Phenomena of mental development.
Specificity.In the theory of L.S. Vygotsky, this concept denotes a transition in age development to a new qualitatively specific stage. Age crises are primarily due to the destruction of the usual social situation of development and the emergence of another, which is more consistent with the new level of psychological development of the child. In external behavior, age-related crises are revealed as disobedience, stubbornness, and negativism. In time, they are localized at the boundaries of stable ages and manifest as a neonatal crisis (up to 1 month), a crisis of one year, 3 years, a crisis of 7 years, an adolescent crisis (11-12 years old) and a youth crisis.
Psychological Dictionary. THEM. Kondakov. 2000 .
Age crises
AGE CRISES (with. 122) (from the Greek krisis - a turning point, outcome) - a conventional name for transitions from one age stage to another. In child psychology, the unevenness of child development, the presence of special, complex moments in the formation of personality, has been empirically noted. At the same time, many researchers (S. Freud, A. Gesell and others) considered these moments as “developmental illnesses”, a negative result of the collision of a developing personality with social reality. L.S. Vygotsky developed an original concept in which he considered age development as a dialectical process. Stages of gradual changes in this process alternate with age-related crises. Mental development is carried out by changing the so-called stable and critical ages (see: - ). Within the framework of a stable age, mental neoplasms mature, which are actualized in an age crisis. Vygotsky described the following crises: neonatal crisis - separates the embryonic period of development from infancy; crisis of 1 year - separates infancy from early childhood; crisis 3 years - transition to preschool age; crisis of 7 years - a connecting link between preschool and school age; crisis of 13 years - coincides with the transition to adolescence.
At these stages, there is a radical change in the entire "social situation of development" of the child - the emergence of a new type of relationship with adults, a change from one type of leading activity to another. Age crises are natural and necessary stages in the development of a child; thus, the concept of "crisis" in this context does not carry a negative connotation. However, crises are often accompanied by manifestations of negative behavioral traits (conflict in communication, etc.). The source of this phenomenon is the contradiction between the increased physical and spiritual capabilities of the child and previously established activities, forms of relationships with others, and methods of pedagogical influence. These contradictions often become acute, giving rise to strong emotional experiences, violations of mutual understanding with adults. At school age, within the framework of age crises, children show a drop in academic performance, a weakening of interest in studies, and a general decrease in working capacity. The severity of the course of crises is influenced by the individual characteristics of the child.
For example, a crisis of 3 years, when a previously obedient child can suddenly become uncontrollable, and a crisis of adolescence, dangerous with unexpected forms of protest against real or imaginary pressure from adults, have a bright negative connotation.
The negative manifestations of age crises are not inevitable. A flexible change in educational influences, taking into account the changes taking place with the child will significantly mitigate the course of age-related crises.
Popular psychological encyclopedia. - M.: Eksmo. S.S. Stepanov. 2005 .
See what "age crises" are in other dictionaries:
Age Crises- a theoretical concept denoting the transition in age development to a new qualitatively specific stage. According to L.S. Vygotsky, age crises are primarily due to the destruction of the usual social situation of development and ... ... Psychological Dictionary
AGE CRISES- AGE CRISES. The development of the human personality is not an evenly ongoing process, but is interrupted at certain periods by rapid shifts, each of which initiates a new phase of the life cycle; These shifts are called... Big Medical Encyclopedia
AGE CRISES- - an ontological characteristic of a person's mental development. In the theory of L. S. Vygotsky, this concept denotes a transition in age development to a new qualitatively specific stage. V. to. are caused, first of all, by the destruction of the usual ... ...
