Personal maturity. Personal maturity. Psychological maturity. Psychological maturity of the individual

The level of personality development is often correlated with the degree of its socialization. The criteria of maturity, accordingly, appear as the criteria of socialization. At the same time, the question of the criteria for personality maturity is not resolved once and for all in domestic psychology. Among maturity indicators:

• the breadth of social connections, presented at the subjective level: I-other, I-others, I-society as a whole, I-humanity;
• a measure of the development of the individual as a subject;
• the nature of the activity - from appropriation to implementation and conscious reproduction;
• social competence.

C. G. Jung linked the achievement of maturity with the individual's acceptance of responsibility, first of all, for his projections, their awareness and subsequent assimilation. K. Rogers considered responsibility in close connection with awareness, freedom to be oneself, control of one's own life and choice.

1. Expanding the sense of self, which gradually arises in infancy, is not fully formed in the first 3-4 years or even in the first 10 years of life, but continues to expand with experience as the range of what a person participates in increases. What is important here is the activity of the Self, which must be purposeful.
2. Warmth in relationships with others. A person must be capable of significant intimacy in love (in a strong friendship). And at the same time, avoid idle, obsessive involvement in relationships with other people, even with your own family.
3. Emotional security (self-acceptance). A mature person expresses his beliefs and feelings while taking into account the beliefs and feelings of others and without feeling threatened by the expression of emotions - by himself or others.
4. Realistic perception, skills and tasks. A mature personality must be focused on the problem, on something objective that is worth doing. The task makes you forget about satisfying drives, pleasures, pride, and protection. This criterion is obviously related to responsibility, which is the existentialist ideal of maturity. At the same time, a mature personality is in close contact with the real world.
5. Self-objectification- understanding, humor. A person acting for show does not realize that his deception is transparent and his posture is inadequate. A mature person knows that it is impossible to “fake” a personality; one can only deliberately play a role for the sake of entertainment. The higher the self-understanding, the more clearly a person’s sense of humor is expressed. It is worth remembering that real humor sees behind some serious object or subject (for example, oneself) the contrast between appearance and essence.
6. Unified philosophy of life. A mature person necessarily has a clear idea of ​​his purpose in life. A mature person has a relatively clear self-image. This criterion is associated with the “maturity” of conscience. A mature conscience is a feeling of duty to maintain one’s self-image in an acceptable form, to continue one’s chosen line of proprietary aspirations, and to create one’s own style of being. Conscience is a type of self-government.

It is important to note that the process of socialization does not stop in adulthood. Moreover, it never ends, but always has a conscious or unconscious goal. Thus, the concepts of “maturity” and “adulthood” are not synonymous. In fact, even at the individual level, the concepts of “maturity” and “adulthood” do not completely coincide. Within one paradigm, the problem of maturity can be considered at the level of the relationship between different levels human organization: individual, personality, subject of activity. According to A. A. Bodalev, in the process of human development there is a certain relationship between the manifestations of the individual, personality and subject of activity. The nature of this relationship can be represented in four main ways.

1. Individual human development is significantly ahead of his personal and subjective-activity development. A person is physically already an adult, but his assimilation of the basic values ​​of life, attitude to work, and sense of responsibility are insufficient. More often this occurs in those families where parents “extend childhood” for their children.
2. Personal human development is more intensive than his individual and subject-activity development. All qualities (values, relationships) outstrip the pace of physical maturation, and a person as a subject of labor cannot develop habits for everyday work effort or determine his calling.
3. Subjective-activity development is in the lead compared to the other two. A person can almost fanatically love to work at the level of his still small physical capabilities and poorly formed positive personal qualities.
4. There is a relative correspondence of the pace of individual, personal and subject-activity development. The ratio that is most optimal for human development throughout his life. Normal physical development and good physical well-being are one of the factors not only for more successful assimilation, but also for the manifestation of the basic values ​​of life and culture, which are expressed in the motives of human behavior. And positive motivation, behind which stands the emotional-need core of the personality, is one of the indispensable components of the structure of a person as an active subject of activity.

A. A. Rean, trying to summarize the known approaches to the psychological understanding of the level of maturity of an individual, identifies four, in his opinion, basic or fundamental components that are not “ordinary”:

• responsibility;
• tolerance;
• self-development;
• positive thinking or a positive attitude towards the world, which determines a positive outlook on the world.

The last component is integrative, since it covers all the others, being simultaneously present in them.

Personal development does not end with the acquisition of autonomy and independence. We can say that personality development is a process that never ends, which indicates the infinity and unlimited self-disclosure of personality. He goes a long way, one of the stages of which is the achievement of self-determination, self-government, independence from external motivations, the other is the realization by the individual of the forces and abilities inherent in him, the third is overcoming his limited self and the active development of more general global values.

Self-development is influenced by a large group of factors: individual characteristics, age, relationships with others, professional activity, family relationships, etc. The process of self-development of an adult is uneven, changes in personality relationships at certain periods of life are progressive, raising it to the “acme” level, then evolutionary processes begin, leading to “stagnation” or regression of the personality.

The stage of maturity and at the same time a certain peak of this maturity - acme (translated from Greek means “top”, “edge”) - is a multidimensional state of a person, which, although it covers a significant stage of his life in terms of time, is never a static formation and is distinguished by a greater or less variability and changeability. Acme shows how successful a person is as a citizen, as a specialist in a certain type of activity, as a spouse, as a parent, etc.

Acmeology is a science that arose at the intersection of natural, social, humanitarian, and technical disciplines, studying the phenomenology, patterns and mechanisms of human development at the stage of his maturity and especially when he reaches the highest level in this development.

The concept of “acmeology” was proposed in 1928 by N. A. Rybnikov, and the new field scientific research in human science began to be created in 1968 by B. G. Ananyev. One of the most important tasks of acmeology is to clarify the characteristics that should be formed in a person in preschool childhood, younger school age, during the years of adolescence and youth, so that he can successfully prove himself in all respects at the stage of maturity.

“Maturity occurs when a person mobilizes his resources to overcome the frustration and fear that arise due to lack of support from others. A situation in which an individual cannot take advantage of the support of others and rely on himself is called a dead end. Maturity lies in the ability to go take risks to get out of a dead end Some people who are unable (or unwilling) to take risks take for a long time take on the protective role of the “helpless”

Frederick Perls

“I do not agree with Perls, who claims that a sign of health and maturity is the ability to do without the support of the environment, with self-support alone. In my opinion, a healthy and mature individual is one who is able to flexibly, adequately and creatively perceive support both from the outside and and from our own resources."

Jean-Marie Robin

Criteria for emotional maturity (William Menninger):
- The ability to constructively interact with the surrounding reality
(face reality, acknowledge problems rather than run away from them, look for ways to solve or cope with the situation);

Ability to adapt to change
(calm attitude to the fact that changes can disrupt the routine, change expectations; the ability to give yourself time to accept new things);

Ability to cope with psychological stress and anxiety and prevent psychosomatic reactions
(ability to find constructive ways coping with stress, mastering relaxation skills, achieving inner harmony);

The ability to experience greater satisfaction from giving than receiving;

Ability to understand people and connect with them mutual language, cooperate and come to mutual agreement, help each other;
(key signs of a healthy relationship are love and mutual respect)

The ability to creatively direct impulsive hostile energy into a constructive direction;

Ability to love

Mature family

(Polina Gaverdovskaya)

