The concept of thinking, the definition of thinking. Visual-effective thinking, description

Thinking is a unique, highest form of consciousness for a person with the functions of controlling behavior. This is how the great American psychologist and philosopher of the early 20th century figuratively defined thinking. William James: “Thinking can be compared to a theatrical performance, in each scene of which there are simultaneously many possibilities of choice. The activity of consciousness consists in comparing these possibilities with each other, selecting some of them and displacing all the rest by strengthening or weakening the concentration of attention... In other words, the work of consciousness on the data that it receives is reminiscent of the work of a sculptor on a block of marble. (James, 1890, pp. 288-289)."

Thinking can be figuratively compared to the behavior of a musician, whose hearing habitually and spontaneously selects from the cacophony of surrounding sounds only those he likes, after which he begins to habitually compose endless improvisations of a theme that has long been hackneyed for him. Bruner (Bruner, 1957) gave a very deep, concise definition of thinking: “Going beyond the limits of available information” (quoted by D. Halpern). In other words, from a mass of scattered information, thinking builds a new reality (a model of a future that does not yet exist, or another world).

Thinking is associated with the processes of receiving, evaluating, processing, storing information, and choosing a solution. The essence of human thinking is the transformation of limited information into a certain speech code (sounds, words, sentences), which subsequently itself serves as communication material. Thought is the encoding and decoding of information. The final result of the transformation is a certain mental image bearing the imprint of emotions. From an esoteric point of view, all reflections of objects in the form of mental images are materialistic (filled with energy); the difference between the reflection (mental image) and the original object is in their “subtlety” (energy density).

The result of thinking is a thought formalized into a word or sentence; thinking is inextricably linked with speech. Thinking is judged by two criteria: analysis of actions and analysis of the characteristics of an individual’s speech.

Thinking has characteristic features:

ability to arbitrarily select an object of study;
ability to analyze, synthesize, encode, create a data bank, decode, compare, make decisions about action, monitor changes, compare expected and obtained results;
the ability to perform an act of creation - creating one’s own information model of the world.

A distinctive feature of human thinking is considered to be the ability to logic, the ability to draw an obvious (or non-obvious, but correct) conclusion (conclusion) from existing judgments (premises). There are a number of laws that describe logic; conclusions that do not agree with the laws of logic are called illogical. An example of the simplest particular form of logic is a syllogism; its essence is that from two statements, which are called premises, a reasonable conclusion (conclusion) is drawn.

The thinking process depends on (is influenced by) a number of factors. This:

preliminary experience (prejudices, stereotypes, introjection);
accompanying circumstances (stress);
physical and mental state of the individual (fatigue, emotions, desires);
mental (thinking) capabilities of the individual (genotypically inherited abilities and phenotypically acquired skills).

In ordinary life, human reasoning always bears the imprint of subjectivity and is only partially objective. In unfavorable conditions (severe stress, panic), thinking sometimes becomes illogical; a person does not perceive or ignores quite obvious facts, drawing incorrect conclusions from them. Example: a child almost drowned, and since then, even as an adult, he is afraid to come closer than 10 meters to the water.

Stereotypes and prejudices

As a result of cognitive activity, a person develops a system of stereotypes in all aspects of life throughout his life. A stereotype is a generalized idea, a certain generalized image of a particular subject. Examples: a politician is usually a man; A well-known, often exaggerated stereotype is the mental abilities of blondes. The stereotype phenomenon allows you to quickly assign the subject of attention to one or another category. Of course, this helps to quickly navigate the situation. On the other hand, if a person has formed a stereotype, the phenomenon of prejudice (false generalization and “overthinking”) begins to work. Example: a woman has developed a certain negative stereotype of men’s behavior towards her; She automatically classified her new acquaintance as a rake and was incredibly pleasantly surprised when this acquaintance turned out to be completely different from what she had previously imagined.

In his famous book on prejudice, Allport (1954) writes: “A stereotype can live and gain strength in spite of all available facts...” (quoted by D. Halpern). That is why it is always necessary to monitor what and how we think and perceive in order to reduce the negative impact of the stereotype. Fiske (1993) subtly noted: “Without stereotypes, there will be much less reason to hate, expel, exterminate someone” (quoted by D. Halpern)..

Operations of thinking

During thinking, the following operations occur:

Comparison - establishing identities and differences between objects and phenomena, identifying essential and non-essential elements.

Analysis - mental division of an object or phenomenon into multiple elements with subsequent consideration of them without connection with the whole; At the same time, essential and non-essential elements are distinguished. Any scientific research begins with analysis.

Synthesis - combination of various features of an object or process, identified at the previous stage of analysis, into a certain system with the reproduction of hierarchical connections characteristic of real objects. Synthesis is not a “mirror” operation of analysis.

Generalization - the process of highlighting and signifying relatively stable properties of the surrounding world. Based on generalization, various classifications are created (for example, animals, plants, etc.).

Abstraction (Latin abstractio - abstraction) - the highest degree of generalization of the essential properties and connections of objects with their complete separation from the immediate sensory-figurative qualities of objects. There is a distinction between formal abstraction (based on theoretical constructs) and meaningful (based on direct experience).

Performance forms into a single whole significant and random connections in the subject; in other words, a sensory image of the object is created.

Concept , in contrast to representation, contains a qualitatively new, different knowledge about the object, in which the image is deprived of a sensory component. At this stage, there is a separation from the sensory characteristics of the object and its transformation into a self-sufficient object. A concept is a symbolic representation of the essential properties of objects in the surrounding world, identified as a result of analytical work. Each concept contains a special action that reproduces the object of knowledge in abstraction. We can say that this is a kind of economical mini-program (driver), created as a result of extensive work of cognition of the subject.

Judgment represents a thought formalized in verbal formulation. In a judgment, something is always affirmed (or denied). Judgment is the highest, final form of the thought process (but not cognition!). When solving a problem situation, thinking always and necessarily ends with some kind of judgment. In the theory and practice of describing cognitive processes, a number of special terms are used, for example, “mental actions” and “inference,” as well as “deduction” and “induction.”

