Moving from association to mediation: A sociocultural approach to assessment

A Vygotskian approach to assessment is proposed by invoking the distinction between the development of lower and higher psychological functions. Higher psychological functions are specifically human and develop with the use of cultural tools via mediation. Accordingly, a distinction is made between tests that are based on association, which have lower psychological processes as their object of measurement and tests based on mediation that target higher psychological processes. Within a Vygotskian framework of human development, the goal of effective education (i.e., teaching and learning in formal contexts) is developing higher psychological functions. Therefore, assessment, whose purpose is to assess the outcomes of educational processes, should be capable of gathering evidence of the development of higher psychological functions.

The impact of animal-assisted therapy on psychoneurological status of children with developmental pathology (6 to 12 years)

Currently, there is an increasingly arising question about new non-medicinal remedies for children, including animal-assisted therapy, which uses the person’s own reserves. The method of animal-assisted therapy exerts an effective influence on the positive dynamics in changing the psychoneurological status and higher psychological functions of children with developmental pathology. The application of the animal-assisted therapy method in psychocorrection of children with pathology from 6 to 12 years is the most relevant and quite efficient.

The impact of animal-assisted therapy on psychoneurological status of children with developmental pathology (6 to 12 years)

Currently, there is an increasingly arising question about new non-medicinal remedies for children, including animal-assisted therapy, which uses the person’s own reserves. The method of animal-assisted therapy exerts an effective influence on the positive dynamics in changing the psychoneurological status and higher psychological functions of children with developmental pathology. The application of the animal-assisted therapy method in psychocorrection of children with pathology from 6 to 12 years is the most relevant and quite efficient.

Usage of the associativity principle in the cartographic symbols’ design

Cartographic symbols evoke certain psychological associations regarding phenomena, objects and the interrelation between them in the imagination of the cartographic models’ user. Different associations depend on the person’s memory, as it is a general complex of cognitive characteristics and higher psychological functions that relate to the accumulation, storage and reproduction of knowledge and skills. In the formation of a generalized image of cartographic models in users of different levels of development and consciousness, there are different levels of application of the principle of associativity in the design of cartographic symbols. This is due to such features as age groups of users, the disclosure of thematic areas of cartographic models, and so on. The purpose of this article lies in grounding the application of the associativity principle, which is one of the main principles of cartographic symbols’ design, taking into account diff erences in the levels of users’ comprehension and consciousness, outlining topic-oriented maps, etc. Main material. When designing cartographic symbols, a number of diff erent principles have to be followed. One of them is the principle of associativity. When applying it, there have to be considered the associations of the cartographic object and their corresponding graphic depiction on the cartographic product. Such technique is called the principle of associations and stereotypes or the principle of associativity. The notion of association is widely used in psychology and philosophy and means psychological connections, i.e. the connections between the phenomena when one of them causes simultaneous appearance of others. The age, education, etc., are the factors that can infl uence the level of associativity. The article outlines the ways of the application the associativity principle in the development and design of a cartographic symbol. It also examines various cartographic methods and techniques that are used to achieve the associativity of symbols. Conclusions. The associativity principle in the cartographic symbols’ design is an important element of the qualitative creating and using of cartographic models. The study of the associativity principle is relevant and vital scientifi c branch which can greatly improve and perfect the cartographic models.

Vygotsky and the Cultural-Historical Approach to Human Development

Lev Semyonovich Vygotsky (real name Lev Simkhovich Vygodsky; Orsha 1896–Moscow 1934) was a Russian psychologist who created cultural-historical theory, which proved influential in developmental psychology and other psychological disciplines. Vygotsky characterized his approach as “height psychology” (as opposed to “depth psychology”) and posited that the higher forms of mind should be the starting point for the study of human development. In his view it was essential to study psychological processes in their historical dynamics; these dynamics could be unraveled with the causal-genetic approach he developed, which involved the guided formation of mind in the course of its study or the experimental unfolding of ontogeny. Vygotsky claimed that the mechanisms of human development are not genetically determined and that we must find its source in culture and the social environment. Human development is mediated by cultural artifacts and sign systems, which are mastered in a dialogue with other people in spontaneous or guided interaction, which stimulates development by creating a zone of proximal development. The major means of the transformation of innate mind into higher mind is language, which enables us to preserve and transmit the experience of generations. In this process of cultural development the person develops a system of higher psychological functions that are social in origin, voluntary and mediated in nature, and form part of a systemic whole. The process of ontogeny goes through a series of stable periods and crises that correspond with specific conditions of the social situation of development and the developmental tasks. Age periods are completed with the development of neoformations, which do not just form results but are also prerequisites for further development. With the development of verbal thinking and the mastery of cultural means of behavior the person masters her/his innate mind and becomes a personality, whose main characteristic is freedom of behavior.

