Personal adaptation is a psychological adaptation to environmental changes. The main component of psychological adaptation is a person’s adaptation to the demands of society and his own desires. Psychological adaptation implies the assimilation of the traditions of a social group and the values accepted here. It is found everywhere. We need to adapt to the situation in kindergarten, at school, at work, in an unfamiliar company.
Socio-psychological adaptation
This is the first type of process under consideration, which is usually distinguished separately. This term refers to the purposeful, actively carried out by a person assimilation of the values, rules and norms of society. Moreover, both global and the one in which he lives. This means the immediate environment - family, kindergarten, school, lyceum, group at the university, company of comrades, work collective.
Social psychological adaptation is a process that is impossible without communication and interaction with other people. It is built on such “pillars” as:
- upbringing;
- general education;
- vocational and labor training.
The process takes different times. It all depends on the situation to which a person needs to adapt, as well as on his individual characteristics. It can be argued that he has successfully socialized if, as a result of this process, he achieves:
- align your goals with public values;
- coexist with other people while remaining yourself;
- make the right decisions;
- make plans for the future;
- take the initiative;
- acquire new skills, abilities and knowledge, develop existing ones;
- establish emotionally rich and close relationships with other people.
All this helps a person not only function safely in society, but also adapt the environment around him to suit himself. He easily changes, creates and transforms conditions in such a way that they satisfy his needs and contribute to the achievement of certain goals.
Problems with adaptation in society
They occur in many people. And this is called maladaptation. It happens in situations where a person fails to cope with the difficulties of new conditions, assert himself and improve relationships with others. It is difficult for him to take a comfortable position.
Problems arise for two reasons. These are either external, environmental factors (society itself), or personal characteristics of a person (uncertainty, lack of communication skills, etc.).
The first reason does not depend on the will of man. But internal factors are in most cases a very specific psychological problem. And a person, as a rule, knows about its presence. But either he doesn’t want to or can’t eliminate it.
Also, difficulties with adaptation are experienced by individuals whom society systematically infringes, suppresses and places excessive demands on them. Because of this, many people “break down,” which often leads to psychopathology.
The most obvious sign of maladjustment is the painful experience of intrapersonal or interpersonal conflicts. And this becomes the reason why a person is unable to satisfy his needs or meet the requirements imposed by society.
Signs of pathology
Symptoms of adjustment disorder are not always pronounced and may differ in each individual case, which complicates the diagnosis process. The main symptoms are of an anxious and depressive nature. Maladjustment is accompanied by a feeling of inability to cope with the troubles that appear in life. With pathology, the patient becomes suspicious and irritable. Most people note the appearance of a feeling of internal tension. Psychiatry of adaptation disorder has information that it is accompanied by:
- Anxiety;
- Persistent anxiety;
- Internal discomfort;
- Violations in normal behavior.
In patients with pathology, the mood worsens. In especially severe cases, a sad state appears. A person becomes uninterested in his usual activities. A person becomes physically and mentally exhausted, so he cannot make informed decisions. He does not analyze the situation and is not responsible for the decisions made.
Disadaptation has a vague clinical picture, so when the first suspicious symptoms appear, it is recommended to seek help from a specialist who will correctly diagnose and prescribe effective treatment.
Why do problems appear?
It is necessary to answer this question. Psychological adaptation is a very complex process. The problems associated with it have been studied by many domestic and foreign specialists. Among them are J. Kelly, S.L. Rubinstein, L.S. Vygotsky, A. Adler, Z. Freud, K. Rogers and many others.
Of particular interest are the views and methods of socio-psychological adaptation of Abraham Harold Maslow. He claims that problems with this process in humans arise due to the presence of metapathologies. These are mental disorders that develop due to a real or perceived inability to satisfy one's meta-needs.
This theory has made a significant contribution to the understanding of the topic of maladjustment, so it is worth considering separately.
Metaneeds and metapathologies
These concepts are directly related to the topic of problems of psychological adaptation. Metaneeds are the highest human needs. These include:
- Freedom.
- Integrity.
- Beauty.
- Justice.
- Self-respect.
- Gratitude.
- Self-realization.
- Creative self-actualization.
- Honor.
- Self-transcendence.
If a person does not receive any of the above (what is very important and valuable for him), then metapathologies are formed:
- Anger and hatred.
- Inability to love and show feelings.
- Apathy.
- Loss of interest in life.
- Egocentrism.
- Depression.
- Despair.
- The habit of shifting responsibility to others.
- Impatience.
- Vulgarity.
Naturally, metapathologies interfere with the process of psychological adaptation. Because they cause distortion of value development. Many people are deprived of justice, honesty, kindness, and therefore compassion, nobility, respect for other people, their views, values and feelings are alien to them.
