CC BY
5Prokhanov I.S. (1911) On Measures of Spiritual Reformation in Evangelical Churches. - Moscow: Publishing house of Irpin Biblical Seminary.
Prugavin A.S. (1905) Monastery prisons in the combat against sects (on religious tolerance). - Moscow: Printing office of the Company I.N. Kushnerev and C°. - 130 p.
Complete Collection of Laws of the Russian Empire. - Saint Petersburg, №1830. Vol. 29. No 20553.
Rineker F., Mayer G. (1999) Brockhaus Bible Encyclopedia. - M.: Russian Bible Society. - 1432 p.
Suvorov N.S. (1908) Textbook of Ecclesiastic Law. - Moscow: Printing House of A.I. Snegiryova. - 348 p.
Yastrebova A.I., Salomatkin A.S., Dzhavakhyan R.M., Redkous V.M., Filonov V.I. Civil public organizations for providing a public order and their role in forming of civil society // Journal of Advanced Research in Law and Economics. - 2016. - T.7. - №2. - C.417-425.
PSYCHOLOGICAL STUDY OF PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS OF ADOLESCENTS PRONE TO SELF-ISOLATION
The author examines the personal characteristics of adolescents who are prone to self-isolation, which can manifest itself at different levels: individual, social, and deep psychological. The paper characterises kinds and types of social self-isolation. The work reveals that the studied group of adolescents is characterized by introversion, increased neuroticism, low self-esteem, average indicators of well-being, activity, mood, average level of loneliness and social isolation. The identified personal characteristics of adolescents who are prone to self-isolating behavior, compared with the data of various researchers, indicate that the lack of normal social contacts negatively affects the psychological development of adolescents. There is a fairly large percentage of deformations in all socially significant areas of relations of these students, which makes it possible with a high degree of probability to predict unfavorable variants of their development without targeted intervention at the level of psychological assistance and psychocorrection. On the basis of the study, the author formulates recommendations for taking into account the data obtained in the course of diagnosis, describes models of social and emotional regulation, motivation, and self-discovery.
Keywords
self-isolation, adolescents, personality traits, diagnostics
AUTHOR
Svetlana V. Pazukhina,
Doctor of Psychology, Associate Professor Head of the Department of Psychology and Pedagogy, Tula State Lev Tolstoy Pedagogical University, Tula 125, Lenin Avenue, Tula, 300026, Russia pazuhina@mail.ru
1. Introduction
Self-isolation or social isolation is the social phenomenon of the separation of an individual from other individuals and social groups, as a result of the termination or sharp
reduction of social contacts and relationships (L. N. Galiguzova, 2005). It can manifest itself at different levels: individual, social, and deep psychological.
Social isolation is characterized by the deliberate avoidance of any contact with other people when such opportunities actually arise. It may include staying at home for a long period of time, not communicating with family, friends, acquaintances, etc. It is important to note that it differs from loneliness, which reflects a temporary and involuntary lack of contact with other people, while self-isolation is conscious and intentional (M. S. Millioner, V. V. Sobolnikov, 2016).
Self-isolation arises as a response to the real world, the desire of the individual to escape from reality, hide from problems and stay alone with oneself in the comfort zone. Experiencing constant stress, workload in school, problems in personal life, lack of understanding on the part of society, a person seems to be "stuck" in a comfort zone that brings them peace of mind and helps to distract from pressing problems. Life outside of this zone is perceived as gray, uninteresting, and sometimes even hostile.
There are also different types of social self-isolation according to its initiator. If the initiator is the individual, then we are talking about voluntary, conscious self-isolation. It occurs under the influence of two factors: on their own will or belief; because of subjective factors. An individual can be isolated from a particular person - pleasant or unpleasant for the subject, from a specific group of people who are important to the subject, from society as a whole (or from the majority of it) - this is an extreme case. Examples include monks, hermits, etc.
If the initiator of the social isolation of an individual is a group, then this is usually associated with a break in relations, a boycott, when other members of the social group minimize any communication with this individual. The reason for this phenomenon is often a violation of the norms and rules of morality of this society. Sometimes this situation results in the voluntary withdrawal of the individual from the group or the expulsion of the individual from the group (T. O. Zakomoldina, 2011).
