Causes of deprivation. What is deprivation in psychology? Forms of social deprivation

We are all social creatures. Each person belongs to a specific social group. Developing normally, a child communicates with parents, peers and other children and adults, and his basic needs are met. If physical or difficult, then such a child’s communication will suffer, therefore, he will not be able to communicate his needs and will not receive their satisfaction. But there are situations when, seemingly normal, there is a limitation of personal contacts and other needs. This phenomenon is called “deprivation”. In psychology, this concept is considered very carefully. A deprived personality cannot live and develop harmoniously. What does this concept mean and what types of deprivation are there? Let's figure it out.

What is deprivation in psychology?

In psychology, deprivation means a certain mental state in which a person cannot satisfy his basic needs. This also occurs in the case of depriving a person of any benefits to which he is already very accustomed. It should be noted that this state does not arise for all rejected needs. There are a large number of desires and aspirations of a person, but if he does not achieve them, there is no significant damage to his personal structure. What is important here is the satisfaction of vital needs and requirements. In psychology, deprivation is not any deviation from a person’s usual life activities. This state is a deep experience.

The difference between frustration and deprivation

These two concepts are close in meaning, but are not identical. Frustration is considered in science as a reaction to a personal stimulus. A person can feel sad, withdraw into himself for several hours or even days after some stressful situation, then return to normal life. Deprivation in psychology is a much more severe and painful condition. It can have a destructive effect on a person. It differs from frustration in intensity, duration and severity. Deprivation can combine several unmet needs at once, in this case there are various types this condition.

What causes deprivation?

There are certain internal causes of deprivation. This condition affects people who, for some reason, have an internal vacuum of values. What does deprivation have to do with this? In psychology, this condition and many others are interconnected. After all, personality is holistic in its versatility. If a person for a long time was alone, in prison, in a sick state, he loses the ability to follow all the norms, rules and values ​​of society. As a result, his concepts do not coincide with the hierarchy of values ​​of the people around him, and an intrapersonal vacuum arises. He cannot be in this state all the time, since life goes on and a person needs to adapt to its course and the demands that society places on him. As a result, the individual stands on the path to the formation of new ideals on the basis of an already destroyed hierarchy of needs and values.

Deprivation in human psychology has long been considered by scientists in search of methods to neutralize it. After all, such feelings as deprivation, hopelessness, a sense of lost personal dignity and others do not bring positive aspects for personal development.

What are the types of this concept?

Deprivation in Russian psychology is of three types:

• emotional;
• sensory;
• social.

These are the main types of deprivation, but in reality there are many more. Probably, as many suppressed and unsatisfied needs exist, there are as many types of this condition. But many of them are identical in their manifestation. In mental terms, deprivation is in psychology such sensations as fear, constant anxiety, loss of vital activity, in one’s own life and those around you, prolonged depression, outbursts of aggression.

But despite the similarity of sensations and experiences, the degree of immersion of the individual in this state is different for everyone. This depends on a person’s resistance to stress, the degree of hardening of his psyche, as well as on the power of the deprivation effect on the individual. But just as there are compensatory capabilities of the human brain at the physiological level, the same property of the psyche manifests itself. When other human needs are fully satisfied, the deprivation state regarding one unsatisfied one will be less intense.

Emotional deprivation in psychology

It happens that this state arises due to unexpressed emotions when a person is completely or partially deprived of various emotional reactions. Most often it is a lack of attention from other people. This condition rarely occurs in adults, but the psychology of childhood deprivation pays quite a lot of attention to this phenomenon. In the absence of love and affection, the child begins to experience the sensations described above. Emotional deprivation is very closely related to maternal deprivation, which we will talk about below.

For adults, much greater destruction is caused by so-called motor deprivation. This is a condition in which a person is limited in his movement due to injury or illness. Sometimes a disease or physical abnormality is not as terrible as a person’s reaction to it. It is very difficult for specialists to return people in this condition to active life.

Sensory deprivation

Sensory deprivation in psychology involves depriving a person of various sensations. Most often, it is provoked artificially to study a person’s ability to withstand difficulties. Such experiments are carried out to train aviation professionals, government employees power stations, intelligence, military specialists and so on.

In most cases, such experiments are carried out by immersing a person to depth in a box or other limited device. When a person spends a long time in this state, a state of mental instability is observed: lethargy, low mood, apathy, which through short time replaced by irritability and excessive excitability.

Social deprivation

Deprivation manifests itself in different ways in psychology. Various groups of society are also susceptible to this condition. There are such societies or social groups who deliberately deprive themselves of communication with the outside world. But this is not as scary as complete social deprivation for one person. All members of youth organizations, sects and national minorities who have separated themselves from society at least communicate with each other. Such people do not have irreversible effects on their psyche caused by social deprivation. What cannot be said about prisoners for a long time in solitary confinement or people who have experienced psychotic disorders.

Being alone with oneself for a long time, a person gradually loses social communication skills and interest in other people. There are also cases where a person stopped speaking because he forgot the sound of his voice and the meaning of words. Social deprivation can also affect people who are sick and can become infected. Therefore, there is a law on non-disclosure of such diagnoses.

