The task of psychology is to explain the behavior of different people, to describe the behavior of people of different ages in different situations. But how to help people develop, learn, how to educate them so that they become worthy people — this is not psychology, but pedagogy, in the strict sense. Explanation and description, recommendations on the use of techniques — this is psychology. Formation and education, methods of influence and technology — this is pedagogy.
Conducting research, testing how ready a child is for school is psychology. Preparing a child for school is pedagogy.
A psychologist can only sit at the table, state, evaluate, describe and explain, at best, come up with recommendations for those who will do something with people themselves. A psychologist can enter into interaction only to study, and not to change something in a person. To really do something with your hands, to really influence a person, to change a person — this, it is considered, is already a different profession: pedagogy.
A psychologist in today’s understanding is a fundamentally armless creature.
Today, practical psychologists who set themselves pedagogical goals expose themselves to fire. Pedagogy is saved by the fact that it brings up small children. As soon as we move on to parenting, a series of difficult questions immediately arise: “Who gave you permission to determine how a particular person should live? On what basis do you take upon yourself the right to determine what is bad and what is good for a person? these people?»
However, there is always one way out for a practical psychologist: to go into psychocorrection or psychotherapy. When a child or an adult is already frankly ill, then the experts are called: help! Actually, practical psychology, at least in Russia, was born precisely from psychotherapeutic activity, and until now a consulting psychologist is more often called a psychotherapist.
In the field of practical psychology, you can work both as a consultant and as a trainer, while the main choice still remains: are you more of a psychotherapist or more of a teacher? Do you heal or do you teach? Most often today this choice is made in the direction of psychotherapy.
At first, this seems quite romantic: “I will help people in difficult situations,” soon a vision comes that the psychologist-consultant easily turns into a life service employee, hastily repairing rotting specimens.
However, every year there is a growing understanding that it is necessary to move from direct assistance to people with problems to prevention, preventing the appearance of problems. That it is necessary to deal with developmental psychology, that this is precisely the promising direction that will create a new person and a new society. A psychologist must learn to become a teacher. See →
Pedagogical mission of a psychologist
A psychologist-educator calls people to growth and development, shows how it is not to be a Victim, how to become the Author of your life.
A psychologist-educator is one who brings into people’s lives a meaning sometimes forgotten by them, saying that life is a priceless gift, the very fact of which is the greatest happiness. See →