The most common definition of labor, which is currently given in many textbooks and economic dictionaries, is this: labor is the expedient human activity of transforming objects of nature to satisfy human needs.

There is no interpretation of the concept of labor in the regulatory legal acts of the Republic of Belarus. The Constitution of our country proclaims work as the most worthy way of human self-affirmation. This norm is echoed by the Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus, in particular part 1 of Article 11, which states that workers have the right to work as the most worthy way of self-affirmation of a person, which means the right to choose a profession, occupation and work in accordance with recognition, abilities, education, vocational training and taking into account social needs, as well as healthy and safe working conditions.

The definition of labor given by K. Marx. Labor “is a process taking place between man and nature, i.e. the expedient activity of man, during which he, through his own activity, mediates, regulates and controls the exchange of substances between himself and nature, creates the necessary use values.”

In the process of labor, people create material and spiritual wealth. This idea was reflected in the statement of one of the founders of classical political economy, an English scientist of the 17th century. W. Petty: “Labor is the father and active principle of wealth, and land is its mother.”

In a major study “Labor”, its authors give the following definition of this concept: “Labor is the process of a person using his intellectual and labor capital in order to, with the help of various types of natural energy and production assets, carry out expedient activities for the appropriation of ready-made goods and the production of vital goods and for performing other types of socially useful work.”

The definition of “labor” given by Professor Yu.E. Volkov: “Labor is an activity necessary for the functioning of society, recognized by the existing social system as socially useful or at least socially acceptable, carried out within the framework of the established social normative order, and which is a source of livelihood and (or) for the people performing it. way of living."

According to A. Marshall's definition, work is any mental and physical effort undertaken partially or wholly with the aim of achieving any result, not counting the satisfaction received directly from the work itself.

B.M. Genkin offers the following definition of labor: “Labor is the process of transforming natural resources into material, intellectual and spiritual benefits, carried out and (or) controlled by a person either under coercion (administrative, economic), or through internal motivation, or both.”

T. is a method of reproduction and accumulation of social experience; in a narrower sense - a way of multiplying benefits, wealth, capital

Small Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron

Labor, along with nature and capital, is one of the factors of production. T. in economic In a sense, it is a systematic expenditure of muscular and nervous efforts aimed at adapting the objects of nature surrounding a person to his needs. Political economy distinguishes two main things. type of T.: 1) economic actions, the results of which are directly or indirectly embodied in material objects and increase the stock of national property, are called productive T.; such is the work of the farmer, factory worker, artisan, etc.; 2) The category of unproductive technology includes actions that do not increase either directly or indirectly the amount of objects used to satisfy human needs; such is the work of an official, a doctor, a lawyer, a teacher, a domestic servant.

Labor in the Encyclopedic Dictionary is a purposeful human activity aimed at preserving, modifying, adapting the environment to meet one’s needs, and producing goods and services. Labor as a process of human adaptation to the external environment was characterized by the development and improvement of the division of labor, its tools and means.

Labor is, first of all, a process that takes place between man and nature, a process in which man, through his own activity, mediates, regulates and controls the exchange of substances between himself and nature. It is also necessary to take into account that a person, influencing nature, using and changing it in order to create use values ​​necessary to satisfy his material and spiritual needs, not only creates material (food, clothing, housing) and spiritual benefits (art, literature, science ), but also changes its own nature. He develops his abilities and talents, develops the necessary social qualities, and shapes himself as a person.

From the point of view of sociology, labor is a fundamental form of human activity that creates the entire set of material and spiritual goods functioning in society, ensuring the production of means of subsistence; the basis for the emergence of such human properties as communication, consciousness, speech, and the formation of spiritual values.

Labor in the communist understanding is free labor for the benefit of society, voluntary labor, labor outside the norm, labor given without the condition of remuneration, labor out of the habit of working for the common benefit and out of a conscious (turned into habit) attitude towards the need to work for the common benefit, labor as a need for a healthy body. Lenin V.I.

Thus, the word labor has several meanings:

• 1) purposeful human activity aimed at creating, with the help of production tools, material and spiritual values ​​necessary for people’s lives;
• 2) work, occupation;
• 3) effort aimed at achieving something;
• 4) the result of work activity, work.
• 5) Instilling skills in some professional or economic activity as a subject of school teaching

Quotes about work:

“Work that pleases us heals grief.” William Shakespeare

“Work makes you insensitive to grief.” Cicero Marcus Tullius

“From all labor there is profit, but from idle talk there is only damage.” Old Testament. Proverbs of Solomon

“They say that among animals the lion is the highest, and the donkey the lowest; but a donkey that carries a burden is truly better than a lion that tears people apart.” Saadi

“Work saves us from three great evils: boredom, vice, need.” Voltaire

“The higher the culture, the higher the value of work.”

“VilgeBy the degree of greater or lesser respect for work and by the ability to evaluate work ... according to its true value, you can determine the degree of civilization of the people.” Nikolai Alexandrovich Dobrolyubovlm Rosher

“Only through labor and struggle is identity and self-esteem achieved.” Fedor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky

“The source of all wealth is labor” A. Smith

intellectual labor capital

Ambivalence, frustration, rigidity - if you want to express your thoughts not at the level of a fifth grader, then you will have to understand the meaning of these words. Katya Shpachuk explains everything in an accessible and understandable way, and visual gifs help her with this.
1. Frustration

Almost everyone experienced a feeling of unfulfillment, encountered obstacles on the way to achieving goals, which became an unbearable burden and a reason for reluctance. So this is frustration. When everything is boring and nothing works.