Mental Actions denote human cognitive operations aimed at identifying those attributes of objects that are not given in the perceptual (sensory) plane. The development of mathematics, physics and the theory of science in general is carried out thanks to mental actions.

Inference - a logical conclusion based on establishing a connection between any judgments. The conclusion is put into verbal form, due to which the prospect of leaving the influence of the perceptual field opens up. There are two types of inferences: deductive (logical conclusion based on the transition from general provisions to particular ones) and inductive (logical conclusion based on the transition from particular provisions to general ones). Among the most important laws of inductive logic are the rules of evidence connecting cause and effect:

whenever a cause arises, a phenomenon (effect) also arises;
whenever there is a phenomenon (effect), it is preceded by a cause;
if the cause varies, the phenomenon also varies;
if the cause has additional properties, then the phenomenon acquires additional properties.

Types of thinking

When describing mental processes, the following types and directions of thinking are distinguished: visual-effective, visual-figurative, visual (abstract-figurative), as well as convergent and divergent.

Visual-effective thinking manifests itself in the ability to manipulate real objects and serves primarily practical tasks.

Visual-figurative thinking reflects the ability to model and resolve a problem situation in the form of ideas about objects.

Visual or abstract-figurative thinking (Latin visualis - visual) represents a purely creative act of cognition. It is directly related to the abstract-figurative representation of objects of reality and the solution of problematic problems through internal figurative modeling with abstract concepts.

Convergent thinking (Latin convergere - converge) - a form of thinking based on the strategy of precise use of previously learned algorithms for solving a specific problem. In other words, there is a sequential selection from a variety of elementary operations of the only one necessary to solve this problem. Otherwise, convergent thinking is called induction (from the particular to the general). Example: everyone around has one head, therefore, all people have one head. In other words, a general hypothesis is built from many small facts.

Divergent thinking (Latin divergere - to diverge) - a form of thinking opposite to convergent; is based on the strategy of generating multiple solutions to a single problem. Otherwise, divergent thinking is called deduction (from the general to the specific). Example: all Englishmen wear hats, therefore, if a person is wearing a hat, he is English. In other words, a particular assumption is made from one general judgment.

1038

Thinking is the process of processing information by humans and highly developed animals, aimed at establishing connections and relationships between objects or phenomena of the surrounding world.

Thinking is the process of generalized and indirect cognition of reality. Thinking consists in identifying essential (i.e. not directly given, stable, significant for activity, generalized) properties and relationships. The main characteristic of thinking, which distinguishes it from other cognitive processes, is its generalized and indirect nature. Unlike perception and memory, which are aimed at knowing objects and preserving their images, the purpose of thinking is to analyze the connections and relationships between objects, as a result of which a person develops a diagram of the situation and develops a plan of action in it.

You can become aware of the properties and qualities of an object through direct contact with it, as a result of which traces of this object are formed in memory. Those. memory and perception are processes that are directly related to objects. It is impossible to understand the connections between objects and their relationships directly. This cannot be done with instantaneous contact, which gives, although not always accurately, an idea only of the appearance of the object. For example, in order to find out that it is always cold in winter, it is necessary to observe this phenomenon repeatedly. Only by summarizing observations can we speak with confidence about the differences between the seasons.

The fact that the experience of one person may not be enough for an accurate and objective judgment is associated with the search for supra-individual criteria that would confirm the correctness of individual generalizations. Logic is often used as such a criterion, which is transpersonal and represents the crystallization of the experience of many generations. In other types of thinking that are not directly related to logic, a person, to prove the objectivity and reliability of his conclusions, turns to other types of individual experience crystallized in culture: art, ethical standards, etc.

In psychology, a distinction is made between the concepts of task and problem situation. Any problem that faces a person and requires resolution becomes a task, i.e. a problem is a problem from an algebra textbook, a situation of choosing a profession, a question of how to distribute the money received, etc. In the event that there is enough data to solve these issues, this is truly a task. In the same case, if there is not enough data to solve it, the task turns into a problem situation.

So, if for some reason one of the data is not given in an algebraic problem (for example, the speed of a train), this is a problematic situation. If we don't know the people we've invited to visit and their interests well enough, the task of seating them at the table and organizing a general conversation becomes a problematic situation. If new data appears (in another textbook or after closer communication with guests), the problematic situation becomes a task.

In terms of psychological structure, objective and subjective tasks are distinguished. An objective task is characterized by stated requirements and specified conditions (i.e., characteristics independent of the subject). A subjective task is an objective task in the understanding of the subject. It is characterized by the goal that the subject sets for himself and the means he uses to achieve it.

Types of thinking. Mental operations.

Depending on the characteristics under consideration, several classifications of types of thinking are distinguished:

According to the degree of novelty of the product that the subject of cognition receives:

- Productive

Productive thinking is characterized by the high novelty of its product, the originality of the process of obtaining it and a significant influence on mental development. Productive thinking of students ensures independent solution of problems that are new to them, deep assimilation of knowledge, a rapid pace of mastering it, and the breadth of its transfer to relatively new conditions.

Productive thinking fully reveals a person’s intellectual abilities and creative potential. The main feature of productive mental acts is the possibility of acquiring new knowledge in the process itself, that is, spontaneously, and not by borrowing from the outside.

- Reproductive

Reproductive thinking is less productive, but it plays an important role. On the basis of this type of thinking, problems of a structure familiar to the student are solved. It provides an understanding of new material and the application of knowledge in practice, if it does not require significant transformation.

The possibilities of reproductive thinking are determined by the presence of an initial minimum of knowledge. Reproductive thinking is a type of thinking that provides a solution to a problem, relying on the reproduction of methods already known to man. The new task is correlated with an already known solution scheme. Despite this, reproductive thinking always requires the identification of a certain level of independence.

According to the nature of the course:

Three characteristics are usually used: temporal (time of the process), structural (divided into stages), and level of occurrence (awareness or unconsciousness).

- Analytical (logical)

Analytical thinking unfolds in time, has clearly defined stages, and is largely represented in the consciousness of the thinking person himself.

- Intuitive

Intuitive thinking is characterized by rapidity, the absence of clearly defined stages, and is minimally conscious.

