to both general and special abilities);
- low levels of development of general abilities.
The listed levels need to be described in more detail.
Structure, types and levels of development of abilities
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Abilities, as developed functional systems that determine methods of action characteristic of a particular human activity, have a complex structure. The structure of abilities is their structure, their composition.
Thus, the structure of mathematical abilities includes the following formations: the ability to generalize, the ability to reduce the process of mathematical reasoning, a high level of RAM, flexibility of thought processes, etc. The structure of literary abilities presupposes a high development of aesthetic feelings, high sensitivity to environmental influences, developed figurative memory, rich imagination, a sense of language, high expressiveness, etc. Musical, pedagogical, design, medical abilities, etc. have a specific structure. The properties of temperament and character are also very important for the structure of abilities, since they provide unity and general harmony in a person’s realization of his potential.
There are also types of abilities : general and special. General abilities are understood as such a system of mental properties that ensures relative ease and productivity in mastering and carrying out various types of activities.
Special abilities are mental properties that allow an individual to achieve high results in any particular field of activity.
General abilities include the prevailing typology in a person of one of the three types of people identified by I.P. Pavlov: “artistic”, “mental” or “average” type. This typology is based on the predominance of the first or second signaling system in a given individual. Those who have a predominance of the first signaling system are characterized by vivid images, impressionability, and emotionality. The professions of an artist, actor, musician, and poet are easier for them. Those who have a predominant second signaling system find it easier to operate with abstractions, verbal-logical and conceptual schemes. They find it easier to do professions related to the exact sciences. The “average” type is characterized by relative balance of signaling systems. Such people find themselves in a wide range of human professions, in particular in the systems: “man - nature”, “man - man”, “man - technology”.
Special abilities are determined by inclinations and inclinations for a certain and very specific type of activity. Thus, the ability to play chess, musical or motor abilities are precisely special abilities. They require special inclinations and special components (for example, motor abilities, such as, say, ballet dancing, require a special structure of the body, musculoskeletal system, neuromuscular system, special properties of the nervous system, ensuring speed and accuracy of perception and control own movements. That is why choreographic schools have a special system for selecting children).
According to the level of development of abilities, the following degrees of their manifestation are distinguished: giftedness , talent , genius .
Giftedness is the presence in a person of inclinations and inclinations, which are manifested in the formation and manifestation of his abilities for one or another type of activity, which can be judged by the rapid pace of mastery of it and high results of implementation. A distinction is made between general and special talent, based on the characteristics of the demonstrated abilities. A person is said to be “gifted” as long as he shows successful dynamics in mastering an activity and is expected to show good results.
When the level of development of abilities provides such results of activity that are distinguished by fundamental novelty, unattainable for others and stand out for their social value, they are defined as talent. Talent is the highest level of development of abilities, which ensures the creation of outstanding works of art and the achievement of outstanding results in a particular activity. A talented person is a huge value in the human community, since all outstanding discoveries, works of technology and art are created by talented people.
The highest degree of talent is genius. Genius is a level of development of a person’s abilities at which the results of his activities constitute an entire era in the life of society and are forever included in the treasury of human culture and civilization. Brilliant people are the treasure of all earthlings. It is the geniuses of humanity that serve as guiding beacons in the eternal struggle of people for truth, goodness and beauty as the highest values that make up the meaning of human life and humanity.
It is impossible to imagine people’s lives without the “La Gioconda” by the brilliant Leonardo da Vinci. Without the immortal tragedies of the brilliant William Shakespeare. Genius brings something into the lives of all people that makes their previous existence impossible. It becomes impossible to live as if the Mona Lisa did not exist. She is. And the very fact of the presence of this masterpiece in the world of people serves as a reminder of what people should strive for. Genius differs from talent in that it opens up new horizons and new paths of human existence. People gifted with genius abilities for various types of activities are called congenial.
Development and formation of abilities
The development and formation of abilities is determined by the specific socio-historical conditions of people’s lives and is associated with a person’s mastery of the material and spiritual culture accumulated over generations.
The direct source of development and formation of abilities is activity in its various types: educational, gaming, imitation and productive. This position constitutes the essence of the teenager's activity .
Abilities develop gradually, but unevenly. At the first stage of development of abilities, reproductive and imitative elements of activity appear. Subsequent stages are characterized by the development and formation of independent actions. At the same time, some abilities manifest themselves earlier, others later. An important sign of the manifestation of abilities is learning ability, i.e. speed of mastering elements of activity.
Excessive mental or physical overload, leading to fatigue and decreased performance, has an adverse effect on the development of abilities.
Musical and visual abilities develop earlier than everyone else (preschool age). Poetic abilities develop during adolescence. Mathematical and combinatorial abilities (ability to play chess) develop rapidly in early adolescence. Own discoveries of new ways of acting stimulate the development of abilities. Complacency and lack of adequate motivation sharply reduce the rate of development of abilities.
During the development of abilities, the phenomenon of compensation clearly manifests itself, i.e. replenishment of some abilities by others. Cultivating hard work and efficiency, love for work and activity is the key to the all-round development of a person.
CONTROL QUESTIONS
1. Define the concept of “ability”.
2. Name the primary mental potencies identified by L. Thurstone.
3. Define creativity. Discover the possible relationship between the level of creativity and intelligence.
4. List the level of development of the ability and give a brief description of each of them.
5. Reveal the features of unevenness in the development of abilities.
6. Explain the essence of the psychological concept of “inclinations”.
7. Describe the structure of abilities.
8. Explain the criteria and specifics of professional inclinations among the three types of people identified by I. P. Pavlov.