But you shouldn’t take this condition with hostility. The main way to overcome frustration is to recognize the moment, accept it, and be tolerant. A state of dissatisfaction and mental tension mobilize a person’s strength to deal with a new challenge.

2. Procrastination

- So, starting tomorrow I’m going on a diet! No, better from Monday.

I'll finish it later when I'm in the mood. There's still time.

Ah..., I’ll write tomorrow. It's not going anywhere.

Sound familiar? This is procrastination, that is, putting things off until later.

A painful state when you need it and don’t want it.

Accompanied by tormenting oneself for not completing the assigned task. This is the main difference from laziness. Laziness is an indifferent state, procrastination is an emotional state. At the same time, a person finds excuses and activities that are much more interesting than doing specific work.

In fact, the process is normal and inherent to most people. But don't overuse it. The main way to avoid this is motivation and proper prioritization. This is where time management comes to the rescue.

3. Introspection


In other words, introspection. A method by which a person examines his own psychological tendencies or processes. Descartes was the first to use introspection when studying his own mental nature.

Despite the popularity of the method in the 19th century, introspection is considered a subjective, idealistic, even unscientific form of psychology.

4. Behaviorism


Behaviorism is a direction in psychology that is based not on consciousness, but on behavior. Human reaction to an external stimulus. Movements, facial expressions, gestures - in short, all external signs have become the subject of study by behaviorists.

The founder of the method, American John Watson, assumed that through careful observation, one could predict, change or shape appropriate behavior.

Many experiments have been conducted to study human behavior. But the most famous was the following.

In 1971, Philip Zimbardo conducted an unprecedented psychological experiment called the Stanford Prison Experiment. Absolutely healthy, mentally stable young people were placed in a suspended prison. The students were divided into two groups and assigned tasks: some had to play the role of guards, others prisoners. The student guards began to show sadistic tendencies, while the prisoners were morally depressed and resigned to their fate. After 6 days the experiment was stopped (instead of two weeks). During the course, it was proved that the situation influences a person’s behavior more than his internal characteristics.

5. Ambivalence


Many psychological thriller writers are familiar with this concept. So, “ambivalence” is a dual attitude towards something. Moreover, this relationship is absolutely polar. For example, love and hatred, sympathy and antipathy, pleasure and displeasure that a person experiences simultaneously and in relation to something (someone) alone. The term was introduced by E. Bleuler, who considered ambivalence one of the signs of schizophrenia.

According to Freud, “ambivalence” takes on a slightly different meaning. This is the presence of opposing deep motivations, which are based on the attraction to life and death.

6. Insight


Translated from English, “insight” is insight, the ability to gain insight, insight, suddenly finding a solution, etc.

There is a task, the task requires a solution, sometimes it is simple, sometimes complex, sometimes it is solved quickly, sometimes it takes time. Usually, in complex, labor-intensive, seemingly impossible tasks, insight comes. Something non-standard, unexpected, new. Along with insight, the previously established nature of action or thinking changes.

7. Rigidity


In psychology, “rigidity” is understood as a person’s unwillingness to act not according to plan, fear of unforeseen circumstances. Also referred to as “rigidity” is the unwillingness to give up habits and attitudes, from the old, in favor of the new, etc.

A rigid person is a hostage to stereotypes, ideas that are not created independently, but taken from reliable sources.
They are specific, pedantic, and are irritated by uncertainty and carelessness. Rigid thinking is banal, cliched, uninteresting.

8. Conformism and non-conformism


“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to stop and think,” wrote Mark Twain. Conformity is a key concept in social psychology. Expressed as a change in behavior under the real or imagined influence of others.

Why is this happening? Because people are afraid when they are not like everyone else. This is a way out of your comfort zone. This is the fear of not being liked, of looking stupid, of being out of the crowd.

A conformist is a person who changes his opinion, beliefs, attitudes, in favor of the society in which he is located.

Nonconformist is the opposite concept to the previous one, that is, a person who defends an opinion that differs from the majority.

9. Catharsis

From ancient Greek, the word “katharsis” means “purification,” most often from feelings of guilt. A process of long experience, excitement, which at the peak of development turns into liberation, something maximally positive. It is common for a person to worry for various reasons, from the thought of the iron not being turned off, etc. Here we can talk about everyday catharsis. There is a problem that reaches its peak, a person suffers, but he cannot suffer forever. The problem begins to go away, the anger goes away (for some), the moment of forgiveness or awareness comes.

10. Empathy


Do you experience together with the person who tells you his story? Do you live with him? Do you emotionally support the person you are listening to? Then you are an empath.

Empathy – understanding people’s feelings, willingness to provide support.

This is when a person puts himself in the place of another, understands and lives his story, but, nevertheless, remaining with his reason. Empathy is a feeling and responsive process, somewhere emotional.

ON THE ISSUE OF STUDYING THE CONCEPT OF “LABOR”

Khoroshkevich Natalya Gennadievna
Ural Federal University
Associate Professor of the Department of Sociology and Social Technologies of Management, Candidate of Sociological Sciences

ON THE NOTICE OF "LABOUR"

Khoroshevich Natalia Gennadievna
Ural Federal University
Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology and Social Techniques of Control, Candidate of Sociological Sciences

Labor is one of the main types of human activity. Currently, representatives of various sciences are studying it. Despite the fact that this phenomenon is studied from the perspective of different disciplines, its study remains constantly relevant, because the labor process is constantly changing under the influence of events occurring in society.