Culture in Transition: Problems of Thinking and Speech Development

The authors consider this psychological and pedagogical research to be relevant as it advances the discussion of Lev Vygotsky and Alexander Luria’s cultural–historical theory of higher psychological functions and seeks to understand environment as a source of psychological development rather than as a condition for it. The interiorization of contemporary cultural phenomena bears the signs of fragmentary, mosaic thinking that makes it difficult to nurture the ability to analyze and identify cause-and-effect relationships. A superficial approach to the ever-expanding volume of knowledge prevents one from comprehending concepts, which has a negative impact on the development of consciousness, cognitive and affective functions, activity, verbal and non-verbal communication, and of the conceptual structure of the world and self-reflection on one’s place in the world. Speech enriches and stimulates thinking, thus driving the educational process toward a search for ways of integrating innovative tools and methods of engaging learners in adequate types of learning activities in the ‘the zone of proximal development’. The author’s many years of experience confirms the psychological and pedagogical effectiveness of the acquisition of meta-disciplinary content in philosophical propaedeutic starting from primary school. Meta-disciplinarity as a universal integratory phenomenon encompasses meta-knowledge, meta-tools, meta-skills, and meta-action that are connected with mental activity in super-subject knowledge acquisition by contrast with subject knowledge acquisition. Philosophical knowledge as meta-knowledge has a high degree of generalization and facilitates a holistic view of the world and the human’s place in it that is registered in the speech of the linguistic persona. The latter grows from being ‘knowledgeable’ to being a ‘thinking’ and ‘creating’ one. The theoretical and practical novelty of the study is that explores the concept of self-care in education. Keywords: digital civilization, changing society, culture, linguistic persona, higher psychological functions, thinking and speech, mosaic thinking, ‘self-care’

PECULIARITIES OF HIGHER PSYCHOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS AND EMOTIONAL SPHERE IN PATIENTS WITH DEMENTIA OF VARIOUS TYPES ASSOCIATED WITH SUICIDAL RISK