AGE CRISES- English. age crisis; German Lebensalterkrisen. Transitional stages from one age period to another, accompanied by drastic changes and negative phenomena in the behavior of the individual due to the difficulties of adapting to new age roles. ... ... Encyclopedia of Sociology
- (English age crises) the conventional name for the transitional stages of age development, taking place between stable (lytic) periods (see Age, Periodization of mental development). K. v. considered in concepts recognized ... Great Psychological Encyclopedia
AGE CRISES- special, relatively short in time (up to a year) periods of ontogeny, characterized by sharp psychological changes. Unlike crises of a neurotic or traumatic nature, age-related crises are normative ... ... Dictionary of Career Guidance and Psychological Support
AGE CRISES- - special, relatively short (up to a year) periods, characterized by sharp psychological changes. K.v. are a normal process necessary for the formation of the personality of a young person. K.v. may occur during the transition from ... ... Terminological juvenile dictionary
Age crises- (from the Greek crisis turning point, outcome) the conditional name of the transitions from one age stage to another. In child psychology, the unevenness of child development, the presence of special, complex moments of formation ... ... Pedagogical terminological dictionary
AGE CRISES- (from the Greek. krisis turning point, outcome), the conditional name of the transitions from one age stage to another. In children. Psychology empirically observed uneven children. development, the presence of special, complex moments of the formation of personality. At… … Russian Pedagogical Encyclopedia
age crises- special, relatively short periods of ontogenesis, characterized by sharp psychological changes. 8 psychosocial crises have been identified. Depending on the passage of crisis periods, a person’s attitude towards ... ... Encyclopedic Dictionary of Psychology and Pedagogy
Books
- Spiral of fate. Cycles, crises and their overcoming, Andre Nadezhda, Nekrasova Svetlana. Philosophers, sages, and scientists have repeatedly tried to describe the laws of human life and existence. Human life has been described in a variety of ways. Human life is studied by medicine, psychology, ...
age crises - an ordinary and at the same time mysterious phenomenon about which everyone has heard more than once. So, the notorious "midlife crisis" inevitably pops up in the conversations of older people, and the "quarter-life crisis" has become a real plague of modern 20-year-olds. It is important to understand that the psychological problems associated with a certain age are not at all far-fetched: we all face them in one way or another. When you find yourself in a situation of life crisis, the main thing is to remember that you are not the first one to experience it. Most age-related crises can be dealt with, eventually turning them into a productive period of life. With the help of psychotherapist Olga Miloradova, we figure out what existential crises we are destined to go through, why they arise and how to survive them.
Dasha Tatarkova
Teen Crisis
Any age associated with this or that crisis, of course, is very conditional. So, one of the brightest and most difficult stages of our growing up falls on 14-19 years. This time is associated with various psychological, physiological and social changes that greatly change a person. Puberty becomes the strongest shake-up, turning every day of a teenager into a rollercoaster of emotions. Importantly, it is at this moment that people first have to think about what awaits them in the near future, when they will formally be considered “adults”. Anyone knows firsthand how difficult it is to decide at the age of 16, 17, 18 what you will do for the rest of your life and what you will work tirelessly for during your university years.
Today's teenagers spend most of their time in the school system. The regimentation of life makes the need to make a supposedly fateful decision especially difficult. Incredible social pressure does not help either: at school, teachers are frightened by final exams, at home, parents are frightened by entrance exams. And only a few adults guess to ask what the teenager himself thinks and wants, whose future is at stake. Such psychological pressure can lead to a sad outcome: for example, in South Korea, it is believed that only graduates of the three most prestigious universities in the country have prospects. Therefore, local teenagers, in an effort to enter the right university, bring themselves to complete exhaustion both at school and in additional courses. This burden, in turn, leads to an unprecedented number of suicides among young people.
To take a sober look at their desires and abilities, teenagers are not allowed by off-scale emotions and a heightened perception of the world. Otherwise, any 17-year-old would quickly realize that it's normal at his age not to know exactly what you want. It is teenagers who most often give up hobbies that were invented and imposed on them by their parents in childhood. Rejecting the old and looking for the new is a natural process. American teenagers have long come up with a way to experience this moment wisely: many decide to take the so-called gap year after graduation, that is, a break between studies in order to travel, work and generally take a closer look at life outside the usual system and better understand themselves. This method does not promise divine revelations, but it helps to look at the world from a new angle.
The desire for independence is a natural desire of a teenager, which should be encouraged within reasonable limits.
The identity crisis is not only trying to figure out who you "want to be when you grow up." It is much more important that it is at this moment that the formation of an assessment of one's personality takes place. Girls often struggle when it comes to accepting their changing bodies. Cultural pressure doesn't make it easy when Victoria's Secret models are staring from all the billboards and you have to tighten your braces once a month. The study of one's own sexual orientation still leads to a huge number of tragedies due to the fact that those around them (both peers and older people) do not always accept homosexual teenagers. Transsexual teenagers also have a hard time, for whom puberty in someone else's body can turn into a severe psychological trauma.
