Social Activity Of Student Youth: Levels And Factors Of Its Development

Abstract

The article deals with the study of the problem of students’ social activity. The changes in the society and new challenges set the task of active inclusion of an individual in the transformative interaction with the environment in a number of urgent and significant tasks of social formation of the subject of social life. The problem of social activity’s formation for younger generation is considered as particularly important, being the center of attention of society and the state. Social activity acts as one of the determining qualities of the personality, which is formed in the activity, characterized by socially significant motives and gives socially valuable results. Such social institutions as schools, institutions of additional education and universities play an important role in social activity formation and development. The above-mentioned facts indicate the relevance of social activity study and the identification of personal factors in forming the need in it. An empirical study on the connection between students’ personality orientation and their need in social activity is conducted. The method of determining the orientation of the personality by V. Smekal and M. Kuchera and the questionnaire by R. Fatykhova and I. Yushchenko are used. The data showed a high degree of students' need for social activity with an increase in senior courses, personal factors being orientation of the person on business, on communication and on themselves. Statistical analysis confirmed the correlation between the need in social activity, a high focus on business and communication and a low focus on oneself.

Keywords: Activitydevelopmentneedpersonalitypersonality orientationsocial activity

Introduction

Modern society is undergoing significant transformations in all spheres of human activity, including social. The latter is perhaps the most important sphere, since changes in it are associated with the increasing role and development of human social activity as one of the most important conditions for human survival in the era of crises and global problems caused by man-made civilization (Stepin, 2000).

Great hopes in this direction are associated with the student youth, that today declares itself louder. These are mass actions aimed at protecting their rights (to work, to earn a decent salary, to professional development), and the volunteer movement, and participation in the activities of public organizations and charitable activities, etc. (Popova & Selezneva, 2018).

Problem Statement

It is important to point that the orientation of the activity can be both socially valuable and antisocial, which determines the impact of this type of interaction on socialization. The available data show that a certain part of the youth does not aspire to interaction, and another, not finding satisfaction in it for various reasons, reduces it to a minimum (Fatykhova & Mingazova, 2016; Shilyaeva, 2018). Trends in youth movements and communities are such that in recent years there is growing awareness of the importance of their role in the process of formation and development of the society by some students (Kayumova, 2015; Sokhadze, 2017).

Students are a special social group, a collective subject, which has its own distinctive features:

• first, students have education, broad outlook and tendency to the future;

• secondly, they have inherent internal activity and mobility;

• thirdly, students are at the stage of formation of professional and personal qualities and orientation in general, the development of which is largely determined by social activity.

The term "social activity" has become widespread and firmly entered the system of concepts of a number of social and humanitarian sciences like sociology, psychology, political science, economics, pedagogy (Erina & Oleynikov, 2018). The definition of the essence of the concept "social activity of the student" requires consideration of the paradigm chain "activity - social activity – social activity of the student".

Research Questions

For a long time the concept “activity” was studied in line with the human sciences, representing one of the most important categories of scientific knowledge. According to Khaikin (2000), the problem of activity is one of the key to the knowledge about human, being an integral part of almost all studies of natural and social sciences concerning the anthroposphere, where the topic of activity acquires a special meaning.

In the framework of psychology, human activity is studied at the physiological, psychophysiological, mental, social and subjective levels. This indicates the multiplicity, structural-content and functional complexity of this category.

In Western psychology, the problem of activity has been studied extensively in connection with the development of various theories of personality (Adler, 1964; Ericson, 1968; Freud, 2002; Fromm, 1964; Horney, 1945).

The basis of social activity of the individual, according to A. Adler (1964), is social interest defined as the potential ability of a person to identify himself with people, to help and support them, to empathically share their feelings.

Productive activity should be understood "not in the sense of external activity, employment, but in the sense of internal activity, productive use of their human potentials", "it is socially recognized purposeful behavior, the result of which are the corresponding socially useful changes", according to Fromm (1964, p. 114).