A perfect person is not born. But you need to strive for self-improvement. The more harmonious and holistic a person becomes, the easier psychological adaptation is for him. And this makes life in society much easier.
How to adapt?
This is a question many people ask. Adaptation is a complex and continuous process. Almost every person is constantly in changing conditions. Kindergarten, school, university, army, one job, another, transfer to a new place... A person is simply forced to look for ways to “place” himself in a given situation and environment as comfortably and conveniently as possible.
And relationships with other people help you adapt. This is a way to get support. It is worth starting relationships with those people who seem similar to a person. If he likes someone, then there is a chance that it will be mutual - that’s how people are made. By unobtrusively showing kindness, a person receives it in return.
Many people have problems with adaptation precisely because it is difficult for them to find a common language with others, get used to new people, and get to know each other. Nowadays, learning to communicate is not so difficult - there is the Internet and social networks where you can make virtual friends and try to build relationships with them first.
But what about in reality? They say that to gain people's favor, you don't even need to speak. It is enough just to listen carefully to others. A good listener is worth his weight in gold, because nowadays most people only talk about themselves.
Sooner or later, such a person begins to be asked for advice, get an opinion, and ask for an assessment. And thus integration into society occurs. The main thing is not to be a listener to the detriment of yourself, that is, spend only some of your free time on it.
Children: special age, special attitude
Childhood adaptation is a particularly sensitive issue. As a rule, problems first arise when the child needs to be sent to a nursery or kindergarten. Over time, the time comes to get the child ready for school, and parents and children again face adaptation problems. The first days are the hardest. To facilitate this stage, it is necessary to take into account the characteristics of the baby’s age. Psychologists who specialize in the problems of children’s adaptation to educational institutions come to the aid of parents.
A special feature of adaptation in kindergarten is the abundance of negative emotions at first. Babies tend to be capricious and cry, whine. For some, the negative state is expressed in fear - the child is afraid of the unknown, new people, especially adults. Stress can trigger anger. It is possible to show aggression towards anyone and anything. During the adaptation period, some children exhibit depression, lethargy, and lethargy.
To somewhat smooth out the transition, positive emotions should be provided, and they should be associated for the child with the new place. An abundant option is a selection of incentives, games, and rewards that the baby receives for adequate behavior. Over time, negative emotions will completely give way to positive ones. Parents should be prepared for the fact that the child will have trouble sleeping for the first time after starting to attend a child care facility, even if such difficulties have not previously been observed. Restless sleep, waking up in tears or screaming is a problem that ends on its own by the time the adaptation stage is completed.
Adaptation in childhood
One of the most important stages in the life of any person. Each of us went through psychological adaptation to school.
Entering this educational institution is an exciting and difficult period, both for a first-grader and for his parents. Everything changes: from the social situation to the child’s social circle. The demands placed on him are increasing, and his range of responsibilities is expanding significantly. And how successful the psychological adaptation to learning will be will determine his academic performance, well-being and even health.
Psychologists call the age of 6-7 years a crisis. It is at this stage that the need for initiative, activity and independence is formed. The child loses his spontaneity, his self-esteem begins to form, he tries himself in the role of a schoolchild, a student. Play activities fade into the background, and studies come to the fore. Naturally, the child begins to strive for independence. In addition, it is during this period that verbal and logical thinking, attention and memory actively develop.
In addition to all this, he also has to adapt to unusual conditions. Getting to know your classmates, building relationships with the teacher, having to sit still patiently for long periods of time and being disciplined. This is very difficult for a child, since all of the above requires organization and responsibility.
It is not surprising that difficulties result in such consequences as poor appetite, increased fatigue, headaches, moodiness, depression, frequent mood swings, and even anger and a negative attitude towards school.
To prevent this from happening, parents and teachers must help the child. Respect, love, support, as well as a competent explanation of what is happening in simple words - this is very important. As a rule, within two to three months children integrate into school life.
Diagnostic measures
Only a qualified specialist can determine maladjustment. It determines the development of somatic symptoms in children and adolescents and alarming signs in older people, which indicate the progression of pathology. The diagnosis is made in accordance with the diagnostic criteria of DSM-III-R:
- Reactions to overt psychosocial stresses that occur within three months.
- The nature of maladjustment. At this stage of diagnosis, the presence of impairments in school or work and symptoms that should not be present during stress are determined.
- The duration of the maladjustment reaction is more than 6 months.
In case of maladaptation, differential diagnosis is recommended. Pathology must be distinguished from conditions such as disorders that appear due to the use of psychoactive drugs, post-traumatic disorders that occur due to stress, and aromatization.
Controversy
This word perfectly characterizes the adaptation process. Why? Because on the one hand, a person must “merge” into society. But on the other hand, to separate yourself from it in order to remain yourself.
