ACTIVITY APPROACH IN THE STUDY OF EMOTIONAL SPHERE

Abstract

Rudimentary theory of emotions develops an evolutionary idea of the origin of emotions, evaluating them from the behavioural sphere. After the publication of works by Ch. Darwin, a number of psychologists (G. Spencer and his students, T. Ribot and his scientific school, part of the school of German biologically oriented psychology) began to develop ideas about the biological origin of human emotions from the affective and instinctive reactions of animals. It is assumed that emotions are the residual manifestations of affects that once accompanied the complete biological reactions.In accordance with the biological theory of emotions of P. Anokhin, emotions in the process of evolution have been perfected in the same way as muscles, eyesight and hearing. The system of emotions is the most developed system in human, because it, along with biological needs, there are physiological needs. The leading emotions with a negative sign signal the body about the deviation in its internal environment, which activates the corresponding program of action. Completion of purposeful actions is accompanied by a positive emotional background, which is fixed in the memory of the animal as «receiving a reward.»The need-information theory of emotions of P. Simonov develops the idea of P. Anokhin that the quality of emotion should be considered from the standpoint of the effectiveness of behaviour. All sensory diversity of emotions is reduced to the ability to quickly assess the possibility or impossibility of actively acting, that is indirectly tied to the activating system of the brain. Emotion is represented as some kind of force that manages the appropriate program of action and in which the quality of this program is recorded.The united concept of consciousness and emotions of Yu. Alexandrov creates an idea of emotions in terms of system psychophysiology. The system approach allows deeper to determine the place of emotions in the organization of brain processes. A division is made between behaviour and emotions, and the latter are defined as the phenomenon of the sensory sphere, the equivalent of consciousness.