On the issue of developing effective approaches to working with various manifestations of deviant personal behavior

A person is not born adapted to life in the world around him. A person is given instincts that force him to survive, strive to preserve his life, prolong it through his children, and also leave some kind of mark on the history of mankind. However, instincts do not yet indicate that a person has adapted. Psychology often considers social adaptability, the principles of which are that a person consciously accepts those rules and frameworks of people’s lives that will allow him to coexist comfortably with others.

Adaptability is perceived by the online magazine psytheater.com as a very important quality. Every person is prone to adaptability, that is, adapting to life in a new world, but all people manage to do this in their own way. Everyone adapts as best they can. Sometimes this is not always a successful strategy. However, a person has the prerequisites for the formation of those adaptive models and strategies that he uses.

Why do some people live richly while others live poorly? Each of them adapted to the same living conditions as best he could, as it was convenient, as it turned out, as he allowed himself. Lifestyle depends entirely on the decisions a person makes. But the person himself quite often becomes dependent on the conditions in which he finds himself.

Still, a person depends on the environment, people and circumstances in which he finds himself. In some conditions he can be a loser, and in others he can be a winner; in the company of some people he can be downtrodden and uninteresting, but in the company of others he can be cheerful and charismatic. The person is the same, but his behavior in different circumstances and conditions is different!

Lifestyle is the way in which a person has managed to adapt to the living conditions in which he finds himself. Why couldn't he adapt to them differently? Because a person is guided by his own fears, complexes, beliefs that force him to adapt one way and not another.

The lifestyle you lead is the best way to adapt to the conditions and circumstances of life in which you periodically or constantly find yourself. Different people adapt differently under the same conditions, just as different living conditions allow the same person to behave differently. Accordingly, the lifestyle you lead, no matter how pleasant or disgusting it may be, was a decision you made as you adapted to it. And you were guided not only by external circumstances, but also by your internal fears, complexes, beliefs that dictate to you what to allow yourself and not allow yourself, what to do and not to do, what to allow yourself and not allow yourself, etc.

If a person gets rid of his own internal limitations, then he will become able to adapt to any living conditions, receiving all the benefits that he needs. People behave differently in the same circumstances. This suggests that a person behaves in the circumstances of life as he allows himself, based on his own fears, complexes and prejudices. What if all this doesn’t happen? Then a person, in any living conditions, will rebuild himself in such a way as to receive benefits even where he could not find it before.

Living conditions may vary. But it depends only on the person himself - his fears, beliefs, thoughts, complexes - whether he will live successfully or not. In simple terms, this is called the ability to adapt to circumstances in such a way as to benefit.

If some circumstances force you to be poor, worthless and unsuccessful, then understand the following: it is your own fears, thoughts, complexes and beliefs that prevent you from being lucky in these circumstances. If you are unhappy with your lifestyle, then change it. And getting rid of those internal barriers with which you limit yourself will help you with this.

What is adaptability?

Adaptability is a broad concept and not just a human quality. Absolutely all people are adaptive. The only difference is how people adapt to living conditions and how successful these models and strategies that a person has chosen are. What is adaptability? This is the quality of a person who changes and varies in his worldview and behavior, depending on environmental conditions.

A person does not live in stable living conditions. The world is constantly changing. The laws of the state change, society becomes different, various unforeseen weather disasters may arise in nature, etc. Even moving a person to a new place of residence puts him in new conditions. The first time you go to kindergarten or school, the first time you come to work, where you need to meet new people. Even the first experience of leading a family life.

From birth, a person is forced to adapt to external living conditions. What it is? This is the formation of a certain worldview, behavior, way of thinking, which depends on the conditions in which a person finds himself. If a person is placed in different circumstances, then he will be forced to change in order to survive, achieve success and desired goals.

We can say that the ability to achieve set goals is a person’s ability to adapt to the conditions in which he lives or is located. These conditions are subject to change. If a person is able to quickly adapt to new circumstances and find ways of further behavior that will help him continue to achieve his goal, then he will be a successful person.

This is different from the behavior of an individual who does not achieve goals. The absence of what you want indicates either that a person does not want it too much, or that he simply does not adapt well to new living conditions.