At the same time, social identification takes place - a search for oneself in the context of the surrounding society. Dealing with all this is sometimes not easy without a psychologist, coach or even a psychoanalyst, but you need to start with yourself, no matter what role you are in. A loving family, ready to accept their maturing child, and not just control and pull, is the key to successful growing up, even taking into account teenage rebellion and alienation. The desire for independence is a natural desire of a teenager, which should be reasonably encouraged, not to put obstacles, but to allow him to openly demonstrate his emotions and desires. Growing up is a ticket to a very, very long train, so there's no point in rushing and being angry that it doesn't happen all at once.
Olga Miloradova
psychotherapist
The main crises identified by psychologists in human life are crises of childhood. Neonatal crisis, early childhood, preschool age, school puberty and so on. If we talk about the crisis already in a more or less adult person, then in principle he does not have a clear attachment to age - rather to events. If children's crises are the almost complete collapse of the old system and the assembly of a new one, then adults are always a kind of choice. Conflict of contradictions: go with the flow or completely change everything, be like everyone else or go towards your goal against the rules. Since we are talking about the point of choice, it seems to me that the majority of Russian teenagers immediately enter the university, so the experiences and the moment of crisis rather precede the moment of choice. When the choice has already been made and the change of conditions has been successful, then, in general, there is no choice: now you have to adapt.
quarter life crisis
Have you graduated from university and do not know what to do with yourself? Managed to work at 2-3 different jobs, but do not find a place for yourself? Friends get married, get divorced, have kids, and you don't feel ready for that kind of change? Congratulations, you are not alone in your problem - you just have a quarter-life crisis. For a more poetic and detailed definition of this life period, you can turn to pop culture, which regularly comprehends the psychological problems of those who are under thirty: it is precisely this period that the heroines of the TV series “Girls” and “Broad City” experience, or the characters of Greta Gerwig in the films Frances Sweet and Miss America.
Over the past decades, there has been a marked shift in the socially acceptable time to enter independent adulthood. Many factors came together: along with the increase in life expectancy, the situation on the labor market gradually changed. Financial crises and a change in priorities from loyalty to one company throughout life to personal growth and frequent job changes have led to the fact that the revision of their achievements and disorientation, known as the "crisis of thirty years", has shifted to a conditional twenty-five for many. By this age, many already have time to try different relationships and professions, but are still not ready to stop at one thing and are just beginning to determine their aspirations, feelings and interests. Twenty-five is an approximate age: in fact, most people who feel alone, lost, and led astray are approaching their thirties.
Parents of modern 30-year-olds tried to provide them with the most comfortable life. Many “children”, having got used to this, do not want to live on their own: Richard Linklater noticed this in his film “The Idler” back in 1991. Unlike parents, today's 30-year-olds are not eager to have children as soon as possible and do not put career stability at the forefront of success. At the same time, global social moods are not keeping pace with their world view, and the experience of fathers and mothers inspires additional uncertainty in their choice and provokes a sense of guilt. For their “unwillingness to grow up,” millennials have even been called the Peter Pan generation.
For all this, also, which appeared in the era of social networks. We invariably feel like we're doing something wrong because, according to the myth created by Facebook and Instagram, we're the only ones with problems - not our friends or colleagues. When the fear of being less successful and interesting than your friends doesn't let go, remind yourself that any person's social network account is just a squeeze of the best of the best, a social construct created by the effort of thought. Try to focus on what you want and can achieve here and now, and get on with the plan.
Popular advice on how to overcome and even accept the state of uncertainty that is characteristic of a quarter-life crisis is most often based on Zen practices. Firstly, it is useful to make lists, but not to grab onto a hundred things at once, but to take on the tasks set gradually, doing a little bit every day. You need to come to terms with the fact that mistakes are inevitable - and not be afraid of them. It is important to finally honestly admit to yourself that you are interested and what hobbies you really like, and not imposed by relatives or friends. The main advice, especially useful in light of what was said above about social networks, is to learn not to compare yourself with others. Society is gradually beginning to realize that the only way up is not the only possible and definitely not the best one, so it's time to find something comfortable for everyone individually. On the way, always help on what is happening. The crisis of a quarter of life is actually even useful, it helps to break out of imposed expectations, put life in order and rebuild it to your liking.