Sociology, a science that studies interaction in society, also studies this phenomenon. Today in sociology there is a separate direction that studies labor - the sociology of labor. But, as noted above, changes constantly occur in the labor process, so it is necessary to replenish and update knowledge (even already studied aspects of a given industrial sociology) in this industrial sociology.

This article presents an analysis of the concept of “labor”, carried out mainly on dictionary literature. Here we consider modern interpretations of labor, proposed in explanatory dictionaries, dictionaries on various disciplines, including dictionaries on sociology. And, although this is dictionary literature (an extensive study of the phenomenon under study is not intended here), nevertheless, these definitions were developed by well-known specialists in these sciences.

All definitions of the concept “labor” given in the dictionary literature can be divided into two groups. These are definitions presented in explanatory dictionaries, where this concept is given in the most general interpretations, and interpretations of this phenomenon - in dictionaries for a particular discipline, where work is considered from the point of view of a particular science, in the plane in which it deals research of this phenomenon.

Definitions of labor are usually present in all dictionaries of the first group. The earliest of them are presented in V.I. Dahl’s explanatory dictionaries. Here labor is understood as “work, occupation, exercise; everything that requires effort, diligence and care; any tension of bodily and mental strength; everything that tires." Only in V.I. Dahl’s dictionaries, along with other interpretations, work is also considered as something that tires.

In later dictionaries, if such an understanding of this phenomenon is given, it is always emphasized that this is an outdated interpretation. But this interpretation is given quite rarely in Soviet and post-Soviet dictionaries.

In the 1947 edition of the Great Soviet Encyclopedia, labor is understood as “... a process taking place between man and nature, in which man, through his activity, mediates, regulates and controls the metabolism between himself and nature.” In the same encyclopedia, but published in 1956, labor is considered as “a purposeful human activity, during which, with the help of tools of labor, he influences nature and uses it to create consumer values ​​necessary to satisfy his needs.” The last of these definitions emphasizes that work is performed in order to satisfy needs.

The largest number of interpretations of labor are presented in dictionaries of the Soviet period, where the interpretations of labor are the same as in the post-Soviet period, but one of the outdated interpretations of labor is also used - difficulties, hardships. In the Dictionary of the Modern Russian Literary Language, 1963. here labor is considered as 1. “The process of human influence on nature, human activity aimed at creating material and cultural values..; 2. Work that requires physical or mental energy...; 3. Effort, diligence aimed at achieving something; 4. The result of activity, work; work; 5. Outdated Difficulties, hardships; 6. Academic subject.

In modern dictionaries (post-Soviet period) there are from three to five interpretations of the concept of labor. In the interpretations of this period, there is no emphasis on the fact that labor is an interaction between man and nature. This is quite justified, because labor can be carried out both in relation to the “second nature” and in relation to man and man. In one of the interpretations of labor, this phenomenon is considered as a purposeful human activity. However, here they stop noting that this activity is aimed at satisfying needs, which is an important fact. In the Explanatory Dictionary of the Russian Language Ozhegova S.I., Shvedova N.Yu. five interpretations of the concept of “labor” are given. Labor is 1. “Practical and socially useful human activity, requiring mental and physical stress; 2. Occupation, work; 3. Effort aimed at achieving something; 4. The result of activity, work, work; 5. Instilling skills in some professional activity as a subject of school teaching.” The same interpretations of the concept of “labor” are given in a number of other explanatory dictionaries. In dictionaries, where fewer interpretations of labor are given, the first three or four interpretations are most often given, as in the definition presented above.

So, work is characterized as: a) activity, b) it has a goal, c) it is aimed at creating material and spiritual values, d) values ​​serve to satisfy needs, e) it involves a result, f) it requires effort.

If we consider the interpretation of labor within the framework of scientific disciplines, they can also be divided into two groups. These are interpretations of labor from the perspective of non-humanities and humanities.

If we consider the concept of “labor” within the framework of non-humanitarian sciences, it can be noted that in the natural sciences it is considered quite widely. Starting from the definition of work as “the process of overcoming resistance along a certain path”, and ending with the consideration of the constitution of the body and the workplace in its definitions. In the natural sciences, labor is understood not only as human activity, but also as the activity of animals and natural forces. Changes in nature are noted here, but without taking into account the meaning of this change, without taking into account the specifics of labor.

Physiology emphasizes the physiological stress in the labor process, that this process requires energy when performing various physiological functions. Labor is a necessary human need. If an individual's organs do not function for a long time, they atrophy.

Quite often you can find definitions of the concept “labor” in economic dictionaries. Definitions of types of labor can also be given here.

In economics, labor is viewed from the point of view of obtaining benefits, an element of the production process. Very often, work is understood as “the purposeful activity of people to create material and spiritual goods necessary to meet the needs of an individual, enterprise, people or society as a whole.” Sometimes work is not only characterized as a purposeful activity, but it is also given other characteristics. For example, according to the Modern Economic Dictionary, labor is “a conscious, energy-consuming, generally accepted expedient activity of a person, people, requiring effort, the implementation of work; one of the four main factors of production."