Maternal deprivation - what is it?

Phenomena such as deprivation are studied quite carefully, since the consequences of such a condition for an immature personality can be detrimental. When an adult feels uncomfortable, bad and lonely. In a child it evokes emotions that are much more intense than those listed. Children are like receptive sponges that absorb negativity much faster and stronger than adults.

Bright by clear example maternal deprivation is hospitalism. This is the state of loneliness of a child due to his separation from his mother. This syndrome began to be noticed especially strongly after the war in the 50s, when there were many orphans. Even with good care and proper feeding the children had a revitalization complex much later; they began to walk and talk late, they had much more problems with physical and mental development than those who were raised in families. After this phenomenon, experts noted that deprivation in the psychology of children entails great changes in the psyche. Therefore, methods to overcome it began to be developed.

Consequences of deprivation in children

We have already decided that the main types of deprivation in the psychology of children are emotional and maternal. This condition has a detrimental effect on the child's brain development. He grows up unsmart, deprived of a sense of confidence in love, support and recognition. Such a child smiles and shows emotions much less often than his peers. Its development slows down, and dissatisfaction with life and oneself forms. To prevent this condition, psychologists have determined that a child needs to be hugged, kissed, stroked and supported (patted on the shoulder or arm) at least 8 times a day.

How does deprivation affect the behavior of adults?

Deprivation in the psychology of adults can arise on the basis of a long-standing childhood or due to unmet needs of adulthood. In the first case, the harmful effects on the psyche will be much stronger and more destructive. Sometimes when working with such adults, specialists feel powerless. In the second case, behavior correction is possible by searching for ways to satisfy a deprived need. A person can get out of a state of self-dislike, apathy and depression with the help of a specialist.

Deprivation- this is a state of mind of individuals, provoked by the loss of the opportunity to satisfy fundamental life needs and needs, for example, sexual desire, food intake, sleep, housing, communication between a child and a parent, or loss of benefits, living conditions, habitual for a particular individual. The term presented comes from an English concept that means deprivation or loss. Moreover, this term has a negative meaning, a strong negative orientation and carries not just a loss, but rather the deprivation of something very significant and vital.

In psychology, deprivation means a lack of sensory stimuli and social motives, depriving an individual of social contacts, living sensations and impressions. The concept of “deprivation” is related (although not identical) to the term “” in terms of content and psychological meaning. The deprived state, in comparison with the frustration reaction, is a much more severe, painful, and often even personally destructive state. It is distinguished by the highest degree of rigidity and consistency. In a variety of everyday situations and life circumstances, completely different needs may be deprived.

Types of deprivation

Deprived states are usually divided depending on the unmet need.

Most often, there are 4 types of this mental state, in particular: stimulus or sensory, cognitive, emotional and social. Most authors adhere to the classification below.

Sensory or stimulus mental deprivation is a decrease in the number of sensory motives or their limited variability and modality. Often, sensory deprivation can be described by the term “depleted environment”, in other words, an environment in which the subject does not receive the required amount of visual stimuli, auditory impulses, tactile and other stimuli. This environment can be accompanied child development, and can be included in the everyday situations of an adult.

Cognitive deprivation or deprivation of meaning arises as a result of an overly changeable, chaotic structure of the external world, which does not have a clear ordering and specific meaning, which does not make it possible to comprehend, predict and control what is happening from the outside.

Cognitive deprivation is also called information deprivation. It prevents the formation of adequate forms of the surrounding world. If an individual does not receive the necessary data, ideas about the relationships between objects or events, then he creates “false connections”, as a result of which he develops erroneous beliefs.

Emotional deprivation consists in the insufficiency of opportunities to establish an intimate emotional relationship with any person or the breakdown of a connection if it was previously created. This type of mental state can be encountered by individuals in at different ages. The term “maternal deprivation” is often used for children, thereby emphasizing the importance for children of an emotional connection with their parent, the deficiency or rupture of which leads to a chain of mental health disorders in the little ones. So, for example, the deprivation of orphans consists of separation from their parents and can be both maternal and paternal, that is, paternal.

Social deprivation or identity deprivation consists of limiting opportunities for acquiring an independent social role.

Social deprivation affects children living in orphanages or studying in closed educational institutions, adults isolated from society or having limited contact with other individuals, and pensioners.

In ordinary life listed species deprivations can be intertwined, combined, or a consequence of another.

In addition to the above types of deprivation, there are also others. For example, motor deprivation occurs when an individual faces the problem of limited movement due to injury or illness. This type state is not mental, but has strong impact on the psyche of the individual.

In addition to the species classification, forms of manifestation of deprivation are distinguished - obvious or hidden. Obvious mental deprivation is of an obvious nature (for example, a person being in social isolation, prolonged loneliness, a child being in orphanage), that is, in cultural understanding, this is a visible deviation from the norm established in society. Hidden or partial is not so obvious. It originates from external favorable circumstances, which still do not provide the opportunity to satisfy fundamental needs for individuals.

Thus, deprivation in psychology is a multidimensional phenomenon that affects various areas of human life.