Signs of a psychologically mature personality

The model of a mature personality allows for a different set of characteristics, so here we are talking about those that can form the central framework of such a personality model:
1.Authenticity (originality)
There are 3 main signs of authentic existence:
-full awareness of the present moment of life;
-independent choice of a way of life at the moment;
-acceptance of personal responsibility for this choice.
Authenticity to some extent generalizes many personality traits. First of all, it is an expression of sincerity. An authentic person wants to be and is himself, both in his immediate reactions and in his overall behavior. The difficulties of most people lie in the fact that they spend a lot of vital energy on playing roles, on creating an external facade, instead of using it to solve their real problems. If a person hides behind the mask of a role most of the time, then in return he will receive a similar insincere attitude from others. Authenticity exemplifies flexible behavior.
2.Openness to your own experience (acceptance of your feelings)
Here, openness is understood not in the sense of frankness in front of other people, but as sincerity in perception own feelings. Social experience teaches you to deny, to discard your feelings, especially negative ones, but a psychologically mature person acts differently - he lives them. Only in this case can you successfully regulate your behavior, since repressed feelings become a source of erupting uncontrollable emotions. By being aware of emotional reactions, a person can choose one or another way of behavior in each situation, rather than allowing unconscious feelings to disrupt the regulation of behavior. Therefore, a mature person shows tolerance to the entire gamut of his own and others’ emotional reactions.
3.Development of self-knowledge
Limited self-knowledge implies a limitation of freedom, and deep self-knowledge increases the possibility of choice in one’s life. Than more people knows about himself, the better he will understand other people, and vice versa - the more a person understands others, the deeper he understands himself. The inability to hear what is going on inside us limits our effectiveness in life. It is very important to be realistic and conscious about ourselves.
4.Strength of personality and identity
A mature person must know who he is, who he can become, what he wants from life, what is essentially important to him and what is unimportant. He approaches life with questions, answers the questions life poses to him, and constantly tests his values. A mature person is not a reflection of the hopes of other people, he acts guided by his own inner position. This will make him feel strong in interpersonal relationships.
5.Ability to withstand uncertainty
Confidence in one’s intuition and the adequacy of feelings, confidence in the constructiveness of decisions made and the ability to take justifiable risks help a person to endure the stress created by the uncertainty of the entire series of life situations.
6.Accepting personal responsibility
Understanding your responsibility allows you to freely and consciously make a choice at any moment of communication - agree with the arguments of your interlocutor or engage in productive confrontation. Personal responsibility helps you deal with criticism more constructively. In such cases, criticism does not trigger defense mechanisms, but serves as useful feedback that improves the effectiveness of activities and even the organization of a person’s life.
7.Depth of relationships with others
A psychologically mature person is not afraid of intimacy, openness and depth of relationships. He is able to quite freely express his feelings, both positive and negative, when communicating with other people. And when evaluating other people (their views, feelings, character traits), he does this without judgment or labeling.
8. Setting realistic communication goals
9. Feeling empathy for others
Empathy is sympathy and understanding of the feelings of a communication partner, as well as the obligatory consideration of them in the communication process
(Andrey Konovalov)

Maturity (according to G. Allport)
Allport believed that human maturation is a continuous, lifelong process of becoming and believed that a psychologically mature person is characterized by 6 main traits.
1. A mature person has wide boundaries of self. Mature individuals can look at themselves “from the outside”
2. A mature person is capable of warm, cordial social relations. There are two types of warm interpersonal relationships that fall under this category: friendly intimacy and empathy. Friendly-close aspect warm relations manifests itself in a person's ability to show deep love for family and close friends, untainted by possessiveness or jealousy. Empathy is reflected in a person's ability to be tolerant of differences (in values ​​or attitudes) between himself and others, which allows him to demonstrate deep respect for others and acceptance of their positions, as well as commonality with all people
3. A mature person demonstrates emotional detachment and self-acceptance. Adults have a positive self-image and are thus able to tolerate both disappointing or irritating events and their own shortcomings without becoming internally bitter or bitter. They are also able to cope with stressful situations and their own emotional states (for example, depression, fear, anger or guilt) in a way that does not interfere with the well-being of others. For example, if they are having a bad day, they don’t take it out on the first person they meet. Moreover, when expressing their opinions and feelings, they take into account how it will affect others.
4. A mature person demonstrates realistic perceptions, experiences and aspirations. Sees things as they are, not as they would like them to be. May temporarily push his personal desires and impulses into the background until an important task is completed.
Thus, adults perceive other people, objects and situations as they really are; they have enough experience and skill to deal with reality; They strive to achieve personally meaningful and realistic goals.
5. A mature person demonstrates self-knowledge and a sense of humor. Socrates noted that in order to live a full life, there is one overriding rule: “Know yourself.” Allport called it "self-objectification", knowledge of one's own psychology. By this he meant that mature people have a clear understanding of their own strengths and weaknesses. An important component of self-knowledge is humor, which prevents pompous self-aggrandizement and idle talk. It allows people to see and accept the extremely absurd aspects of their own and others' life situations.
6. A mature person has a coherent philosophy of life. Mature people are able to see the whole picture by clearly, systematically, and consistently highlighting what is significant in their own lives. According to Allport, best goal or philosophy does not exist here. Allport's point of view on this matter is that an adult personality has a deeply rooted set of certain values ​​in a person, which serve as the unifying basis of his life. The unifying philosophy of life therefore provides a kind of dominant value orientation, which gives significance and meaning to almost everything a person does.

16 Elements of Mental and Emotional Health (by Nancy McWilliams)
1.Ability to love
The ability to engage in relationships, to open up to another person. Love him as he is: with all his shortcomings and advantages. Without idealization and devaluation. It is the ability to give rather than take.
2.Ability to work
This applies not only to the profession. It is primarily about the ability to create and create.
It is important for people to realize that what they do has meaning and meaning for Others. This is the ability to bring something new into the world, creativity
3.Ability to play
Here we are talking about literally“games” in children, and about the ability of adults to “play” with words and symbols. This is an opportunity to use metaphors, allegories, humor, symbolize your experience and enjoy it
4.Safe relationships
Unfortunately, often people who seek psychotherapy are in violent, threatening, dependent relationships - in a word, unhealthy relationships
5.Autonomy
People who turn to psychotherapy often have a lack of it (but huge potential, since they finally came to therapy). People don't do what they really want. They don’t even have time to “choose” (listen to themselves) what they want.
6. Constancy of self and object or the concept of integration
This is the ability to remain in touch with all aspects of one's self: both good and bad, both pleasant and not causing intense joy. It is also the ability to feel conflicts without being split. This is the contact between the child I was, the person I am now, and the person I will be in 10 years. This is the ability to take into account and integrate everything that is given by nature and what I have managed to develop in myself. One of the violations of this point may be an “attack” on one’s own body, when it is not unconsciously perceived as part of oneself. It becomes something separate that can be forced to starve or cut, etc.
7.Ability to recover from stress (Ego strength)
If a person has enough ego strength, then when he encounters stress, he does not get sick, does not use only one inflexible defense to get out of it, and does not break down. He is capable of the most the best way adapt to a new situation
8.Realistic and reliable self-esteem
9. System of value orientations
It is important that a person understands ethical standards, their meaning, and at the same time be flexible in following them
10.Ability to endure intense emotions
Tolerating emotions means being able to stay with them, feel them, without acting under their influence. It is also the simultaneous ability to remain in contact with both emotions and thoughts - the rational part of oneself.
11.Reflection
The ability to look at yourself as if from the outside. People with reflection are able to see what exactly their problem is, and accordingly, deal with it in such a way as to solve it, helping themselves as effectively as possible
12.Mentalization
Possessing this ability, people are able to understand that Others are completely separate individuals, with their own characteristics, personal and psychological structure. Such people also see the difference between feeling offended by someone's words and the fact that the other person did not really mean to offend them
13. Wide variety of protective mechanisms and flexibility in their use
14. Balance between what I do for myself and for my environment.
This is about the opportunity to be yourself and take care of your own interests, while also taking into account the interests of the partner with whom you are in a relationship
15.Feeling of vitality
The ability to be and feel alive
16.Accepting what we cannot change
This is about the ability to be sincerely and honestly sad, to experience grief over what cannot be changed.
Accepting our limitations and mourning what we wish we had but don't have.

Thus, each person may have these 16 elements of mental health present to varying degrees.

(Yu. Kolotyrkina)

B. Livehud suggests that 3 main properties formed in a mature person This:
- the mind has matured into wisdom
- the ability to communicate has developed into softness and condescension
- self-awareness - into trust.

A few important components of mental health and well-being:

1. Accepting yourself as a person worthy of respect.

2. A person’s ability to maintain positive, warm, trusting relationships with others.

3. Autonomy is the independence and ability of a person to regulate his behavior from within, and not wait for praise or evaluation of himself from others. It is the ability by which a person can disengage from collective beliefs, prejudices and fears.

4. Environmental mastery - a person’s ability to actively choose and create his own environment that meets his psychological conditions life.