By the nature of the tasks being solved:

- Theoretical

Theoretical thinking is the knowledge of laws and rules. The discovery of Mendeleev's periodic system is a product of his theoretical thinking. Theoretical thinking is sometimes compared to empirical thinking. The following criterion is used here: the nature of the generalizations with which thinking deals, in one case these are scientific concepts, and in the other - everyday, situational generalizations.

- Practical

The main task of practical thinking is to prepare a physical transformation of reality: setting a goal, creating a plan, project, scheme. One of the important features of practical thinking is that it unfolds under conditions of severe time pressure.

So, for example, for fundamental sciences, the discovery of a law in February or March of the same year is not of fundamental importance. Drawing up a plan for conducting a battle after it is over makes the work meaningless. In practical thinking there are very limited possibilities for testing hypotheses. All this makes practical thinking sometimes even more complex than theoretical thinking.

According to the subordination of the thought process to logic or emotions:

- Rational

Rational thinking is thinking that has clear logic and goes towards the goal.

- Emotional (irrational)

Irrational thinking is incoherent thinking, a flow of thoughts without logic or purpose. The process of such irrational thinking is often called feeling. If a girl is thinking, something seems to her, and although she does not see clear logic in her reasoning, he can say “I feel.” This is especially common when a person wants to believe in his impressions. Moreover, if her impression pleased her or frightened her - there is definitely a feeling here.

Examples of irrational thinking include distorted conclusions that clearly do not reflect reality, as well as exaggeration or downplaying of the significance of certain events, personalization (when a person ascribes to himself the significance of events to which, by and large, he has nothing to do) and overgeneralization ( Based on one minor failure, a person makes a global conclusion for life).

Based on the motive that stimulates the thought process:

- Autistic

Autistic thinking is aimed at satisfying a person's desires. The term “egocentric thinking” is sometimes used and is characterized primarily by the inability to accept another person’s point of view. In a healthy person it manifests itself in the form of fantasies and dreams. The functions of autistic thinking include satisfaction of motives, realization of abilities, and inspiration.

- Realistic

Realistic thinking is aimed mainly at the external world, at cognition, and is regulated by logical laws.

By the nature of the logic of knowledge:

The concept of pre-logical thinking was introduced by L. Lévy-Bruhl. By the terms “pre-logical” and “logical” Lévy-Bruhl did not designate successive stages, but coexisting types of thinking. While determining the content of the collective ideas of primitive man, pre-logical thinking did not extend to the sphere of personal experience and practical actions. During the historical development of society, which determined the dominance of logical thinking, traces of pre-logical thinking are preserved in religion, morality, rituals, etc.

- Boolean

Logical thinking is focused on establishing logical relationships.

- Prelogical

Pre-logical thinking is characterized by the incompleteness of the basic logical laws: the existence of cause-and-effect relationships is already realized, but their essence appears in a mystified form. Phenomena are correlated on the basis of cause and effect even when they simply coincide in time. Participation (involvement) of events adjacent in time and space serves in pre-logical thinking as the basis for explaining most events occurring in the surrounding world.

At the same time, man appears to be closely connected with nature, especially with the animal world. Natural and social situations are recognized as processes occurring under the auspices and resistance of invisible forces. The product of pre-logical thinking is magic as a widespread attempt in primitive society to influence the world around us. Prelogical thinking is characterized by the absence of accidents, impenetrability to criticism, insensitivity to contradictions, and unsystematic knowledge.

Genetic classification:

Visual-effective, visual-figurative, verbal-logical thinking form the stages of development of thinking in ontogenesis, in phylogenesis. Currently, psychology has convincingly shown that these three types of thinking coexist in adults.

- Visually effective

The main characteristic of visual-effective thinking is reflected in the name: the solution of the problem is carried out with the help of a real transformation of the situation, with the help of an observable motor act, action. Visual-effective thinking also exists in higher animals and has been systematically studied by such scientists as I. P. Pavlov, W. Köhler, and others.

- Visual-figurative

The functions of figurative thinking are associated with the presentation of situations and changes in them that a person wants to obtain as a result of his activities that transform the situation, with the specification of general provisions. With the help of figurative thinking, the whole variety of different factual characteristics of an object is more fully recreated.

The image can capture the simultaneous vision of an object from several points of view. A very important feature of imaginative thinking is the establishment of unusual, “incredible” combinations of objects and their properties. In contrast to visual-effective thinking, with visual-figurative thinking the situation is transformed only in terms of the image.

- Verbal-logical

Reasoning, verbal-logical thinking stands out as one of the main types of thinking, characterized by the use of concepts, logical constructions, existing, functioning on the basis of language, linguistic means.

Creative/critical:

Creative and critical thinking are two types of thinking of the same person, which come into conflict with each other.

- Creative

Creative thinking is thinking that results in the discovery of something new or the improvement of an old one.

- Critical

Critical thinking examines discoveries, solutions, improvements, finds in them shortcomings, defects and further possibilities for application.

The following mental operations are distinguished:

- Analysis

Dividing objects into parts or properties.

- Comparison

Comparison of objects and phenomena, finding similarities and differences between them.

- Synthesis

Combining parts or properties into a single whole.

- Abstraction

Mental selection of essential properties and features of objects or phenomena while simultaneously abstracting from non-essential features and properties.

- Generalization

Connecting together objects and phenomena based on their common and essential features.

Experimental studies of animal thinking in behaviorism.

American scientist Edward Thorndike (1874-1949), along with I.P. Pavlov, is considered the founder of the scientific method of studying the learning process in animals under controlled laboratory conditions. He was the first psychologist to apply an experimental approach to the study of the psyche of animals. This approach was proposed somewhat earlier by the German scientist Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920) to study the human psyche, as opposed to the dominant method of introspection at that time, based on introspection.

E. Thorndike in his research used the method of so-called “problem cells” - universal problems for animals. An animal (for example, a cat) was placed in a locked box, from which it was possible to exit only by performing a certain action (pressing a pedal or lever that opens a latch). Another type of basic task was invented for mice and rats - a maze.