Olga Miloradova
psychotherapist
The crisis is not inherently destructive - it provides an opportunity for personal growth. Due to the shift in adulthood, the frames have also shifted. Someone at twenty-five just graduated from the university, while someone at thirty already has 5-7 years of career behind him and a reassessment of achievements begins. Another scenario: career is moving, but personal life is not; or exactly the opposite - there is a child, but no career years. A crisis is a feeling of either complete impasse or prolonged stagnation. After high school, it can come if, for example, a person studied not for himself, but for the sake of a “crust”, moms and dads, and he himself dreamed of a completely different thing. When it comes to understanding that you spent time not at all on what you always dreamed of, then new things begin to seem important and life is being restructured to new ideals.
Middle age crisis
If the previous type of crisis was associated, in fact, with fear for one's future, then this one is entirely tied to the past. A midlife crisis means that one day you wake up and an uninvited horror rolls over you: everything that you have achieved so far seems to lose all meaning. Work, home, partner, children - everything seems dull and meaningless: the business that a whole life is spent on does not bring pleasure, love and love seem far away, and the children are most likely so busy with their own affairs that they hardly pay attention to you . It is in connection with this stage that it is customary to recall clichés like buying expensive cars, alcohol abuse, cravings for romance with younger partners on the side, the inevitable divorce and all sorts of attempts to touch the bygone youth. We have seen such stories more than once in American Beauty, Greenberg, Big Disappointment, Apatov's Adult Love, or in the new While We're Young.
The term "midlife crisis" was coined by the Canadian psychoanalyst Elliot Jacques. With it, he designated a transitional period of life, covering the time somewhere between 40 and 60 years old, when life loses its colors and a rethinking of everything that happened before begins. The famous psychoanalyst Eric Erickson, who developed the theory of personality development, described the last two stages of human life (maturity and old age or stagnation and despair) very much like the general provisions of the midlife crisis. In particular, Erickson briefly characterized this life stage with two questions: "How to make my life not go to waste" and "How to understand that it is not shameful to be yourself?".
Despite the fact that the concept of a midlife crisis has firmly settled in modern culture (there is a theory that Bond is the result of such a period in the life of Ian Fleming), it is no easier to describe it unambiguously than all of the above crises. In different people, it manifests itself in different ways, overtakes them at different ages, for some it becomes a positive experience, and for someone it is the beginning of severe depression. Financial status, the state of personal life and other sociocultural factors strongly influence whether a midlife crisis will happen to a person or not.
However, there are also constant variables: a midlife crisis is characterized by an oppressive sense of disappointment, as well as an awareness of human mortality. During this period of life, many experience the death of their closest relatives, such as parents. Such a loss is not only a grief that is difficult to cope with: it also makes you think about the inevitability of your death and provokes existential fear. At the same age, for many, the end of a career comes, or at least there are restrictions in the conditions or duration of work. Age makes itself felt at the level of physiology: mobility decreases, and menopause occurs in women, associated not only with strong hormonal, but also psychological restructuring. Contrary to popular belief, the male body is also undergoing changes, the so-called andropause, when there is a decrease in testosterone in the blood.
Psychologists note that all of the above symptoms cause stress, but do not necessarily lead to a state of crisis. Even when they overlap, a person does not necessarily end up in a deep depression. The midlife crisis is primarily a time of reflection and rethinking of life. The fact that it most often overtakes those who are over forty does not mean that it will not happen to you later or earlier, all other things being equal.
With a midlife crisis (like any other), it's important not to miss the moment when it turns into clinical depression. In this case, you should definitely seek professional help. In all other cases, practical advice for overcoming psychological problems can be briefly described as "do not be afraid of change and do not panic." Physical activity will not only help you feel as active as before, but also improve your mood in a natural way. The most difficult and most rewarding thing is to accept the changes, try to direct the fear of parental mistakes into a productive channel and build relationships with children. As captain as it may sound, finding new non-destructive hobbies will really help alleviate existential fear. Aging, like growing up, is an inevitable part of life, and it must be accepted and worked with what is.
Olga Miloradova
psychotherapist
If most of the crises discussed earlier are not so much crises (despite their names) as productive periods of change and growth, then it is customary to mean a crisis in the psychological sense by a midlife crisis. It is expressed in unproductive depression, depreciation and denial of all that has been achieved. Routine, thoughts of death, and empty nest syndrome can cause such a state. A nihilistic position appears: everything is bad simply because it is bad.