Thus, labor is a) one of the main factors of production, b) an activity aimed at producing material goods, c) carried out in order to satisfy needs, d) energy-consuming, e) conscious, f) requiring effort.

From the point of view of the humanities, work is always meaningful. In philosophy, work is always a purposeful activity, where there is an active subject striving to achieve a goal. For example, labor is “the purposeful activity of people, which has as its content the transformation, mastery of natural and social forces to satisfy the historically established needs of man and society; it is “...first of all, a process taking place between man and nature, a process in which man, through his own activity, mediates, regulates and controls the exchange of substances between himself and nature. He himself opposes the substance of nature as a force of nature. In order to appropriate the substance of nature in a form suitable for his own life, he sets in motion the natural forces belonging to his body: arms and legs, head and fingers. By influencing and changing external nature through this movement, he at the same time changes his own nature. He develops the forces dormant in her and subordinates the play of these forces to his own power.” This is the most complete interpretation of labor in philosophical dictionaries. Most often, only the definition of labor is given there.

Some philosophical dictionaries define labor in several senses. Thus, in the New Philosophical Encyclopedia, work is “a purposeful human activity, considered 1) from the point of view of the exchange of man with nature - in this case, in work, a person, with the help of tools, influences nature and uses it to create objects necessary to satisfy his needs ; 2) from the angle of its socio-historical form. In this case, it appears in social utopias as a transitory form of activity." Or, labor is “the process of people creating conditions and means of subsistence; embodiment of human strength, skill and knowledge; transformation and adaptation of natural material to human needs. Labor is a way of reproduction and accumulation of human experience; in a narrower sense - a way of multiplying benefits, wealth, capital. In a philosophical sense, labor “is characterized as an aspect of activity in which human powers and abilities are objectified, taking on the form of appearance, materiality, objectivity, independent of the individual who created it, at the same time suitable for its appropriation by other people, for moving it in the space and time of society” .

Quite rarely, but you can find other definitions where work is considered most of all from some angle. Thus, work can also be understood as “an ethical phenomenon is the same as participation, expenditure, application: the individual finds application for himself, expends strength, gives his energy.” Here we take a more detailed look at what happens to an individual during the labor process. In this definition, labor is considered where the starting point is the individual. In other definitions, the starting point is reality, which includes the individual, nature, and other objects.

If we analyze the philosophical interpretations of the concept of “work”, then this phenomenon can be characterized as: a) purposeful activity, b) impact on nature, c) activity aimed at satisfying needs, d) activity requiring tension, e) human experience, f) objectification of human forces in the labor process.

In other dictionaries of the humanities (except sociology), definitions of labor are quite rare. However, they most often present fairly similar interpretations in comparison with those discussed above, although differences are also added to them due to the angle of consideration of certain processes inherent only to these disciplines.

Also, some dictionaries highlight such components of labor as a) purposeful activity, b) motives for this activity, c) objects, d) tools, e) results of labor. Sometimes in the definition of labor, in addition to the above interpretation, you can find other interpretations of the concept. For example, labor is 1) purposeful human activity aimed at creating, using the means of labor, material and spiritual values ​​necessary for people’s lives; 2) work, occupation; 3) effort aimed at achieving something; 4) the result of a person’s activity or work.”

In social studies dictionaries one can find similar definitions, where work is considered as a purposeful activity of people aimed at creating material and spiritual values. But there are other definitions. For example, labor is “a purposeful human activity. According to the evolutionary point of view, cosmic evolution led to the emergence of terrestrial life, the biosphere as a whole; the evolution of the latter ultimately “created man; in the course of social (and cultural) evolution, the development of man and society took place from primitive times to our scientific and technological age.”

Quite rarely, but definitions of labor can be found in dictionaries of other sciences. For example, in the Dictionary of Social Pedagogy, labor is understood as “the purposeful activity of people aimed at creating consumer values; one of the main types of human activity, along with play, cognition, and communication.” Or, work can be considered as “a human activity that meets the requirements of the following principles: awareness (means that a person, before starting the labor process, is aware of the result of the upcoming work); expediency (a person thinks through an algorithm of actions before proceeding with the implementation of his intentions."

Thus, examining the concept of “labor,” we can identify the following characteristics of labor: a) purposeful activity, b) aimed at creating material and spiritual values, c) these values ​​are necessary for the process of life, d) one of the main types of human activity, e) this activity, f) effort, g) work is always conscious, h) presupposes a goal and result.

From the standpoint of sociology, work is studied as a social phenomenon, the interaction between people in the labor process, and a person’s attitude to work are studied.

Typically, in sociological dictionaries, the definition of labor is considered as “expedient, meaningful activity, during which a person, with the help of tools of labor, masters, changes, adapts natural objects to his goals.” In dictionaries on the sociology of labor, labor is interpreted as “the purposeful activity of a person, during which he, with the help of tools of labor, influences nature and uses it to create objects necessary to satisfy his needs.” They also note that labor “represents the unity of three moments: 1. Purposeful, purposeful human activity or labor itself; 2. Objects of labor; 3. means of labor."

