What is the imagination in psychology? Active and passive imagination
The list of images that a person operates inthe course of one's life, includes not only objects or phenomena existing in objective reality. This may be something that was not previously perceived directly by the individual: a distant past or future, places where it never happens and does not visit, living beings that do not exist in the universe. Answering the question what is imagination, the main characteristic of which are images amazing for everyday life, one can say that this is a way out of the real world both in time and in space.
However, everyday and scientific definitionshuman fantasies are very different. In the first case, this is just all the unreal, not corresponding to the reality surrounding us, and therefore not endowed with any practical significance. Scientists do not quite share the opinion of ordinary people about what imagination is. Its definition scientifically covers all aspects of the cultural life of the individual and provides an impetus for the development of artistic, scientific and technical creativity.
On the phenomenon of imagination
Man is the only living being on oura planet that is peculiar to fantasize, that is, to reflect the future and act in accordance with the expected (imaginary) situation, using their sensations, perception and thinking.
Speaking of what imagination is in biology,we can say that these are cognitive processes of presenting any future events based on the creation of new images that have been processed as a result of perception, thinking and knowledge about the world of a particular individual that were obtained in previous life situations. The essence of any fantasy is the transformation of objective reality, in which there are objects and phenomena that have no points of contact with reality. It is this phenomenon that is the most important in the process of the formation of man as an acting subject.
On thinking and imagining
Soviet psychologist Lev Semenovich Vygotskycalled these two processes close in both structure and function. They are characterized by them as extremely related, with a similar origin and structure. Speaking of what is imagination in psychology, the scientist considered it necessary, an indispensable moment of thinking, especially creative, explaining this by the fact that the process of thinking includes both the prediction and the anticipation of events.
Various problem situations force a personthink, fantasize, form in consciousness the idea of what can be done, reinforcing the motivation for finding a solution and determining its direction. The degree of uncertainty of the disputable moments of life determines the importance of the role of imagination, which performs its functions even when the initial situation is incomplete, supplementing it with the products of its activity.
The law of Vygotsky's emotional reality of imagination
Speaking of what is imagination in psychology,one can not ignore his connection with emotionally-volitional processes, called, according to the teachings of Leo Vygotsky, the law of the emotional reality of the imagination. Its main manifestation is the appearance of true, and not imaginary emotions, when an image arises in the human mind. This contributes to the implementation of the desired and prevention of undesirable psychological effects. For example, thinking about an existing situation, a person may experience unpleasant emotions when thinking about a particular scenario, which causes him to look for other ways to solve the problem.
Continuing the theme of what imagination is andfantasy, it is necessary to mention the fact that both are influenced by human emotions and feelings. The clearest manifestation of this postulate is a frequent alarm about not real, but imaginary events. The correct way to deal with this is to change the imaginary image. This will help reduce the level of anxiety and relieve psychological stress.
"Trying" on themselves experiences of other peoplehelps to form and manifest in relation to them feelings such as empathy or empathy. Imagining in their minds when doing something, their final result, a person encourages himself to commit them. Brightness of the image is directly related to the impelling force, but the main role is played by its realism and significance.
Imagination is one of the significant factors affectingon the all-round development of the individual. The ideals, rooted in fantasy, to which man aspires, trying to imitate them, become for him examples, in accordance with which he organizes his life activity, personal and moral development.
What are the human fantasies?
Previously, we have already outlined in general terms thatsuch imagination. The definition and characteristics of a narrower character directly depend on what kind of form it is in each particular case under consideration.
Imagination is divided into several types.
By the degree of purposefulness, it can be:
- active;
- passive.
According to the results:
- productive;
- reproductive.
By degree of strong-willed efforts:
- arbitrary;
- involuntary.
Also, the imagination of an individual can be:
- recreating;
- creative;
- realistic;
- sociological.
Active fantasies
Answering the question "What is active imagination?", We can characterize it as a process of creating in the brain of an individual various images that are realized in the future through practical efforts and actions and are reflected in the products of human activity. This kind of fantasy is sometimes time-consuming and requires a lot of effort. Nevertheless, it contributes to increasing the creative content and effectiveness of both labor and other types of individual activities.