A classic example: faced with the death of a loved one and feeling animal horror, many seek solace in religion and, it would seem, they find it. In fact, the majority finds a cozy home for themselves, hiding from several existential givens at once, which everyone faces sooner or later and which must be accepted - we are talking about mortality and loneliness. In fact, a person remains in an unresolved conflict, convulsively clutching at what is life after death. As a result, there is no growth, no acceptance, no next step. Therefore, the main rule that you need to follow no matter what kind of life crisis has caught you: you can’t hide your head in the sand - you need to try to process the revelation that has overtaken you into something productive.
Age crises are natural for each person transitional stages, knowledge of which is extremely in demand. If a person, living a specific period, does not achieve the goals set by age, a number of problems of a general and psychological kind appear. Everyone wants to live happily and for a long time, moreover, to stay in the mind to the last, to remain active. Only desire, however, is not enough here, psychologists are sure that it is the success of passing age crises that affects the fullness of life.
At what age do crises begin, do they have age restrictions, how do crises unfold in different sexes? In a crisis, you usually do not want to act, how to regain the desire to move?
The concept of age crisis
How is the concept of a crisis revealed, what are its symptoms, time frames? How to distinguish a crisis from other psychological problems, ordinary fatigue? The word crisis from its ancient Greek root means a decision, a turning point, an outcome. Indeed, a crisis is always associated with the adoption of some decision, the need for change. A person realizes the onset of a crisis period, when he sums up the achievement of goals set earlier in life, and is dissatisfied with the result - he looks into the past and analyzes what he did not receive.
Throughout our lives, we go through several crisis periods, and each of them does not come suddenly, but through the accumulation of dissatisfaction due to discrepancies between what was expected and what actually happened. Therefore, he is known more than others, because a person has lived most of his life and began to think about the past and achievements, and often compare himself with others.
It happens that in a word, a person covers up his other mental ailments that are not related to the passage of age stages. If age crises in children are easily observed, then in an adult, the time frame can shift, usually each stage is given 7-10 years, moreover, one can pass almost without a trace, while the other will be obvious even to others. However, the content of the crisis at each age is universal, taking into account time shifts, for example, people aged 30 and 35 can be in the same crisis, solving approximately the same problems.
Crises of age development should be distinguished from personal biographical crises associated with such objective conditions as, for example, graduation from school, loss of relatives or property. Crises of age development are characterized by the fact that outwardly everything is normal, bad, but inside. A person begins to provoke changes, sometimes destructive, in order to change life and the internal situation, while others may not understand him, consider the person’s problems far-fetched.
Age crises in psychology
Vygotsky also said that an ideally adapted child does not develop further. An adult is literally insured against such stagnation - as soon as he somehow got used to life, a crisis arises that requires change. Then comes a period of quite a long lull, followed by another crisis. If a crisis forces a person to develop, then what is development? More often it is understood as a kind of progress, improvement. However, there is a phenomenon of pathological development - regression. We are talking about development, which brings changes of a higher order. Almost everyone goes through some crises safely, while a crisis, for example, the middle of life, often puts a person in a dead end and unfolds in his development. Well, the essence of the crisis is conveyed by the Chinese character, which contains two meanings at once: danger and opportunity.
Psychologists have identified the general age patterns of crises, which allows us not only to prepare for them in advance, but also to successfully go through each stage, fully mastering the tasks of each beautiful age. In literally every age stage, without fail, there is a need to make a decision, which is given by the advantage of society. By solving problems, a person lives his life more safely. If a person does not find a solution, he has a certain number of problems, of an already more acute nature, that need to be dealt with, otherwise it threatens not only with neurotic states, but also with unsettling life. Each stage has so-called normative crises, some of which, such as the crises of 20 and 25, are rather poorly described, while others, the crises of 30 and 40, are known to almost everyone. These crises owe such fame to their often obscure destructive power, when a person, who is in apparent prosperity, suddenly begins to dramatically change his life, commit reckless acts associated with the collapse of earlier meanings that he relied on.