5. Confidence in the presence of purpose and meaning in life, as well as activities aimed at achieving meaning.

6. The need to realize oneself and one’s own abilities. An important aspect of treating yourself as an individual capable of self-improvement is also openness to new experiences.

By and large, mental health depends on the state of our body, psyche and social environment.

For children, additional conditions are required:

Presence of parents;

Attentiveness to the emotional needs of the child;

More autonomy and independence.

Merger– this is mixing with the manifestations of the selves of other people.
Fusion Characteristics:
1. Losing yourself in close relationships: anticipating desires, monitoring your partner’s behavior to please him, worrying about what they think of you.

2. The negative impact of another’s mood on your mood and attitude towards yourself.

3. Assessing one’s own value based on external criteria: praise, education, money, social life. status.

4. Unconscious children's reactions based on other people's opinions or childhood traumas: outbursts of fear, resentment, pain, anger, but more intense than the situation requires.

5. Blaming others: We accept people and the world as external to us, those who are “doing things to us” instead of recognizing our own participation in dramatic situations and personal problems.

6. Self-justification in the face of criticism.

7. The need to always be right or constantly consider yourself wrong.

8. Dependence on others for external convenience and emotional comfort.

9. Inability to share or thoughts that a person should somehow return what was given to you.

10. Presenting oneself as a righteous person or a sufferer, the point of view is that life is full of pain.

11. Obsessive behavior.

12. Changing our personality or behavior to please our partner.

13. The need to constantly save someone, worry about someone, be overly involved in their problems

14. Maintaining painful, abusive, meaningless relationships out of fear or unwillingness to be alone.

Discrimination- means the ability to maintain one’s identity by entering into close relationships with other people or by conflicting on the basis of beliefs. By discriminating, you are able to feel peace within yourself and not be captured by the emotions of other people, not influenced by their opinions and moods.

Characteristics Differences:
1. Sincerity - the ability to determine one’s own desires and say “yes”, “no”, “maybe”, express one’s feelings even in the face of unpleasant consequences.

2. The ability to remain within ourselves, regardless of the effects of other people's worries and concerns. Instead of absorbing negative feelings or feel responsible for other people's problems, we can smooth them out, give helpful advice and remain present witnesses of what is happening.

3. Maintaining our own value and our values ​​is our self-worth ( http://vk.com/wall-30867759_4090) remains unchanged in the face of victories and defeats.

4. Improvement, transformation of one’s qualities through reflection, contact and experimentation.

5. Search and understanding of our values, often accompanied by a refusal to be guided by what we learned at school and in the family. Learning to trust your own inner wisdom.

6. Absence of deliberate prejudice towards various beliefs, theories and developments of events. Differences in opinions are natural and not scary.

7. Awareness of temptations on the Path: your own and others. This includes attempts at control and manipulation. In the same way, we monitor our motivation and do not deceive ourselves. We don’t hide behind fake innocence, charm, and simplicity.

8. Focus on your inner world: reflect and analyze your actions: how I contributed to the resolution of this situation, how I coped with this boring sex life, why I remain such a narrow-minded and angry person. We know how to admit our mistakes, apologize if necessary, and end relationships if they cause us any harm.

9. The ability to ask for or give support to others without feeling weak or inferior. Accept your right to make mistakes.

10. The ability to give not out of duty and without feeling that we are giving away part of ourselves: we experience pleasure from the generosity of our soul, free from self-interest and calculation.

11. Clear vision of others - do not evaluate by categories, do not demand their changes. Accepting others as they are.

12. The ability to calm yourself in stressful situations and cope with difficulties. Realize the meaning of difficulties, look at the situation from the outside, maintain composure.

Charlotte Castle

Clinical psychologist Albert Ellis, founder of rational emotive therapy, believed that basic character traits well-functioning or self-actualizing people are:

● Personal interest. First of all, they value their own interests, although they are ready to some extent to sacrifice them for the sake of those who are not indifferent to them.

● Social interest. Interested in meeting the needs of others and in social survival.

● Self-government. They take primary responsibility for their lives.

● Tolerance. They give themselves and others the right to make mistakes. Even if they do not like the behavior of some people, they refrain from blaming them as individuals.

● Flexibility. They think flexibly and are ready for change. They do not develop strict (rigid) rules for themselves and for other people.

● Acceptance of uncertainty. They recognize that the world is unstable and there are many accidents in it. Tend to maintain order, but do not demand it.

● Commitment. Have obligations to something outside of themselves. They achieve maximum realization of their capabilities, experiencing a constant interest in life.

● Creativity and originality. They show a penchant for innovation, have a creative approach to solving both everyday and professional problems. Often have at least one main creative interest.

●Rational and objective.

● Self-acceptance. They prefer to accept themselves unconditionally. They do not evaluate their inner world from an external point of view, and do not pay excessive attention to what others think about them.

● Acceptance of the animal nature in man. Accept the animal nature of themselves and other people.

● Risk. Willing to take calculated risks to get what you want.

● Perspective hedonism. In search of happiness and avoidance of pain, but maintain a balance between perspective and immediate gain. Not obsessed with the desire for immediate gratification.

● Lack of utopianism. They believe that perfection may be unattainable. Refuse to unrealistically strive for complete happiness or the complete absence of negative emotions.

● High frustration tolerance. They change those unpleasant conditions that they can change, accept those conditions that they cannot change, and see the difference between them.

● Responsibility for violation of its peace of mind. Accepts most of the responsibility for their disorders rather than becoming defensive by blaming other people or social conditions.

A. Alexandrov from "integrative psychotherapy"

Self-actualization according to A. Maslow

SELF-ACTUALIZATION (from the Latin actualis - actual, real) is a person’s craving for the fullest disclosure of his spiritual potential, for identifying personal capabilities. This concept is the focus of attention of one of the prominent psychologists of the 20th century. K. Rogers.
Man, like other living organisms, has an innate tendency to live, grow, and develop. All biological needs are subject to this tendency. As a result of self-actualization, a person becomes more complex, independent, and socially responsible. Along with the formation of the “I,” the child develops a need for a positive attitude towards himself from others and a need for a positive self-attitude. In order for a child to realize himself, he must be surrounded with love and attention.
Unlike behaviorism and Freudianism, which believe that human behavior is determined primarily by biological factors, self-actualization advocates emphasize social and environmental factors.
"The need for unity of man with the environment, inclusion in the world of other living beings (field "organism - environment") - is an urgent need, on the satisfaction of which a person’s mental health depends. A person can try to find unity with the world by submitting to an individual, group, or organization. But in this case, a person becomes dependent on other people and, instead of developing his individuality, he becomes dependent on those whom he obeys or dominates." E. Shostrom

According to the famous humanistic psychologist A. Maslow, the need for self-actualization is the most important factor in the formation of a psychologically mature person.
Maslow said that human beings have instinct-like higher needs that are part of their biological nature, among them the need for self-actualization. On a non-verbal level, this means that every individual has a need to be seen in his essence, as he is."

Refusal of self-actualization ("Jonah complex")
“If you deliberately set out to become less of a person than your abilities allow you to be, I warn you that you will be deeply unhappy for the rest of your life.” A.Maslow
Maslow calls the Jonah complex a person’s reluctance to realize their natural abilities. Just as the biblical Jonah tried to avoid the responsibility of being a prophet, many people also avoid responsibility for fear of using their full potential. They prefer to set small, insignificant goals for themselves and do not strive for serious success in life. This “fear of grandeur” is perhaps the most dangerous barrier to self-actualization. A rich, full-blooded life seems unbearably difficult to many.
The roots of the Jonah complex can be seen in the fact that people are afraid to change their uninteresting, limited, but well-established existence, they are afraid to break away from everything familiar, to lose control over what they already have. A parallel with Fromm’s ideas, which he expressed in his famous book “Escape from Freedom,” involuntarily suggests itself.

