2012. vol. 9. No. 2

The This paper presents an analysis of different perspectives on quality of life as a multidisciplinary research topic. The theoretical review presents the problem of content of the concept “quality of life” concept in human sciences. The gGiven category is difficult to characterize with one definition, as it is a rather broad concept that allows various theoretical interpretations. In classical studies quality of life is usually associated with objective factors, such as physical health, economic well-being, various external circumstances and conditions of life, etc. Economy, sociology, and medicine deal mostly with “quantity”, not “quality”, of good life. Most instruments of measuring quality of life are focused on the external sides of human life, forgetting about inner factors. Other researchers associate quality of life with subjective satisfaction with health, leisure time, income, work, etc., but don’t take into account the meaning and significance of these fields to for personality. Though such theories were the dominative basis of the understanding of well-being of persons and societies for long many decades, other researchers admit that quality of life as a subjective value depends on individual perception of life and meaningful attitude towards it. Recently, the research emphasis in psychology has been shifting towards the subjective parameters of life, and the category of subjective quality of life was introduced as an integral concept for the subjective basis of psychological well-being. Subjective approach to quality of life seems a promising research direction, but needs more theoretical and empirical support.

What can cross-cultural psychology contribute to broad debates on societal change and development? I amThe author arguing argues that cross-cultural researchers can actively contribute in at least three domains: a) an examination of processes that are of societal importance and relevance, b) development and application of culturally sensitive change programs and c) a culture-sensitive evaluation of existing intervention programs so that the needs of communities are better met. I The author provides two examples that are focus on the first aspect, because as this area is closest to current cross-cultural research. I discuss rRecent work on understanding cross-cultural differences in well-being (Fischer & Boer, 2011) are discussed, and as well as an examination of changes in corruption over time (O’Connor & Fischer, 2011). How can cross-cultural research contribute to the development and well-being of societies? What are the tools that psychologists interested in culture can use to inform politicians and political decision-making? How can we make cross-cultural relevant to everyday actions and events, considering the massive challenges that humanity faces through globalization, climate change and increasing interdependencies at a global level? In this paper I willthe author outlines three different paths that may address these broad questions of policy relevance and societal development. Engaging with these questions can help sharpening our basic research questions and theories as well as contributing contribute to understanding and managing global issues. I Finally, the paperwill reviews two recent examples using traditional cross-cultural research in some more detail and discusses how it can fit in with such an agenda.

The This paper presents a refined theory of basic individual values by S. Schwartz that aims to offer more heuristic and explanatory possibilities compared to an earlier theory of 10 values (Schwartz, 1992), as well as the results of its empirical validation in Russia. The refined theory is based on the key assumption of value theory that is often ignored in research: the circular motivational continuum of values. The theory postulates 19 values placed on a circular continuum in a way that reflects their mutual compatibility (adjacent values are the most compatible, opposing values, in turn, the most conflicting). The extraction of conceptually different values serves to assure the more heuristic and predictive power of the theory. The theory was validated using a Russian version of the questionnaire in a sample of 506 respondents. This instrument was validated before previously on various samples in 11 countries. Confirmatory factor analysis and multidimensional scaling indicated 19 values. The theoretically proposed order of values was mostly confirmed by the results of multidimensional scaling. According to the results, there were no strong cross-loadings of items on alternative values. Consequently, multicollinearity becomes less of a common phenomenon, if a larger set of values is used. The proofs that confirm the idea of a circular motivational continuum suggest the justification of various ways to dissect this circle. If the researchers take into account the fact that values form a continuum they may choose the number of values to dissect the circle according to the objectives of their research. The conducted study shows the possibility of various levels of abstraction within the motivational hierarchy. Though this article demonstrates discriminant, convergent and construct validity of the refined theory and the instrument of measurement, it doesn’t address the issue of prognostic validity. It is not demonstrated that the refined theory of values provides stronger predictive and explanatory precision in relation to behavior, attitudes and beliefs than the original theory. In present timeThe authors conducted the current study on the relationships between 19 values and the broad set of behavior types that these values should predict.