The behavior of the animals was the same, they made many random movements: they rushed in different directions, scratched the box, bit it - until one of the movements accidentally turned out to be successful. On subsequent trials, the animal needed less and less time to find a way out until it began to act without error. The data obtained (“learning curve”) gave grounds to assert that the animal acts by “trial and error”, accidentally finding the right solution. This was also evidenced by the fact that, having once made the right action, the animal continued to make many mistakes.

Thus, the main conclusion of the experiments was that the formation of new connections occurs gradually, this requires time and many trials.

Experimental studies of thinking in Gestalt psychology. Stages of development of the thought process.

Gestalt psychologists believed that thinking does not depend on experience, but only on the image of the situation. For scientists belonging to this direction, the concept of insight became the key, the basis for explaining all forms of mental activity.

The phenomenon of insight was discovered by W. Keller while studying the intelligence of chimpanzees. Based on the fact that intellectual behavior is aimed at solving a problem, Keller created “problem situations” in which the experimental animal had to find workarounds to achieve the goal. The operations that the monkeys performed to solve the task were called “two-phase”, because consisted of two parts.

In the first part, the monkey had to use one tool to get another one necessary to solve a problem (for example, using a short stick that was in a cage, get a long one lying at some distance from the cage). In the second part, the resulting tool was used to achieve the desired goal, for example, to obtain a banana that was far from the monkey.

Thinking was seen not only as establishing new connections, but also as restructuring the situation. To solve the problem, all objects had to be in the field of view.

Keller's experiments showed that solving a problem (restructuring a situation) does not occur through a blind search for the right path (by trial and error), but instantly, thanks to a spontaneous grasp of relationships, understanding (insight). That. insight was seen as a way of forming new connections, a way of solving problems, a way of thinking. Keller argued that the moment phenomena enter another situation, they acquire a new function.

Combining objects in new combinations associated with their new functions leads to the formation of a new image (gestalt), the awareness of which is the essence of thinking. Keller called this process the restructuring of gestalt and believed that such restructuring occurs instantly and does not depend on the past experience of the subject, but only on the ways in which objects are arranged in the field.

The following stages of problem solving (thinking) were identified:

1) Accepting the task and studying the conditions.

2) Application of old solutions.

3) Hidden phase (accompanied by negative emotions).

4) Insight, “aha reaction” (accompanied by positive emotions).

5) The final stage (obtaining the result, formalizing the solution to the problem).

K. Duncker conducted experimental studies with adults, during which he asked subjects to solve various original creative problems (the X-ray problem). The subjects were asked to voice everything that came to their minds; the experimenter was in an interaction with the subjects.

As a result, Keller’s main provisions on solving a problem based on insight and the stages of solving a problem were confirmed. However, according to Duncker, insight is not instantaneous, but rather pre-arranged. The process reveals two types of solutions: functional and final.

Study of the development of conceptual thinking in the school of L.S. Vygotsky. Vygotsky-Sakharov technique.

Conceptual thinking - (verbal-logical), one of the types of thinking, characterized by the use of concepts and logical constructions. Conceptual thinking functions on the basis of linguistic means and represents the latest stage in the historical and ontogenetic development of thinking.

In the structure of conceptual thinking, various types of generalizations are formed and function. Thinking is seen as a process expressed in words. Thinking without O figurative - there are no images in thinking, there are only words or logical operations. The sequence of mental mental operations is the process of thinking.

A concept is a form of thinking that reflects the essential properties, connections and relationships of objects and phenomena, expressed in a word or group of words.

N. Akh expressed the idea that thinking is carried out not in images, but in concepts. Adults have a formed system of concepts, and these concepts are presented in a collapsed form. In his methodology, Akh introduced the technique of forming artificial concepts. To do this, he used three-dimensional geometric shapes that differed in shape, color, size, weight - 48 shapes in total.

A piece of paper with an artificial word is attached to each figure: large heavy figures are designated by the word “gatsun”, large light figures are designated “ras”, small heavy figures are designated “taro”, small light figures are designated “fal”. The experiment begins with 6 figures, and from session to session their number increases, eventually reaching 48. Each session begins with the figures being placed in front of the subject, and he must lift all the figures in turn, while reading their names out loud; this is repeated several times.

After this, the pieces of paper are removed, the figures are mixed, and the subject is asked to select the figures on which there was a piece of paper with one of the words, and also explain why he chose these particular figures; this is also repeated several times. At the last stage of the experiment, it is checked whether the artificial words have acquired meaning for the subject: he is asked questions like “What is the difference between “gatsun” and “ras”?”, and is asked to come up with a phrase with these words.

L. S. Vygotsky and his collaborator L. S. Sakharov changed Ach’s methodology in order to more deeply study the meanings of words and the very process of their (meanings) formation. Ach's technique did not allow studying this process, since words were associated with the figures they denoted from the very beginning; “words do not act from the very beginning as signs; they are fundamentally no different from another series of stimuli appearing in experience, from the objects with which they are associated.”

Therefore, while in the Ach method the names of all the figures are given from the very beginning, the task is given later, after they have been memorized, in the Vygotsky-Sakharov method, on the contrary, the task is given to the subject at the very beginning, but the names of the figures are not. Figures of different shapes, colors, plane sizes, heights are placed in front of the subject in a random order; An artificial word is written on the bottom (invisible) side of each figure. One of the figures turns over, and the subject sees its name.

This figure is put aside, and from the remaining figures the subject is asked to select all of them on which, in his opinion, the same word is written, and then they are asked to explain why he chose these particular figures and what the artificial word means. Then the selected figures are returned to the remaining ones (except for the one set aside), another figure is opened and set aside, giving the subject additional information, and he is again asked to select from the remaining figures all of the figures on which the word is written. The experiment continues until the subject correctly selects all the figures and gives the correct definition of the word.

Stages of development of thinking in ontogenesis. Theory of J. Piaget.

The theory of the development of a child’s thinking, developed by J. Piaget, was called “operational”. An operation is an “internal action, a product of transformation (“interiorization”) of an external, objective action, coordinated with other actions into a single system, the main property of which is reversibility (for each operation there is a symmetrical and opposite operation.

Describing the concept of reversibility, Piaget gives as an example arithmetic operations: addition and subtraction, multiplication and division. They can be read either left to right or right to left, for example: 5 + 3 = 8 and 8 - 3 = 5.