Age crises in children are well observed and require the attention of parents, since the failure to pass each crisis is superimposed on the next. Childhood crises are especially strongly imprinted on a person's character and often set the direction of a whole life. For example, a child without basic trust may become adult incapable of deep personal relationships. A person who did not feel independence in childhood does not have the opportunity to rely on personal strength, remains infantile and all his life is looking for a replacement for the parent in his wife, superiors, or else he strives to limply dissolve in a social group. A child who has not been taught industriousness, in adulthood, experiences problems with internal, external discipline. If you miss the time and do not develop the skills of the child, then he will have a number of complexes and experience difficulties because of this, he will need many times more efforts. A huge number of adults did not go through the teenage age crisis, did not take full responsibility for their lives, their natural rebellion was muted, but now unresolved runs like a red thread through their whole lives. Even in a mid-life crisis, childhood reminds of itself, since the greatest number of shadow contexts were formed in childhood.
In each crisis, a person needs to spend the time allotted to him, not trying to get around sharp corners, to live the topics of the crisis to the fullest. There are, however, gender differences in the passage of crises. This is especially noticeable in the mid-life crisis, when men evaluate themselves by career achievements, financial security and other objective indicators, and women - by family well-being.
Age crises are also directly related to the acute topic of age, since it is widely believed that all good things can only be present in youth, this belief is fueled in every possible way by the media and often even thanks to the opposite sex. Significant external changes, when it is no longer possible to convince others and oneself of one's own youth, raise a lot of psychological problems, some people just at this stage, through their appearance, realize the need for internal personal changes. If a person tries to look younger inappropriately for his age, this speaks of unsurmounted crises, rejection of his age, body and life in general.
Age crises and their characteristics
The first crisis stage, corresponding to the age from birth to one year, correlates with trust in the world around. If a child does not have the opportunity from birth to be in the arms of loved ones, to receive attention and care at the right time, even as an adult, he will hardly trust the people around him. The reasons for being morbidly wary of others often lie precisely in those childhood unmet needs that we tried to tell our parents about with our loud cry. Perhaps the parents were not around at all, which becomes a prerequisite for a basic distrust in the world. That is why it is important that close people are nearby for up to a year, who can satisfy the child's need at the first cry. This is not a whim, not pampering, but a necessity inherent in this age.
The second stage, which is usually distinguished by psychologists, is the age from 1 to 3 years. Then the formation of autonomy takes place, the child often wants to do everything himself - it is important for him to make sure that he is capable of this. At the same time, we often meet with stubbornness, which was not there before, rejection and rejection of an adult, attempts by a child to establish himself above an adult. These are natural moments for this period, it must be passed. Adults must definitely set boundaries for the child, tell what to do, what not to do, why. If there are no boundaries, a little tyrant grows up, who subsequently torments the whole family with his problems. It is also important to support the child, to allow him to do something on his own. Also, the concept is now being laid, children are often interested in their genitals, an awareness of the difference from the opposite sex comes. It is important not to pull the child, not to shame for the natural interest.
In the next period, from 3 to 6 years, the basics of diligence, love for household chores are assigned. The child can already do almost all household work under the supervision of an adult himself, if at the same time the child is not given the opportunity to show his initiative - later he will not get used to achieving them by setting goals. If the child wanted to wash the floor, water the flowers, try vacuuming - teach him. But this should be done not with prodding and orders, but with a game. Role-playing games are gaining great importance, you can play with dolls, with book characters, even make figures yourself, for example, from paper, play a scene that will be interesting to your child. Take your child to the puppet theater to watch the characters interact. The child receives information precisely through the parents, the development of the child in a correct and harmonious way depends on them.
The next period is the period of circles, from 6 to 12 years. The child now needs to be loaded to the maximum with what he wants to do. You need to know that now his body remembers the experience well, all the skills mastered in a given period of time, the child will retain for the rest of his life. If he dances, he will dance beautifully all his life. With singing, sports as well. Perhaps he will not become a champion, but he will be able to further develop his abilities in any period of his life in the future. When it is possible to take your child to circles - do it, take as much time as possible with classes. Intellectual development is useful, because now the child receives basic information that will be useful to him further, will help form thinking.
The period of adolescence, the next one, is probably the most difficult, since most parents resort to psychologists precisely in connection with the difficulties of communicating with a teenage child. This is a period of self-identification, if a person does not pass it, then in the future he may remain limited in his potentials. A growing person begins to wonder who he is and what he brings to the world, what is his image. It is in adolescence that different subcultures are born, children begin to pierce their ears, change their appearance, sometimes even to the point of self-destruction, unusual hobbies may appear. Teenagers resort to interesting forms of clothing that attract attention, emphasize or, conversely, reveal all the shortcomings. Experiments with appearance can be endless, they are all tied to the child's acceptance of his body, which changes significantly at this age. A teenager likes or dislikes this, each problem is strictly individual, so it makes sense for parents to carefully talk about the complexes associated with changing his appearance.