In Russian psychology, activity is considered as a universal characteristic of live beings, their own dynamics as a source of transformation and maintenance of vital links with the environment (Petrovskij & Yaroshevskij, 1990).

At the end of the XX century, interpretation of activity as a personal characteristic of a human appeared, as the inherent ability of the subject to interact with the environment to meet the needs and realize their own potential (Abulkhanova-Slavskaya, 1991; Brushlinskij, 1994). And so defines the activity Lomov (1999), considering it as a special quality of the subject of activity, consisting the integration of his psychological capabilities, capacities, knowledge and their focus on achieving the goal. Thus activity can be considered as realization of all vital needs of the person to which belong aspirations to take a certain position in society, to receive recognition, etc. When interpreting activity as a general personal characteristic, motives, orientation, interests and motives that determine the quality of the activity performed in a particular area (cognitive, communicative, etc.) are revealed.

The study of activity is not limited by personal approach. The complex nature of this phenomenon requires its analysis from the standpoint of the most important methodological principles that allow identifying the essential signs of activity and features of its course throughout human life. Without dwelling in detail on such an analysis, we note only that at each stage of personality development, certain ways of human interaction with the world, his worldview and awareness of activity as a condition of development and self-development are formed.

Social activity is a type of activity. Due to the fact that the activity of the personality is realized in a variety of forms, currently different kinds, types of activity associated with a person and the main directions of its research are determined (Khaikin, 2000).

Social activity is realized in the form of socially useful actions, which are carried out in connection with the impact of personal motives and incentives, the basis of which are socially significant needs, in the process of human interaction with the environment, through knowledge, activity and communication.

Social activity is the highest form of activity associated with the appropriate human activity and characterized by a high level of performance. From the point of view of philosophy, the essence of this phenomenon is found in the process of functioning of the individual in society. It is connected with the transformation of interest into a factor of action, with cognition, goal-setting and transformation of reality, due to the active nature of men, the contradiction between the conditions of existence and the objective needs of the individual and is aimed at eliminating the discrepancy between the needs and conditions of human life (Frolov, 2001).

In the context of the study of social activity of students it is necessary to concretize the studied phenomenon from a psychological perspective, which ensures the identification of its essential characteristics, structure and development factors. Therefore, after Medvedskaya (2011), we define social activity as personal education, which is characterized by the system, the intensity of the development of potential opportunities provided by society for decent life and human participation in the development of society, personally mediated by a system of motives, motives and conditions associated with the achievement of socially significant goals. Research of features, dynamics and factors of development of social activity of students demands identification of its essential characteristics. Kharlanova (2011) draws attention to such characteristics of social activity as:

• self-determination (manifestation of self-movement of a special quality), as a source of social activity are the needs of the individual, internal, conscious motivation, which is associated with the created image of the "needful future", significant for the individual;

• involvement in social interaction (social activity is the result of a person's awareness of the relationship with society and the construction of a method of interaction with it, revealing its potential; it manifests itself in a special form-socially productive activity, communication, cognition);

• prosociality (focus on the transformation of the carrier of activity and society in a socially positive direction for the benefit of society and the individual, following social norms, laws and moral ideals).

The question of the structure of social activity deserves a separate article. The study of the structure of the phenomenon under study allows us to trace the process of its development and the influence of various factors on it. There are many points of view on the content of social activity, determined by various scientific approaches and psychological theories, which differently determine the role of individual elements of social activity in its development. The fundamental question is what unites, integrates the individual elements of social activity into a single whole and ensures its productive functioning. It is likely that the system-forming relationship of elements of social activity is determined by the orientation and needs of the individual in the development of the ability to transform society and oneself, as well as self-realization of their essential forces in socially acceptable forms.

Equally important is the question of levels of social activity. Famous Russian researchers Sitarov and Maralov (2015) distinguish four levels: normative, normative-personal, personal-productive and productive-creative. The basis of the allocation of levels, the authors laid the ratio of activity and reactivity of the individual.