Labor is characterized quite fully in the work of D. Markovich “Sociology of Labor”. Labor is “conscious, universal and organized human activity, the content and nature of which are determined by the degree of development of the means of labor and the characteristics of social relations within the framework of which it is carried out; a person asserts himself in it as a genetic being, creating material and spiritual values ​​that serve to satisfy his essential needs.” needs." This is a very broad definition. The development of labor throughout the existence of society is noted here. It can be noted that definitions can be divided into two groups: these are more “capacious”, but more universal, where the historical aspect of the development of the phenomenon is not considered; and more “expanded” definitions, which talk about changes in the phenomenon during the development of society. The above definition belongs to the second group of definitions.

In some of the definitions presented above (not only sociological), work is considered as a process of interaction between man and nature. But it should be noted that work can also be performed in relation to another person. Today, the service sector is also developed, where labor activity is also expected, but not related to the transformation of natural resources, but related to the provision of services. For example, the provision of medical services to a patient is a service sector. Here, an object of labor is not created from natural resources. However, the health worker also works in relation to the patient. In this case, the subject of labor can be not only what something can be made from, but also some qualities, characteristics, etc. man, and the object of labor is man.

It should also be noted that in the process of work a person develops, new conditions appear that determine new needs.

So, in sociology, work is characterized as:

This is one of the main types of activity, the basis for the emergence and existence of society;

Depends on the level of development of social relations;

Depends on the level of technical development of society;

Expedient activity;

Carried out for the purpose of creating objects;

Labor is the process of creating material and spiritual values;

Items are created to satisfy needs;

Objects are created using tools;

Human development occurs;

This is the process of interacting with objects.

Studying the definitions of labor, we can distinguish two approaches to its interpretation. For example, work – This is one of the main types of human activity, conscious, purposeful, requiring effort and involving the creation of material or spiritual values ​​with the help of tools in the process of interaction with other objects.

Or - from the standpoint of the second approach: work – this is one of the main types of human activity, conscious, determined by existing social relations and the level of technical development of society, during which the development of the person himself occurs, requiring effort, and involving the creation of material or spiritual values ​​with the help of tools in the process of interaction with other objects, aimed at meeting people's needs.

In the first case, the influence of social relations on this type of activity is not noted and the fact that these actions are carried out in order to satisfy needs is not emphasized. The second version of the interpretation of labor is more complete. The above-mentioned features of this type of activity that are absent in the first version of the definition are noted here. These are not unimportant characteristics, although it is well known that human activity, directly or indirectly, is always carried out in order to satisfy his needs and is determined by objective factors. And it would be more appropriate to note these features of the phenomenon under study.

The essence of the differences between the psyches of animals and humans

There is no doubt that there is a huge difference between the human psyche and the psyche of the highest animal.

Thus, there is no comparison between the “language” of animals and the language of humans. While an animal can only give a signal to its fellows about phenomena limited to a given, immediate situation, a person can, with the help of language, inform other people about the past, present and future, and convey to them social experience.

In the history of mankind, thanks to language, a restructuring of reflective capabilities has occurred: the reflection of the world in the human brain is most adequate. Each individual person, thanks to language, uses the experience developed in the centuries-old practice of society; he can gain knowledge about phenomena that he has never personally encountered. In addition, language allows a person to be aware of the content of most sensory impressions.

The difference in the “language” of animals and the language of man determines the difference in thinking. This is explained by the fact that each individual mental function develops in interaction with other functions.

Many experiments by researchers have shown that higher animals are characterized only by practical (“manual”, according to Pavlov) thinking. Only in the process of indicative manipulation is a monkey able to solve one or another situational problem and even create a “tool”. Abstract modes of thinking have not yet been observed in monkeys by any researcher who has ever studied the psyche of animals. An animal can act only within the limits of a clearly perceived situation; it cannot go beyond its limits, abstract from it and assimilate an abstract principle. The animal is a slave to the directly perceived situation.

Human behavior is characterized by the ability to abstract (be distracted) from a given specific situation and anticipate the consequences that may arise in connection with this situation. So, the sailors begin to urgently repair a small hole in the ship, and the pilot looks for the nearest airfield if he has little fuel left. People are by no means slaves to a given situation; they are able to foresee the future.

Thus, the concrete, practical thinking of animals subordinates them to the immediate impression of a given situation, while man's ability for abstract thinking eliminates his direct dependence on a given situation. A person is able to reflect not only the immediate influences of the environment, but also those that await him. A person is able to act in accordance with a recognized need - consciously. This is the first significant difference between the human psyche and the animal psyche.

The second difference between man and animal is his ability to create and maintain tools. An animal creates a tool in a specific visual-effective situation. Outside of a specific situation, an animal never singles out a tool as a tool and does not keep it for future use. As soon as the tool has played its role in a given situation, it immediately ceases to exist for the monkey as a tool. So, if a monkey has just used a stick as a tool for pulling up a fetus, then after a while the animal can chew it or calmly

watch another monkey do it. Thus, animals do not live in a world of permanent things. An object acquires a certain meaning only in a specific situation, in the process of activity1. In addition, the instrumental activity of animals is never performed collectively - at best, monkeys can observe the activity of their fellow, but they will never act together, helping each other.

Unlike an animal, a person creates a tool according to a pre-thought-out plan, uses it for its intended purpose and preserves it. Man lives in a world of relatively permanent things. A person uses a tool together with other people; he borrows the experience of using a tool from some and passes it on to other people.