Sleep deprivation

Deficiency or complete deprivation of the ability to satisfy the fundamental need for sleep. Occur due to sleep disturbance due to the presence of illness, as a result of conscious choice or coercion, for example, as torture. Often, depressive conditions can be successfully treated with the help of deliberate sleep deprivation.

Human individuals cannot stay awake all the time. However, he is able to reduce this process to a minimum (for example, to a couple of hours a day) - partial sleep deprivation.

Total sleep deprivation is the process of being deprived of sleep for at least several days.

There are also certain techniques for using deprivation as a treatment. However, to this day there is much controversy regarding the usefulness of deprivation as a therapeutic agent. So, for example, it leads to a decrease in the secretion of growth hormone, which is responsible for converting calories into muscle mass. With its deficiency, calories are transformed not into muscle tissue, but into fat.

Sleep deprivation is characterized by several main stages. The initial stage, which lasts from one to six days, is characterized by the individual’s constant struggle with sleep. People try to fall asleep for a fairly short period of time (no more than two hours). And the main thing here is not to break down, maintaining psychological calm. To this end, individuals try to diversify their activities and do something previously unknown and interesting. When choosing a new activity, preference is given not to a monotonous, but to a more active activity. It must be understood that during the initial stage individuals may be haunted by nervous tension, emotional disorders, poor health. At the end of the initial stage, the feeling of poor health goes away. The next stage, lasting up to ten days, is shock therapy. The second stage is characterized by disorders of consciousness: human individuals will seem like robots, disturbances in the perception of the surrounding reality may be observed, and malfunctions may also appear in the cognitive sphere. For example, an individual may forget what happened a moment ago or confuse the past and present. Light possible. This stage is characterized by constant insomnia, to which the body has already adapted. The work of all systems is intensified, and processes are accelerated. There is a clearer perception of the world, and feelings are heightened. If you continue to deprive yourself of sleep, the third stage will begin, which is considered quite dangerous for the health of individuals. And it is marked by the emergence of visual vision.

Today, doctors successfully use sleep deprivation techniques to bring people out of their deepest depression. The essence of the method is a gradual change in sleep cycles: reducing the amount of time spent asleep and increasing the period of wakefulness.

Sleep deprivation, as most doctors believe, selectively affects certain areas of the brain that are responsible for people falling into depressive states.

Sensory deprivation

Partial or absolute deprivation of one analyzer or several sense organs of external influence is called sensory or stimulus deprivation. The simplest artificial means that cause a state of loss of perception include earplugs or blindfolds, which remove or reduce the impact on the visual or auditory analyzer. There are also more complex mechanisms that simultaneously turn off several analyzer systems, for example, olfactory, tactile, taste and temperature receptors.

Stimulus deprivation is successfully used in various psychological experiments, alternative medicine, BDSM games, meditation and as torture. Have a relaxing effect short periods deprivation, as they trigger internal processes subconscious analysis, ordering and sorting of information, self-tuning and stabilization of mental activity. Meanwhile, prolonged deprivation of external stimuli can provoke excessive anxiety, hallucinations, depression and antisocial behavior.

Scientists from McGill University in the fifties of the twentieth century asked volunteers to stay for the longest possible period of time in a special chamber that protected them from external impulses. The subjects were located in a small enclosed space in a supine position, in which all sounds were drowned out by the monotonous noise of the air conditioner motor. Their hands were inserted into special cardboard sleeves, and their eyes were covered with tinted glasses that let in only faint, diffuse light. Most subjects were unable to endure this experiment for longer than 3 days. This is due to the conversion of human consciousness, deprived of the usual external stimuli, into the depths of the subconscious, from which quite bizarre and most incredible images and false sensations began to emerge, reminiscent of hallucinations to the tested individuals. Such imaginary perceptions frightened the subjects, and they demanded to complete the experiment. This study allowed scientists to conclude that sensory stimulation for the normal development and functioning of consciousness is vital, and deprivation of sensory sensations leads to degradation of mental activity and the personality itself. The inevitable consequences of long-term stimulus deprivation will be impairments in the cognitive sphere, namely memory, attention and thought processes, anxiety, sleep-wake cycle disorders, mood swings from depression to euphoria and vice versa, and the inability to distinguish reality from hallucinations.

Further research has shown that the occurrence of the listed symptoms is determined not by the fact of deprivation, but by the individual’s attitude towards the loss of sensory perceptions. The very deprivation of external influence on analyzers is not scary for an adult individual - it is just a change in environmental conditions, to which the human body easily adapts by restructuring its functioning.

So, for example, food deprivation will not necessarily be accompanied by suffering. Unpleasant sensations appear only in those individuals for whom fasting is unusual or they are forcibly deprived of food. People who consciously practice therapeutic fasting feel light in their bodies on the third day and can easily endure a ten-day fast.

Sensory and emotional deprivation of children early age manifests itself in a lack of opportunities to establish an emotionally intimate relationship with a certain person or in the severance of an established connection. Children who find themselves in an orphanage, boarding school or hospital often find themselves in an impoverished environment that causes sensory starvation. Such an environment is harmful for individuals of any age, but it has a particularly detrimental effect on children.