There are three levels, among which are the initiative, performing and valid in studies of Sokolova (2011). The basis of the initiative level is the ratio of one's own initiative and organizational abilities; the performance level is manifested on the basis of the ratio of responsibility and activity of a specialist as a performer; the valid level reflects active participation in the proposed activities (Sokolova, 2011).

Another approach to the allocation of levels of social activity through the activity of life position is offered by Konstantinov (1990). There are 4 levels:

• life position of a high level of activity, involving social initiative and creative activity;

• life position of the average level of activity, characterized by a responsible attitude to duties;

• passive life position, which is characterized by a low level of activity;

• passive life position with a potentially negative orientation.

As noted by Trotsuk and Sokhadze (2014), despite the fact that the problem of social activity of young people today is actively raised within the framework of the official state and scientific discourse, methodological and methodical aspects of its sociological (and not only) study are still not in the focus of research attention. The authors admit that the lack of attention of researchers to the phenomenon of social activity is largely determined by its vagueness and complexity of unambiguous definition, as we have shown above.

However, despite this, the problem of involving young people in social activism for the purpose of self-realization and influence on the socio-political development of society does not become less relevant. It should be emphasized that the goal should not be to make all students or potentially active part of them socially active, which in itself is a methodologically incorrect approach. The main task should be to ensure self-regulation and self-development, to create such conditions under which young people can independently regulate the degree and level of their activity, can become subjects of development of their own activity. This, in turn, is associated with the identification of the dynamics of social activity of students from the first to the final year, external and internal factors that affect this process, and the development of the position of the subject of social activity in educational, professional and other activities.

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of our research is to study the levels and factors of development of social activity of students. As a hypothesis we assumed that the orientation of the personality is a factor of social activity, and this relationship will be different in different courses of study at the University. 110 students of 1-4 courses of BSPU named after M. Akmulla took part in our research.

Research Methods

As a diagnostic tool to determine the orientation of the personality, a technique developed by Czech psychologists V. Smekal and M. Kucher (as cited in Raigorodskij, 2017) was used. The methodology is based on a slightly modified indicative questionnaire of B. Bass. The technique is based on verbal reactions of the subject in possible situations related to work or participation of other people in them. The responses of the subject are determined by what types of satisfaction and reward he prefers. Although the subject has the impression that with the help of this technique, researchers receive indicative information about him, in reality, the survey gives an idea of the main life position. The method consists of 30 points-judgments, for each of which there are three possible answers, corresponding to three types of personality orientation.

Focus on oneself is based on the priority motives of one’s own well-being, the desire for personal superiority, prestige. Such a person is most often busy with himself, his feelings and experiences and responds little to the needs of people around him. The work for him is, first of all, an opportunity to satisfy his needs.

Focus on communication is manifested when a person's actions are due to the need for communication, the desire to maintain good relations with workmates. Such a person shows an interest in joint activities.

Focus on the case reflects the predominance of motives generated by the activity itself, passion for the process of activity, selfless desire for knowledge, mastery of new skills and abilities. Usually such a person seeks to cooperate with the team and achieves the greatest productivity of the group.

It should be noted that all three types of orientation are not completely isolated, most often they are combined. In this regard, it would be more correct to talk about the dominant orientation of the personality.

To measure the need for social activity, we used a questionnaire developed by the professor of BSPU named after M. Akmulla R. Fatykhova and graduate student I. Yushchenko. The questionnaire contains 27 questions that can be answered both positively and negatively. All questions of the questionnaire can be divided into the following groups: attitude to collective events; relationships with people around; personal preferences. According to the results of the survey, high, medium and low levels of formation of the need for social activity are distinguished.

Correlation analysis was used in the generalization and analysis of empirical materials. The coefficient proposed by K. Spearman is a nonparametric indicator of the relationship between variables measured in the rank scale. This indicator characterizes the degree of tightness of the connection of ordinal features representing the ranks of the compared values. The Spearman correlation coefficient is in the range of +1 and -1.

