Contents
Hello! Imagination in psychology is considered one of the areas of the psyche, which is able to change the quality of life, enrich it with vivid images and events.
A person, fantasizing, relies on previously gained experience, supplementing it with invented details. For example, we can feel sourness in our mouths by imagining a lemon, hear the rain outside the window, and even see dinosaurs, consider them carefully if we fantasize well.
And if you have forgotten how to dream, it’s okay. In this article, you will receive the necessary information that will help restore lost skills. After all, all children devote a lot of time to inventing and daydreaming, and then, growing up, they forget how it is done.
Types
First, let’s figure out what types and types exist.
- Active. When a person, making an effort of will, voluntarily tries to evoke the desired images in himself. This helps to increase motivation, bring the desired closer, and realize the plan. All works of art are created thanks to active, creative, imaginative thinking. In general, culture is built on it.
- Passive. Imagination does its work without the direct participation of a person, and sometimes against his will. Remember, did you ever “see” some terrible moments before your eyes that really frighten you, but which you were unable to cope with? For example, when you were alone in complete darkness, the most terrible scenes from films came to mind. And it even seemed that right now in your room there are these monsters, ghosts, maniacs and so on.
- Deliberate. That is, it is associated with volitional efforts. Although deliberate passive is a product of human desires. This product is called dreams. And they are in no way connected with his will, as they are formed unconsciously, due to heightened, unsatisfied needs. If a person devotes too much time to daydreaming, then this threatens to lose ties with reality. It is about such people that they say that they live in a fictional world and wear rose-colored glasses. And this affects mental development. It is suspended due to ignoring the various circumstances that need to be dealt with, to look for solutions to problems.
- Unintentional. It literally controls a person who may well take any crazy ideas, hallucinations and even dreams for reality.
functions
- Motivation for activity. If you create a sufficiently vivid image of your desire, then it will give energy to achieve it.
- Behavior regulation. When difficult situations arise that require decision making, imagination can help discover the most actionable, imaginative, and creative options.
- Illusory satisfaction of needs by replacing reality with fantasies. Sometimes this allows you to maintain peace of mind and psychological, moral state at the time of difficulties. But, unfortunately, if you often use the imagination to endure life’s troubles, there is a high risk of completely losing touch with reality. This is what happens with gambling addiction.
- Organization of knowledge. If for some reason it is not possible to carry out the study of an important object or subject, then with the help of images it is quite possible to model it by completing the missing elements.
How to develop?
Games
Games are suitable not only for children, adults can also “pump” their imaginative thinking, moreover, it is fun and interesting.
- The narrator. If you have a child, try not only to read books, but also to invent your own, special fairy tales. Keep it short stories. If his favorite animals and toys become the main characters in them, then he will remember them for many years. With friends, you can come up with one joint story. Offering by phrase, you will be surprised what happens in the end. What if your company has such great potential that the world will receive new works of literature? At the very least, you’ll have a lot of fun.
- Crocodile. Few people do not know about this game, but just in case, I will briefly tell you about the rules. It is necessary to choose one person who will depict, and maybe even draw the word he has chosen. The task of the rest of the participants will be to guess what he shows.
- Fantastic questions. Come up with an unusual, non-standard question and try to find the same unusual answers to it. For example: “What will you do if a bear roars from the toilet in your house with a request to release it?”.
Schemes and maps
Ordinary maps of the world or your country are quite suitable. Carefully study each city, island, trying to imagine how it looks in reality. Suppose that polar bears run around Antarctica, penguins catch fish and hatch chicks.
You can also create a map of your own apartment and not just its location, but indicating the route you should follow to find hidden treasures. Carefully left by you in advance. For any holiday, this quest will be an excellent gift not only for a child, but also for a loved one.
Entertaining geometry and mathematics
If writing stories and drawing fantastic animals are not your best personality traits and talents, then you can do tasks that are suitable for people of a technical warehouse.
Let’s say there are quite complex and beautiful drawings of dots that need to be connected by lines in order. Look at interesting problems with matches, draw geometric shapes without lifting the pencil from the paper.
Solve examples in your mind. If it doesn’t work out, imagine yourself subtracting or adding in a column, or, say, counting apples, cars, rings, or even sandwiches. In general, give free rein to your imagination.
Reading
In the process of reading, images involuntarily arise in the head that describe the characters, nature, events. We imagine ourselves in the place of the people in question, thanks to this we experience different feelings.
Therefore, pay more attention to fiction. It will also help strengthen memory, expand vocabulary, improve spelling, increase intellectual level and much more. You can learn about other useful properties of reading if you follow this link.
Photo
Look at pictures, photographs, works of art. This will help broaden your horizons, inspire you to create your own creations, even culinary ones.
Yes, and indulge in fantasies, dreams are sometimes very important. This gives energy and incentive to move on, develop and become better.
By the way, from the photos you like the most, you can then make a collage of desires. It also contributes to the realization of dreams, if only because the image of what you want becomes clearer and more understandable. Learn more about how to make it here.
Completion
It is quite possible to develop the imagination under any conditions. For example, looking at people in transport and inventing who they work with, with whom they live, where they go, and in general, what their life is filled with.
By the way, the alpha-visualization method will help you quickly turn your dreams into reality. Even if some of them seem difficult to implement.
In addition to the fact that your imaginative thinking will improve in the process, you will also learn how to make your thoughts material. For the benefit, and not to the detriment of oneself, as often happens out of ignorance.
And that’s all for today, dear readers. Take care of yourself and be happy!
The material was prepared by a psychologist, Gestalt therapist, Zhuravina Alina