Personal Sovereignty

"An important criterion of psychological maturity is personal sovereignty"

Concept of Sovereignty

Maturity as a period of summing up certain results is often accompanied by a crisis with a revision of basic existential questions: about the meaning of one’s own existence, a change in identity, a revision of the boundaries of psychological space
The most important criterion of psychological maturity is personal sovereignty (PS)
LS refers to a person’s internal emotional agreement with the circumstances of his life. Sovereignty is manifested in a person’s experience of the authenticity of his own being, appropriateness, and confidence that he acts accordingly own desires and beliefs.
The dependent position of a person is characterized by the fact that a person acts following the logic of circumstances and the will of other people. The dominant experiences in this case will be a feeling of subordination, alienation, fragmentation of one’s own life: a person feels either in “foreign territory” or out of his time.
The sovereignty of the individual is manifested in relation to the personalized part of the environment - the psychological space (SP) of the individual and its boundaries
A person's personal control boundaries are physical and psychological markers that separate one person's area of ​​personal control and privacy from another.
Functions of psychological boundaries:
1. Subjectivity is born at the border with the world, they show where I ends and someone else begins
2. define personal identity - i.e. ways of self-expression and self-affirmation. In case of dysfunction - blurred identity
3. By setting a boundary, a person creates an opportunity and tool for equal interaction. Mature contacts are carried out precisely on the border, where separation from each other is maintained, and the emerging union does not violate the integrity of the individual. If the function is impaired, contact is replaced by either passive manipulation or aggressive disrespect for another
4. selection of external influences and protection from destructive influences. Dysfunction leads to victim attitude
5. determine the limits of personal responsibility. Violation of this function leads to: hyper-responsibility and mental overload, neurotic feelings of guilt, infantilization of others, inability to seek help

Weakness of boundaries:
1. vulnerability to social influences, claims to personal property and territory, worldview and body. These people are characterized by deprived (deprived) personal space
2. lack of internal restraining forces before introducing other people into the space. Such people are characterized by their own super-sovereign space, that is, a space with rigidly fixed boundaries.

Maturity is characterized by the presence of a sovereign personal psychological space with strong boundaries, which he moves at his own discretion, taking into account the interests of other people.
(E. Fedorenko)

PARADOX OF LOVE

The main problem of love is first become mature. Then you will find a mature partner; then immature people will not attract you at all.

This is exactly what happens.

If you're twenty-five years old, you don't fall in love with a two-month-old baby. In the same way, if you are a mature person psychologically, spiritually, you will not fall in love with a child. This doesn't happen. This can't be, you see it's pointless.

A mature person has enough integrity to be alone. And when a mature person gives love, he gives it without any secret threads attached to it - he simply gives. When a mature person gives love, he feels grateful that you accepted it, not the other way around.
He doesn't expect you to be grateful for this - no, not at all, he doesn't even need your gratitude. He thanks you for accepting his love.

And when two mature people love each other, one of the greatest paradoxes of life occurs, one of the most beautiful phenomena: they are together, but at the same time immensely lonely. They are together to such an extent that they are almost one, but their unity does not destroy individuality - in fact, it increases it, they become more individual. Two mature people in love help each other become freer.

There is no politics, no diplomacy, no trying to dominate another. How can you try to dominate the person you love? Just think about it - submission is a kind of hatred, anger, hostility. How can you even think about subjugating the person you love? You would like to see this person completely free, independent; you'd like to give it more personality.

That is why I call this the great paradox: they are together so much that they have almost merged into one, but still in this unity they remain individuals. Their personalities do not mix - they are amplified. The other is enriching in terms of freedom.

Excerpt from OSHO's book - "Maturity"

One of the founding fathers of systemic and family therapy, Murray Bowen on differentiation criteria, "Pseudo-Self" and "Hard Self"
The independent functioning of intelligence is not the only criterion for correct differentiation. There is a “Pseudo-Self” and a “Solid Self”.
The “hard self” is a person’s own, it “is composed of clearly defined ideas, beliefs and life principles that enter the self from life experience through a process of intellectual reasoning and as a result of careful selection.” Thanks to this, the true Self has unity and coherence: “Every belief of the solid Self, every life principle is combined with all the others.”
The basis for calling the “true self” “solid” is that the “solid self” is able to withstand not only the reactions of its own emotional-instinctive system, but also the pressure of others. "At any specific situation it says: “This is me, I believe in this, I stand on this, I will do this, but I won’t do this.” ... By making a choice, a person becomes responsible for himself and for the consequences of his actions. … The Solid Self will act in accordance with its principles even in the most severe and troubling situation.
In contrast, the “pseudo-self is made up of a wide range of principles, beliefs, worldly wisdom and knowledge that are considered “correct” and internalized because the group demands it. Since these principles are acquired under pressure, they are random and do not fit together, although the individual may not be aware of their inconsistency.

“Pseudo-I” is created under the pressure of emotions and under the pressure of emotions can be modified. Any emotional unit, be it a family or an entire community, exerts pressure on the members of its group in order to submit to the ideals and principles of the group. ... The pseudo-self is the pretended self, ... it is an actor, it can be represented by many different selves. ... For most people, it is not difficult to identify overt pretense, but since each of us is a bit of an actor, it can be quite difficult to identify subtle pretense. ... a good actor can be so realistic that without detailed knowledge of the functioning of emotional systems, it is impossible for himself and the people around him to distinguish between the solid self and the pseudo-self... The pseudo-self is created in the image and likeness of a system of relationships, and it is the subject of exchange in system of relations."
Murray Bowen.

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A mature personality (psychological maturity) is a special state of mental processes and worldview that allows a person to be a self-realizing individual.

Such a personality has the following characteristics:

• the ability to adequately perceive reality;
• ability to establish productive social contacts;
• the ability to evaluate people objectively;
• the ability to take responsibility for one’s life;
• independence in meeting necessary needs.

A mature person knows and can achieve goals and success in his life, and does not depend on the opinions of others.

Psychologist K. Obukhovsky identified four criteria for personality development, which complement each other.

The emergence of new abilities

New views, a different understanding of the world, a transition to a more abstract concept of the world order.

Skill Growth

A person faces a contradiction in the process of life: the higher the skills, the more difficult tasks, and the situation is also worsened by aging. Therefore, such a person understands that he needs to constantly improve his skills.

Self-control ability

To learn self-control and become a mature person, a person must learn to distance himself from love, fear and guilt - all of which can control us and change our behavior.

Feeling satisfied with life

Despite troubles and failures, a mature person must learn to have an overall sense of satisfaction with life.

In this article you will find out what such titans of psychology as Sigmund Freud, Gordon Allport and Abraham Maslow thought about the concept of a mature personality.

Mature personality according to Maslow

Abraham Maslow believed that no more than 1% of people could claim the title of mature personality. He called them quality individuals, psychologically healthy and maximally expressing human essence.

The following list will be of interest to those who support their intellectual growth and strive to become better.

A mature personality according to Maslow has the following characteristics:

• Accepting yourself and others as they are.
• The absence of predatory, artificial forms of behavior and the rejection of this on the part of other people.
• Adequate perception of reality, free from the influence of stereotypes, needs and prejudices.
• Interest in the unknown.
• Business orientation. This means that such a person is less busy with himself and more with his life mission.
• Spontaneity of manifestations, simplicity and naturalness. Such a person observes traditions, rituals and ceremonies, but at the same time treats them with due respect. This is correct conformism, not automatic.
• Independence from the environment.
• A position of detachment in relation to many phenomena. This allows them to be less susceptible to external influences.
• Resilience under the influence of stress factors.
• Freshness of perception, curiosity: the ability to find something new in what is already known.
• Friendship with other mature individuals: a narrow circle of people with whom relationships are quite deep.
• A sense of community with humanity as a whole.
• Stable internal moral standards. Such people have a keen sense of justice, a keen sense of good and evil.
• Willingness to learn from others.
• A humorous attitude towards life.
• A critical attitude towards the culture to which they belong.
• Creativity in all matters.

Mature personality according to Freud

Sigmund Freil wisely noted that the only person you should compare yourself to is your past self. And, accordingly, you should always be better in this comparison. This position is adhered to by modern personal growth coaches. This is probably the first sign of a mature personality according to Freud.

The great psychologist also insisted that the individual must be stress-resistant. It just so happens that in our lives any event is a little stress, and if we do not learn to cope with it, there can be no talk of any growth. To learn this, you need to be able to switch your attention to hobbies, sports, and travel.

You also need to accept constructive criticism correctly, and not avoid it, hide in illusions and deny logic and facts, showing aggression or cowardice.

You need to learn to adapt to changes in life: social status, Family status, place of residence, profession.