Findings

At the first stage of our study, the formation of the need for social activity among students of 1-4 courses was revealed (figure 1 ).

See Full Size >

The data obtained indicate that all first-year students have an average level of need for socially significant activities (100%). This can be explained by the fact that the main time of freshmen is occupied by educational activities. Students with an average level of need for social activity are often ready to help others in any case, prefer to participate in various activities not constantly, but from time to time. They are active in the cultural, leisure, educational and sports spheres of life and rarely belong to any public organizations.

In the second and third years there are already groups of students (22% and 24% respectively) who have a high need for social activity. Students with a high level of need for socially significant activities manifest themselves as organizers of various events, coordinators of any activity. The activity of these students is found in such spheres of life as educational and professional. They prefer to be leaders in their group, to lead any organization, to be an organizer of various events, they want to have a high social status. This group of respondents highly assesses the chances of achieving their goals.

Analyzing the dynamics of the formation of the need for social activity, it should be noted that for the first time in the second and third years of study there are students with a low need for social activity (21% and 5.7%). As a rule, such students demonstrate an increased interest in cultural and leisure activities and comfortable pastime. They often attend various recreational activities for the purpose of recreation. They, as a rule, have no pronounced needs to be a member of any collective and take a leadership position in it. Their activities are focused on meeting their own needs and have no social benefits.

In the fourth year, the situation changes again and there is a clear division of test subjects into 2 groups: with a high (70%) and an average level of development of the need for social activity (30%). In our opinion, such results are due primarily to the process of professional self-determination, active preparation for future professional activities.

Thus, the obtained results indicate that social activity is an emerging social property of the subject, which has its specificity at each age stage in accordance with social experience.

An important condition for optimizing the potential of the individual is its activity, focus on a certain type of activity. That, what is especially important for a person, acts as the motives and goals of his activities. In this regard, at the next stage, we identified the features of the orientation of students using the method of V. Smekal-M. Kucher (as cited in Raigorodskij, 2017). The results are presented in table 1 .

As follows from the presented data, first year students have a predominant focus on the case (50%), quite distinct focus on themselves (25%), with a lesser degree of the focus on communication (8.3%). The result shows that first-year students are just entering the University life, there is a process of adaptation to the conditions of study in the University, and to new forms of interaction. As a rule, all their free time is spent studying. It is also important to note that it is at this time that students discover their inner world. Young people begin to perceive their emotions not as derivatives of external events, but as a state of their inner self, there is a sense of their own peculiarity, originality, sometimes there is a feeling of loneliness ("other people do not understand me, I am alone").

In the second year, the number of students with a focus on themselves increases (44.8%), the number of students with a focus on case decreases (31%). This result can be explained by the fact that sophomores have completed the process of adaptation to studying at the University. They are fully focused on the educational process, engaged in self-knowledge, interested in getting good results in study, strive to assert themselves.

In the third and fourth years, the number of students with a focus on case increases again-51.4% and 40%, respectively, self-focus is represented approximately equally (37.8% and 40%), and the focus on communication is 5.4% and 20%. The dominance of the focus on the case is primarily due to the close prospect of independent professional activity.

Thus, throughout the learning process, there is a change and shift in focus of the orientation of the individual, but, nevertheless, the dominant focus is on the case and on yourself.

At the stage of mathematical processing of the results of the study with the help of Spearman's rank correlation coefficient, the relationship between the orientation of the person (on himself, business, communication) and the need for social activity was determined (table 2 ).

The results of the correlation analysis show that there is a statistically significant direct correlation between the need for social activity and the orientation of the individual to communicate among students of all courses. Indeed, the development of social abilities, the assignment of ways of social and interpersonal interaction, are necessary for successful joining and functioning in the modern social environment. The solution of this problem requires the creation of conditions for the formation of the student's ability to be the subject of the process of their social development, which includes the mastery of socio-cultural ways of interpersonal interaction in social communities of different types and in different types of joint activities (teaching, communication, work, sports, art, creativity, etc.).