For some reason, people often complain about it, but no one complains about thinking. And in general, it seems that the very need to develop thinking concerns us little. Don't you think this is strange? For the majority of people, the process of the birth of thought is no less mysterious than the birth of the Galaxy. But thinking can also be different. But before we talk about types of thinking, let's figure out what it is.

Every second a person receives a variety of information from the outside world. The result of the work of our senses is visual images, sounds, smells, taste and tactile sensations, data about the state of the body. We receive all this as a result of the direct sensory. This is primary information, the building material with which our thinking works.

The process of processing sensory data, their analysis, comparison, generalization, conclusions - this is thinking. This is a higher cognitive process, during which new, unique knowledge is created, information that is not in our sensory experience.

An example of such a birth of new knowledge is the simplest construction - a syllogism, consisting of two premises - empirical (given in direct experience) knowledge and one conclusion - a conclusion.

The first premise: all students take exams in winter.
Second premise: Ivanov is a student.
Conclusion: Ivanov takes exams in winter.

This conclusion is the result of elementary thinking, because we do not know whether Ivanov passes exams in winter, but we obtain this knowledge through reasoning. Although, of course, most often the process of the birth of a thought is more complex and even confusing.

Birth of a thought

Everyone knows that thoughts are born in the head, or more precisely, in the brain. But answering the question of how this happens is not easy.

The main role in thinking and in mental activity in general is played by nerve cells - neurons. And we have at least a trillion of them, and each neuron is a whole data processing factory. It is connected by numerous nerve fibers to other neurons and exchanges with them electrochemical impulses that carry information. Moreover, the transmission speed of this information is 100 m/sec. It is this high-speed exchange of data that is thinking, and it was not without reason that in ancient times they believed that the fastest thing in the world is human thought.

If you imagine the thinking process in the form of a bright image, it resembles fireworks. First, one star flashes - an impulse or signal from an external stimulus. Then it spreads out in breadth and depth along the chain of nerve cells with new bursts of activity, covering an ever-increasing area of the brain.

Interestingly, when passing through the neural circuits of the brain, the impulse must overcome certain “obstacles” at the junction of nerve fibers. But each subsequent signal along this path will pass much easier. That is, the more we think, the more often we force our brain to work, the easier the thinking process becomes.

Knowledge, of course, has high value. But they are necessary primarily as material for thinking. We become smarter not when we receive new knowledge, but when we comprehend it, incorporate it into activity, that is, think.

The mystery of the two hemispheres: right-hemisphere and left-hemisphere thinking

In what form is a thought born in our head? It is not easy to answer this question, since thought is a process and a product of information processing, and information in the brain exists in two forms.

Sensory and emotional images. From the outside world it comes in the form of sensory images: sounds, colors, pictures, smells, tactile sensations, etc. Very often these vivid images are also emotionally colored.
Abstract signs - words, numbers, verbal structures, formulas, etc. Words can denote (replace) any sensory images or be of an abstract nature, such as numbers.

Scientists say that a person thinks in two languages - the language of words and the language of images. There is even a special type of thinking - conceptual, that is, verbal. Moreover, the centers responsible for conceptual and figurative thinking are located in different hemispheres of the brain, and these two types of information are processed differently. The left hemisphere of the brain is responsible for the operations of our consciousness with words and numbers, and the right hemisphere is responsible for operations with sensory images. By the way, the center of creative abilities is also located in the right hemisphere; it is associated with intuition and the subconscious.

The famous physiologist I.P. Pavlov believed that among us there are people who clearly have one of two types of mental activity:

right-hemisphere - this is an artistic type, thinking based on images and sensory perception;
left-hemisphere - a thinking type that operates better with concepts and abstract signs.

However, all people should not be divided into these two types. Most of us are of the average type and use both words and images in our mental activity. And depending on the goal, task, problem facing us, either the right or left hemisphere is activated.

In general, an adult, fully developed person has all types and types of thinking, including its three main types:

visually effective;
figurative;
abstract-logical.

Although all these three types of thinking are not formed at once.

Visual-effective thinking

This is the most ancient type of mental activity, which arose among the primitive ancestors of man and is the first to form in a small child. And, according to scientists, it is precisely this type of mental activity that higher animals have.

Thinking is called mediated mental activity because, unlike direct sensory perception, it uses “intermediaries” - images or words. But visual-effective thinking is distinguished by the fact that material objects act as such “intermediaries” in it. This type of thinking arises only in the process of objective activity, when a person manipulates objects.

Children's manual thinking

I think everyone has seen how a small child of 2-3 years old plays: he makes a tower of cubes, assembles a pyramid, folding the wheels to fit, or even unscrews the wheels of a new car. This is not just a game. This is how the baby thinks and develops mentally. While only visual-effective thinking is available to him, his mental operations take on the form of objective, manipulative activity:

Comparison - choosing a suitable size circle or cube.
Synthesis is the composition of individual cube elements into a single whole - a tower.
Well, and analysis, when a child disassembles a whole thing (a car or a doll) into individual components.

Scientists call visual-effective thinking pre-thinking, emphasizing that there is more direct-sensory thinking in it than indirect thinking. But this is a very important stage in the development of mental activity, including the mental development of the child.

Visual-effective thinking in adults

This type of thinking cannot be considered primitive or inferior. In adults, it is also present and actively participates in objective activities. For example, we use it when making soup, digging beds in the garden, knitting socks or fixing the faucet in the bathroom. And for some, this type of thinking even at times prevails over the abstract-logical and figurative. Such people are called masters “from God”; they say that they have “golden hands”.

By the way, it’s the hands, not the head. Because such people can repair a complex mechanism without completely understanding the principle of its operation. To do this, they just need to disassemble it and then reassemble it. By disassembling, they will understand what caused the breakdown, and by reassembling, they will fix it, and even improve the unit.

Visual-figurative thinking

The main tools of visual-figurative thinking are images, as a result of sensory perception and comprehension of reality. That is, an image is not a photographic imprint of an object, but the result of the work of our brain. Therefore, it may differ to one degree or another from the original.