Parents should carefully monitor the behavior of a teenager when they are sure that the form of clothing he has chosen does not suit the child - it is worth gently prompting him to do this, and also look at who the teenager is surrounded by, who is in the company, because what he will take from the outside world, will play a dominant role in the future. It is also important that before the eyes of a teenager there are examples of worthy adults that he would like, because later he will be able to adopt their behavior, manners, habits. If there is no such example, for example, the family consists only of a mother and a son, then you need to give him the opportunity to communicate with relatives of the same sex so that he knows how a man should behave. It is important that a teenager finds his style, his image, how he wants to express himself to this world, what are his goals, plans. Right now, adults should discuss this with the child. Even if the child does not seem to want to listen to you, he still listens to you for sure, your opinion is significant for him.
In the next period of 20 to 25 years, a person completely separates from his parents, begins an independent life, therefore this crisis is often noticeable more than others. This is a crisis of secession, but there is also an opposing desire for merger. At this stage, it is important to start a close personal relationship with a person of the opposite sex. If there are no such relationships, then the person did not go through the previous teenage period as it should, did not understand who he is, who he wants to see next to him. At this age, relationship issues are super relevant, it is important to learn to communicate with the opposite sex. Friendship and professional contacts are also important, the search for a new social circle, which a person already enters as an adult. Will he take responsibility for personal steps? Mistakes will be inevitable, it is important how a person will act - whether he will return under the parental wing or find a replacement for his parents in a partner, thereby regressing back to childhood, or will he become responsible for the decisions made with their consequences. The new growth of this crisis is responsibility. The difficulty of this age is the still prevailing image of social acceptability, when from a very young person it is expected that he will certainly be successful in school, work, have deep relationships, look good, have many hobbies, be active, active. The conflict here is that to begin to cater to social desirability means losing oneself, not allowing personal, individual potentials to be revealed, separation will not occur, a person will follow the road trodden, trodden by the expectations of those around him, will not take maximum responsibility for his life.
Social unacceptability at the described stage often indicates that the person is in contact with himself. Guys do it better because society gives them more opportunities to do it. The resistance to authorities, left over from adolescence, here goes beyond the family, instead of mom and dad, a person begins to resist, for example, bosses. One of the scenarios for the passage of this crisis is a predetermined fate, when the family outlined in advance, painted the path of a person. Often this is a professional direction, but family life can also turn out to be in conservative traditions. In this scenario, a person does not use the possibility of separation from parents, as if the crisis of 20 years has passed, deceiving him, however, the topic of personal self-determination and separation remains, returning to a person sometimes even after 10-20 years, already being sore. An unresolved crisis is superimposed on the next one, and you will often have to choose a direction already having a family, children, which is more difficult. Prolonged professional self-determination, when you have to change the scope of work by the age of 30, starting with a new one, also turns out to be a difficult task.
A very fruitful period begins at the age of 25, when the opportunity comes to receive the blessings of life that he counted on as a teenager. Usually in this period you really want to quickly get a job, start a family, have children, make a career. Will and aspiration are laid from childhood, if this did not happen, life can turn out to be boring and unpromising. The crisis echoes the theme when a person wonders what he can respect himself for. The theme of achievements and collecting them is at its peak here. By the age of 30, there is an assessment of the previous life, the ability to respect oneself. Interestingly, at this stage, it is more common to equip the outer part of life, forming a tree of social connections, while introverts rely on their own personal resources and deep relationships in a limited circle. If there is a significant imbalance, when, for example, a person has been engaged in social contacts for a long time, succeeded at work, made a career, created a social circle and image in society, now he begins to think more about home comfort, children, family relationships.