The initiator of social isolation can also be the society. In this case, this refers to forced isolation. A person is isolated from society, for example, in places of deprivation of liberty, in hospitals with compulsory treatment, etc. In the case of forced social isolation during the pandemic, according to D. V. Sochivko and T. A. Simakova, two main scenarios were realized: the self-actualization reaction and the desocialization reaction. That is, some people in conditions of self-isolation lose their personality in various aspects, while others find an opportunity for self-actualization and personal growth (D. V. Sochivko, T. A. Simakova, 2020).
Also, isolation is divided into complete isolation, when a person completely lacks both personal contacts with other people, and indirect ways of communicating with them (phone, Internet, etc.). Such isolation from the whole society is the hardest test. Currently, there is physical isolation, not least because of the coronavirus pandemic. It is characterized by the fact that a teenager who does not have the opportunity or desire to meet in person, freely communicates with other people via the Internet or phone. Another type of self-isolation is formal communication. At the same time, the individual seems to be a member of the group, but he/she does not have informal communication in this group, there are no friends, all communication is reduced either to formal appeals about, for example, lessons, or to a phatic dialogue, in which speech statements do not carry any semantic load, i.e., in fact, this is meaningless communication. This type of isolation from the people around you occurs when you get into a completely different environment when moving to another city, moving to a new school, when entering one of the groups, for example, in a summer camp, or in the case of rejection of an individual outcast in a closed group.
The need for solitude in adolescence is psychologically justified, since teenagers can comprehend the events and changes taking place in their life, evaluate themselves and
their relationships with others only on their own. The phenomenon of youth social self-isolation exists in many countries characterized by similar socio-economic conditions (examples include hikikomori, NEET, etc. (L. O. Semenova, 2020; M. A. Yadova, 2017). However, the constant desire of a teenager to be alone can be a warning signal of destructive changes in his/her inner world.
The consequences of self-isolation of adolescents, the lack of normal social contacts, have a negative impact on the still unstable psyche of adolescents (E. N. Vlasova, 2000). Suicidal states, apathy, aggression towards relatives and friends, hostility towards oneself (self-harm and other types of self-destructive behavior) develop; addictions are formed (computer, gaming, internet addiction, food addiction, etc.); cognitive health is getting impaired (Louise C. Hawkley, John P. Capitanio, 2015), stress and anxiety; confusion; psychological disorders with long-term consequences begin to manifest (Samantha K Brooks, Rebecca K Webster, Louise E Smith, Lisa Woodland, Simon Wessely, Neil Green-berg, Gideon James Rubin, 2020; Catherine Offord, 2020). In this regard, the problem of studying the causes of self-isolating behavior and personal characteristics of adolescents who are prone to self-isolation is relevant.
2. Materials and Methods
The purpose of the study: based on the theoretical analysis of psychological and pedagogical literature and Internet sources, as well as diagnostic work, to identify the personal characteristics of adolescents who are prone to self-isolation.
Tasks: 1) to study the phenomenon of social self-isolation in adolescents, to describe its types; 2) to identify the causes of self-isolation of adolescents; 3) to select and describe a diagnostic research program aimed at identifying the personal characteristics of adolescents who are prone to self-isolation; 4) to analyze and interpret the results of the diagnosis of the personal characteristics of adolescents who are prone to self-isolation.
Research methods: 1) theoretical: analysis of psychological and pedagogical sources on the topic of research, synthesis and generalization; 2) empirical: ascertaining cross-section, questionnaires, testing; 3) data processing methods: qualitative and quantitative analysis of research results.
Methods used: 1) Eysenck Personality Inventory. Author of the methodology: H. Ey-senck. The goal is to identify the level of extroversion and introversion; 2) the method of "Self-assessment of the individual". Author of the methodology: O. I. Motkov. The goal is to study the general level of self-esteem, its adequacy or inadequacy; 3) the questionnaire "Well-being, activity, mood". Authors of the methodology: V. A. Doskin, N. A. Lavrentieva, V. B. Sharai, M. P. Miroshnikov. The goal is to determine how favorable the state of well-being, activity, and mood of the respondent is; 4) the scale of subjective feelings of loneliness. Authors of the method: D. Russell, M. Ferguson. The goal is to determine the level of loneliness and social isolation of a person.
The study involved students of secondary school grades 7-9 at the age of 14 to 16 years.