The objective of the presentis study was to evaluate the influence of individual values on the social psychological capital of various ethnical groups. In the theoretical part of the article, the phenomenology of social psychological capital was is analyzed and seen as a resource of psychological relationships that forms the basis of social capital. The A hypothesis wasis proposed suggested suggesting that the values of the block Self-Transcendence trait (Universalism and Benevolence) are positively connected to the social psychological capital of personality, while the values from the Self-Enhancement block trait (Hedonism, Power) have an the opposite effect. The vValues of the block Conservation trait (Security, Conformity) negatively connected to social psychological capital, while the values of the block Openness to Change trait (Self-Direction, Stimulation) are either positively connected to social psychological capital or don’t have any no connection whatsoever. Then Following this, a cross-cultural analysis of the influence of value orientations on social psychological capital was conducted. The instruments used included the Schwartz Value Survey SVS-57, as well as some of the author’s surveys for the study of social psychological capital. On In the example of three ethnic groups, Russians (N=109), Chechens (N=100), and Ingushs (N=109), it is shown that though the influence of personal values on social psychological capital exhibits clear logic, it may have certain cultural features. Individual values show certain influence on social psychological capital. The percentage of dispersion of social psychological capital, explained by individual values, ranges from 8% to 32% according to various parameters in different ethnical groups. In On the whole, the Self-Transcendence values (Benevolence, Universalism) have a positive influence on social psychological capital, in contrast to Self-Enhancement values, that which influence it negatively. The values of Openness to Change have a positive impact on civic identity, but are negatively associated with perceived social capital. The values of Conservation have a positive influence on civic (Russian) identity within the Ingush ethnic group. Individual values that dominate in representatives of society influence the social psychological capital. That is why the violation of the balanced dynamic structure of values (strengthening of importance of some values) may have a negative effect for social capital of a society. Of course, social capital won’t will not suffer if there is an increase in Benevolence and Universalism, but an increase in other values may have a negative effect for social capital.

Objective of the research: to reveal implicit theories of innovativeness among members of the three ethno-cultural groups: Russians, the peoples of the North Caucasus (Chechens and Ingush), and Tuvinians, and their impact on the attitude to innovations in a cross-cultural comparison. Students and teachers of from secondary schools (N=804) have completed a questionnaire in Russian, which included the modified Adjective Check List (Runco et al., 1993) to measure the qualities necessary for innovators; also used was the authors's scale of Innovative Qqualities of Ppersonality (Lebedeva, Tatarko, 2009), measuring the attitudes to innovations (12 items). The mean on the scale’s items constitutes “Integral Index of the Ppersonality’s Iinnovativeness” (alpha Cronbach's scores are: 0,79 for Russians; 0,85 for North Caucasians; 0,80 for Tuvinians). Respondents were also asked also about their personal experience of innovation’s the introduction or and / and or implementation of innovations. The data was processed using the statistical package SPSS (version 19) statistical package. To define the relationships of the variables we used structural modeling of latent variables with AMOS (version 19). Using exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses we have identified two blocks of implicit theories of innovativeness: «’Individual» ‘ implicit theories: open-mindedness, creativity, enthusiasm, risk propensity, imagination, high motivation, optimism, and «’Social» ‘ implicit theories: respect for authority, honesty, trust to in people. We have founded intercultural differences: the ‘«individual» ‘ theories of innovativeness are more pronounced among Russians, ; the respondents from the North Caucasus and Tuva prefer social theories of innovativeness more. Using structural equation modeling we have built a culturally universal model of the impact of implicit theories of innovativeness on the personal experience of innovations through attitudes toward innovations. The effect of implicit theories of innovativeness on the attitudes to innovation is more pronounced in the traditional cultures of the North Caucasus and Tuva, but it is not significant in the more modernized (Russian) culture. Positive attitudes to innovation positively affect the experience of innovations in all three cultures. The results obtained results should be considered when planning and implementing innovations in different regions of Russia.

The phenomenon of “motion-induced blindness” involves a visible stimulus presented against a rotating background so that the awareness of the target stimulus stops from time to time. A possible cause of such illusory disappearances is the competition between the object representations of the target stimulus and of the mask (Bonneh et al., 2001). However, no studies to date have investigated the number of visual attributes differentiating the target stimulus from the mask necessary for the disappearance mechanism of motion-induced blindness to start functioning. In the experiment, target stimuli were used that differentiated from the mask elements on one, two or three attributes (form, color or movement), while the mask always represented the rotating rotation of blue crosses around its axis square of blue crosses. 25 subjects took part in the study, and the intrasubjective plane 2x2x2 was used. We measured the duration and the quantity of disappearances of the target stimulus during motion-induced blindness. Dispersion analysis with repeated measurements found out the main effects of difference / similarity of color (F(1, 24)=64.498, p<.001, η_p²=.729) and movement (F(1, 24)=72.023, p<.001, η_p²=.750) for the quantity of disappearances of the target stimulus. Also a less pronounced effect of difference / similarity of form of the target stimulus was found (F(1,24)=6.267, p<.05, η_p²=.207).Significant interactions were found for the following pairs of factors were found: form and color (F(1,24)=29.293, p<.001, η_p²=.550), andform and movement (F(1,24)=10,578, p<0,01, η_p²=0,306). For the total duration of disappearances, significant main effects of the factors of difference / similarity for color (F(1,24)=7.709, p<.01, η_p²=.243) and movement (F(1,24)=39.211, p<.001, η_p²=.620) were found. Besides, there were significant interactions of all three factors (F(1,24)=15.645, p<.01, η_p²=.395) and pairs of factors of difference / similarity of form and color (F(1,24)=15.936, p<.01, η_p²=.399) and form and movement (F(1,24)=7.040, p<.01, η_p²=.227). Thus, any single differentiating attribute was shown to be sufficient to cause the disappearance phenomenon. The color difference between the target stimulus and the mask influences the number of visual disappearances, whereas the movement difference influences their duration. The increase in quantity of differentiating attributes may lead to an increase in the quantity or / andand / or duration of disappearances of the target stimulus. The acquired results support the theory of competition of the object representations as a mechanism of illusory disappearances.