The third distinctive feature of human mental activity is the transfer of social experience. Both animals and humans have in their arsenal the well-known experience of generations in the form of instinctive actions to a certain type of stimulus. Both of them gain personal experience in all sorts of situations that life offers them. But only man appropriates social experience. Social experience occupies a dominant place in the behavior of an individual. The human psyche is developed to the greatest extent by the social experience transmitted to him. From the moment of birth, the child masters the ways of using tools and methods of communication. The mental functions of a person change qualitatively due to the individual subject’s mastery of the tools of cultural development of mankind. A person develops higher, strictly human, functions (voluntary memory, voluntary attention, abstract thinking).

The development of feelings, as well as the development of abstract thinking, contains a way to most adequately reflect reality. Therefore, the fourth, very significant difference between animals and humans is the difference in feelings. Of course, both man and the higher animal do not remain indifferent to what is happening around them. Objects and phenomena of reality can evoke in animals and humans certain types of attitudes towards what affects them - positive or negative emotions. However, only a person can have a developed ability to empathize with the grief and joy of another person, only a person can enjoy pictures of nature or experience intellectual feelings when realizing any fact of life.

The most important differences between the human psyche and the psyche of animals lie in the conditions of their development. If throughout

Since the development of the animal world, the development of the psyche followed the laws of biological evolution, the development of the human psyche itself, human consciousness, is subject to the laws of socio-historical development. Without assimilating the experience of humanity, without communicating with others like oneself, there will be no developed, strictly human feelings, the ability for voluntary attention and memory, the ability for abstract thinking will not develop, and a human personality will not be formed. This is evidenced by cases of human children being raised among animals. All Mowgli children showed primitive animal reactions, and it was impossible to detect in them those features that distinguish a person from an animal. While a small monkey, left alone by chance, without a herd, will still manifest itself as a monkey, a person will only become a person if his development takes place among people.

The human psyche was prepared by the entire course of the evolution of matter. Analysis of the development of the psyche allows us to talk about the biological prerequisites for the emergence of consciousness. Of course, the human ancestor had the ability to think objectively and could form many associations. Pre-humans, possessing a limb like a hand, could create elementary tools and use them in a specific situation. We find all this in modern apes.

However, consciousness cannot be derived directly from the evolution of animals: man is a product of social relations. The biological prerequisite for social relations was the herd. Human ancestors lived in herds, which allowed all individuals to best protect themselves from enemies and provide mutual assistance to each other.

The factor influencing the transformation of a monkey into a person, a herd into a society, was labor activity, that is, the activity that is performed by people during the joint production and use of tools.

Labor activity is a prerequisite and result of the development of social relations

The emerging labor activity influenced the development of social relations, society, developing social relations influenced the improvement of labor activity. This shift in the development of the human ancestor occurred due to a sharp change in living conditions. The catastrophic change in the environment has caused great difficulties in meeting needs - the possibilities of easily obtaining food have decreased, and the climate has worsened. Human ancestors had to either die out or qualitatively change their behavior. Out of necessity, the ape-like ancestors of humans had to resort to joint pre-labor actions. As F. Engels emphasized, “hundreds of thousands of years have probably passed, which in the history of the Earth have no more significance than a second in life

man - before human society arose from a herd of tree-climbing monkeys."

The instinctive communication of human ancestors within the herd was gradually replaced by communication based on “production” activity. Changing relationships between community members - joint activities, mutual exchange of products of activity - contributes to the transformation of the herd into a society. Thus, the reason for the humanization of human animal-like ancestors is the emergence of labor and the formation of human society.

Human consciousness also developed in labor - the highest form of reflection in the evolutionary series, which is characterized by the identification of objective stable properties of objective activity and the transformation of the surrounding reality carried out on this basis.

Making, using and preserving tools for future use - all these actions lead to greater independence from the direct influence of the environment. From generation to generation, the tools of ancient people become more and more complex - from well-chosen fragments of stones with sharp edges to specialized, collectively made tools. Such tools are assigned constant operations: stabbing, cutting, chopping. It is in this connection that a qualitative difference arises between the human environment and the animal environment. As has already been said, an animal lives in a world of random things, but a person creates for himself a world of permanent objects. The tools created by people are the material carriers of the operations, actions and activities of previous generations. Through tools, one generation passes on its experience to another in the form of operations, actions, and activities.

In work activity, a person’s attention is directed to the tool being created, and, consequently, to his own activity. The activity of an individual is included in the activity of the whole society, therefore human activity is directed to satisfy social needs. In the current conditions, the need for a person’s critical attitude to his activities is manifested. Human activity becomes conscious activity.

In the early stages of social development, people's thinking is limited in accordance with the still low level of people's social practice. The higher the level of production of tools, the correspondingly higher the level of reflection. At a high level of tool production, the integral activity of tool making is divided into a number of units, each of which can be performed by different members of society.

The separation of operations pushes the ultimate goal - getting food - even further. Only a person with abstract thinking can realize this pattern. This means that high-level production of tools, developing under the social organization of labor, is the most important condition in the formation of conscious activity.