Passive fantasies
Speaking of what passive imagination is,it should be specially noted that it does not in any way push a person to commit active acts, and therefore, does not carry any practical meaning. Its main purpose is to satisfy the ambitions of the person drawn by the same images. The dreamer himself in this case does not seek to embody his dreams in real life or dreams about what is impossible. Such a person is called a utopian or a fruitless dreamer.
Productive fantasies
Speaking of what a person's imagination is, we,as a rule, we mean those dreams in which there is a huge number of new, unlike or little resembling already known dreams, fantastic elements. Their specialists are considered to be productive. This type of imagination can be reflected in various cultural spheres, especially in painting and literature.
Reproductive imagination
This species is characterized by the fact that in itsresults in large numbers are already used by someone earlier fantasy elements, although there is something new. Basically, these are attempts by people who start their own creative path to create their own works, relying on known samples, and thus improve their professional skills.
Hallucinations
Talking about what imagination is, we are inIn most cases, we mean the fact that it is born from the thinking of a healthy person. However, hallucinations are a product of altered consciousness. The cause for their occurrence can be mental illness, hypnotic effects, the use of drugs or alcohol and other psychotropic substances.
Dreams
These products of the human imagination are aimedon the future's desired by man. They basically contain quite realistic and, as a rule, feasible plans concerning study, work, career and family. This form of imagination is typical for young people, who have a big part of life ahead of them.
Dreams
This peculiar type of fantasy is characterized bydetachment from objective reality, and in most cases to realize in life images of them will never work. They are a cross between hallucinations and dreams, but it should be remembered that, unlike the first, dreams are products of the activity of normal human consciousness.
Dreaming
Dreams have always been of particular interest forspecialists who study the activity of the brain. Today, scientists tend to believe that they reflect the process of processing the consciousness of various information, and dreams are not only functionally related to this activity, but can also contain human dreams and dreams, as well as new valuable ideas and discoveries. It is appropriate to recall here the Russian chemist Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleyev, who, according to legend, saw in a dream a periodic system of elements, later named after him.
Involuntary fantasies
Speaking of what imagination is, expertssomehow connect it with the will of man. Images in its involuntary type are created as a result of the activity of a weakened consciousness. This may be a half-asleep or a dream state, as well as some mental disorders. The process in this case is not controlled in any way and is completely unconscious.
Arbitrary imagination
This kind of refer to a conscious, directedactivity, in which the individual fully understands its motives and goals. It is characterized by the deliberate creation of images, and the arbitrariness and activity of the imagination are combined in various ways. Striking examples of passive arbitrary imagination are dreams, and active ones are a long-term, purposeful search, characteristic for the creativity of writers, artists and the work of inventors.
Recreating imagination
This type is based on the creation of imagesobjects that are not previously perceived by the individual in a complete form, while he has an idea of such objects and their individual elements. Probably everyone knows well what spatial imagination is. But not everyone understands that it is re-creating. All images are formed in reality by means of drawings, drawings and other similar schemes using the knowledge relative to them. Elements are more flexible, diverse, dynamic and reproductive.
Creative Imagination
It is a process of self-creationthe creator of new, nothing like images, embodied in the original results of various activities. At the same time, the mediated support of the creator for his past life experience is minimal, and the main role is played only by the flight of his imagination.
Realistic imagination
Occurs in the belief in the possibility of incarnation inlife of created images. It is characterized by an anticipation of the future, an ideal representation of the result before it is achieved. In literature there are many examples of how an image or situation, born only by the writer's imagination and considered unrealistic, is exactly repeated in objective reality.
Sociological Imagination
It is difficult to argue that the life of an individualan individual can not be separated from the life of society. Speaking of what a sociological imagination is, one can say that it is the ability to recognize the interconnection of everything that happens in reality, taking into account the structural, cultural and historical conditions. Within the framework of this variety, actions taken by both individual and collective social actors that form a complex and diverse human society are also considered.
Speaking in detail about what is imagination,having distinguished its various types and describing their features, one can safely say that none of the many forms of creativity can be imagined without an element of fantasy, be it science, literature, painting. In a general sense, this is an anticipation of what is not yet, but that, perhaps, will become a part of our life. Imagination is directly related to intuition, guesswork, illumination. Everyone is more or less inclined to fantasize, to some extent, but do not forget about real life, so that dreams do not become painful hallucinations, and the constructed castles of the castle are not destroyed by the gray routine.
