SUMMARIES

Cultural mechanisms of development

M. Cole

The article is a shortened version of invited lecture for Conference honoring the scientific legacy of L. S. Vygotsky, Moscow, September, 1994. It discusses a topic that was central to L. S. Vygotsky's concern: the role of culture in human development The author illustrates the affinities between Russian ideas about culture in development and ideas derived from American and European scholars and presents an example of evaluation of the correctness of the theory with respect to a centrally important form of behavior in society — the ability to read for meaning.

The peculiarities of 5—10-years old children's views on a soul

E. A. Savina

5-years old child has a view on soul as on specific inner phenomenon which cannot be detected by eyesight and touch. The soul is understood by a child to be a source of life and movement, its functions are emotions, thinking, memory, desires.

6-years old child considers emotional-moral aspects to be the main characteristics of a soul; this is connected to such developmental formations as generalization of experience and primary ethical notions. Some of the children of this age demonstrate elements of own psychic organization reflection. The knowledge about soul is not enriched with age; it is an evidence of modem educative system failure to supply necessary means of psychic reality cognition.

Psychological features of spelling literacy

G. G. Granik

The hypothesis of spelling literacy main psychic mechanism being forestalling and keeping of rule-specific morpheme blocks or accretion of morpheme parts is presented. The blocks play part of holistic formations for a student and are immediately recognized. The method of verifying the hypothesis was worked out and tried experimentally. It forms a basis for textbook series.

The main directions of psychological consulting of parents on parent — adolescent conflict by youth help-line

A. N. Elixarov

Significant 2nd place (20% of total amount of calls) is occupied by parent — adolescent conflict in psychological consulting practice of Moscow Youth help-line. There are three main directions of psychologist's activity aimed at parents in parent — adolescent conflict: (1) contradictions in parent's value orientation when an offspring plays the role of one of the sides in parent's inner conflict; (2) the refusal on parent's side to form symmetrical interrelations with an adolescent and to grant an adolescent adult status in the family; (3) parents' inability to help an offspring to solve socialization problems connected to the transition to adolescence.

Consumer's economic behavior and the theory of activity

A. N. Lebedev, A. K. Bokovikov

The results of empirical study of consumer's real activity depending on social role are presented. The goods choice is determined not by economical factors (for instance, goods price) but by activity goals. The authors argue that general purposes of a person regardless of activity do not affect real consumer choice. These findings are important for effective marketing and advertising.

Psychic conditions of personal computer user

A. O. Prokhorov, A. E. Serezhkina

Typical psychic conditions appearing in different situations when using personal computer (starting, finishing work, overcoming difficulties) are described as well as their influence on efficacy of activity. Age-specific, gender-specific, professional and situative factors influence psychic conditions actualization. The efficacy depends most on volitional and motivation conditions.

The first hotbed of psychological studies in Russian academy of sciences

M. G. Yaroshevsky

The organization and the first stage of activity of psychological sector in Russian academy of sciences, founded in 1945 by S. L. Rubinstein, is described. The main directions of its activity -methodological-historical, general psychological, psychophysiological are characterised.

The problems of education and of development in N. A. Menchinskaya's work

I. S. Yakimanskaya

The article dedicated to N. A. Menchinskaya's works describes its content and importance for general, educational, developmental and differential psychology as well as educative practice.

The pages of a diary: dauhgter's development

N. A. Menchinskaya

A part of N. A. Menchinskaya's archive is published in commemoration of her 90-th anniversary.

Intelligence indices and cognitive differentiation in junior schoolchildren

N. I. Chuprikova, T. A. Ratanova

The data on correlation of Wechsler intelligence indices with signal differentiation speed shown by 5 samples of 11-years old schoolchildren are presented. Three interrelated factors influence this correlation: markerness of correlation between different tasks on signal differentiation; the degree of intercorrelarion of intelligence subtests; the level of intelligence development. It is argued that less developed intelligence is characterized by united general level of signals and their correlation differentiation. The data obtained are theoretically considered to be in accordance with the notion of cognitive structures being the carriers of intellectual abilities.

Newborn enfants' visual tracking in the situation of choice

A. S. Batuev, A. G. Kaschavtsev, M. V. Soboleva

50 newborn enfants were studied for their choice of visual object and its tracking. The babies 7—23 days old prefer face-like stimuli, whose having perinatal central nervous system disorders more so. When choosing between face-like stimulus and mother's face all the enfants prefer the latter, when choosing between unknown face and mother's face they prefer the former.

Express-method of psychoemotional strain diagnostics

O. S. Kopina, E. A. Suslova, E. V. Zaikin

A new psychodiagnostic questionnaire “How do you feel” is offered. It is designed to evaluate psychoemotional strain and its sources. The questionnaire as a whole and its scales are found to be valid, specific, sensitive, predictive and diagnostically effective. Some results of its application in population studies are presented.

Cross-modal choice in preschoolers time evaluation

O. E. Surnina, V. I. Lupandin, N. V. Pustueva, I. N. Yezhitsa

The authors analyze the problem of preschooler's time perception. Experimental play method, based on cross-modal choice, is presented. It was applied in the course of a study and some results are described: preschooler's subjective time scale is much narrower than objective physical one due to unproportional time intervals evaluation.

Theory of attachment: the concept and the experiment

E. O. Smirnova

The article lets the reader to become acquainted with one of the most influential concepts of Western developmental psychology — the theory of attachment. It is applicable to many phenomena of child's intellectual and personal development The main notions of the theory as well as principal directions of studies are described.

The psychologists in CIS: the questionnaire of “Voprosy Psychologii”

D. Nissim-Sabat, E. V. Shchedrina

Subscribers to “Voprosy Psychologii” were asked to respond to a survey designed to assess the educational, employment and professional activities of psychologists in the Newly Independent States. The survey, adapted from the annual survey distributed by the American Psychological Association was completed by 120 respondents, of which 72, 5% were women and 27, 5% were men. The results indicate significant gender and age differences in education, employment and areas of specialization. Women, as compared to men, are more likely to specialize in developmental/social areas and work in educational settings. Men, on the other hand are more likely to have obtained degrees in psychology and work in university settings. This survey will be distributed yearly, and it is expected that the return rate will be higher in future years. The collection of this information will hopefully help in determining the various needs of the psychological profession and the role psychology will play in future public policy debates.