• A person is most adaptive in childhood, when he still doesn’t know or know how to do anything. Everything he learns corresponds to the conditions in which he lives.
• A person becomes less adaptive over the years. The older a person is, the less adaptable he is. It has more to do with the mentality that older people are wise and experienced. In fact, people who have already reached their retirement age have developed skills that were more or less effective in the conditions in which they were developed. If times have changed, morals in society have changed, then the experience of the older generation may be meaningless and ineffective.

If you observe, older people quite often recall the years when they themselves were young, the prices that existed then, the mores in society that were observed then. If a person does not want to change and adapt to the conditions of the modern world, then he begins to remember the past, believing that life was better then. In fact, a person simply knows how to live in other circumstances of life, and not in those that exist now.

Adaptability is a conscious change in a person’s worldview, behavior and spiritual development. It requires intellectual flexibility, the ability to notice changes in society and quickly adapt to them. By “adapting” we do not mean living parasitically, but being able to change your behavior or thinking to new conditions so much that you can continue to have everything you want, achieve other goals and simply live for your own pleasure, despite the fact that circumstances have changed.

So, people with:

• Low adaptability.
• High adaptability. It allows a person not to be afraid to live in a constantly changing world, since he is always ready to change, reconsider his habits and views, live in a new way, learn, etc.

Adaptability occurs at three levels:

1. Biological – a person’s ability to monitor his health and find ways to preserve it in any conditions of the surrounding world.
2. Social – developing a person’s skills and abilities to exist with other people, analyze situations, change quickly, find ways out of conflict events, find a common language with people, etc.
3. Psychological – a person’s ability to maintain internal balance and balance, regardless of the surrounding living conditions.

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Concept

What do the terms “adapt” and “adapt” mean?

In a broad sense, adaptation refers to adaptation to changing circumstances.

In this case, the phenomenon can be both biological and psychological in nature.

In a biological sense, we are talking about the ability of an organism to exist in a given environment. From a psychological point of view, adaptation is the process of an individual’s adaptation to the conditions of the society in which he exists.

This process involves the assimilation of existing norms, values ​​and rules. And not only at the level of society as a whole, but also at the level of small groups: family, team, friendly company.

With successful adaptation, a person leads an active life, carries out various types of activities and interacts effectively with others.

If there are certain difficulties, problems in the process of socialization and psychological problems may occur.

Adaptation in psychology is considered as a skill that is formed under the influence of natural abilities and external factors : upbringing, education, professional training.

Social adaptability

Adaptability at the social level is considered one of the main ones, since a person lives in a society in which he must integrate, which will lead to the development of:

• Self-awareness.
• Self-care skills.
• Self-control.
• Adequate behavior with people.

Usually a person adapts to society in two ways:

1. Self-isolates and transforms the small world to suit his own needs.
2. Enters society and begins to interact with people, establish a common language with them, maintain contacts, and become familiar with social traditions and rules.

A person constantly faces situations when he must adapt: ​​a change of place of residence, a change of educational institution, joining a new team of people, a change of job, etc. Each time a person must give up the usual and adapt to new conditions. Here he shows high or low adaptability.

Low adaptability is accompanied by stress when a person needs to devote a lot of time to getting used to new living conditions. A person is not able to quickly say goodbye to the past and come to terms with the new, present. Often a person wants to return to the past, because he does not even try to adapt to the unknown.

High adaptability helps a person to endure the need to get used to something new less stressfully. A person simply comes to terms with the fact that new circumstances inevitably arise and the need to get used to them, learn to live in them and achieve the desired internal and external balance.

If a person does not adapt to the social environment, then he develops the following behavior:

• Deviant - when he tries to contradict established laws and rules, to live in his own way, often causing harm or infringing on the freedom of other people.
• Pathological – when new patterns of behavior are formed that do not fit into socially acceptable ones, but seem strange, abnormal, and deviating from the healthy.

A person lives in a society that has its own traditions, foundations, rights and laws. Every person must adhere to them, know and observe them. There are strict distinctions between what is permitted and what is not permitted, what is accepted and what is unpleasant, what is bad and what is good. If a person wants to adapt, then he must know how society lives and comply with all acceptable forms of behavior and thinking.