3. Results
Based on the results of the study to identify the personal characteristics of adolescents who are prone to self-isolation, empirical results of interest for the analysis have been obtained.
According to the method of H. Eysenck, indicators have been measured on two main scales: extraversion / introversion and neuroticism. When interpreting the scores on the extroversion / introversion scale, we have assumed that a person who scores 0-4 points is a pronounced introvert, 5-9 is an introvert, 10-14 is an ambivert, 15-19 is an extrovert,
and 20-24 is a pronounced extrovert. The interpretation of scores on the neuroticism scale is based on the fact that 0-7 points have indicated a low level of neuroticism, 8-13 - an average level of neuroticism, 14-19 - a high level of neuroticism, 20-24 - a very high level of neuroticism. The average arithmetic score on the extroversion /introversion scale in the sample is 9, on the neuroticism scale 15.
Most of the subjects have been classified as introverts (50%), 17% - as pronounced introverts. The average level of neuroticism is characteristic of 50% of schoolchildren, a high level of neuroticism is detected in 17% of the respondents, a very high level - in 34% of the subjects. It can be concluded that all participants in the diagnosis are characterized by neuroticism to one degree or another.
The results of the study according to the method of O. I. Motkova has been interpreted on the scale of general self-assessment of positive aspects of the personality. The results have been processed as follows: we calculate the arithmetic mean of all the answers of the subject, determine the total amount of points and divide it by the number of points of the method, i.e. by 24, and thus get an indicator of the overall self-assessment of the positivity of personal development. The level is determined by the range of points spread: the high level corresponded to the interval in points from 3.71 to 4.50, the average - 2.91-3.70 to the interval in points, the low- 1.00-2.90.
The average arithmetic score on the scale of general self-assessment of positive aspects of personality in the study sample is 2.6.
According to the results of the method, it has been found that the majority of the subjects (66%) have a low level of general self-esteem. 34% of the subjects have an average level of general self-esteem. The low level of general self-esteem has indicated that the teenager is not confident enough, indecisive, shy, overly cautious, and especially in need of the approval and support of others.
The results of the study according to the method "Well-being, activity, mood" by V. A. Doskin, N. A. Lavrentieva, V. B. Sharai and M. P. Miroshnikova have been analyzed according to the scales: the scale of well-being, the scale of activity, the scale of mood. The interpretation of the scores has been based on the correlation of the results obtained with the key. On the well-being scale, 10 to 30 points have indicated poor health, 31 to 50 points have indicated average health, and 51 to 70 points have indicated good health. On the activity scale, 10 to 30 points have indicated low activity, 31 to 50 points have indicated medium activity, and 51 to 70 points have indicated high activity. On the mood scale, 10-30 points-speak about the prevailing bad mood in the teenager, 31-50 points -about the average mood, 51-70 points - about a good mood. The average arithmetic score on the well-being scale in the study sample is 44, on the activity scale - 44.6, on the mood scale - 43.8.
Based on the results obtained, the following conclusions can be drawn: on the scale of well-being, good health is typical for 34% of the subjects, average well-being for 66%, bad health has not been detected. According to the activity scale, high activity is characteristic of 34 %, average activity - 66% of adolescents, low activity is not detected. According to the mood scale, a bad mood prevails in 17% of respondents, an average mood -in 66%, a good mood - in 17 %.
The results of the study using the method "Scale of subjective feelings of loneliness" by D. Russell, M. Ferguson revealed the level of loneliness and social isolation in adolescents. Data ranging from 0 to 22 points have indicated a low level of loneliness, from 23 to 43 points - an average level of loneliness and social isolation, from 44 to 63 points - a high level of loneliness and social isolation. The average arithmetic score on the scale of subjective feelings of loneliness in the study sample is 32.8.
According to the results of the method, it has been found that the average level of loneliness and social isolation prevails in all the subjects. The average level of loneliness
and social isolation have indicated that the subjects are not rejected and have their own social circle, but would like to expand it.
4. Discussions
The results of the study, the revealed personal characteristics of adolescents with a tendency to self-isolating behavior, correlated with the data of other researchers, indicate a sufficiently large percentage of deformations in all socially significant areas of relations of such adolescents, which with a high degree of probability allows predicting unfavorable variants of their development without targeted intervention at the level of psychological assistance and psychocorrection work.