Focus on the case has a direct relationship with the need for social activity only with first-year students. This is quite natural, because this is where the entry into a new significant activity appears, which defines all spheres of students’ life.

A significant inverse correlation between self-orientation and the need for social activity was found with third and fourth year students. In this case, it is quite understandable, since social activity represents the social quality of man, one of its characteristics is the attitude to the social environment, which is not always expressed in actions. The leading characteristic of social activity is its social orientation. Activity is social only in those manifestations which go beyond satisfaction only of personal needs, realization of personal interests and are expressed in participation of a person in solving socially significant tasks.

Conclusion

Social activity is dynamic formation: as a person acquires experience of social activity and is included in a wider circle of communication, there is an increase in social activity. The analysis of the results showed that the need for social activity is inherent in the majority of students, but in the process of learning it undergoes changes: the older students are, the more pronounced and differentiated the need for social activity becomes.

It is shown that the orientation of the personality is a factor determining the need for social activity. A statistically significant direct correlation was found between the need for social activity and the focus on case (1 year), as well as the focus on communication (1-4 years). Significant feedback was found between the need for social activity and self-orientation (3,4%).

On the basis of the revealed interrelations the conclusion is made that the key factor of formation of need for social activity is the orientation of the person on communication, the main one - the orientation on business. The limiting factor is such features of the personality as competitiveness, ambition, power, in total determining the orientation of the personality on itself.

