Psychological practices in innovative processes

Аннотация

Karitsky I.N. Psychological practices in innovative processes // Psychological science and practice: State of the Art. Collected papers / Ed. Kostrigin A.A. Chicago, 2017. P. 93-96.

Modern Western society is interpreted by many researchers as a psychological society (Gross, 1978, Karitsky, 2009, Leahey, 2009, Sirotkina, Smit, 2008, etc.). The main criteria for the fact that the society becomes psychological is the representation of the subject of social activity about himself as a psychological subject (a subject who thinks of himself in psychological categories) and the presence in society of a developed system of psychological practices. It is believed that the modern Western society has certainly reached the quality of the psychological society, and whether other societies (in particular, Russian and Ukrainian) have approached this level of social development remains in question (Karitsky, 2009; Sirotkina, Smit, 2008). Thus, the presence in the society of a developed system of psycho-practices is simultaneously a criterion for the level of development of the psychological society as a certain range of social organization.

The main types of constructive psychopractics include psychotherapy, counseling, training, prophylaxis, self-regulation, personal growth (Karitsky, 2002, 2006, 2015). Each of them performs its functions in the society. Psychological self-regulation is normally one of the mechanisms of organismic and personal regulation and is realized unconsciously, i.e. is not psycho-practice at all. But in the situation of insufficient self-regulation mechanisms, there is a need for new mechanisms of self-regulation, this requires conscious activity, and then self-regulation is realized as a kind of psycho-practice. All other types of psycho-practices, in the final analysis, are reduced to correction, prophylaxis, formation, restoration, development or training of certain mechanisms of self-regulation.

The effectiveness of innovation is largely ensured by the level of its psychological support. Psychological support of innovative activity is developed, first of all, as prophylaxis, maintenance of the existing mechanisms of self-regulation at the optimal level for a given individual or group, on the other hand ‑ as the formation of new and development and training of available self-regulation mechanisms. These mechanisms are used from biological to personal, social and spiritual levels. Effective individual and group self-regulation, in turn, provides the higher level of innovation. For example, a higher level of stress resistance (formed as a result of personal growth, prophylaxis and training practices) leads to more productive activities. The higher level of group cohesion (achieved as a result of appropriate socio-psychological training) increases the effectiveness of joint activities. A higher amount of attention (conditioned by appropriate practices) allows to perceive existing problems taking into account more active factors, more systematically, in more interrelations, etc.

Modern society, no matter how it is called ‑ post-industrial, information or psychological, objectively characterized by a constant innovation and psychological components. Scientific and technological progress ensures the constant growth of innovations in various social spheres. This, in turn, leads to the fact that the person can devote more time to himself as the subject possessing certain psychological properties. Through this man not only forms a developed idea of himself as the person, but also develops himself psychologically and psychopractically, i.e. we can confidently say that we live in that social epoch, when personal development is not only the lot of some representatives of closed communities (as it was in former times), but becomes a mass phenomenon. Psychological practices are one of the sides of this worldwide process. But they are not only the result of modern innovations, but also dialectically their necessary link.