The ability to love and give are one of the main signs of a developed mature personality. You need to kill the egoist in yourself, and learn to redirect your anger into a constructive direction (sublimate).

Mature personality according to Allport

Allport was a contemporary of Freud and one of the first to become interested in composing a description of the mature personality. Many psychologists of that time concentrated on the neurotic personality.

The first thing that distinguishes a mature person from an immature one is that the behavior of a mature person is completely conscious and motivated. While the behavior of an immature woman is guided mainly by complexes and the desire to gain pleasure.

The rest of the list looks like this:

• Trusts himself, his feelings, reason, intuition, needs.
• Develops your abilities and increases your professionalism.
• When communicating with other people, he remains natural and at ease.
• Does not establish unshakable rules.
• Able to think about other people's needs.
• Takes care of your health.
• Knows how to be grateful.
• Knows how to receive and give love.
• Does not feel discomfort being alone.
• Able to say “no” at the right time.
• He is not characterized by petty vindictiveness, rancor and resentment.
• He does not suffer from excessive modesty.
• Able to set big goals and achieve them.
• Loves to study.
• Does not seek to educate or criticize other people. Instead, he leads by example.
• Religious, because faith makes a person stronger and purer. She allows him to solve one of the most difficult and important issues - the issue of death.
• Capable of long-term concentration.
• Knows how to honestly and openly note his strengths and weaknesses, understanding that sometimes a weakness in one area is a strength in another.
• Knows how to forgive.
• Stay away from pessimists.
• Looks for support in himself in difficult situations.
• He tries to find positive aspects in any situation.
• Knows how to manage his feelings and emotions.
• Able to build trusting relationships with others.
• He does not set himself the goal of subjugating anyone, being perfect, always right, and being liked by everyone.
• Expands and deepens his knowledge.
• Out of fear of ruining relationships with others, he does not infringe on his interests.
• Trusts people and life.
• Believes in his abilities.

It is also worth saying that Allport was one of the few psychologists who thought about personality in terms of soul and faith. He recognized that humans are by nature religious beings.

Allport wrote: "Religious feeling is one of the strongest attributes of our species and is part of human psychology, which is most often ignored by behavioral science. We find many individuals who are zealously and effectively engaged in all stages of formation, with the exception of the last task of connecting themselves with a meaningful image, with creation. For some reason, their curiosity stops at this stage. The final truths of religion are unknown, but psychology, which prevents the understanding of man’s religious capabilities, hardly deserves to be called the logoi of the human psyche at all.”

Maturity is the longest period in the process of ontogenesis, spanning ages from approximately 25 to 65 years. The concept is often identified with coming of age, but this is far from the same thing. The topic of this article is the psychological maturity of the individual. In it you will get answers to questions about what its main signs are and whether every person is an adult at 30 years old.

Psychological maturity: concept

There is no single approach to defining what it is. The only thing that is indisputable is the statement that we can talk about maturity in the period when a person is at the peak of his intellectual, physical and spiritual abilities. Its maturation occurs gradually and marks the transition:

• from subordination to elders in the family - to equality;
• from dependence - to independence;
• from the simplest set of reactions to external influences - to a diverse behavioral repertoire;
• from a carefree life - to awareness of one’s responsibility for events;
• from primitive hobbies to more complex interests.

A person’s impulsive actions are replaced by deliberate steps, building a long-term perspective based on previous experience. It is the latter that can force a person to give up immediate achievements in the name of obtaining more serious benefits in the future. What periods of psychological maturity do scientists identify?

Early maturity

Its beginning coincides with the period of adolescence. The authors differ in determining the exact age limits, but the most common point of view is the position of V. Ginzburg. According to him, boys enter a period of psychological maturity from 16 to 24 years old; girls who grow up a little earlier - from 15 to 20 years.

How is this stage characterized? A person is included in all forms; he is endowed with legal and electoral rights, creates a family, realizes himself professionally and learns economic responsibility. Having absorbed information about various social roles, a person begins to apply it to himself.

A. Tolstykh argues that during this period the beginning of the realization of emerging opportunities for self-development occurs. The main problem is often cited as the contradiction between isolation and closeness with others. At this time it is necessary:

• find harmony between reality and dreams;
• find a mentor;
• decide on a career;
• build a sphere of intimate and personal communication.

Average maturity

Around the age of 40, a person’s psychological maturity reaches a new level. This is connected with the search for answers to vital questions: about the meaning of existence, the realization of desires.

People are reassessing their values ​​and revising their claims. The ability to rethink the surrounding reality, become interested in new people, influence your future, become a true professional, and realize your creative potential is formed. But this is also the time of doubt. Any person wonders if he has chosen the right path. He is haunted by the fear of decreased performance, and there is a need to choose new goals. A common reason is the difference between desires and reality.

A new level of maturity is associated with the emergence of problems that are often associated with a midlife crisis. Scientists believe that overcoming it is associated with solving the following personal problems:

• formation of civil liability;
• achieving a certain standard of living;
• optimal organization of leisure;
• deepening the personal aspect in relationships with loved ones, helping children;
• accepting and getting used to your own physiological changes;
• supporting aging parents.

Late maturity

The psychological maturity of an individual is associated with retirement, so its age limits are flexible. There are three most important points that allow us to talk about a new, independent stage in the development of the individual:

• change of activity;
• survival;
• preservation of values ​​and the basic content of life.

It is important for a person to overcome the feeling of unnecessary anxiety, emptiness, and excessive self-focus. This is achieved through:

• active involvement in social, family and community relationships;
• the emergence of tolerance in relationships with other people;
• emotional stability;
• accepting a real and not a desired picture of the world;
• abilities for self-knowledge and the formation of an established system of values.

Scientists note: one of the most important moments psychological maturity in old age is the correct feeling of one’s age, overcoming the contradictions of a person’s spiritual, biological and psychological capabilities.

About age

All levels of maturity are associated with a personal crisis. F. Perls believes that its main indicator is the ability to find a way out of a deadlock situation, relying on one’s own resources. Maturity allows you to overcome frustration and fear, being able to take risks and make responsible decisions. But J.-M. Robin, for example, who generally shares the opinion of his colleague, believes it is possible to perceive help from the outside. The main indicator of personal immaturity, in his opinion, is helplessness. And finding a way out of the deadlock, it doesn’t matter, is due to personal resources or with the help of others - this is an indicator of adulthood.

Psychological age may not coincide at all with calendar age. And at 15 years old there are absolutely mature individuals, and at 30 - people who are not capable of being responsible for their actions and actions. To understand, let's take a closer look psychological characteristics maturity. The authors identify a different number of features; we will focus on the most significant ones, which will be discussed below.

Authenticity

From ancient Greek the word is translated as “genuine” and echoes the concept of “congruence.” We are talking about the adequacy and consistency of the elements. In this context, it is comparable to the word “originality” and is one of the most important indicators of the psychological maturity of an individual.

The phenomenon is described by the American scientist D. Bugental, who includes the following points:

• awareness of the present;
• freedom of choice here and now;
• awareness of one's own responsibility for this choice.

An authentic person is sincere in his immediate manifestations and in his behavior in general. He does not pretend to be knowledgeable, in love or pleased in response to the expectations of others. Many strive to play roles, putting on masks and wasting energy on demonstrating a decent external facade without solving internal problems. In response, they also receive insincerity, making it difficult to decipher the real attitude of other people towards themselves.

An authentic personality spends time solving problems that arise, without hiding behind someone else's mask. She is capable of showing flexibility in any situation.

Acceptance of feelings

It's about being honest with yourself. Mature personality is open life experience and accepts the full range of his own feelings. And not just the socially approved ones. The environment often encourages you to repress sadness, anger, irritability and other negative emotions. From childhood, parents teach: “don’t cry,” “don’t show excitement,” “don’t worry.” But if emotions are constantly repressed, in the future they will become the root cause of uncontrollable behavior in the most unexpected moments.

Psychological maturity implies living through the feelings that arise. Only this method allows us to control our own behavior, to be tolerant not only towards ourselves, but also towards other people. If a person is aware of his reactions, then he is able to competently regulate his responses.

Development of self-knowledge

What else characterizes psychological maturity? The characteristics of this personality include the development of self-knowledge. Because without understanding yourself, it is impossible to effectively build communications with others. This process promotes a realistic attitude towards oneself and a better understanding of others.