Numerous psychological studies have proven that a necessary condition normal brain formation in early age period is the presence of a sufficient number of external impressions, since it is during the entry into the brain of various information from external environment and its further processing, the analysis systems and corresponding brain structures are trained.

Social deprivation

The complete absence or reduction of the opportunity to communicate with people around us, to live interacting with society, is social deprivation. Violation of personal contacts with society can provoke a certain mental state, which serves as a pathogenic factor causing the development of a number of painful symptoms. The occurrence of violations is due to social isolation, the level of severity of which varies, which in turn establishes the degree of severity of the deprivation situation.

There are several forms of social deprivation, which differ not only in the level of its severity, but in the person who is the initiator. That is, there is a certain personality that establishes the deprivative nature of the relationship of an individual or group of individuals with the wider society. In accordance with this, the following options for social deprivation are distinguished: forced, forced, voluntary and voluntary-forced isolation.

Forced isolation occurs when an individual or group of people find themselves, due to insurmountable circumstances, cut off from society. Such circumstances do not depend on their will or the will of society. For example, the crew of a sea vessel that ended up on a desert island as a result of a wreck.

Forced isolation occurs when society isolates individuals regardless of their aspirations and desires, and often in spite of them. An example of such isolation are prisoners in correctional institutions or closed social groups, being in which does not imply restrictions on rights and does not imply a decrease in the social status of the individual (soldiers conscript service, children from orphanages).

Voluntary isolation occurs when individuals voluntarily distance themselves from society (for example, monks or sectarians).

Voluntary-forced isolation occurs when the achievement of a certain goal that is significant for an individual or a group of people implies the need to significantly narrow one’s own contacts with a familiar environment. For example, sports boarding schools.

Man is the most perfect creature on planet Earth, but at the same time, during the neonatal period and in infancy, he is the most helpless creature, since he does not have any ready-made forms of behavioral response.

Deprivation of young children leads to a decrease in their success in understanding society and difficulties in building communications with individual subjects and society as a whole, which in the future will significantly affect the effectiveness of their life activities.

In addition, being in closed institutions does not remain without detrimental consequences for children's developing psyche.

Social deprivation of orphans sharply activates the formation of undesirable personality traits, such as: infantilism, self-doubt, dependency, lack of independence, low self-esteem. All this slows down the process of socialization and leads to disharmony social development orphans.

Child deprivation

The shortage of any conditions, objects or means that satisfy material needs, spiritual and mental needs, in conditions of constant shortage, can be chronic, that is, chronic deprivation. In addition, it can be periodic, partial or spontaneous and depends on the duration of the loss.

Long-term deprivation of children delays their development. The lack of social stimuli and sensory stimuli in the process of childhood formation leads to inhibition and distortion of mental and emotional development.

For the full formation of children, a variety of stimuli of various modalities (auditory, tactile, etc.) are needed. Their deficiency gives rise to stimulus deprivation.

Unsatisfactory conditions for learning and mastering various skills, a disorderly structure of the external environment, which does not provide the opportunity to comprehend, predict and control what is happening from the outside, gives rise to cognitive deprivation.

Social contacts with the adult environment and, first of all, with the mother, ensure the formation of personality, and their deficiency leads to emotional deprivation.

Emotional deprivation affects children in the following ways. Children become lethargic, their orientation activity decreases, they do not strive to move, and physical health inevitably begins to weaken. There is also a delay in development in all major parameters.

Maternal deprivation does not lose the destructive power of its own effects at all stages of childhood growth. As a result of maternal deprivation, the child’s attitude towards himself is distorted, and the child may experience rejection of his own body or auto-aggression. In addition, the child loses the opportunity to establish full-fledged relationships with other persons.

Limiting the possibilities of social fulfillment through the assimilation of certain social roles, as well as through familiarization with social ideas and goals, leads to social deprivation.

A pronounced result of a slowdown or disturbance in the development of children, which occurs as a result of some form of deprivation, is called hospitalism.

In psychology there is such a thing as deprivation. It means a mental reaction to an unsatisfied need. For example, a girl was abandoned by her boyfriend and she is overcome by emotional deprivation, because she begins to experience a deficit of emotions, miss what was before, but no longer receive it. There are many such situations that can be cited depending on the types of deprivation. But the most important thing is to know how to prevent such a condition or reduce its manifestations to a minimum.

Definition

The word came to us from Latin language. Deprivation is translated as “loss”, “deprivation”. This is what happens: a person loses the opportunity to satisfy his psychophysiological needs and experiences negative emotions. It could be resentment, anxiety, fear and much more. And, in order not to get confused in definitions, it was decided to reduce this state of loss into a single whole. This is how the concept of deprivation arose, which covers all possible emotions. The essence of deprivation is the lack of contact between desired responses and the stimuli that reinforce them.

Deprivation can plunge a person into a state of severe internal emptiness, from which it is difficult to find a way out. The taste for life disappears, and the person begins to simply exist. He does not enjoy food, his favorite activities, or socializing with friends. Deprivation increases the level of anxiety; a person becomes afraid to try new behavior patterns, trying to maintain a stable state in which he is comfortable. He falls into a trap of his own mind, from which sometimes only a psychologist can help. Even the most strong personality sometimes it “breaks” under the influence of a particular situation.