Social isolation is both a potential cause and a symptom of emotional or psychological problems. As a cause, the perceived inability to interact with the world and other people can create a growing picture of these problems. Studies show that social self-isolation is a risk factor and can contribute to deterioration of general cognitive functions and lower executive functioning, faster cognitive decline, more negative and depressive cognition, suicidal risks, apathy, the emergence of addictions, increased sensitivity to social threats and confirmation of self-defense.
There are psychological, social and behavioral factors that contribute to social self-isolation. Most recluses have grown up in overprotective and affluent families - in such conditions, it is quite difficult to learn to be independent of parental support. In other words, such teenagers are not sufficiently motivated to leave their comfort zone and stop being afraid of interactions with the outside world. Often, self-isolating behavior provokes high expectations of parents regarding the professional career of their children in the future.
Social isolation can begin in early childhood. This may be the result of feelings of shame, guilt, or alienation in childhood. Social isolation can also be caused by developmental disabilities. People with learning disabilities may have problems with social interaction (Kenneth, H Rubin, Julie C Bowker, Robert J Coplan, 2009). Learning difficulties can greatly affect a child's self-esteem and dignity. An example is the situation when a child is left to study in the same form for the second year. In early childhood, the need to conform and be accepted is paramount. Lack of learning, in turn, can lead to a sense of isolation, the formation of the child's idea that he/she is somehow "different" from others. Existing research shows that the development of a sense of belonging in adolescents is an important factor in adolescence for creating social and emotional well-being and academic performance. Socially isolated children tend to have lower levels of educational achievement, social fulfillment, and career aspirations, and are more likely to experience psychological stress in adulthood.
A great potential in this process is given to the development of self-regulation of the loneliness of minors in conditions of social isolation (V. V. Sobolnikov, 2016). Various recommendations are offered on how to help adolescents to get out of self-isolation (K. Khlo-mov, 2021).
5. Conclusion
After conducting diagnostic techniques and analyzing the results, conclusions can be drawn about the personal characteristics of adolescents who are prone to self-isolation. 66% of them are introverts, 34% are extroverts. This suggests that most introverted schoolchildren are predisposed to social self-isolation. Introverts prefer immersion in the world of imagination and reflection, they are calm, shy, distant from all but close people, keep their feelings under control. Another personal characteristic of adolescents who are prone to self-isolation is neuroticism. Neuroticism characterizes emotional stability or instability. Our subjects have been found to have high and medium levels of neuroticism. Based
on the analysis of the data obtained, it can be said that adolescents who are prone to social self-isolation have such types of temperament as melancholic and phlegmatic. Melancholic people are anxious, reserved, rigid, emotional and sensitive. Phlegmatic people are calm, passive, reasonable, sensitive and peaceful. A low level of self-esteem is found in 66% of the subjects, the average - in 34%. Low personal self-esteem is closely associated with feelings of guilt, shame, fear, and sometimes hostility to the outside world. Such people are sensitive to criticism, pessimistic, dependent, and suggestible. The average level of self-esteem indicates that a person accepts oneself and has dignity. On the basis of the results of the methodology 'Well-being, activity, mood" by V. A. Doskin, N. A. La-vrentieva, V. B. Sharai and M. P. Miroshnikova, it is concluded that good health is typical for 34 % of the subjects, average health for 66%, poor health is not detected; high activity is characteristic of 34 % of adolescents, average activity - 66%, low activity is not detected; bad mood prevails in 17 %, average mood-in 66% of respondents, good mood in 17 %. These are the average figures for the average person. Also, 100% of the subjects have an average level of loneliness and social isolation, which indicates their desire to expand their social circle, or to include close people in it.
6. Recommendations
Based on the data obtained, recommendations can be formulated. Different models can be used in working with adolescents who are prone to self-isolating behavior.
The model of social and emotional regulation of behavior has been proposed by Kenneth Rubin. His concept analyzes the problems of difficulties that arise in the child's relationship with the surrounding world. According to this model, the social and emotional development of the child is regulated by the interaction of intraindividual, interindividual and macrosystem forces.
The motivational model developed by J. Eisendorf connects the causes of social isolation with the mechanisms of motivation of approach and avoidance. Due to violations in the interaction of these motives, there are difficulties in communication. Variants of violations of motivational motives: low approach motivation; conflict of approach and avoidance motivations; combination of high social approach motive and low avoidance motive.