This paper presents an analysis of existing approaches to understanding the psychological content of the “range of equivalence” cognitive style. The range of equivalence presents a bipolar dimension (wide vs. narrow) of individual-specific qualities of processing the information, which is diagnosed with the help of various modifications of the method “Free Sorting of Objects” (FSO) method. The author proposes a new interpretation of the construct, integrating a number of existing theories. New directions are suggested for the research of determinants and practical significance of the equivalence range phenomenon. An empirical study of equivalence range assessment is described. A hypothesis of association between the equivalence range phenomenon and conceptual generalization ability was proposed and confirmed. A new method of developed by V.A. Kolga was used in two modifications, ; the objects of one of which belong to the category of “stretches and moments of time”, and the other one – to categories of “capacities”, “vessels”, “watersheds”, and also the method of multiple classification was used. 29 subjects took part in the study, most of which whom were students and aspirants of psychological psychology departments of at various universities. The results showed that the number of groups in two methods (Kolga modification with Capacities and Free Sorting of Objects) correlate r = .39, p = .03. The cCorrelation with Time is not significant: r = 0.30, p = 0.12. The number of groups in FSO correlates with the number of groups in the Kolga modification with Capacities: r from .55 to .64, p< .05. The empirical study showed that the phenomenon of the equivalence range in the product of cognitive activity is connected to the ability of conceptual generalization. A new method for assessment of the equivalence range free of the influence of conceptual generalization ability, limited sorting of objects, was developed and validated.

Health is the most important value of the modern life. Sport plays a special role in its maintaining health, especially for those in the younger age groups. The sStudies of foreign and native authors show that volitional regulation is the essential factor that provides high results in sport. In the presentis article the results of the a study on volitional control in junior athletes are presented. The junior athletes were chosen because adolescence and youth are the sensitive important periods for the development of volitional regulation. A group of athletes aged 20 to 24 (N=195) was compared to a group of students of the same age not engaged in any sports (N=195). For the diagnostics of individual specifics of volitional regulation the following methods were used: the subscale “Action Control and Planning” subscale from HAKEMP, (by J. Kuhl, in adaptation adapted of from S.A. Shapkin, ); the questionnaire on intensity of self-control in the emotional sphere, activity and behavior (by G.S. Nikiforov, V.K. Vasiliev and S.V. Firsov, ); and the formalized modification of the Self-Esteem Test (by Dembo – Rubinstein, in adaptation ofed from V.A. Ivannikov and E.V. Eidman). Significant differences were found between the groups (using comparison with the non-parametric Mann-Whitney test) in action orientation (HAKEMP, J. Kuhl), behavioral and social self-regulation, and self-ratings of a number of volitional qualities. Junior athletes in comparison to students from the control group have higher indices in discipline, goal commitment, conscientiousness, persistence, resolution, willpower, initiative, self-control, zeal, efficiency, self-assurance, orderliness, and attentiveness.

The effects of learning programming (software development) on mental and intellectual development of students are the an acute issue in contemporary psychology and pedagogics. The objective of the presentis paper is the analysis of the effect of learning programming on mental, social and emotional development of students, and detection of psychological and pedagogical factors that influence the height strength of this effect. The paper presents an analysis of cognitive skills and abilities that undergo development in the process of learning programming. Thus, the study of the relationship between development of mathematical abilities and programming showed contradictory results. The same situation is observed in influences of learning programming and development of abstract cognition and problem-solving in various subject domains. The specifics of algorithmic cognition (on the development of which much is spoken by the specialists in informational technologies) and the relationship between its development and learning programming were outside of the field of attention of professional psychologists. Also, little is researched has explored the influence of learning programming on development of speech, creative thinking and social and emotional development. Psychological and educational factors influencing the learning outcomes are discussed. These factors are: the professional and personal qualities of the teacher, ; the program’s environment; and the method of teaching. OIn the whole one may say that learning programming may promote mathematical cognition, abstract, creative and algorithmic thinking, and team-work. Though a vast scope of research was conducted, many questions remained unresolved. In particular, the relationship between the age specifics of children and the effect of learning programming was not touched.