Features of development of ecological consciousness in adulthood

Аннотация

Zhuravlyova L.P., Basmanova N.I.  Features of development of ecological consciousness in adulthood // Psychological science and practice: State of the Art. Collected papers / Ed. Kostrigin A.A. Chicago, 2017. P. 142-147.

The ecological crisis makes society take the responsibility for the character of relations "man - nature", change the personal ideological orientation and type of consciousness. The formation of human consciousness increasingly determines the need for the direction of his philosophical development of self-centeredness, with dominant-barbaric consumer needs to ecocentrism, the basis of which is related to the natural objects as equal and self-worth (Jasvin,2000).

This problem is especially acute in adults, because an adult is that person who is in the process of professional development and has a relatively stable personality traits and directionality (Derjabo,1996).

The purpose of the study is an empirical study of the peculiarities of development of ecological consciousness in adulthood.

To solve the problems, the following methods were used: empirical (observation, conversation, questioning, ascertaining experiment); psychodiagnostic tests and techniques (adapted diagnostic technique on  degree of basic needs satisfaction, method of studying value orientations of A.I. Motkov and T.A. Ogneva, adapted methodology for the diagnosis of B. Bass’s  directionality, method of diagnosis of personality empathy in adulthood of L.P. Zhuravleva (Zhuravleva,2007), test of self-relationship of G.S. Pantileeva - to study the structural components of the adult ecological consciousness; diagnostics of self-actualization of the personality offered by  A.V. Lazukin in the adaptation of N.F. Kalin ‑ to determine the level of personality activity development in an act in adulthood (Mameshina,1996); statistical (Pearson's linear correlation analysis; Student's t-test; factor analysis).

In general, this study involved 291 people: 150 women and 141 men. Among them, 143 respondents  have  higher education and 148 people are of the  secondary specialized education.

Based on the results of the conditions study and the definition of the psychological features of the dynamics of the individual ecological consciousness  at different adulthood stages, the existence of interrelations between the structural components of ecological consciousness is established. This study proves that the basic internal condition for the development of the person ecology  is an actualization and development of its activity in the act: systemic world view, realized the need for personal growth and self-actualization; it revealed that the period of mid-life crisis is significant for the development of ecological consciousness.

An important component of the individual ecological consciousness is a  system of its  ecological relations, which encompasses a number of empathic relations to itself, to another person and the world, as well as self-relationship.

The sexual conditionality of ecological value orientations is revealed, with the prevalence of higher indicators in women compared with men. A relatively equal value and realization of ecologic values in the life of adults is determined, regardless of their level of education.

Prospects for further research is the study of mechanisms for the development of universal ecological consciousness in adulthood, an essential feature of which is the willingness to exercise the full potential of their own abilities and the ability to create such living conditions, in which there is coevolution of internal and ambient worlds.