Adaptability is a person’s conscious ability to adjust his psyche and ways of thinking to the patterns that exist in society in order to receive support, respect and understanding from the people around him. This does not imply the complete subordination of a person to society. Here we understand only changing oneself at those levels where it is required, while maintaining one’s “I”, desires, thoughts, views, etc.

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Elena Zmanovskaya – Deviantology: (Psychology of deviant behavior)

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Zmanovskaya E. V.

Deviantology. Psychology of deviant behavior

Reviewers:

Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor of the Department of Clinical Psychology of the Russian State Pedagogical University named after. A.I. Herzen S.A. Kulakov;

Doctor of Psychological Sciences and Candidate of Medical Sciences, Rector of the East European Institute of Psychoanalysis, Professor M. M. Reshetnikov

Zmanovskaya Elena Valerievna - Candidate of Psychological Sciences, graduated from Yaroslavl State University, Faculty of Psychology in 1987, Associate Professor of the Department of Applied Social-Psychological Technologies of the St. Petersburg Institute of Psychology and Social Work, awarded the “Excellence in Public Education” badge, author of textbooks on the problems of educational psychology and deviant behavior.

PREFACE

Each of us daily faces various manifestations of socially undesirable behavior - aggression, bad habits, illegal actions... Specialists dealing with such problems have been looking for answers to a number of questions for many years. What are the reasons for this behavior? What makes a person harm himself and others again and again? How to avoid this? Finally, is it legal to use the term “deviant behavior”?

Deviant, deviant behavior is of keen interest to psychologists, doctors, teachers, law enforcement officials, sociologists, and philosophers. The topic of deviant behavior is interdisciplinary and controversial. The connection of the term with the concept of “social norm” greatly complicates the problem, since the boundaries of the norm are very arbitrary, and a person who is absolutely normal in all respects simply does not exist.

The variety of approaches is also evident when solving such practical problems as diagnosing deviant behavior of an individual, its prevention and overcoming it in the course of providing socio-psychological assistance.

The main goal of the deviantology course is to help readers form scientifically based, holistic ideas about the current state of the problem of deviant behavior of the individual. Recognizing the value of various psychological concepts for explaining deviant behavior, we prioritize those based on the cognitive-behavioral approach.

The experience of teaching this course shows that there are several difficulties in understanding the material. Firstly, there is the ambiguity of the concept of “deviant behavior” and the associated terminological confusion. Secondly, this is the inherent contradiction in each of us between the need for personal freedom and the restrictions of society. The very existence of the phenomenon of deviant behavior confirms the fact that the dilemma of “freedom or necessity,” even contrary to society’s expectations, is a matter of personal choice for each person.

A certain difficulty is also presented by the fact that information on the problem of deviant behavior has to be sought in various disciplines, for example, in sociology, medicine, law, psychology, and pedagogy. The available literature, as a rule, is either highly specialized or too popular. There is clearly not enough literature on the psychology of deviant behavior, as well as insufficient effective technologies for influencing it.

The work offered to the reader is an attempt to review existing scientific approaches and generalize the author’s practical experience in studying and overcoming deviant personal behavior, considered in its psychological aspect.

Section I

INTRODUCTION TO THE PROBLEM

Chapter 1

SUBJECT OF STUDY

Behavior as a psychological category and as a property of an individual Criteria for defining the concept of “deviant behavior” • Definition of the concept

Behavior as a psychological category and as a property of an individual

The main objective of this section is to define the concept of “deviant personal behavior”. To define a concept means to reveal its content, that is, to highlight a set of essential features. The first stage of definition can be definition through genus - subsuming the defined concept under a broader generic concept. Deviant behavior is, first of all, a certain form of personal behavior; therefore, it has all the basic properties of human behavior, with which we will begin our analysis.

In psychology, the term behavior is widely used to denote the type and level of human activity, along with its manifestations such as activity, contemplation, cognition, and communication. Scientific ideas about human behavior received particularly rapid development at the beginning of the 20th century, from the time when behaviorists declared it the subject of psychological science [1]. Initially, behavior was understood as any externally observable reactions of an individual (motor, autonomic, speech), functioning according to the “stimulus-response” scheme. As empirical data accumulated, understanding of the nature of human behavior became increasingly deeper. Already in 1931, one of the founders of behavioral psychology, John Watson, spoke of behavior as “a continuous stream of activity that arises at the moment of fertilization of the egg and becomes increasingly complex as the organism develops” [1, p. 224].