A mature person must be aware of what she wants to achieve in life, what is important to her and what is not. She constantly adjusts her values. She should not become a reflection of the hopes of others, but must act guided by her own convictions. This allows you to feel strong in interpersonal contacts.

Resilience to Uncertainty

Many people get lost in situations that lack clarity and lack structure. But a person often has to enter someone else's territory, so he needs confidence in the absence of certainty. We often don't know what problem we'll face or what decisions we'll have to make. Confidence in one's own intuition, the adequacy of feelings, conviction in the constructiveness of decisions and the ability to take justifiable risks - all this helps a person to endure the tension created by uncertainty. This is also the lot of mature individuals.

Other important signs

Let's talk about psychological maturity. Most scientists classify the following traits as characteristics of maturity:

• Personal responsibility for decisions made. It helps to think differently about criticism, seeing it as useful. feedback.
• Lack of fear when building close relationships. A person himself determines his distance from others, freely expressing his feelings.
• Setting realistic goals in communication. It's about giving up perfectionism and taking responsibility for failed relationships. It is more important to learn useful lessons while avoiding feelings of guilt.
• Having empathy is the ability to perceive the feelings of other people. Taking them into account in the communication process allows you to build correct communications.

Probably, many have come across a mention of socio-psychological maturity. What are we talking about?

Personality and society

Psychological maturity is a multidimensional concept, one of the aspects of which is interaction with society. It is impossible to live in isolation from his problems and aspirations.

The social aspect is, first of all, a rejection of existing stereotypes. Focusing on one's own needs and feelings, a mature person is less susceptible to manipulation and the influence of the crowd.

But at the same time, a mature individual accepts the world with all its laws, imperfections and even suffering. He does not try to change what has developed over centuries, but spends resources on improvements in microsociety in order to be in harmony with the environment and bring maximum benefit. Evidenced by:

• sense of responsibility;
• social intelligence, the ability to anticipate changes in social processes;
• caring for others;
• active in the life of society;
• applying knowledge and skills to benefit others;
• overcoming problems on the path to self-realization.

Only the social environment is capable of shaping a mature personality.

Levels of psychological maturity

Each person has a different degree of socialization: number of contacts, level of interaction, life values, on the basis of which communication is built. This allows scientists to distinguish levels of maturity: low, high and medium. The main criteria include external and internal. The first includes the degree of mastery of the social competencies listed in the article.

The second include traits that characterize personality: empathy, sociability, adequate self-esteem, responsibility, attentiveness, tolerance, etc.

The higher a person’s desire for self-knowledge and self-development, the faster he masters life lessons, developing responsibility and tolerance, the higher the level of maturity he possesses.

Instead of a conclusion

You can often hear the concept of “psychological school maturity.” About what we're talking about? We found out that early adulthood begins at the age of 15-16, when boys and girls study in secondary school. They are distinguished by self-sufficiency, the presence of beliefs and worldview, as well as the formation of those qualities that characterize a mature personality.

annotation

The article offers the author's point of view regarding the essence and structure of personal maturity. The phenomenon of personal maturity is revealed in relation to the concepts of self-development and ego-identity. A definition of personal maturity is given, and the psychological mechanisms that determine it are considered. The traits of personal maturity are substantiated and their significance for the ego-identity of the individual is revealed.

Keywords: personal maturity, traits of personal maturity, dynamic structure

Personal maturity seems to be one of the socially positive and significant characteristics of a person. At the same time, the definition of personal maturity as psychological concept, in our opinion, remains hidden behind the author’s lists of traits of a mature personality.

It seems to us advisable to create a clearer definition of personal maturity. This would make it possible to agree scientific views regarding the concepts of “mature personality” and “personal maturity”, and in the future solve the problems of psychological support for the process of achieving personal maturity.

We propose to consider personal maturity as a dynamic personal structure, which is determined by certain mechanisms, and the content is traits that mutually activate each other. It seems to us that the dynamism of personal maturity consists both in the particular manifestation of the phenomenon itself and in its internal structure. Therefore, it is important to demonstrate under the influence of which psychological mechanisms the interaction of traits creates the phenomenon of personal maturity.

In Fig. Figure 1 shows the formation of personal maturity as a dynamic structure; we propose to begin its consideration with the concept of personal potential. In our opinion, the presence of personal potential ensures natural personal growth. That is, a person develops and self-actualizes at the expense of his own internal resources. Then the content of personal potential, which is the root cause of the formation of personal maturity, we see duty, meaning and faith.

A personally mature person can be called resourceful, who finds the strength in himself to overcome life circumstances and himself. In our opinion, the triad of internal resources provides a personally mature person with competence in time, that is, the ability to see and feel his life as a whole.

As a consequence of a crisis of duty, meaning and/or faith, we see transcendence. Critical life events are conditions during which A New Look to reality. Trying to understand himself, a person “sets standards for himself and binds himself to them” (G. Marcel, 1999), “transcends himself from himself as an empirical individuality to himself as an original self” (K. Jaspers, 1999). Thus, the ability to transcend allows a personally mature person not to get into situations, but to create the situations themselves for self-improvement, that is, to be “his own “project”” (A. Sartre, 1999).

Going beyond the usual rules of life and ways of experiencing personal meaning is reflected in an existential crisis. It can manifest itself as “sadness from the inadequacy of life strategy” (N. Khamitov, 2000). A choice in an existential situation is possible if there is a formed personal structure, by which we mean personal maturity, which, in turn, is necessary for building an ego identity.

We tend to attribute the formation of personal maturity to the period of 11–20 years, which, in accordance with the epigenetic theory of E. Erikson (2002), is marked by a normative crisis of ego identity. Then personal maturity can be considered as one of the boundaries of the ego-identity continuum (“infancy” - “personal maturity”). We think that the personal maturity of adolescence is, metaphorically speaking, more of an “opportunity to be” than a “responsibility to be.”

We see further formation and “renewal” of personal maturity through the prism of non-normative crises associated with situations of choice. In our opinion, the dynamics of personal maturity are associated with a person’s sense of his social and personal prospects. A person tends to perceive changes in his life perspective as stressful or crisis, which require him to make a choice. It seems to us that such life situations can be attributed to non-normative identity crises, when the level of self-understanding of an individual decreases. In order to preserve his own integrity, a person is forced to abandon understanding of himself through identification with the criteria of the external world. He can “find himself” through relating himself to himself. It is logical to assume the existence of some personal structure that provides a person with the opportunity to accept himself as meaning, to be authentic. In our understanding, this structure is personal maturity.

This line of reasoning led us to the definition personal maturity as an effect of a non-normative identity crisis independently experienced by a person in adulthood. This effect represents a dynamic personality structure, a proprium, important for ego identity.

We define personal maturity as an effect because we see it as a consequence of a non-normative crisis. The emphasis on independence, and not the constructiveness of experiencing a non-normative crisis, is placed because it is independence (the consistency of oneself, being able to be oneself) auto.) shows a person’s ability to get out of a difficult situation without outside help, relying only on himself. It is important that it is this ability that is declared in the definition of general maturity, which was given in Gestalt psychology (V. Kondrashenko, D. Donskoy, S. Igumnov, 1999).

The most striking indicator of formed personal maturity is self-determination, which, in our opinion, manifests itself in the mutual activation of freedom and responsibility, which can be considered as tools of a person’s worldview. Thus, self-determination not only accompanies the construction of a person’s own value system and makes choice psychologically possible, but also activates the process of transformation, thanks to which the personality acquires completeness and integrity - a mature ego identity. Perhaps others see this result as personal growth. A person develops a feeling of fullness of internal resources, a new life perspective, the desire for which is associated with new non-normative crises.

Since we consider personal maturity as a dynamic structure, we consider it important to consider the mechanisms that determine its manifestation. The author's vision of the mechanisms of determination of personal maturity is illustrated in Fig. 2.

We attribute the reason for the “emergence” of personal maturity to self-development immanent for the individual. We consider self-development as a person’s desire to form in himself certain qualities and abilities, with which, in his opinion, he will be able to realize his inner potential most fully.

Thus, introspection is inevitable, which is possible due to the internal dialogism of a person. The duality of human essence gives rise to internal conflict, which can be driving force development when a person strives to build an attitude towards a situation not on opposites, but on relationships. In our opinion, such harmonization inner world human being is provided by the mechanisms of intentionality and coherence.

