DIGITAL DAILY LIFE OF GLAMOUR AND RISKS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDREN’S SELF-AWARENESS

Abstract

Cultural-historical clinical psychology understands a disorder in the development of personality as a product of culture. Namely, the disorder represents self-awareness, which incorporates images and confl icts already existing in the culture and interiorized by children. In this framework, this paper discusses glamor trends in children’s subculture, particularly among children aged between six and eight, and their infl uence on children’s behaviors and interests. In the Russian society, glamor subculture became popular in the late s and remains widespread nowadays. The paper analyses textual and visual contents of musical clips aimed at children of the above-mentioned age group and performed by children of approximately the same age. A special emphasis was made on popular songs with millions of views, which are easily available online (e.g., on YouTube). These provide material for reconstruction of values promoted among children by the popular culture. Many of these values are a part and parcel of glamor subculture. Moreover, the paper discusses reception of these values among children. The original method developed by Natalia Burlakova and Viktoria Uvarkina “Choose the Photo You Like Most” aids to investigate personal identifi cations of children and the degree of internalization of promoted values. The method includes choosing a preferred photo and discussing it with the psychologist. The results of the test are supplemented with the complaints voiced by parents during psychological consultations. The analyzed materials demonstrate the active presence of glamor in children’s popular culture. The glamor values are internalized by children to a signifi cant degree and are often refl ected in children’s behaviors (e.g., value of being cool, interest in the luxury brands, scrupulous process of choosing clothes). Embracement of this trend produces specifi c risks for children’s self-awareness. These include inattentiveness to authentic inner experience and self-expression, concentration on external appearance, attributes of social status and neglect to other values.