Integrative approach in studying the learnt helplessness problem of children

The analysis of existing approaches to the study the learned helplessness led to the conclusion that there is a close connection between the emergence of the phenomenon, life experience of the person, cultural and historical characteristics of social environment and also his somatic status. From the assumptions of the psychosomatic approach helplessness is formed and «learnt» gradually, under the influence of not only a disease or understanding the degree, nature of the somatic status influence on activity of the child, but also under the influence of social response factor to child’s somatic health features. Fixed forms of family behavior play a significant role in the formation of negative tendencies in emotional, volitional, motivational and cognitive development of a child’s individuality. Family as a system often reacts using those patterns which don't promote productive changes and adaptation to them but on the contrary quite often hinder the individual development of certain members of a family as well as the whole family as a system. This situation hinders the development of skills for coping with difficulties, the development of will and the ability to resist the formation of «the learned helplessness». Generalizing and systematizing the age-related characteristics of the senior preschool children, younger school students, teenagers and young men allowed us to study those features which can promote the operation of the learned helplessness mechanisms formation throughout the entire period of child development. Our search for the ways to prevent and correct the learned helplessness implies a search for the mechanism of recognition and polarity change of negative ideas-thoughts appearing and operating in human subconsciousness automatically at the moment of failure and disappointment. The analysis concerning the development of each of the structural components of the personality allowed us to come to the conclusion that the system of correctional actions aimed at the development of will, can represent the preventive measures hindering emergence of learned helplessness at all stages of ontogenesis. The high level of will-power development is able to promote the development of the emotional sphere of a personality (due to the positive emotions, satisfaction as a result of some activity, efforts made etc), the motivational sphere (thanks to the reinforcement of motives by the skills of stage-by-stage and strategic planning, abilities to expect results, etc.), and also the cognitive sphere of personality (on the basis of new experience, strengthening the informative activity and greater independency in the leading activity peculiar to certain age). The group of the factors, the study of which seems to be significant for the achievement of the research objective, includes age-related psychological characteristics of a child, perception of own somatic status by a child, characteristics of will development on each stage of ontogenesis, specific parent-child relationships, and also specific relationships of a child with immediate social environment.

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