The role of images in mental activity

Our thinking operates with three types of images.

Images-perceptions are associated with the direct activity of our senses: visual pictures, sounds, smells, etc. These are also not photographic copies of reality, because we may not hear something, not see some details - the brain will guess, add missing.
Images-representations are figurative information that is stored in our memory. And when saved, the images become even less accurate, since not very significant and important details are lost or forgotten.
Imagination images are the result of one of the most mysterious cognitive processes. With the help of imagination, we can recreate from a description or invent an image of a never-seen creature or object. However, these images are also connected with reality, since they are the result of processing and combining information stored in memory.

All three types of images are actively involved in cognitive activity, even when it comes to abstract logical thinking. Without this type of information, neither problem solving nor creativity is possible.

Specifics of imaginative thinking

Figurative thinking is a higher level of mental activity, but it also does not need words too much. After all, we can comprehend even such abstract concepts as “love”, “hate”, “loyalty”, “resentment” through images and feelings.

A child’s imaginative thinking begins to form around the age of 3, and the peak of its development is considered to be 5-7 years. It is not for nothing that this time is called the age of dreamers and artists. At this period of development, children already have a good command of speech activity, but words do not interfere with the images at all; they complement and clarify them.

It is believed that the language of images is more complex than the language of words, because there are many more images, they are diverse, colored with numerous shades of feelings. Therefore, there are not enough words to describe all the images involved in our thinking.

Imaginative thinking is the basis of the highest cognitive process - creativity. It is inherent not only to artists, poets, musicians, but also to all those who have a high level of creativity and love to invent new things. But for the majority of people, visual-figurative thinking fades into the background, giving way to abstract-logical thinking.

Abstract logical thinking

This type of thinking is considered higher, it is specially taught to children at school, and the level of its development is often identified with intelligence. Although this is not entirely correct, because without the participation of imaginative thinking, with the help of only logical thinking, only elementary problems can be solved - albeit complex ones, but having one only correct solution. There are many such problems in mathematics, but in real life they are rare.

But abstract-logical thinking is also valuable because it allows you to operate with abstract concepts that have no basis in real images, such as function, differential, justice, conscience, volume, length, etc.

Logical Thinking Tools

This type of thinking is closely related to speech activity, therefore the prerequisites for its development appear in children when they have fully mastered speech. Words and verbal structures - sentences - act as tools of logical thinking. The very name of this type of thinking comes not so much from the word “logic” as from the Greek “logos” - word, concept, thought.

Words in abstract logical thinking replace images, actions, and feelings. This allows you to think abstractly, abstractly, without connection with a specific situation or object. Animals, even higher ones, not endowed with the ability to speak, are deprived of such an opportunity.

The process of abstract logical thinking is sometimes called inner speech, since it occurs in verbal form. Moreover, if reflection (inner speech) does not bring success in solving a problem or understanding an issue, then psychologists recommend switching to external speech, that is, reasoning out loud. In this case, the person will no longer be distracted by randomly and spontaneously arising images and associations.

Features of abstract-logical thinking

We said that imaginative thinking is voluminous, multifaceted and allows you to see a situation or problem as a whole, on a large scale. In contrast, abstract-logical thinking is discrete, since it consists of individual bricks and elements. Words and sentences are such building blocks. The use of words allows you to organize thinking and streamline it. Such organization makes vague, vague thoughts clearer and clearer.

Logical thinking is also linear; it is subject to the laws of the algorithm, which require sequential transition from one mental operation to another. The most important thing for him is the consistent construction of reasoning.

Development of abstract logical thinking

This way of thinking can cause difficulties when thoughts begin to get confused, as if scattering in different directions, or flickering like mosquitoes on a summer evening. Before a person has time to seriously think through one thought, it is replaced by the next one, often unrelated to the main problem. Or a brilliant idea dawns on you, flashes for a moment and flies away to get lost in a labyrinth of convolutions. And it’s such a pity, because the idea is not bad, sensible! But you can't catch her anymore. This stupid “catching thoughts” is annoying, tiring and makes you want to give up on these chaotic thoughts and look for a ready-made solution on the Internet. The reason for such difficulties is simple - lack of mental activity skills. Thinking, like any other activity, needs constant training.

You know the saying: “He who thinks clearly speaks clearly”? This law can be read in reverse. Logical thinking requires well-developed, clear, orderly speech. But this is not enough. If imaginative thinking is spontaneous, elemental, intuitive and depends on inspiration, then ordered logical thinking is subject to strict laws that were formulated in Antiquity more than 2 thousand years ago. At the same time, a special science arose that studies the laws of thinking - logic. Knowledge of the laws and rules of mental activity is a prerequisite for mastering logical thinking.

And although this type of thinking is considered the highest, it should not be limited. This is not a panacea or a unique multifunctional tool. The problem facing us can be solved most effectively by using imaginative thinking.

Creative thinking

There is one more species that stands somewhat apart. They began to study it relatively recently, but research has already proven the fundamental importance of this type of thinking not only for a person’s full life, but also for the development of human civilization. This . But it’s worth talking about it separately.

Concept of thinking. Types of thinking and the possibilities of their classification.

Response plan

Concept of thinking.

Understanding thinking.

Types of thinking.

Classification capabilities.

Answer:

Concept of thinking.

Understanding thinking.

Thinking, unlike other processes, occurs in accordance with a certain logic.

Thinking– the mental process of a generalized and indirect reflection of stable regular properties and relationships of reality, carried out to solve cognitive problems, systematic orientation in specific situations. Mental activity is a system of mental actions and operations for solving a specific problem.

There are different psychological theories of thinking. According to associationism, thinking itself is not a special process and comes down to a simple combination of memory images (associations by contiguity, similarity, contrast). Representatives of the Wurzburg school considered thinking to be a special type of mental process and separated it from the sensory basis and speech. According to psychology, thinking occurs in a closed sphere of consciousness. As a result, thinking was reduced to the movement of thoughts in closed structures of consciousness. Materialistic psychology approached the consideration of thinking as a process that is formed in social conditions of life, acquiring the character of internal “mental” actions.

