The Problem of Human Agency in Contemporary International Science

Abstract

Analysis of the current state of the problem of human agency (proactivity) in the international discourse reveals its high relevance and acuity. The issue is widely discussed both in the field of theory and in applied research, f.ex., on education and management. The problem of agency has become so important due to the radical changes in human life in the recent years. In the international discourse we observe not only a great variety of approaches, but also the lack of consensus on the conceptual apparatus and methods used to measure proactivity. Such concepts are used as: internal locus of control, proactive coping with problems, personality potential, entrepreneurial personality type, self-determination, self-regulation, and a number of others. The central place in this emerging discourse is occupied by the concept of “agency”. A promising area of research on human proactivity deals with the sphere of volition. When the concept of “agency” is used, they are mainly discussing holistic behavioral manifestations related to specific socio-cultural contexts, while studies addressing the problem of volition (will) focus on psychological mechanisms. However, in fact, both discourses address similar phenomenological concerns. The movement towards integration between the discourse of volition with the discourse of agency seems to be a prospective direction in the development of studies on human proactivity. Studies of volition draws heavily on neuropsychology. On the one hand, this provides colossal advantages, on the other hand, it may have limitations associated with a fundamental underestimation of the real “external” activity of a person as a whole, and an excessive focus on “intra-brain” processes (with all the obvious importance the latter). The central point for understanding the nature of a person’s proactivity is that personality life is happening not in the coordinates of the “inner world”, not in the space of nerve networks, but in an integral dynamic system including a human being at the world around.