By influencing nature, changing it, man at the same time changes his own nature. “Labor,” said Marx, “is, first of all, a process taking place between man and nature, a process in which man, by his own activity, mediates, regulates and controls the exchange of substances between himself and nature. He himself opposes the substance of nature as a force of nature. in order to appropriate the substance of nature in a form suitable for his own life, he sets in motion the natural forces belonging to his body: arms and legs, head and fingers, influencing through this movement the external nature and changing it, he at the same time changes his own. nature. He develops the forces dormant in it and subordinates the play of these forces to his own power.”3

Under the influence of labor, new functions of the hand were consolidated: the hand acquired the greatest dexterity of movements, due to the gradually improving anatomical structure, the ratio of the shoulder and forearm changed, and mobility in all joints increased, especially the hand. However, the hand developed not only as a grasping tool, but also as an organ of cognition of objective reality. Labor activity led to the fact that the actively moving hand gradually turned into a specialized organ of active touch. Touch is a specifically human property of cognition of the world. The hand is “a subtle organ of touch,” wrote I.M. Sechenov, “and this organ sits on the hand, like on a rod, capable of not only shortening, lengthening and moving in all sorts of directions, but also feeling in a certain way each such movement”4 . The hand is an organ of touch not only because the sensitivity to touch and pressure on the palm and fingertips is much greater than on other parts of the body (for example, on the back, shoulder, lower leg), but also because, being an organ formed in work and adapted for influencing objects, the hand is capable of active touch. That is why the hand gives us valuable knowledge about the essential properties of objects in the material world.

Thus, the human hand acquired the ability to perform a wide variety of functions that were completely uncharacteristic of the limbs of the human ancestor. That is why F. Engels spoke of the hand not only as an organ of labor, but also as a product of labor.

The development of the hand went in conjunction with the development of the whole organism. The specialization of the hand as an organ of labor contributed to the development of upright walking.

The actions of the working hands were constantly monitored by vision. In the process of learning the world, in the process of work activity, many connections are formed between the organs of vision and touch, as a result of which the effect of the stimulus changes - it is more deeply, more adequately recognized by the person.

The functioning of the hand had a particularly great influence on the development of the brain. The hand, as a developing specialized organ, should also have formed a representation in the brain. This caused not only an increase in the mass of the brain, but also a complication of its structure. The developing sensory and motor areas of the human brain, in turn, influenced the further development of cognitive activity, which contributed to even more adequate reflection.

The emergence and development of labor led to an incomparably more successful satisfaction of human needs for food, shelter, etc. However, social relations of people qualitatively changed biological needs and gave rise to new, strictly human, needs. The development of objects of labor gave rise to the need for objects of labor.

Thus, labor served as the reason for the development of human society, the formation of human needs, the development of human consciousness, which not only reflects, but also transforms the world. All these phenomena in human evolution led to a radical change in the form of communication between people. The need to pass on the experience of previous generations, teach labor actions to fellow tribesmen, and distribute individual actions between them created the need for communication. The language of instincts could not satisfy this need.

Along with labor, higher forms of communication developed through the labor process - through human language.

Along with the development of consciousness and its inherent forms of reflection of reality, the person himself as a person changes.

PSYCHOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF WORK Work as a whole is not a psychological, but a social category. In its basic social laws, it is not a subject of psychology, but of social sciences. Therefore, the subject of psychological study is not work as a whole, but only the psychological components of work activity.

In his classic description of labor, K. Marx highlighted its most important psychological features: “Labor is, first of all, a process taking place between man and nature, a process in which man, through his own activity, mediates, regulates and controls the exchange of substances between himself and nature. he himself resists as a force of nature. In order to appropriate the substance of nature in a certain form suitable for his own life, he sets in motion the natural forces belonging to his body: arms and legs, head and fingers, influencing through this movement the external nature and changing it. , he at the same time changes his own nature. He develops the forces dormant in the latter and subordinates the play of these forces to his own power. We will not consider here the first animal-like instinctive forms of labor in the form in which it constitutes. The spider performs operations reminiscent of those of a weaver, and the bee puts some human architects to shame with the construction of its wax cells. But even the worst architect differs from the best bee from the very beginning in that, before building a cell of wax, he has already built it in his head. At the end of the labor process, a result is obtained that was already in the human mind at the beginning of this process, i.e. ideal. Man not only changes the form of what is given by nature, he at the same time realizes his conscious goal, which, like a law, determines the method and nature of his actions and to which he must subordinate his will." Marx thus characterizes labor as a conscious, purposeful activity, the result of which is contained in the imagination of the worker and is regulated by the will in accordance with the goal.

Directed in its main focus on production, on the creation of a certain product, labor is at the same time the main way of personality formation. In the labor process, not only is this or that product of the subject’s labor activity produced, but the subject itself is formed in labor. In work activity, a person’s abilities develop, his character is formed, his worldview principles are strengthened and transformed into practical, effective attitudes. The uniqueness of the psychological side of labor activity is primarily due to the fact that, in its objective social essence, labor is an activity aimed at creating a socially useful product. Labor is always the completion of a specific task; the entire course of activity must be subordinated to achieving the intended result; work therefore requires planning and control of execution; it therefore always involves certain obligations and requires internal discipline. The entire psychological attitude of a worker is fundamentally different from that of a person playing. The fact that in work activity all links are subordinated to its final result already gives a specific character to the motivation of work activity: the purpose of the activity lies not in itself, but in its product. Due to the social division of labor, the situation becomes more and more specific. Since no one person produces all the objects needed to satisfy his needs, the motive of his activity becomes the product not of his activity, but of the activity of other people, the product of social activity. Therefore, in work there develops the characteristic human ability for long-range action, indirect, distant motivation, in contrast to the short-circuit short-circuit motivation that is characteristic of the animal, for reactive, impulsive action, conditioned by the momentary situation.