It is very difficult to maintain balance, since in our time, in the conditions of all-encompassing changes, it is disrupted. Due to fundamental changes in almost all spheres of life, the functions of socialization institutions have also become different.
Modern people often simply cannot keep up with such a rapid pace of events. Many cannot even understand what to focus on - life values change, and life goes on at such a rhythm that some are unable to stop and reflect on what they really exist for.
Social institutions
It is through them that the process of socialization is carried out. It is their task to correct and shape social qualities, to activate or limit the impact of certain factors on people.
Since many old institutions have been lost, it is necessary to develop new technologies of socialization. Their implementation will not only satisfy the needs of society, its individual groups and individuals. This will contribute to the fact that a person will begin to learn to “process” the principles of his behavior and relate it to certain situations and conditions.
Professional adaptation
This is another concept worth considering. In this case, other psychological features of adaptation are highlighted. This is due to internal and external circumstances. Indeed, in this case, the process of a person’s entry into a professional environment and interaction with it is considered.
What exactly do the factors of psychological adaptation include:
- Features of the goals and content of the organization, the means and technologies it uses.
- The uniqueness of the social and labor conditions in which people work.
Internal circumstances are the level of adaptive potential. The external ones, which include professional spheres and subject areas, are a kind of “field” on which a person has to realize himself. What exactly are the tasks facing him:
- Get used to the “rhythm” of the organization: the regime, intensity of activity, goals, means, technologies.
- Adapt to the requirements of labor and production discipline, learn organizational rules and regulations.
- Master professional-role social functions.
- Begin to live up to your socio-professional status (teacher, doctor, lawyer, etc.).
- Accept socio-psychological role functions, unwritten norms, values, rules, relationships in the organization and work team.
- To integrate into the social circumstances in which professional activity takes place (political, legal, ethnic, religious sphere).
All of the above requires a certain level of preparedness. As a rule, the implementation of these tasks does not represent much difficulty for a person, since he is already familiar with socio-psychological adaptation. The technique, of course, is somewhat different, since the situation is different, but at least he knows what awaits him.
Features of the adaptation period
Social adaptation of children when they begin attending an educational institution usually involves a deterioration in appetite. Psychologists explain this by the atypical, unusual taste of food, and a new diet. Stress leads to disruption of the receptors responsible for the perception of taste. If your appetite returns to normal, you can confidently talk about successful adaptation to a new place.
Sometimes parents note that in childhood adaptation is accompanied by a temporary deterioration in vocabulary. Psychologists explain this by a person’s tendency to use the simplest possible verbal structures in a complex stressful situation, when it is necessary to get used to a new environment. To some extent this is a defense mechanism. There is no need to panic: if adaptation proceeds normally, over time the vocabulary will increase again, and the functionality of speech will be completely restored.
Another manifestation of adaptation is a weakening of activity, the desire to learn, and a decrease in curiosity. The inhibited state is replaced by normal activity towards the end of the habituation period. In addition, the first month of visiting a new facility is usually accompanied by a deterioration in the immune system. Many people are susceptible to colds. The causes of the disease are psychological, much less often physiological. Under the influence of stress, the body's defenses weaken and the ability to resist aggressive factors decreases. As soon as emotional stability is achieved, the tendency to get sick goes away.
Ecological adaptation
This topic also needs to be addressed with attention. Environmental adaptation is a psychophysiological reaction of a person and his body to changing environmental conditions, in which the biological and genetic characteristics of higher regulatory functions are involved.
Theoretical analysis showed that the study of this topic is the most difficult problem of interaction between people and the environment from the point of view of clinical physiology. This topic remains relevant to this day.
The main feature of socio-psychological adaptation to the influence of environmental factors (social and emotional) depends on gender identity (role relationships in society) and the so-called psychological gender (androgyny, masculinity, femininity). But neither inversion nor complete coincidence is a guarantee that a person will quickly get used to constantly changing external conditions.
As a result of diagnosing psychological adaptation in ecology, only one thing is clear - this process is directly related to both the biological and psychophysiological levels.
Theory…
The conditions of adaptation, the rules of this process and the features regulating its course have more than once become the object of study by prominent minds of our world. Abroad, Eysenck's definition is currently most widely used, as well as expanded versions formed by his followers. This approach involves treating adaptation as a state of satisfying the needs of an object and the environment, as well as the process during which such harmony is achieved. Thus, adaptation presupposes a harmonious balance between nature and man, the individual and the environment.
There is an opinion that psychological adaptation in the workplace involves changing the process of familiarizing a new employee with his obligations and with the company as a whole. The process must be subject to environmental requirements.
Personnel adaptation, if we follow from the conclusions in Egorshin’s works, is the adaptation of the team to environmental conditions outside and inside the enterprise. Employee adaptation, accordingly, is the result of the process of adapting a person to colleagues and the workplace.