The modern understanding of behavior goes far beyond the totality of reactions to an external stimulus. Thus, in the psychological dictionary, behavior is defined as “the interaction inherent in living beings with the environment, mediated by their external and internal activity” [13, p. 276]. External human activity refers to any external manifestations: movements, actions, deeds, statements, vegetative reactions. The internal components of behavior are considered to be: motivation and goal setting, cognitive processing, emotional reactions, self-regulation processes [12].

In the further discussion, by behavior we will understand the process of interaction between the individual and the environment, mediated by the individual characteristics and internal activity of the individual, taking the form of predominantly external actions and deeds.

Having a definition, we will try to identify the main features of the reality being studied. One of the most significant properties of human behavior is that it is social in its essence - it is formed and implemented in society. Another important feature of human behavior is its close connection with speech regulation and goal setting. In general, an individual’s behavior reflects the process of his socialization—integration into society. Socialization, in turn, involves adaptation to the social environment, taking into account individual characteristics. Based on the relationship between the processes of adaptation and individualization, as well as on the position of the individual in society, the following options for social adaptation can be distinguished:

radical adaptation - self-realization through a personality changing the existing social world;

hyper-adaptation - self-realization through the influence of the individual on social life through its super-achievement;

harmonious adaptation - self-realization of the individual in society through orientation to social requirements;

conformist adaptation - adaptation due to the suppression of individuality, blocking self-realization;

deviant adaptation - self-realization by going beyond existing social requirements (norms);

socio-psychological disadaptation is a state of blocking the processes of self-realization and adaptation.

With any type of socialization, the behavior of a particular person can be described using general characteristics of behavior:

motivation - internal readiness to act, guided by the needs and goals of the individual;

adaptability - compliance with the leading requirements of the social environment;

authenticity - compliance of behavior with individuality, its naturalness for a given person;

productivity - the realization of conscious goals; adequacy - consistency with a specific situation. More private, but no less important, are such signs of personality behavior as:

— level of activity (energy and initiative);

— emotional expressiveness (strength and nature of manifested affects);

— dynamism (tempo);

- stability (constancy of manifestations at different times and in different situations);

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What are the principles of adaptability?

What principles is adaptability based on?

1. On homeostatic – when a person strives for balance in his external and internal world. No matter what conditions a person lives in, he will always strive to maintain balance and calm. If circumstances change, then the person will change along with them in the direction where he will again feel more or less balanced and calm.
2. On the hedonistic level - when a person strives in any situation to get as much pleasure as possible and reduce the amount of suffering, especially to avoid negative emotions. Thus, even in a bad situation, a person wants to find something useful for himself in order to reduce the level of his suffering.
3. Pragmatically, when a person wants to expend as little effort as possible, while receiving as much benefit as possible for himself. Man is an inherently lazy creature. Therefore, he is ready to make an absolutely unthinkable decision and consider it correct if it allows him to receive the maximum benefit while spending the minimum amount of effort.

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Psychological, psychophysiological adaptation

Psychological adaptation is a broad phenomenon that concerns internal mental processes, social activity, cognitive and professional activities of the individual.

This process is two-way . On the one hand, changes in the external environment influence human consciousness, and on the other hand, each person with his psychological characteristics makes his own contribution to the structure of society.

There are three types:

1. Internal . Under the influence of external circumstances, a restructuring of the internal value system and personality structure occurs. This is a global and complete adaptation, during which new individual traits are formed and old habits and beliefs that have lost their relevance are abandoned.
2. External . This is an adaptation in which a change in external behavioral reactions occurs. The internal structure of the personality remains unchanged, values ​​and views are preserved.
3. Mixed . A mixture of the two previous types. An individual partially changes his internal attitudes and partially adapts to the environment through behavioral changes.

Psychophysiological adaptation is a manifestation of the body’s physiological reactions that are directly related to the processes occurring in the psyche during adaptation to new conditions.

For example, if there are problems getting used to a new situation, sleep disturbances, anxiety, irritability, obsessive states, etc. may occur.

