Prokhorov Alexander O.

Background. The study relevance is determined by the need to identify the contribution of consciousness structures to the regulation of mental states and development of the regulatory abilities of the personality. The author’s model of the structural and functional organization of the mental states regulation system served as a theoretical basis of the work. 

The study objective was to show the maturation of the students’ mental states regulation system in the course of university study (at the lectures, seminars, and exams). 

Sample. The study attended by psychology students at the Institute of Psychology and Education of Kazan Federal University, 151 people in total: 88 students of the 1st year and 63 students of the 4th year of study.

Methods. We used various methods for diagnostics of mental characteristics and regulatory abilities, as well as the author’s questionnaires for studying mental states and operational means of self-regulation. Correlation analysis was used to process the data, followed by the calculation of the structure organization index. 

Results. The study demonstrated that in the period from the first to the fourth year of the university studies the students develop new methods and techniques of mental states self-regulation, and the increase in their number is associated with the diversity of the forms of educational activities. In the fourth year of study, the students’ preferable methods of mental states self-regulation are high searching activity, increasing one’s own motivation, developing positive attitudes to study and activating positive volitional states. By the final year of study, semantic structures of consciousness, actual reflection and motivation for learning (cognition and self-development) get on the leading roles in self-regulation of mental states. In addition, the importance of the “Self-system”, of the students’ experience and their regulatory abilities is increasing. The study revealed a signifi cant role of self-awareness, perseverance, observance and leadership qualities of students in self-regulation of their mental states.

Conclusion. The results of the study will contribute to the development of the methodology of self-regulated learning and will be useful in designing technologies for the regulation of the subject’s mental states.

Background. The study of psychological mechanisms and patterns of “conscious” regulation of psychic states turns us to the structures of consciousness and their functions in the regulatory process. These structures and mechanisms remain the least studied to date, while the need to understand the psychological mechanisms of self-regulation of states is extremely relevant, and knowledge about them is in demand in various situations of a subject’s life.

Objective. The presented analytical article analyzes the concept of “situation” (approaches, principles, structure, levels, etc.) considered as a “psychological situation” and investigates its role in the actualization of the mental regulation of psychic states.

Results. It is shown that psychological situation, through the formation of an impression, which is a cognitive-affective complex, “launches” the regulatory process, actualizing the structures of consciousness constituted by semantic, reflective, representative structures, experiences, and the Self system. The article provides an analysis of results of the situational conditioning of self-regulation of states among the employees of government institutions, in the process of teaching students, in difficult life situations (reversible and irreversible) as well as its impact on the activation of consciousness structures and, accordingly, on the operational means of regulation. Consideration is also given to the relationships between mental structures in the process of regulating the subject’s states.

Conclusion. The formation of functional structures “situation — mental structures — regulatory means — mental states” occurs in the process of psychic states regulation. The actualization of functional structures is due to the purpose of regulation — the need to change the state in accordance with requirements of the situation of the subject’s life activity. Activation of the consciousness structures mediating the choice of operational means of regulation and their use leads to a change in the psychic state.

Background. The relevance of the study is due to insufficient knowledge of the influence of the structures of consciousness on the self-regulation of cognitive states in various stressful situations. The author’s concept of mental regulation of psychological states served as a theoretical basis for empirical research.

Objective. To identify the features of the relationship between indicators of mental regulation and the frequency of experiencing cognitive states in four situations with different stress levels.

Study Participants. The study sample consisted of 70 schoolchildren (31 boys and 39 girls, Mage = 17.7 years) from secondary education schools.

Methods. The study implemented the author’s questionnaires “Assessment of the frequency of experiencing mental states” and “Methods of self-regulation of mental states” (M.E. Valiullina). In the instructions, the respondents were presented with four types of situations characterized by different stress levels — from the weak level with a neutral context to the strong level with a negative emotional background. Apart from that, the study participants were tested by means of well-known psychological questionnaires: “Method for Studying the System of Life Meanings” (V.Yu. Kotlyakov), “Self-attitude Questionnaire” (S.R. Pantileev), “Method for Diagnosing Reflexivity” (A.V. Karpov, V.V. Ponomareva). Statistical data processing was carried out using frequency analysis and nonlinear correlation analysis according to Spearman.

Results. The data analysis demonstrated: as the tension in the situation increases, the frequency of experiencing productive cognitive states decreases, the probability of unproductive states increases, and the number of applied regulation methods increases as well. Besides, as the tension in the situation increases, the involvement of the consciousness components (those of semantic sphere, reflection, and self-attitude) in the mental regulation of cognitive states increases, the degree of relationships integration increases, and the structure-forming indicators are highlighted.

Conclusions. The results obtained show that the level of stress in the situation significantly influences the qualitative composition of the characteristics involved in the systems “mental regulation — cognitive state — regulation method” and “mental regulation — regulation method — cognitive state”.