Thinking is the highest level of human knowledge. Allows you to obtain knowledge about such objects, properties and relationships of the real world that cannot be directly perceived at the sensory level of cognition. The forms and laws of thinking are studied by logic, the mechanisms of its flow by psychology and neurophysiology. Cybernetics analyzes thinking in connection with the tasks of modeling certain mental functions.

Problematic nature of thinking. Phases of the thought process.

Thinking is active and problematic. It is aimed at solving problems. The following phases of the thought process are distinguished:

Awareness of a problem situation - there is an awareness of the presence of information about the deficit. You should not think that this is the beginning of thinking, because awareness of a problem situation already includes a preliminary thought process.

Awareness of the emerging solution as a hypothesis includes a search for solution options.

Hypothesis testing phase - the mind carefully weighs the pros and cons of its hypotheses and subjects them to comprehensive testing.

Solving a problem is getting an answer to a question or solving a problem. The decision is recorded in the judgment on the issue.

Mental operations. Forms of thinking.

1. Analysis - decomposition of the whole into parts or properties (shape, color, etc.)

2. Synthesis - mental combination of parts or properties into a single whole

3. Comparison - comparing objects and phenomena, finding similarities and differences

4. Generalization – mental unification of objects and phenomena according to their common essential features

5. Abstraction – highlighting some features and distracting from others.

6. Concretization is the process opposite to abstraction. We use concrete phenomena.

These operations are not just various side-by-side and independent variants of mental actions, but there are coordination relations between them, since they are particular, specific forms of the basic, generic mental operation of mediation. Moreover, voluntary regulation of thinking creates the possibility of reversibility of operations: dismemberment and connection (analysis and synthesis), establishing similarities and identifying differences (or comparison: if A>B, then B

Concept and scientific knowledge. Our thinking will be the more accurate the more precise and indisputable concepts we connect. A concept arises from an ordinary idea through clarification; it is the result of a thinking process, with the help of which both a child and an adult discover the relationships between objects and events.

Forms – judgment, inference, concept, analogy.

Generalization and mediation of thought.

Thinking, as the highest form of human cognitive activity, allows us to reflect the surrounding reality, generalize and establish connections and deviations between objects and phenomena. The generality of thought is represented by the isolation of general relations through the operation of comparison. Thinking is the movement of thought, revealing a connection that leads from the individual (particular) to the general. Generalization is facilitated by the fact that thinking is symbolic in nature and is expressed in words. The word makes human thinking indirect. Thinking is mediated by action.

Types of thinking.

Abstract thinking – thinking using concepts that accompany symbolization. Logical thinking - a type of thought process in which logical structures and ready-made concepts are used. Respectively, abstract – logical thinking is a special type of thought process that involves the use of symbolic concepts and logical structures.

Divergent thinking - a special type of thinking that assumes that there can be many equally correct and equal answers to the same question. Convergent thinking - a type of thinking that assumes that there is only one correct solution to a problem. (can be synonymous with "conservative" and "rigid" thinking)

Visual - actionable thinking - a special type of thought process, the essence of which lies in practical transformative activity carried out with real objects. Visual – imaginative thinking - a special type of thought process, the essence of which lies in practical transformative activity carried out with images. Associated with the presentation of situations and changes in them. Imaginative thinking – this is thinking in which images are used. (Imaginative logic plays a leading role)

Practical thinking - a type of thought process that is aimed at transforming the surrounding reality based on setting goals, developing plans, as well as perceiving and manipulating real objects.

Theoretical thinking – one of the types of thinking that is aimed at discovering laws and properties of objects. Theoretical thinking is not only the operation of theoretical concepts, but also the mental path that allows you to resort to these operations in a specific situation. An example of theoretical thinking is fundamental scientific research.

Creative thinking - one of the types of thinking, characterized by the creation of a subjectively new product and new formations in the course of the cognitive activity of its creation. These new formations relate to motivation, goals, evaluations and meanings. Creative thinking differs from the processes of applying ready-made knowledge and skills, called thinking reproductive .

Critical thinking – represents a test of proposed solutions in order to determine the scope of their possible application.

Prelogical thinking - a concept introduced by L. Levy-Bruhl to designate the early stage of the development of thinking, when the formation of its basic logical laws has not yet been completed - the existence of cause-and-effect relationships is already realized, but their essence appears in a mystified form. Phenomena are correlated on the basis of cause and effect even when they simply coincide in time. Participation (involvement) of events adjacent in time and space serves as the basis for explaining most events occurring in the world. At the same time, man appears to be closely connected with nature, especially with the animal world.

In prelogical thinking, natural and social situations are perceived as processes occurring under the auspices and counteraction of invisible forces - a magical worldview. Lévy-Bruhl did not associate pre-logical thinking exclusively with the early stages of the formation of society, admitting that its elements manifest themselves in everyday consciousness in later periods (everyday superstitions, jealousy, fear, arising on the basis of partiality, and not logical thinking)

Verbally – logical thinking – one of the types of thinking using concepts and logical constructions. It functions on the basis of linguistic means and represents the latest stage in the historical and ontogenetic development of thinking. Various types of generalizations are formed and function in its structure.

Spatial thinking – a set of mental sequential operational spatial transformations and simultaneous figurative vision of an object in all the diversity and variability of its properties, constant recoding of these various mental plans.

Intuitive Thinking – one of the types of thinking. Characteristic features: rapid progression, lack of clearly defined stages, little awareness.

Realistic and autistic thinking. The latter is associated with withdrawal from reality into internal experiences.

There is also involuntary and voluntary thinking.

Classification capabilities.

(L.L. Gurova) there is no accepted classification of types and forms of thinking that corresponds to the modern theory of thinking. Thus, it is incorrect to establish a dividing line between theoretical and practical thinking, figurative and conceptual, as is done in old psychology textbooks. Types of thinking should be distinguished by the content of the activity performed - the tasks solved in it, and forms of thinking that are differently related to the content - by the nature of the actions and operations performed, their language.

They can be distinguished this way:

according to form: visual-effective, visual-figurative – abstract-logical;

by the nature of the tasks being solved: theoretical – practical;

by degree of deployment: discursive – intuitive

by degree of novelty: reproductive – productive.