We propose to consider intentionality as the individual’s focus on creating himself and self-determination. Creation of oneself can be carried out either as part of a person’s adaptation to given circumstances, and, as a result, new personality qualities appear, or by going beyond the situation. Then the person changes his social role, the way of self-presentation, his attitude towards himself in such a way that he becomes subjectively different, one who is competent to transform the situation internal conflict in a situation of gaining life experience.

A productive resolution of internal conflict is determined, in our opinion, by a special mechanism - coherence, which we tend to consider as an operational analogue of life competence. Self-sufficiency manifests itself in coherence: a person trusts himself, therefore own opinion enough for him to make a decision. This decision, we think, is about having the courage to be yourself.

Thus, there is a need for a personal structure containing indicators of authenticity - personal maturity. Formed personal maturity creates the opportunity for self-change, self-creation through self-determination. The field of activity of the latter is located exclusively at the conscious level, while the integrity of the personality is possible with the totality of its psyche. Therefore, we think the following mechanism is activated - pregnancy.

Pregnancy ensures the richness and completeness of the emerging ego-identity, bringing the “ineffective” identity to transformation that affects the unconscious. Pregnancy acts as a mechanism for comparing the Real Self with the True Self, for the sake of which the process of self-change was begun. As a desire for content, pregnancy ensures the adequacy of a person’s perception of the fact that he can only get closer to the True Self, feel it at the moment of “peak” experience, but not become it.

The result of psychological transformation is a renewed ego identity. To compare it with the goals of self-development, the mechanism of intentionality is again turned on, but to a greater extent as an active attitude towards oneself - self-verification.

When the idea of ​​the meaning of personal maturity and the mechanisms that determine it is understood, we propose to pay attention to the content of this structure, which, according to our assumption, are traits - indicators of ego identity.

Recognition of personal maturity as a characteristic with a high level of social recognition has led us to the conviction that its features must have socio-psychological significance. After all, on the one hand, in accordance with them, others characterize a person as personally mature, on the other hand, these traits are decisive for a person’s ego-identity.

The result of the reasoning was the assumption that the traits of personal maturity can be defined as the central dispositions of the personality proprium - personality traits that are obvious to others, which determine a person’s readiness to act from the position of a mature personality.

In order to highlight the traits of personal maturity, we analyzed the characteristics of a productively developing personality, presented in the works of K. Jung (2002), G. Allport (2002), V. Stern (2001), A. Maslow (1999), E. Sjostrom (2001) , J. Stevens (1995), G. Sullivan (2001), A. Ellis (1999), C. Naranjo (2001), F. Perls (1999), P. Weinzweig (2000), K. Hall (1999), G. Lindsay (1999), S. Holliday (1997), M. Chandler (1997), P. Jacobson (2000), K. Abulkhanova-Slavskaya (2000), N. Tutushkina (1999), G. Abramova (1999) , N. Bordovskaya (2004), A. Reana (2004), D. Leontyev (2002), G. Skripkina (2002), N. Savchina (2002), L. Ovsyanetskaya (2001), L. Lepikhova (2000), T. Titarenko (2001). This was the first step in explicating the central features that characterize personal maturity. The second step was separation from individual personality traits (according to A. Bodalev, V. Stolin, 2001).

Subsequent explication - the third step - was carried out by the method of content analysis, which covered 157 units of concepts reflecting the characteristics of a personality that are obvious to psychologists and scientists, which, in general, can be called mature. The features were divided into semantic groups, and the most striking features were highlighted in each group. During the last, fourth step of explication, the frequency of mentioning traits was recorded, and one marker trait was identified in each group.

The result of the content analysis of the personality traits of a mature personality was ten explicit traits: synergy, autonomy, contact, self-acceptance, creativity, tolerance, responsibility, depth of experience, decentration, life philosophy.

The identified traits of personal maturity represent, according to our concept, one pole of the ego-identity continuum - “maturity”. Adhering to a holistic approach in describing personality, we also presented the traits of the “infantility” pole (Table 1).

Table 1.