Many people confuse deprivation with frustration. After all, these states definitely have something in common. But these are still different concepts. Frustration refers to the failure to achieve satisfaction of a certain need. That is, a person understands where negative emotions come from. And the phenomenon of deprivation is that it may not be realized, and sometimes people live for years and do not understand what is eating them. And this is the worst thing, because the psychologist does not understand what to treat.

Species

Delving deeper into the topic, let's consider different types deprivation in theory, and also give examples for complete understanding. Classification involves dividing according to the type of need that was not satisfied and caused deprivation.

Sensory (stimulus)

From the Latin sensus - feeling. But what is sensory deprivation? This is a state that includes all stimuli associated with sensations. Visual, auditory and, of course, tactile. A banal lack of physical contact (handshakes, hugs, sexual intimacy) can provoke a severe condition. It can be dual. Some begin to compensate for the sensory deficit, while others become aggressive and convince themselves that “they didn’t really want it.” A simple example: a girl who was not loved in childhood (her mother did not press her to her chest, her father did not roll her on his shoulders) will either look for tenderness on the side in promiscuous sexual intercourse, or will withdraw into herself and become an old maid. From one extreme to another? That's right. Therefore, sensory deprivation is very dangerous.

A special case of this type is visual deprivation. It happens rarely, but, as they say, “aptly.” A person who has suddenly and abruptly lost his sight can become a hostage to visual deprivation. It is clear that he gets used to doing without him, but psychologically it is very difficult. Moreover, the older a person is, the more difficult it is for him. He begins to remember the faces of his loved ones, the nature around him and realize that he can no longer enjoy these images. This can lead to prolonged depression or even drive you crazy. The same can be caused by motor deprivation, when a person loses the ability to move due to illness or an accident.

Cognitive (informational)

Cognitive deprivation may seem strange to some, but it is one of the most common forms. This type of deprivation consists of deprivation of the opportunity to receive reliable information about something. This forces a person to think out, invent and fantasize, viewing the situation through the prism of his own vision, giving it non-existent meanings. Example: a sailor setting off on a long voyage. He has no way to contact his relatives, and at some point he begins to panic. What if your wife cheated? Or did something happen to your parents? At the same time, it is important how those around him behave: whether they will calm him down or, conversely, egg him on.

In the TV show "Survivor" that used to air, people were also in cognitive deprivation. The editors of the program had the opportunity to inform them about what was happening on the mainland, but they deliberately did not do this. Because it was interesting for the viewer to watch the characters being in an unusual situation for a long time. And there was something to watch: people began to worry, their anxiety increased, and panic began. And in this state it was still necessary to fight for the main prize.

Emotional

We have already talked about this. This is a lack of opportunities to receive certain emotions or a turning point in a situation in which a person was emotionally satisfied. A striking example: maternal deprivation. This is when a child is deprived of all the delights of communication with his mother ( we're talking about not about a biological mother, but about a woman who is capable of giving a baby love and affection, maternal care). And the problem is that nothing can replace this. That is, if a boy was raised in an orphanage, he will remain in a state of maternal deprivation for the rest of his life. And even if in the future he is surrounded by the love of his wife, children and grandchildren, it will not be the same. Echoes of childhood trauma will be present.

Hidden maternal deprivation can occur in a child, even if he is raised in a family. But if the mother constantly works and does not devote time to the baby, then he will also need care and attention. This also happens in families where, after one child, twins or triplets are suddenly born. All the time is spent on the younger children, so the eldest is plunged into forced maternal deprivation.

Another common case is family deprivation. It includes deprivation of communication not only with the mother, but also with the father. Those. lack of the institution of family in childhood. And again, having matured, a person will create a family, but he will play a different role in it: no longer a child, but a parent. By the way, paternal deprivation (deprivation of the opportunity to be raised with a father) is gradually becoming normal due to a free attitude towards sexual contact. A modern man may have several children from different women, and, of course, some of them will suffer from a lack of paternal attention.

Social

Limitation of the opportunity to play a social role, to be in society and to be recognized by it. Psychosocial deprivation is inherent in older people who, due to health problems, prefer not to leave home and while away their evenings alone in front of the TV. This is why various circles for pensioners are so valuable, where grandparents at least just communicate.

By the way, social deprivation can also be used as punishment. In a mild form, this is when a mother does not allow an errant child to go out with friends, locking him in a room. In severe cases, these are prisoners who spend years, or even life, in prison.

Features in children

In psychology, deprivation in children is often considered. Why? Firstly, because they have more needs. Secondly, because an adult who is deprived of something can somehow try to compensate for this deficiency. But a child cannot. Thirdly, children not only experience deprivation hard: it often affects their development.

A child needs the same needs as an adult. The simplest thing is communication. It plays a key role in the formation of conscious behavior, helps to acquire many useful skills, develop emotional perception, and increase the intellectual level. Moreover, communication with peers is very important for a child. In this regard, children of rich parents often suffer, who, instead of taking the child to kindergarten, hire him a bunch of governesses and teachers at home. Yes, the child will grow up well-mannered, well-read and polite, but social deprivation will not allow him to find his place in society.