On the contrary, if the first 10 years of mature life were devoted to the family, which is often a female scenario, when a girl got married, became a mother and a housewife, then this crisis requires leaving the nest for the outside world. To get through this crisis, a person needs to have a collection of achievements. Everyone has it, but not everyone is able to respect themselves, which often happens when focusing on shortcomings. Also at this stage there is an opportunity to work on yourself personally, to change your life for the one you like it. See what you are missing. Perhaps this is a close person, think about how it should be, what kind of person you wanted to see next to you, and how much you yourself correspond to the image of the loved one that you conceived for yourself. If you are not quite satisfied with the work, you want to change the field of activity, but you have no idea how to do this - try starting with a hobby, a hobby that you can convert into a permanent job. Also think about how you relax, what brings your vacation to you - good or bad. After all, rest takes up most of your personal time, and its lack negatively affects the quality of life, there are various distressful situations that would not exist if you had a good and complete rest. During this period, often a person already becomes a parent and wants to help children live a better life. Think about what foundations you will lay in them, going through your own life, what you received in your childhood, what was not enough, is there trust in the world, if not, what prevented it from forming.
The next mid-life crisis is favored by the attention of not only psychologists, but also the townsfolk. For the majority, everything is stabilized in the middle of life, but when a person suddenly begins to suffer for reasons that are incomprehensible to others, and sometimes even to himself, he finds himself in a confusing situation. The beginning of the crisis is accompanied by a state of boredom, loss of interest in life, a person begins to make some external changes that do not lead to the desired relief, nothing changes inside. The primary must be precisely the internal change, which, if it has taken place, may not entail external changes. A lot of films have been made about the midlife crisis, when men more often have mistresses, and women go to have children, which does not change the situation. The successful passage of the crisis is not associated with external attempts to change, but with an internal absolute acceptance of life, which gives a wonderful, harmonious state of mind. At this stage, there is no longer a question of achievement and self-esteem, but only acceptance of oneself, life as it is. Acceptance does not mean that everything will stop - on the contrary, development will only become more intense, since a person stops the war within himself. A truce with oneself releases a lot of strength for a more productive life, more and more new opportunities open up. A person asks questions about the mission of his life, moreover, he can do a lot, discovering his true meanings.
The crisis of 40 years initiates a spiritual search, poses global questions for a person, to which there are no unambiguous answers. This conflict is connected with the psychological structure of the Shadow - those unacceptable contexts that a person endlessly displaces, trying to lie even to himself. Growing children do not allow a person to be younger than he is, demanding wisdom from the parent. The existential nature of this crisis is reinforced by the experience of the transience of time, when it is no longer possible to write drafts, you have to live clean, and it is gratifying that there is still an opportunity for this.
The crisis of 50-55 years again puts a person at a fork in the road, on one road he can go to wisdom, on the other - to insanity. A person makes an internal choice, will he live or live out, what's next? Society informs a person that often he is no longer in trend, in various positions he has to give way to the younger youth, including in the profession. Often here a person strives to be needed by others, leaves to take care of his grandchildren completely, or clings to work, afraid to retreat to the backyard. However, the harmonious outcome of the crisis will be to let go of everything, to tell yourself before that you have paid off all possible social debts, you owe nothing to anyone, now you are free to do what you want. For such an acceptance of life and desires, it is necessary to go through all the previous crises, because material resources, resources of relationships and self-perception will be required.
Features of age crises
What if a person does not note the passage of crises in his life, does it mean that they were not? Psychologists are convinced that a psychological crisis is as natural as changes in a person's body with age. Not being aware that they are now living through a psychological crisis, people with a low level, inattention to themselves, when he pushes his troubles away, can. Or a person in every possible way restrains experiences within himself, afraid to destroy his positive image in front of others, to show himself as a person with problems. Such non-living, ignoring the crisis subsequently leads to the unification of all the stages that have not been passed, like an avalanche. Needless to say, this is a difficult outcome, a huge psychological burden, with which a person is sometimes unable to cope.
Another variant of the atypical course of crises is often observed in hypersensitive individuals who are open to changes, personality transformations. They are prone to prevention, and when the first symptoms of an impending crisis appear, they try to immediately draw conclusions and adapt. Crises are milder. However, such an anticipatory approach does not allow one to fully immerse oneself in the lesson that a crisis brings to a person.
Each crisis contains something that will help a person in the future period of life, gives support for the passage of the following crises. A person does not develop linearly, he develops in steps, and a crisis is precisely that moment of a breakthrough in development, after which a period of stabilization, a plateau, begins. Crises help the personality grow, we do not grow of our own free will, we don’t want to get out of the state of balance on our own, and it seems there is no need. Because the psyche involves our internal conflicts. Thanks to crises, a person, although unevenly, grows throughout his life.