PECULIARITIES OF HIGHER PSYCHOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS AND EMOTIONAL SPHERE IN PATIENTS WITH DEMENTIA OF VARIOUS TYPES ASSOCIATED WITH SUICIDAL RISKI.H. Mudrenko The study involved 208 patients with dementia who were divided into three groups according to the type of dementia: 75 patients with Alzheimer's disease, 73 patients with vascular dementia and 60 patients with the mixed type of dementia. In each group, patients were divided into the main group (in which high suicidal risk (SR) was determined) and the control group (without signs of suicidal risk).The aim of the study was to assess the influence of disturbances of higher psychological functions and emotional-volitional sphere on the formation of suicidal behavior (SB) in patients with different clinical types of dementia.On the basis of clinical, pathopsychological, neuroimaging examination of patients we determined clinical and psychopathological peculiarities associated with high risk of suicide. The state of the following spheres of the psyche was determined: thinking, memory, will, emotions, attention, speech, perception, motor sphere.Thus, it was established that torpidity of thinking, pseudomania and micromania, prevalence of hypomymia and hypothyroidism, inhibition of speech, attention fatigue and emotional disorders in the form of depressive affective manifestations are typical for patients with high risk of suicide. The patients of the control group without the signs of suicidal behavior have difficulties in planning and organization of activity, differed in psychomotor agitation, severity of fixative amnesia, and difficulty concentration.The obtained data should be considered for diagnosis and prevention of suicidal behavior in this patient population.Key words: thought disorder, memory impairment, attention disorder, perceptual disturbance, speech disturbance, emotions, vascular dementia, mixed dementia, dementia in Alzheimer's disease. ОСОБЛИВОСТІ ВИЩИХ ПСИХІЧНИХ ФУНКЦІЙ ТА ЕМОЦІЙНОЇ СФЕРИ У ХВОРИХ НА ДЕМЕНЦІЇ РІЗНИХ ТИПІВ, АСОЦІЙОВАНІ З СУЇЦИДАЛЬНИМ РИЗИКОМ Мудренко І.Г.У дослідженні прийняли участь 208 хворих на деменцію, які були розділені на три групи за типом деменції: 75 пацієнтів з хворобою Альцгеймера, 73 хворих на судинну деменцію та 60 хворих зі змішаним типом деменції. В кожній групі пацієнти були розділені на основну групу (у яких визначався високий суїцидальний ризик (СР)) та контрольну групу (без ознак суїцидального ризику).Метою дослідження явилось вивчення впливу порушень вищих психічних функцій та емоційно-вольової сфери на формування суїцидальної поведінки (СП) у хворих з різними клінічними варіантами деменцій.На підставі клінічного, патопсихологічного, нейровізуалізаційного обстеження хворих нами виділені клініко-психопатологічні особливості асоційовані з високим ризиком суїциду. Визначався стан наступних сфер психіки: мислення, пам’яті, волі, емоцій, уваги, мови, сприйняття, рухової сфери.Так, встановлено, що торпідність мислення, маячні ідеї самозвинувачення та самоприниження, переважання гіпомімії та гіпотимії, загальмованість мови, виснаженість процесу уваги та порушення в емоційній сфері, у вигляді депресивних афективних проявів притаманні для пацієнтів з високим ризиком суїциду. Пацієнти контрольної групи без ознак суїцидальної поведінки відрізнялись труднощами у плануванні та організації діяльності, психомоторним збудженням, вираженістю фіксаційної амнезії та розсіяністю уваги.Отримані дані необхідно враховувати для діагностики та профілактики суїцидальної поведінки у даного контингенту хворих.Ключові слова: порушення мислення, пам’яті, уваги, сприйняття, мови, емоцій, деменція судинна, змішана, при хворобі Альцгеймера.ОСОБЕННОСТИ ВЫСШИХ ПСИХИЧЕСКИХ ФУНКЦИЙ И ЭМОЦИОНАЛЬНОЙ СФЕРЫ У БОЛЬНЫХ С ДЕМЕНЦИЯМИ РАЗЛИЧНЫХ ТИПОВ, АССОЦИИРОВАННЫЕ С СУИЦИДАЛЬНЫМ РИСКОММудренко И.Г.В исследовании приняли участие 208 больных деменцией, которые были разделены на три группы по типу деменции: 75 пациентов с болезнью Альцгеймера, 73 больных сосудистой деменцией и 60 больных со смешанным типом деменции. В каждой группе пациенты были разделены на основную группу (в которых определялся высокий суицидальный риск (СР)) и контрольную группу (без признаков суицидального риска).Целью исследования явилось изучение влияния нарушений высших психических функций и эмоционально-волевой сферы на формирование суицидального поведения (СП) у больных с различными клиническими вариантами деменции.На основании клинического, патопсихологического, нейровизуализационного обследования больных нами выделены клинико-психопатологические особенности, ассоциированные с высоким риском суицида. Определялось состояние следующих сфер психики: мышления, памяти, воли, эмоций, внимания, речи, восприятия, двигательной сферы.Так, установлено, что торпидность мышления, бредовые идеи самообвинения и самоуничижения, преобладание гипомимии и гипотимии, заторможенность речи, истощение процесса внимания и нарушения в эмоциональной сфере, в виде депрессивных аффективных проявлений характерны для пациентов с высоким риском суицида. Пациенты контрольной группы без признаков суицидального поведения отличались трудностями в планировании и организации деятельности, психомоторным возбуждением, выраженностью фиксационной амнезии и рассеянностью внимания.Полученные данные необходимо учитывать для диагностики и профилактики суицидального поведения у данного контингента больных.Ключевые слова: нарушение мышления, памяти, внимания, восприятия, речи, эмоций, деменция сосудистая, смешанная, при болезни Альцгеймера.

The Neuropsychological Approach to the Consciousness in L.S. Vygotsky – A.N. Leontiev – A.R. Luria school

IntroductionExisting polysemy in definitions of human consciousness creates the major difficulty in its understanding. With the development of intensive care modern methods, the number of patients survived after coma and dwelling in disorders consciousness conditions rises.AimsAmong, the most important practical questions of neuropsychology is estimation of the patient's consciousness current condition. The solvation of these problems requires precise denotation of consciousness neuropsychological criteria.MethodsAll of definitions of consciousness in Russian psychological school, have the binarity as a common feature: in one hand, in view of the world, yourself, and another hand–extraction and differentiation of yourself from the ambient world (self-consciousness).ResultsNeuropsychological model of consciousness (in particular, self-consciousness) includes all higher psychological functions (HPF). However, condition of none of them cannot be sufficient criterion of consciousness estimation. In Russian psychology it is suggested to study the consciousness through its own characteristic, among which one can designate reflexivity, which includes cognitions and personal meanings.ConclusionsIt is possible to determine the quality of consciousness at a specific instant of time, through the system of human relations, as activity is motivated the knowledge is acquired, the affective side of the activity is determined, the self-consciousness is formed exactly through the personal meaning. Personal meaning can act as that quantity of consciousness (self-consciousness) analyses where the external reality and human attitude to this reality are differentiated. One can judge about a degree of contact between a human and a real world by indirect difference between them.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.