Deprivation can also be seen in pedagogy. Its difference is that this need is not felt in childhood. On the contrary: sometimes a child does not want to study, it is a burden for him. But if you miss this opportunity, then severe pedagogical deprivation will begin in the future. And it will be expressed in the lack of not only knowledge, but also many other skills: patience, perseverance, desire, etc.

Manifestations

External methods of manifestation are the same as in adults. And parents or educators must correctly recognize the child’s emotions in order to understand whether it is a whim or one of the signs of deprivation. The two most recognizable reactions are anger and withdrawal.

Anger and aggression

The cause of anger can be dissatisfaction of a physiological or psychological need. They didn’t buy candy, didn’t give him a toy, didn’t take him to the playground - it would seem like nonsense, but the child gets angry. If this state is repeated, it can turn into deprivation, and then anger will manifest itself not only in screaming and throwing things, but also in more complex states. Some babies tear out their hair, and some may even experience urinary incontinence as a result of aggression.

Closedness

The opposite of anger. The child compensates for deprivation by trying to convince himself that he does not need this toy or candy. The baby calms down and withdraws into himself, finding activities that do not require a splash of emotions. He can silently assemble a construction set or even just mindlessly move his finger along the carpet.

Any unsatisfied mental deprivation in childhood can have negative impact for the future and develop into serious psychological trauma. Practice shows that most murderers, maniacs and pedophiles had problems either with their parents or with society. And all this was the consequences of emotional deprivation in childhood, because this is what is most difficult to compensate for in adulthood.

The psychological problems of deprived children have been considered by many psychologists. Diagnostics and analysis made it possible to understand what exactly is gnawing at children of this or that age. Many works are studied by contemporaries, who build their own methods to help parents and their children. Interesting are the deprivation descriptions of J.A. Komensky, J. Itard, A. Gesell, J. Bowlby.

Sleep deprivation

Another common deprivation that affects many modern people. If we talk in simple language– this is a banal lack of sleep. It is noteworthy that some people deliberately do this, spending their nights not in bed, but in nightclubs or near the computer. Others are forced to lose sleep due to work (workaholics), children (young mothers), and anxiety. The latter can be caused by various reasons. And if a person does not sleep due to increased anxiety, he finds himself in a vicious circle. At first he is anxious and therefore does not sleep. And then sleep deprivation leads to anxiety.

Sleep deprivation in depression refers to a forced state. Because a person may want to sleep, but cannot. That is, he is in bed, then sleep does not occur due to depressive thoughts that arise. To overcome both conditions - sleep deprivation and depression - just get some sleep.

Help

Not every deprivation syndrome requires the intervention of psychologists. Often a person can cope with this condition on their own or with the help of family and friends. There are plenty of examples. To get out of social deprivation, it is enough to sign up for dancing or another hobby group. The problem of lack of intellectual resources is solved by connection unlimited Internet. The deficit of tactile contacts disappears after establishment love relationship. But, of course, more severe cases require a serious approach, and global assistance (sometimes at the state level) cannot be avoided.

Rehabilitation centers help cope with the consequences of childhood social deprivation, where the child receives not only attention and care, but also communication with peers. Of course, this only partially covers the problem, but it is important to make a start. The same applies to organizing free concerts or tea parties for retirees who also need communication.

Psychology also fights deprivation in other ways. For example, compensation and self-realization in other activities. Thus, people with disabilities often begin to engage in some kind of sport and participate in Paralympic competitions. Some people who have lost their arms discover a talent for drawing with their feet. But this concerns sensory deprivation. Severe emotional deprivation is difficult to compensate for. The help of a psychotherapist is needed.

It's not just children who need emotional stimulation. It is a necessary condition for the full mental functioning of every person throughout life.

E. Bern writes that a person always needs “strokes.” But if in relation to a child, stroking, as a rule, is physical touching, patting, etc., then in an adult they are often replaced by symbolic, socially acceptable forms: a handshake, a polite bow, a smile, various rituals.

The need for emotional acceptance manifests itself as the need for recognition. Thus, an artist needs constant admiration and praise from fans, a scientist needs recognition of his merits, a woman needs a compliment, military men need victories, etc.

People, of course, vary greatly in their desire to be noticed. Thus, an actor may require hundreds of “strokes” every week from anonymous and indifferent fans, while a scientist may only need one “strokes” a year from a respected and authoritative colleague.

E. Berne believes that in a broad sense, “stroking” can mean any act of recognizing the presence of another person. And the exchange of “strokes” constitutes the basic unit of social interaction - transaction.

He also concludes that any social interaction is preferable to none. Experiments on rats have shown that even “negative stroking” (electric shock) has more positive consequences for the physical, mental, and emotional state than no effects at all.

Sometimes a person tries to compensate for the lack of emotional communication with people by communicating with pets.

The presence and quality of emotional stimuli is a condition for full-fledged mental development in childhood, as well as a factor in mental well-being both in childhood and adulthood. In an adult, the consequences of emotional deprivation can manifest themselves in the form of depression, apathy, various phobias, etc., while the true cause of such disorders may remain hidden.