Psychological substances and incidents of personal maturity

Traits of Personal Maturity	Manifestations of depersonalization
Responsibility	Conformity
Creativity	Fear of uncertainty
Decentration	Self-centeredness
Contact	Alienation
Tolerance	The desire to dominate
Autonomy	Addiction
Self-acceptance	Self-accusation
Depth of experience	Autonomy– willingness to trust oneself and the ability to self-determinate. In ego identity, the function of autonomy is to maintain authenticity. Autonomy is manifested in a person’s ability to self-organize, in his characteristic view of the world, the ability to see and realize his own life mission. An autonomous person is characterized by a high level of goal formation, understanding of personal values, and seeing himself as the source of the events of his life. In relationships with others, he shows assertiveness and knows how to achieve his goals using his own resources. The results of his activities are original. When collaborating, he flexibly changes his leadership position to that of an assistant, is not focused on his own dominance, and tends to compare the level of his own competence and professionalism with the level of his previous achievements or with ideal norms, and, to a lesser extent, with the achievements of other people. The opposite of autonomy is dependence. A person who exhibits the characteristics of addiction, as a rule, does not perceive and does not want to accept the world around him as it is. He wants to live in an illusory world filled with expected joys. In the real world, he is looking for people who would take care of him, save him, and thus shifts responsibility for himself and his actions onto them. It seems that people prone to addiction are afraid to live their own lives, so they strive to impose it on others. Contact– the ability to be frank in meaningful communication with significant people. In ego identity, the function of contact is readiness for self-disclosure. Contact is manifested in the ability to quickly establish relationships and maintain their value for a long time. A contact person knows how to find mutual understanding with others, is inclined to open communication with people who are interesting to him, with whom he has similar life values. He has tact and sincerity in communication, a tendency to help, initiative and cooperation. He is remembered as a person who is characterized by a certain “magnetism” of personality, as well as the ability to interest others in himself and show sincere interest in others. A contact person shows unobtrusiveness and diplomacy in relationships, knows how to provide feedback, that is, communicate his opinion on the issue under consideration in a timely manner. In communication, he strives to develop philosophical, existential themes, he tends to reflect on the thoughts expressed, therefore communication for him is a source of self-change, personal transformation. People who are characterized by alienation build their own vision of the world, in which others are perceived as strangers, and therefore hostile. Alienation closes for a person all the brightness and diversity of the world, experiences, and meanings. Psychological reasons for alienation may be difficulties in developing identity and authenticity, when a person does not feel the meaning of life. Self-acceptance– the ability to treat oneself as a promising project. In ego identity, the function of self-acceptance is to promote self-objectification. Self-acceptance manifests itself in a person’s ability to recognize the proportionality of his own strengths and weaknesses. A person who is characterized by self-acceptance has determined his own values ​​and respects himself for realizing his mission, allows himself to be happy unconditionally, therefore he has a high self-evaluation. He treats himself with a philosophical sense of humor, that is, he understands the relativity of his own successes and, at the same time, does not focus on failures. In relationships with others, he respects their dignity, is tolerant of their shortcomings, believes that he deserves self-respect, and calmly accepts constructive criticism. The opposite of self-acceptance is self-blame, in which a person is characterized by a kind of “schadenfreude” over himself. At the same time, a certain fatal doom can be traced when a person, all the reasons for his failures are only for himself, does not even try to change something. People prone to self-blame seem to set themselves a condition under which, in order to live a full life, they must “suffer.” In their passion for self-criticism, it seems to them that each subsequent problem is not significant enough to allow themselves to be happy after solving it. Perhaps the only problem they must solve on the path to authenticity is the abandonment of self-accusation, retroflection in favor of reflection. Creativity– the ability to embody one’s own view of life in the results of activities. In ego identity, the function of creativity is self-creation. Creativity is manifested in a person’s ability to realize his own potential, the ability to convey the author’s vision of the world to others. The decisions of a creative person are characterized as expedient and optimal, since he acts according to the situation. A creative person is capable of more than living, he creates life: things, projects, situations, himself. He is characterized by the desire to understand the idea and implement it. When communicating with others, a creative person knows how to be interesting, relaxed, and spontaneous. The opposite of creativity is the fear of uncertainty, which manifests itself in the avoidance of any situations of choice, forecasting and planning for the future. A person tends to perceive only everything familiar; he is characterized by a low level of adaptability. Tolerance– readiness for an unbiased, non-judgmental, axiological perception of people and life events. In ego identity, the function of tolerance is to understand the non-conflict of oneself and the world around us. Tolerance is manifested in the ability to realistically perceive life events and the actions of others. A tolerant person accepts the authenticity of other people and therefore does not seek to dominate them. He is characterized by non-conflict, a democratic style of communication, respect for the values ​​of other people, with whom he knows how to find something in common, without focusing on differences. Tolerance creates the basis for a non-judgmental, multi-criteria perception of the world. The uniqueness of a person or event becomes significant. For an intolerant person, a situation in which something does not happen the way he wanted it becomes uncomfortable. And not because it is being created the cognitive dissonance, and therefore, the primacy of this person is called into question. Intolerant people tend to perceive the world through the prism of rigid stereotypes, with the help of which it is determined once and for all what is correct and what is not, in what sequence events should occur. The desire to keep everything under control is dictated by a low assessment of one’s own competence. Such people show bias towards others, perceiving them one-sidedly, tend to divide people into “us” and “strangers” and do not recognize others just because they are different in some way. Responsibility- a person’s recognition of himself as the author and guardian of some project, which may be some business, himself or his life. In ego identity, the function of responsibility is to realize the courage to be. Responsibility is manifested in the ability to act and make independent decisions, in the ability to take risks, and also to complete the work started. A responsible person freely takes on responsibilities because she is characterized by a sense of self-efficacy. She does not perceive debt as a burden that provokes self-recrimination. Rather, a responsible person perceives the need to patronize a certain business as an opportunity to do something in his own way. He has a sense of free will, so he shows spontaneity in making decisions and does not feel limited by stereotypes or rules. At the same time, responsibility ensures self-consistency because a person sees the relationship between his action and its consequences. In relationships with others, responsibility manifests itself as a willingness to cooperate, the ability to support, to be reliable, and to be independent. Responsibility can be contrasted with conformity, understood as a person’s adaptation of his behavior and thoughts to the rules of a certain social group. A person is afraid to organize his life on his own; he always waits for others to make decisions for him. Depth of experience (term auto) – the ability to existentially perceive the world. In ego identity, the function of the depth of experience is to maintain a sense of the meaning of one’s own existence. The depth of experience is manifested in the ability to feel the interconnectedness of various aspects of life and to show interest in a wide range of events. For a person characterized by a wide range of experiences, his declared values ​​are effective. He is not an observer, but an active participant in life. When communicating with others, he shows interest in their personality, is able to love people and strives to take care of them, appreciating their uniqueness. Such a person has experience of spiritual experiences, thanks to which he is convinced that life has meaning in all its manifestations. Difficulties in overcoming emotionally difficult experiences may be the reason for the preference for regressive values ​​(term by A. Maslow, 2001), that is, those to which a person returned after having the opportunity to experience the values ​​of being - meaning, goodness, beauty, truth, philanthropy, mercy, knowledge, courage, love. A person could be afraid of the power of experiences that arose in connection with these values, or lose faith in some of them. The choice of regressive values ​​- comfort, consumption, security - without a focus on self-improvement and interpersonal experience of values ​​makes a person’s life more predictable and protects against “emotions of the soul.” The values ​​of security and comfort are natural to a person when they are understood as vital for a person's physical existence next to the highest values ​​necessary for his spiritual life. Decentration– the ability to have internal dialogue and the ability to be different while remaining yourself. In ego identity, the function of synergy is to provide self-verification. Decentration manifests itself as a condition for self-analysis and understanding of others. A person who knows how to decenter is able to consider phenomena from different sides, understand and accept what different people can perceive something in their own way, can recreate the thoughts of the interlocutor, as well as reconcile different views and explain them. It is typical for him to treat the results of his work without pretensions to their perfection; when solving problems, he focuses on the task, and not on his own importance. Decentration presupposes the proportionality of egocentricity and empathy: a moderate level of egocentricity ensures the fixation of one’s own point of view, and a high level of empathy ensures the ability to recognize and understand another point of view. The opposite trait - egocentrism - characterizes a person who is inclined to rigidly adhere to one point of view - his own, considering it the most correct. Such a person is not necessarily an egoist, but he is focused only on his values ​​and experiences. It seems that self-centered people would be successful because they were self-focused. But due to their reluctance and inability to consider a certain situation or problem from a variety of perspectives, they lose effective ways decisions. Life philosophy– a person’s awareness of his own reality in the context of the world around him in search of the meaning of life. In ego-identity, the function of life philosophy is to ensure self-extension. Life philosophy is characterized by the clarity of a person’s own life principles, life position and life credo. The life philosophy of an individual is manifested in the desire to understand the meaning of life, as well as in the presence of a conscious concept of life and ideas about human nature. A person with a well-formed philosophy of life thinks and has a positive attitude towards life, does not confuse goals and methods of achieving them, is self-actualized and has decided what exactly he can change in his life. If an active and caring attitude towards life has not been formed or it has become distorted due to despair, we can talk about desacralization, the meaninglessness of existence. Most often, desacralization is led by despair - disappointment, leading to a state of depression and inaction. A person loses the feeling of something very important for himself, feels difficulties in understanding the limits of his capabilities, he is not activated by the secrets of knowledge, he closes himself off from involvement in the feeling of greatness (God, the plan of life, nature), the loss of the significance of intentionality as the creation of oneself becomes noticeable. It can be noted that some qualities are manifested in several features. In our opinion, this indicates the mutual activation of personal maturity traits. Adhering to the thesis that personal growth is a scientific metaphor reflecting changes in the level of personal maturity, we conducted a theoretical verification of the identified traits of personal maturity, correlating them with the criteria of personal growth (S. Bratchenko, M. Mironova, 2002). The traits “responsibility”, “decentration”, “autonomy”, in our opinion, are comparable with the criterion of responsible freedom, “creativity” - with dynamism, “contact” and “tolerance” - with understanding and acceptance of others, socialization, “self-acceptance” - with self-acceptance, “depth of experience” - with openness to the inner experience of experiences, “synergy” - with integrity. Difficulties arose with the analogue of the manifestation of the individual’s life philosophy in personal growth. We assume that changes in the content of this trait are too private to be obvious in measurable terms. In conclusion of the presented theoretical analysis of the phenomenon of personal maturity, the following conclusions seem possible. 1. Personal maturity - the effect of a non-normative identity crisis independently experienced by a person in adulthood. This effect manifests itself as a dynamic personal structure, which is determined by the mechanisms of intentionality, coherence, pregnancy, and contains central features of the proprium that are important for ego identity: synergy, autonomy, contact, self-acceptance, creativity, tolerance, responsibility, depth of experience, decentration, philosophy of life . This definition allows us to reconsider the relationship between the concepts of “personal maturity” and “mature personality”. It seems to us that for the humanistic paradigm the concept of “mature personality” can be considered to a greater extent the same scientific metaphor as “personal growth”. Humanistic psychologists define personality as an individual who has the internal resources to change the self-concept (K. Rogers, 2001), self-determining integrity (T. Titarenko, 2001), a person who freely and responsibly determines his place among others (E. Isaev, V. Slobodchikov, 1995). Based on these definitions, maturity is immanent to a person, who can be called a personality. At the same time, maturity as an age characteristic is a separate coordinate of human development. Then personal maturity acts as a criterion of an individual’s readiness for self-development. 2. The presence of traits of a self-actualizing personality among the explicit traits of personal maturity, in our opinion, justifies that a self-actualizing personality is not necessarily personally mature. It seems inappropriate to separate the features of self-actualization, since this would require drawing a clear boundary between personal maturity and its operational analogue, and in this regard, calling into question the dynamism of its structure. The problem of some “multiple levels” of traits of personal maturity is relevant. In our opinion, it can have several solutions, depending on the chosen approach to defining the trait and the concept of typology. In the diverse structure of traits included in personal maturity, we see a kind of core of personality structure, ensuring its integrity. Questions may arise as to how people with the same set of traits important to ego identity can be authentic. 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Fig.2. Mechanisms of determination of personal maturity