The model of "self-discovery" through the formation of reflexive structures is described by V. V. Sobolnikov. The technology of reflexive self-development in this model is aimed at the formation of self-governing mechanisms of the individual.
When working with adolescents who are prone to self-isolation, it is important to identify the cause of this behavior. It is necessary first of all for parents to show a sincere interest, a desire to help their child, and not wait for everything to pass by itself. In a conversation, it is advisable to use soft, friendly intonations, to stand the dialogue as tactfully and confidentially as possible. The main purpose of such communication is to show the child that the family appreciates and sincerely loves him/her, that he/she is important to them. It is advisable to try to involve the teenager in joint activities. This can be off-line shopping, cleaning the apartment, walking in the park, hiking, cycling, family visits to the cinema, joint sports, fishing, etc. It is not recommended to leave a teenager alone for a long time. Lost in his/her own thoughts, he/she can come to destructive conclusions. It is necessary to understand that such teenagers are tormented by constant doubts about themselves. They need to be helped to believe in their own importance, the need for others. You shouldn't ask too much of them. It is advisable to try to help them in setting a significant goal and start unobtrusively helping them to achieve it. The most important thing is to restore the teenager's self-confidence, increase self-esteem, help them to believe again that they are capable of much, and continue to maintain this confidence in them. If necessary, you need to persuade the child to visit a specialist psychologist.
The problem of social self-isolation is extremely relevant today, but experimental studies devoted to identifying its various aspects are clearly not enough. In this regard, it is important in the future to study the causes of social self-isolation, the early forms of social isolation of children, the mechanisms of its occurrence and the connection with the subsequent socio-emotional development of the forecast of future difficulties in communicating with other people.
REFERENCES
Galiguzova, L.N. (1996). The problem of social isolation of children. Psychological issues. 3 (101-116).
Sobolnikov, V. V. & Millioner, M. S. (2016). Loneliness of minors in conditions of social isolation: conceptual-categorical discourse. World of science, culture, education: scientific journal. 2 (299-301).
Zakomoldina, T. O. (2011). Social exclusion as a factor of social conflict. Scientific notes of the Russian state social university. 2 (9-11).
Sochivko, D. V. & Simakova, T. A. Method of research of psychological effects of self-isolation. Applied legal psychology. 3 (19-56).
Semenova. L. O. (2020). Phenomenon of hikikomori or voluntary self-isolation from society. Skif. Student science questions. 4 (712-716).
Yadova, M. A. (2017). Hikikomori and NEET: Features of Social Self-Isolation in the Youth Environment. Social and Humanitarian Sciences. Domestic and foreign literature. 18 (5-15).
Vlasova, E. N. (2000). The influence of social isolation on the personality of a juvenile offender in a temporary isolation center: dissertation for the degree of candidate of psychological sciences. Moscow.
Louise, C. Hawkley & John P. Capitanio (2015). Perceived social isolation, evolutionary fitness and health outcomes: a lifespan approach. Philosophical Transactions of The Royal Society B Biological Sciences. 370(1669). DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2014.0114.
Samantha K Brooks, Rebecca K Webster, Louise E Smith, Lisa Woodland, Prof Simon Wessely, Prof Neil Greenberg & Gideon James Rubin (2020). The psychological impact of quarantine and how to reduce it: rapid review of the evidence. Review Lancet. 395(10227), (912-920). DOI: 10.1016 / S0140-6736 (20) 30460-8
Catherine Offord (2020). How Social Isolation Affects the Brain. The Scientist Magazine. URL: https://www.the-scientist.com/features/how-social-isolation-affects-the-brain-67701 (date of the application: 10.05.2021).
Sobolnikov, V. V. (2016). Reflection of self-regulation of loneliness of minors in conditions of social isolation. Siberian Pedagogical Journal. 5 (134-141).
Kenneth, H Rubin, Julie C Bowker & Robert J Coplan (2009). Social Withdrawal in Childhood. Annual Review of Psychology. 60(1), (141-171). DOI: 10.1146 / annurev.psych.60.110707.163642.
Khlomov, K. (2021). How to help teenagers get out of self-isolation? Says a psychologist // URL: https://how-toreadmedia.ru/ru/what_is_media/read/kak-pomoch-podrostkam-vyyti-iz-samoizolyatsii (date accessed: 05.10.2021).