Labor activity is carried out primarily not because of the attractiveness of the activity process itself, but for the sake of its more or less distant result, which serves to satisfy human needs. The labor process itself can and usually, to one degree or another, is more or less difficult, requiring tension, effort, and overcoming not only external, but also internal obstacles. Therefore, labor has developed and labor requires the will and voluntary attention necessary to focus on the directly unattractive parts of the labor process. Whether labor, due to the fact that it is recognized as a duty, will require tension, effort, overcoming obstacles, will be experienced as a yoke, as a burden, as a curse of a person, depends on the social content that labor acquires, i.e., on objective social conditions. These objective social conditions are always reflected in the motivation of work activity, because work always involves not only a person’s relationship to a thing, to an object - the product of labor, but also to other people.

In work, therefore, not only the technique of work is important, but also the person’s attitude towards work. It is this that usually contains the main motives for a person’s work activity.

Normally, work is the most urgent need of a person. To work means to express oneself in activity, to translate one’s idea into action, embodying it in materialized products; to work means, objectifying in the products of one’s labor, to enrich and expand one’s own being, to be a creator, a creator - the greatest happiness that is generally available to a person. Labor is the basic law of human development.<. . . >For the psychological analysis of work activity, in addition to motivation, the psychological nature of those processes or operations through which it is carried out is essential. In any work, including physical work, mental processes are also involved, just as in every work, including mental work, certain movements are also involved (at least those movements of the writing hand that are necessary for writing this book). In work, as a person’s real activity, all aspects of his personality participate to one degree or another. But the differences in objective nature and the organization of various types of labor lead to the fact that in psychological, and in particular intellectual, terms they turn out to be heterogeneous. Each type of work has its own, more or less complex, technique that must be mastered. Therefore, knowledge and skills always play a more or less significant role in work. Without knowledge and skills, no work is possible. Knowledge plays a particularly significant role in more complex types of labor; skills play a particularly significant role in the most mechanized industries and types of labor, where the main actions are partly standard, monotonous and can be easily automated. However, in every work one always has to take into account changing conditions, show a certain initiative and, when faced with certain unexpected circumstances, solve new problems. Therefore, all work includes, to one degree or another, intellectual, thought processes of a more or less high level. And finally, to some extent, the moment of invention and creativity is always represented in work.

*Human consciousness arose and developed during the social period of its existence, and the history of the formation of consciousness probably does not go beyond the framework of those several tens of thousands of years that we attribute to the history of human society. The main condition for the emergence and development of human consciousness is the joint productive instrumental activity of people mediated by speech. This is an activity that requires cooperation, communication and interaction between people. It involves the creation of a product that is recognized by all participants in joint activities as the goal of their cooperation.

The productive, creative nature of human activity is of particular importance for the development of human consciousness. Consciousness presupposes a person’s awareness not only of the external world, but also of himself, his sensations, images, ideas and feelings. The images, thoughts, ideas and feelings of people are materially embodied in the objects of their creative work and with the subsequent perception of these objects precisely as embodying the psychology of their creators they become conscious.

At the beginning of its development, human consciousness is directed towards the external world. A person realizes that he is outside of him, thanks to the fact that, with the help of the senses given to him by nature, he sees and perceives this world as separate from him and existing independently of him. Later, a reflexive ability appears, i.e., the awareness that a person himself can and should become an object of knowledge. This is the sequence of stages in the development of consciousness in phylo- and ontogenesis. This direction can be designated as reflexive.

The second direction is associated with the development of thinking and the gradual connection of thought with words. Human thinking, as it develops, penetrates more and more into the essence of things. In parallel with this, the language used to denote the knowledge being acquired is developing. The words of the language are filled with ever deeper meaning and, finally, when sciences develop, they turn into concepts. The word-concept is the unit of consciousness, and the direction in which it arises can be designated as conceptual.

Each new historical era is uniquely reflected in the consciousness of its contemporaries, and with changes in the historical conditions of people’s existence, their consciousness changes.

Joint activity of people and the emergence of consciousness.

Making, using and preserving tools - all these actions lead to greater independence of a person from the influence of the environment. From generation to generation, the tools of ancient people become more and more complex - from well-chosen fragments of stones with sharp edges to tools made collectively. Such tools are assigned constant operations: stabbing, cutting, chopping.

The tools created by people are the material carriers of the operations, actions and activities of previous generations. Through tools, one generation passes on its experience to another in the form of operations, actions, and activities.

In work activity, a person’s attention is directed to the tool being created and to his own activity. The activity of an individual person is included in the activity of the whole society, therefore human activity is aimed at satisfying social needs. Human activity becomes conscious activity.

At the early stages of social development, people's thinking is limited in accordance with the still low level of people's social practice.

The higher the level of weapon production, the higher the level of reflection. At a high level of tool production, the integral activity of tool making is divided into a number of units, each of which can be performed by different members of society. The separation of operations pushes the ultimate goal - getting food - even further. So, high but level the production of tools is the most important condition in the formation of conscious activity.

By influencing nature, changing it, man at the same time changes his own nature. For example, under the influence of labor, new functions of the hand were consolidated: the hand acquired the greatest dexterity of movements. However, the hand developed not only as a grasping tool, but also as an organ of cognition of objective reality.