References

1. Abulkhanova-Slavskaya, K. A. (1991). Strategiya zhizni [Life strategy]. Moscow: Mysl.
2. Adler, A. (1964). Superiority and social interest: A collection of later writings. New York: Viking Press.
3. Brushlinskij, A. V. (1994). Problemy psikhologii subjekta [Problems of psychology of the subject]. Moscow: IP RAN.
4. Erina, I. A., & Oleynikov, N. N. (2018). Fenomen sotsialnoj aktivnosti v rabotah otechestvennyh i zarubezhnyh uchenyh [The social activity phenomenon in works of native and foreign scientists]. Problemy sovremennogo pedagogicheskogo obrazovaniya, 61-2, 295-298. Retrieved from https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/fenomen-sotsialnoy-aktivnosti-v-rabotah-otechestvennyh-i-zarubezhnyh-uchyonyh
5. Ericson, E. H. (1968). Identity: Youth and crisis. New York, London: W.W. NORTON & COMPANY.
6. Fatykhova, R. M., & Mingazova, D. V. (2016). Diagnostics of teenagers disposition to destructive communication as a way of youth extremism prevention. Global media journal, 1-5. Retrieved from https://elibrary.ru/item.asp?id=27153909
7. Freud, S. (2002). Civilization and its discontents. London: Penguin.
8. Frolov, I. T. (2001). Philosophical dictionary. Moscow: Republic.
9. Fromm, E. (1964). Man for himself. An inquiry into the psychology of ethic. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
10. Horney, K. (1945). Our inner conflicts. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.
11. Kayumova, L. H. (2015). Sotsialnaya aktivnost molodezhi kak proyavlenie ee grazhdanskoj identichnosti [Social activity of youth as a manifestation of its civic identity]. Grazhdanskoe obshchestvo v Rossii: sostoyanie, tendentsii, perspektivy, 1(4), 14-20. Retrieved from http://elibrary.udsu.ru/xmlui/bitstream/handle/123456789/13468/258.pdf?sequence=1
12. Khaikin, V. L. (2000). Aktivnost (harakteristiki i razvitie) [Activity (characteristics and development)]. Moscow: Moskovskij psikhologo-sotsialnyj institut; Voronezh: Izd-vo NPO MODEK.
13. Kharlanova, E. M. (2011). Sotsialnaya aktivnost studentov: sushchnost ponyatiya [Social activity of students: the essence of the concept]. Teoriya i praktika obshchestvennogo razvitiya, 4, 183-186.
14. Konstantinov, V. N. (1990). Sotsialnaya aktivnost i passivnost lichnosti [Social activity and passivity of the individual]. Vladimir: Vladimirskij gosudarstvennyj pedagogicheskij institut.
15. Lomov, B. F. (1999). Metodologicheskie i teoreticheskie problemy psikhologii [Methodological and theoretical problems of psychology]. Moscow: Nauka.
16. Medvedskaya, T. S. (2011). Aktivnost lichnosti: sushchnostnye priznaki, struktura i osobennosti proyavleniya v yunosheskom vozraste [Activity of personality: the essential features, structure and characteristics of symptoms in adolescence]. Moscow: RUDN.
17. Petrovskij, A. V., & Yaroshevskij, M. G. (1990). Psikhologiya. Slovar [Psychology. Dictionary]. Moscow: Politizdat.
18. Popova, S. Yu., & Selezneva, A. V. (2018). Sotsialnaya aktivnost molodezhi: sostoyanie i perspektivy razvitiya [Social activity of youth: the state and prospects of personal development]. Obrazovanie lichnosti, 2, 96-103. Retrieved from https://istina.msu.ru/publications/article/127254376/
19. Raigorodskij, D. Ya. (2017). Prakticheskaya psihodiagnostika. Metodiki i testy [Practical psychodiagnostics. Methods and tests]. Moscow: Izd-vo BahraH-M.
20. Shilyaeva, I. F. (2018). Perezhivanie odinochestva v podrostkovom vozraste: polovye i vozrastnye razlichiya [The experience of loneliness in adolescence: gender and age differences]. Vektor nauki Tolyattinskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Seriya: Pedagogika, psihologiya, 4(35), 83-87. Retrieved form https://www.elibrary.ru/item.asp?id=36634127
21. Sitarov, V. A., & Maralov, M. G. (2015). Sotsialnaya aktivnost lichnosti (urovni, kriterii, tipy i puti ee razvitiya) [The social activity of the individual (levels, criteria, types and ways of its development)]. Znanie. Ponimanie. Umenie, 4, 164-176. Retrieved form https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/sotsialnaya-aktivnost-lichnosti-urovni-kriterii-tipy-i-puti-ee-razvitiya
22. Sokolova, E. S. (2011). Sotsialnaya aktivnost sovremennoj rossijskoj molodezhi [Social activity of modern Russian youth knowledge]. Znanie. Ponimanie. Umenie, 1, 197-202. Retrieved from https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/sotsialnaya-aktivnost-sovremennoy-rossiyskoy-molodezhi.
23. Sokhadze, K. G. (2017). Sotsialnaya aktivnost rossijskoj molodezhi: masshtaby i faktory sderzhivaniya [Social activity of Russian youth: the scale and factors of deterrence]. Vestnik Rossijskogo universiteta druzhby narodov. Seriya: Sotsiologiya, 3, 348-363. Retrieved from https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/sotsialnaya-aktivnost-rossiyskoy-molodezhi-masshtaby-i-faktory-sderzhivaniya
24. Stepin, V. S. (2000). Teoreticheskoe znanie [Theoretical knowledge]. Moscow: Progress-Tradiciya.
25. Trotsuk, I. V., & Sokhadze, K. G. (2014). Sotsialnaya aktivnost molodezhi: podhody k otsenke form, motivov i faktorov proyavleniya v sovremennom rossijskom obshchestve [Social activity of youth: approaches to the assessment of forms, motives and factors of manifestation in modern Russian society]. Vestnik Rossijskogo universiteta druzhby narodov. Seriya: Sociologiya, 14, 58-72. Retrieved from https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/sotsialnaya-aktivnost-molodezhi-podhody-k-otsenke-form-motivov-i-faktorov-proyavleniya-v-sovremennom-rossiyskom-obschestve