Briefly about thinking

Humans are characterized by a higher cognitive process, the name of which is thinking. In everyday practice, thinking can be associated with common sense, intuition... In reality, it has nothing to do with either one or the other. It represents the ability to learn, to solve a given problem. Thinking is the generation of new knowledge, an active form of creative reflection and transformation of reality by man. It generates a result that does not exist either in reality itself or in the subject at a given moment in time. Thinking (in elementary forms it is also present in animals) can also be understood as the acquisition of new knowledge, the creative transformation of existing ideas.

Thinking, unlike perception, goes beyond the limits of the sensory data and expands the boundaries of knowledge. In thinking based on sensory information, certain theoretical and practical conclusions are made. It reflects existence not only in the form of individual things, phenomena and their properties, but also determines the connections that exist between them, which most often are not given directly, in the very perception of a person. The properties of things and phenomena, the connections between them are reflected in thinking in a generalized form, in the form of laws and entities. In practice, thinking as a separate mental process does not exist; it is invisibly present in all other cognitive processes: perception, attention, imagination, memory, speech. The highest forms of these processes are necessarily associated with thinking, and the degree of its participation in these cognitive processes determines their level of development. Psychology identifies the following types of thinking:

Theoretical conceptual thinking

This is thinking, using which a person, in the process of solving a problem, turns to concepts, performs actions in the mind, without directly dealing with the experience gained through the senses. He discusses and searches for a solution to a problem from beginning to end in his mind, using ready-made knowledge obtained by other people, expressed in conceptual form, judgments, and inferences. Theoretical conceptual thinking is characteristic of scientific theoretical research.

Theoretical imaginative thinking

It differs from the conceptual one in that the material that a person uses here to solve a problem is not concepts, judgments or inferences, but images. They are either directly retrieved from memory or creatively recreated by the imagination. This kind of thinking is used by workers in literature, art, and in general people of creative work who deal with images. In the course of solving mental problems, the corresponding images are mentally transformed so that a person, as a result of manipulating them, can directly see the solution to the problem that interests him.

Visual-figurative thinking

A distinctive feature is that the thought process in it is directly related to the thinking person’s perception of the surrounding reality and cannot take place without it. Thoughts are visual and figurative, a person is tied to reality, and the images themselves necessary for thinking are presented in his short-term and operative memory (in contrast, images for theoretical figurative thinking are extracted from long-term memory and then transformed).

Visual-effective thinking

The thinking process itself is a practical transformative activity carried out by a person with real objects. The main condition for solving the problem in this case is the correct actions with the appropriate objects. This type of thinking is widely represented among people engaged in real production work, the result of which is the creation of any specific material product.

Operations of thinking

The listed types of thinking also act as levels of its development. Theoretical thinking is considered more perfect than practical thinking, and conceptual thinking represents a higher level of development than figurative thinking. In everyday practice, it was noted that, for example, visual-effective thinking is found among people engaged in real production work, and visual-figurative thinking is found among people who have to make decisions about the objects of their activity only by observing them, but without directly touching them. Theoretical conceptual thinking is the thinking of a scientist. The dominant property of thinking, of course, leaves its mark on the individual, therefore, long before the identification of these properties by psychological science, they were noted in everyday practice.

A deeper penetration into the essence of things requires the disclosure of their internal connections, patterns and essential properties. It is performed using operations thinking - analysis and synthesis. Analysis is the dissection of an object, mental or practical, into its constituent elements and their subsequent comparison. Synthesis is the construction of a whole from analytically given parts. Analysis and synthesis are usually carried out together and contribute to a deeper understanding of reality.

Abstraction

Isolating any side or aspect of a phenomenon that in reality does not exist as an independent entity. Abstraction is performed for a more thorough study and, as a rule, on the basis of a previously performed analysis and synthesis.

Generalization

Connecting the essential (abstraction) and linking it with a class of objects and phenomena. The concept becomes one of the forms of mental generalization.

Specification

The inverse operation of generalization. It manifests itself, for example, in the fact that from a general definition - a concept - a judgment is derived about the belonging of individual things and phenomena to a certain class.

Thinking as the production of inferences

Thinking is the process of producing conclusions with logical operations on them. Almost like that, but emotions interfere with this process, changing it. Emotions, however, can not only distort, but also stimulate thinking. There are examples from life of how, under the influence of emotional upsurge, a person was capable of unexpected, extraordinary solutions to problems. In thinking processes, emotions are especially expressed when a person finds a solution to a difficult problem; here they perform heuristic and regulatory functions. The heuristic function of emotions is to highlight (emotional, signal fixation) a certain zone of optimal search, within which the desired solution to the problem is located. The regulatory function of emotions in thinking is manifested in the fact that they are able to intensify the search for the desired solution if it is carried out in the right direction, and slow it down if intuition suggests that the chosen course of thought is wrong.

Pathological thought processes

In addition to the usual, normal types of thinking that lead to correct conclusions, there are special thought processes that give a false idea of reality. They are found in sick people (for example, schizophrenics), as well as in those who occupy a borderline position between normality and pathology or are in a state of so-called clouded consciousness (hallucinations, delusions, hypnotic state).

Character of thinking

One of the classifications of the types of mental activity of people according to the signs of extraversion and introversion, the dominance of the rational or irrational, emotional and logical in the thinking processes was proposed by K. Jung. He identified the following types of people according to the nature of their thinking:

1. Intuitive type. Characterized by the predominance of emotions over logic and the dominance of the right hemisphere of the brain over the left.

2. Thinking type. He is characterized by rationality and the predominance of the left hemisphere of the brain over the right, the primacy of logic over intuition and feeling.

Theoretical models

Theories that explain the thinking process can be divided into 2 large groups: those that proceed from the hypothesis that a person has natural intellectual abilities that do not change under the influence of life experience, and those that are based on the idea that a person’s mental abilities are mainly form and develop during life.

The idea of pre-existing intellectual abilities - inclinations - is characteristic of many works in the field of thinking carried out in the German school of psychology. It is most clearly represented in the Gestalt theory of thinking, according to which the ability to form and transform structures, to see them in reality is the basis of intelligence.