Chapter 5. Social deprivation

1. Forms of social deprivation

Social deprivation, understood as the restriction or complete absence of contacts of a person (or any group) with society, appears in a variety of forms, which can vary significantly both in the degree of severity and in who initiates the isolation - the person (group) himself. or society.

Depending on this, the following types of social deprivation are distinguished:

1) forced isolation, when a person or a group as a whole finds themselves cut off from society due to circumstances beyond their will, as well as the will of society (for example, the crew of a ship stranded on a desert island after a crash);

2) forced isolation, when society isolates people regardless of their desire, and often in spite of it. Examples of such isolation include, in particular:

convicts in various correctional labor institutions;

closed groups, stay in which does not imply infringement of rights and does not imply a person’s low social status - conscript soldiers under conditions of universal compulsory military service, pupils of orphanages, orphanages, boarding schools;

3) voluntary isolation, when people distance themselves from society of their own free will (an example is monks, hermits, sectarians living in remote, hard-to-reach places);

4) voluntary-forced (or voluntary-forced) isolation, when the achievement of any goal that is significant for a person (group) presupposes the need to significantly limit one’s contacts with the usual environment (various professional closed groups, as well as professionally specialized groups, can serve as an example boarding educational institutions - sports boarding schools, boarding schools for especially gifted children and adolescents, Nakhimov and Suvorov schools, etc.).

This classification generally covers a fairly wide range of types of social deprivation. At the same time, when studying it, it is necessary to take into account that an important factor determining the consequences of deprivation is age a person who finds himself in isolation. In this regard special attention deserves study of the nature and consequences early social deprivation, as well as deprivation in closed educational institutions.

The term "deprivation" is used to denote the mental reaction to unmet needs. For example, we can cite a situation where a girl breaks up with her boyfriend, which leads to emotional deprivation. This condition manifests itself in the form of a deficit of emotions, as well as an acute lack of the sensations that the woman received from the relationship. Depending on the situation, the types of this condition vary. Let's look at what deprivation is and how to avoid its development.

Deprivation reduction or complete deprivation of the opportunity to satisfy basic needs - psychophysiological or social

The term deprivation means deprivation or loss, which is how the Latin word deprivation is translated.. In psychology, this term is used to refer to a state in which a person cannot fully satisfy his own needs, which leads to the appearance of negative emotions. Negative emotions during deprivation manifest themselves in the form of feelings of resentment, anxiety or fear. According to experts, the concept of deprivation combines various emotions that a person experiences when faced with various difficulties in life.

A distinctive feature of this state is an acute lack of relationship between desires and incentives to achieve the goal.

The emergence of deprivation leads to personal changes, which are expressed in the form of feelings inner emptiness. Being in this state, a person ceases to feel the desire for self-improvement and loses the meaning of life. Communication with friends, favorite activities and even gastronomic interests lose their relevance for a particular individual. The emergence of various fears becomes the main reason that a person does not strive to change his life for the better. It is almost impossible to get out of such a state on your own.

Various forms of deprivation

Deprivation in psychology is a term used to characterize a mental state provoked by the inability to provide for personal life needs. In addition, this condition can be caused by the loss of certain incentives to achieve various goals. In medicine, this condition is divided into several groups, which are based on unmet needs that acted as the causes of the disorder.

Deprivation can cause aggression

Sensory deprivation

This type of mental state is caused by a lack of stimuli that have a close relationship with various sensations. In turn, incentives are divided into:

• tactile;
• visual;
• auditory.

The condition in question may be caused by a lack of hugs, a sense of physical closeness and other stimuli. This phenomenon is characterized by duality. Some patients try to compensate for the lack of sensory stimuli by devoting their attention to other areas. Other patients experience outbursts of aggressive behavior caused by lack of attention. For example, we can cite a situation where a girl felt an acute lack of parental love in childhood. In adulthood, such echoes from the past can lead to an attempt to gain the necessary feelings through a random change of sexual partners. However, there are examples when the lack of parental love is taken for granted, which leads to the girl trying to avoid any manifestations of feelings for the opposite sex.

The state of sensory deprivation poses a huge danger to the human psyche. According to experts, the visual form of the disorder has the greatest danger to life. A similar illness occurs against the background of a sharp and irreversible loss of vision. Such a loss is difficult for a person to endure psychologically. It should be noted here that the higher the patient’s age, the more dangerous the consequences. Constant memories of various visual images can cause the development of depressive syndrome and more severe mental disorders.

Motor deprivation

Motor deprivation is quite common and is observed in people who have received various injuries. Restriction in movement can negatively affect a person’s mental state. Such restrictions are perceived most acutely in childhood. Under the pressure of the situation, the patient experiences an increase in anxiety levels and develops a state close to depression. Limitation of one's own mobility can cause outbursts of aggression and rage, which is characteristic of mental regression.

Often, people in this condition experience compensatory activity, which manifests itself in the form of monotonous body movements. The appearance of such symptoms in childhood can cause delays in the development of the musculoskeletal system.