Principles of adaptability in psychology

Psychology views every person as a being who is prone to adaptation. There are three principles of adaptability in psychology:

1. Homeostatic. This concept assumes that the human body is programmed for only one goal - maintaining balance in the existing conditions. Wherever a person is, his body will look for those options where he can be calm and healthy and function. At the psychological level, a person strives to restore balance with himself and with the world around him by accepting himself, despite the interference and help of society.
2. Hedonistic. In this concept, a person proceeds from the principles of satisfying his desires. Whatever environment he finds himself in, all his actions will be aimed at satisfaction or benefit. At the same time, there are cases of self-sacrifice or heroism, as well as situations when a person acts in the interests of society, an entire group, and not himself (for example, at work).
3. Pragmatic. This concept views man as a rational and logical being. Here a person acts based on the desire to achieve maximum effect or result through the application of minimal effort. The most interesting thing is that a person perceives even not the most reasonable ideas as logical if they help him achieve his goal.

If you are careful, you will notice that first a goal arises, to which a person already submits. The goals are:

• Self-preservation, survival, health, harmony.
• Satisfaction and feeling of happiness.
• Achieved goals with minimal effort.

All these directions are implemented by people in the conditions of the surrounding world, which dictates its own rules and norms. If a person lives according to the principles established in society, then achieving goals will be easy for him, although not always effective. If a person sets individual goals that in some sense do not correspond to social ones, then he will be forced to look for unknown ways to achieve them. Society will either hinder or help in this case.

Adaptation of people to the world around them

People adapt differently to the world in which they live. How does the adaptation process work? What kind of people become?

Rich, healthy, beautiful, successful people are not born. Of course, you can be born into a rich family, but over time you will “squander” all your parents’ money. You can be born healthy and strong, but over time you can ruin your health by smoking, alcohol, drugs, etc. You can be a beautiful person, but dress in rags and do not maintain body hygiene. Such simple things already deprive a person of what has been given to him since childhood. But there is also something that a person can gain through his own efforts.

Everyone has to adapt to the world around them. It all starts with the fact that a person copies his parents from a young age. These are the only people he trusts unconditionally. And since his parents have already lived a lot in the world in which the baby finds himself, it means that he needs to imitate them. It is better to lead by example than to die. And this is written in every person’s subconscious. Every boy or girl copies his parents in feelings, character, behavior, lifestyle, etc. As a person grows up, he begins to change his role models. He begins to copy one of his friends, idols appear - he imitates them.

We can say that a person imitates someone all the time. But with each year of growing up, this becomes less obvious and necessary. A person imitates in childhood, but in adulthood he only corrects some aspects of his character and behavior.

Adaptation occurs depending on how a person lives, who surrounds him, what situations he finds himself in, what older and more authoritative people advise him. A person learns all the time, but in childhood he does this more intensively, and in adulthood he only corrects some features. Everyone adapts sooner or later. What happens if a person does not adapt? Then he will die. There is no need to feel bad about it. All living things that do not adapt to environmental conditions die faster than other living things that have managed to adapt to new conditions.

People adapt in different ways. There are people who have not adapted well to the adult world. These are the so-called “psychological children”. These people have become adults in body, but in mind they remain at the level of children who cry, are offended, and are helpless. All capricious people are psychological children. They are like parasites who want to survive at the expense of other people. This category can include women (and gigolos) who wish to marry only rich men (marry rich women). They do not know how to survive on their own, so they want to find those to whom they will cling and at whose expense they will live.

There are people who are more adapted to the world around them, but it is so cruel, incomprehensible and aggressive for them that they want to control any event in their lives. These are the so-called “psychological parents”. These people have learned to live without the help of others. But at the same time, they endure any disappointments and unpleasant events so painfully that they try to control everyone and everything. They teach, force, convince, threaten so that only events unfold according to their scenario. Otherwise, they are protected from those people who are beyond their control.

Everyone needs to adapt to the world around them. But while a person is doing this, his fragile psyche knocks him out of healthy fitness. “Children” or “parents” grow up who are simply afraid of the world in which they live. If you have poorly adapted to the world around you, then you will live with fear. All this will force you to develop mechanisms through which you will avoid unpleasant events. And this is different from healthy adaptation, when a person understands that problems and difficulties cannot be avoided, but one must be prepared to cope with them.