9. Analyze how epigenetic and activity approaches coincide and differ from each other in interpreting the origin of abilities.
10. Explain how and what psychophysiological properties of the nervous system influence the manifestation of various abilities.
RECOMMENDED READING
1. General psychology / Ed. A.V. Petrovsky. – M.: Education, 1986.
2. Eysenck G. Test your abilities. – M.: Mir, 1972.
3. Merlin V.S. Personality structure. Character, abilities, self-awareness: A textbook for a special course. – Perm: Permsk Publishing House. University, 1990.
4. Chudnovsky V.E. Nurturing abilities and shaping personality. – M.: Pedagogy, 1986.
5. Krutetsky A. V. Psychology of mathematical abilities. – M.: Pedagogy, 1968.
6. Leites N. S. Abilities and talents in childhood. – M.: Pedagogy, 1984.
7. Melhorn G., Melhorn H.-G. Geniuses are not born. Society and human abilities. – M., 1989.
8. Gifted children. – M.: Pedagogy, 1991.
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PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION
This book is based on a course of lectures that I read at the Faculty of Psychology of Moscow State University. Lomonosov and the Faculty of Primary Schools of Moscow State Pedagogical University.
However, I tried not to engage in popularization, explanation of the “basics”, etc. This book
- part of a continuous dialogue between members of the professional community. It is mainly written for psychologists and 4th-5th year students. I have tried to present the facts, resorting to theoretical interpretations only when necessary. Is this measure complied with?
- let the reader judge.
We owe the existence and development of the psychology of abilities as a scientific direction of Russian psychology in the Soviet period, first of all, to B. M. Teplov and his school. One cannot but pay tribute to the conscientiousness of the researchers, the wealth of factual results and methodological findings.
Second name
- the name of K.K. Platonov, whose book “Problems of Abilities” for a long time remained the main guide for teachers and practicing psychologists. Although K.K. Platonov was more of a popularizer than a theorist, and more of a practitioner than an experimenter and methodologist (which affected the content of his monograph), the role of his work in reviving and maintaining the interest of psychologists in psychological and applied problems of abilities is very great.
In the 60-70s, research work in the field of psychology of abilities was divided into a number of special areas: the study of mathematical, mental, literary and other abilities. In this regard, mention should be made of V.D. Shadrikov. Russian psychology owes him the development and implementation of a number of research programs in the field of professional and general abilities, and most importantly
— resumption of work on understanding the theoretical foundations of the psychology of general abilities.
One could name more than a dozen Russian researchers who have contributed to the development of problems of psychology and psychodiagnostics of abilities. This is partly what is done in the book. The authors whose works I by accident or ignorance did not mention, I hope, will forgive me.
The book is devoted, as the title suggests, to the problems of psychology and psychodiagnostics of general abilities, so it does not present research and developments in the field of psychology of special abilities, psychology of professional abilities, etc. Less attention than we would like is paid to general problems of psychodiagnostics. It was practically impossible to highlight the problem of learning disabilities. The author is not an expert in this field, but the works of domestic and foreign educational psychologists contain sufficient relevant information.
The author thanks graduate students and employees of the Laboratory of Psychology of Abilities at the Institute of Psychology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, whose research provided material for the book: E. G. Alieva, A. N. Voronin, T. V. Galkina, N. M. Gnatko, E. Yu. Samsonova, N. V. Khazratov, L. G. Khusnutdinov, A. E. Chernin, F. M. Yusupova.
I would especially like to thank A. B. Barsukova and E. V. Tolokonnikova for their assistance in preparing the manuscript for publication.
PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION
In addition to the now natural commercial motivation for a Russian scientist, the following considerations prompted me to prepare the second edition. firstly, some of the material inevitably becomes outdated and needs to be supplemented, new interpretation, etc. During recent
For 5-6 years, psychologists (both in our country and abroad) have obtained new results in the field of psychology of abilities, creativity, and intelligence. The laboratory of the psychology of abilities at the Institute of Psychology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, led by the author of this book, also worked actively in this direction. In addition, fundamental monographs by V. D. Shadrikov, V. S. Yurkevich, E. A. Golubeva, M. A. Kholodnaya and other authors were published, as well as collective works edited by N. A. Leites, R. B .Bogoyavlenskaya, which complement and indirectly polemicize the content of the book brought to your attention.
Secondly, I took into account the critical comments expressed by my colleagues and made corrections to the text, and a number of chapters were completely rewritten and supplemented with new material. I also excluded a number of unjustifiably categorical assessments and conclusions that were present in the text of the first edition: tolerance, unfortunately, comes only with age.
IN
In 1996, the publishing house "Academy" published the book "Psychodiagnostics of General Abilities", which is a shortened (by about one third) version of the first edition of "Psychology of General Abilities". Its text contains the same shortcomings that I already wrote about above.
This edition has significantly revised and expanded sections on the psychometrics of intelligence, models of intelligence, theories of creativity, and the development of general abilities. The concepts of the structure of general abilities and their development are presented in more detail. The work includes materials from the latest research by IPRAN staff and graduate students.
I am grateful to the publishing house “Peter” for the invitation to cooperate. Published in the series “Masters of Psychology”
- an honor that does not correspond to my current scientific achievements. Rather, it corresponds to the importance of scientific problems, which I am engaged in of my own free will and due to circumstances.