Deprivation is depriving a person of those life circumstances to which a person has become accustomed since childhood

Cognitive deprivation

This type of mental state has a high prevalence. Often, this form of disorder is referred to using the term “information deprivation.” This phenomenon is characterized by a lack of adequate perception of the surrounding world, due to its changing conditions. The lack of information that makes it possible to create a strong chain between various events leads to the fact that the individual adds “false links” to this chain, built on his own beliefs.

Cognitive deprivation is dangerous because a lack of information and false conclusions can lead to various problems in relationships with other people. As an example, let's consider a situation in which a woman returned home late at night with a bouquet of flowers. The above example may have several development paths, which are based on the personality type and level of self-esteem of her partner. Often, a lack of information and false conclusions lead to the fact that the husband begins to reproach the woman for adultery, building a logical chain only on the fact that the wife has flowers. Considering the above, we can say that the ability to correctly perceive various information is one of the necessary skills in social adaptation.

Emotional deprivation

The appearance of this condition is associated with a lack of incentives to obtain certain emotions. In this case, great importance is given to various turning points, which act as provoking factors in the development of the disease. Let's look at an example that is based on a lack of maternal love in childhood. This form of emotional deprivation occurs quite often in various sectors of society. According to experts, people with this problem remain in a state of deprivation throughout their lives. When building their own social unit, such people try to take part in the lives of their children as much as possible.

The English verb to deprive means to deprive, take away, take away, and with a strong negative accent

Deprivation in childhood

The above types of deprivation are most acute in childhood, due to the presence of a large number of different needs in children. In addition, the development of this condition is facilitated by the lack of ability to compensate for one’s own deprivations. It is very important to pay attention to the fact that the presence of the problem in question in childhood can directly affect the child’s development.

Having left infancy, a child begins to experience the same needs as an adult. One of the simplest needs that is important in personal development is communication. It is through communication that a person acquires various skills, develops his own perception of the world around him and increases his level of intelligence. That is why psychologists focus on the importance for a child of communication with peers. Communication deficits are observed in children who do not attend kindergarten, which in the future can lead to problems associated with adaptation in society. This phenomenon is referred to using the term “social deprivation”.

There is also pedagogical deprivation, which manifests itself in the form of a lack of interest in learning. Many children have difficulty learning in school due to low interest in exact sciences and difficulties in mastering various skills. Having this problem can lead to a serious personality disorder in the future. It is during the school years that the foundations of personality are laid, such as desire, perseverance and patience.

Clinical picture

Timely detection of the onset of deprivation plays a huge role in a person’s life. It is very important to correctly recognize changes in an individual's behavior. Most often, deprivation manifests itself in the form of aggression and anger towards the immediate environment. The reason for the appearance of these feelings is associated with the inability to satisfy one’s own psychological and physiological needs. Constant dissatisfaction of one's own needs leads to the fact that the feeling of anger becomes a habitual state. Constant aggression directly affects the state of a person’s psyche. The presence of such problems in childhood can lead to the appearance of physiological ailments associated with involuntary urination and other disorders.

Much less often, the condition in question manifests itself in the form of isolation in own world. In this state, a person tries to compensate for the lack of various needs by trying to convince himself that he does not need them. In an attempt to calm down, the individual devotes himself to activities that do not require high emotional return. Such a manifestation of emotional indifference has a certain similarity with the state of prostration. It should be noted that even such a manifestation of dissatisfaction with one’s own needs can negatively affect psychological health.

According to statistics, the inability to satisfy one’s own needs gives rise to suicidal thoughts, the development of depressive syndrome and even manic tendencies. Emotional deprivation that appears in childhood plays an important role, since the lack of necessary feelings from parents is almost impossible to compensate.

Numerous studies by scientists from the field of psychology are devoted to this topic. In their opinion, there are a number of specific needs that are vital to people in different ways. The ability to realize one's own desires plays an important role in a person's personality.

For ordinary person Almost any deprivation is a nuisance

Methods of therapy and psychocorrection

In most cases, you can cope with deprivation syndrome on your own, without resorting to the help of specialists. In this matter, the level of understanding and support provided by loved ones is important. In order to get rid of deprivation, you need to expand your horizons using various tools. Various interest groups can serve as such tools. The emotional deficit of communication can be compensated by frequent meetings with friends and trips to various entertainment venues. The lack of tactile contact is usually compensated for by establishing close relationships with the opposite sex.

It is important to note that to overcome a severe form of deprivation, a person needs more global help. In order to get rid of childhood social deprivation, the child must attend a specialized rehabilitation center. It is in such an institution that the child will be able to compensate for the lack of attention to himself and the lack of communication. It should be said that the problem of social deprivation should be considered at the state level.

Most often, deprivation syndrome occurs among pensioners who are forced to live out their old age in solitude and isolation. Social services attach great importance to this issue and often organize various events for pensioners free of charge.
Psychologists use completely different methods to combat deprivation syndrome.

One of the important areas of correction is a radical change in lifestyle and an attempt to compensate through self-realization in other areas. It should be noted that in the presence of severe emotional deprivation, the problem can only be dealt with with the help of a specialist.