Ph.D., associate professor A.A. Opletin
Perm National Research Polytechnic University, Perm

Keywords: educational autogenic training, personality, creative self-development, physical education, mental states of anxiety, depression.

Introduction. Personality formation, its correction in physical, human, moral and social terms rarely happens by itself, as it requires goal setting and pedagogical support from the university educational system. When it comes to the formation of a professional whose vocation is in dealing with people and in particular with children, special attention is required in the organization of his activity and initiation in self-development and self-improvement. Scientists, psychologists, physiologists, physicians and educators believe that “for the restructuring of consciousness, will and personality as a whole to take place, it is not enough to impact the surface layers of the psyche only, it is necessary to penetrate into its very depths” (P.K. Anokhin, A.G. Asmolov, B.A. Vyatkin, V.V. Markelov, A.S. Novoselova). From the standpoint of psychology, this penetration is needed in order to achieve synthesis of different layers of different levels of consciousness, personality (T.A. Florenskaya).   

The purpose of the research is to substantiate the system of educational autogenic training that contributes to comprehensive individual development, formation of moral qualities, self-confidence, vivacity, good humor, maintenance and strengthening of health, stress and tension relief at physical education lessons. 

Results and discussion. In terms of the interdependent relations of the conscious and the unconscious in the psyche that help activate the whole of human mental activity we referred to works of scientists of various fields of knowledge touching upon this issue (F.V. Bassin, L.P. Griman, L.S. Vygotsky, A.I. Dubrovsky, D.V. Kandyba, V.M. Kolesnikov, V.N. Kulikov, V.G. Norakidze, A.S. Romen, Yu.S. Khanin, I.E. Schwarz, A.S. Novoselova et al.). Our attention is drawn to the interaction of the spheres, the conscious and the unconscious in the psyche.    

Psychologists say that there is no such mental activity that at any given moment would not be connected to the conscious and the unconscious (P.N. Shikhirev). He is supported by I.E. Schwarz, A.S. Novoselova. The latter states: “the unconscious forms psychological motives in general”. All this formed the basis for the development of such an educational tool as educational autogenic training (A.S. Novoselova, A.I. Sannikova, I.E. Schwarz, A.A. Opletin et al.) [2, 3, 4,]. This approach is accounted for by potential impact of educational autogenic training on the motivational sphere of the human psyche in case of this person’s active participation in the process of this important aspect of behavior and activity. A mental set created this way forms the basis of the motivation obtained under the influence of the interaction of the spheres of the conscious and the unconscious (D.N. Uznadze et al.). Psychological tools with elements of suggestive influence, the so-called “psychological training” (L.A. Petrovskaya), are widely used.

Technology of reciprocity of conviction and suggestion in such a form as educational autogenic training is based on the interaction of both types of formation of motivation with the same social and moral content of their orientation. The difference from the traditional approach is that at various stages these processes change their overriding function while still interacting; in some cases conviction dominates, and suggestion is a favorable background for its perception; in other cases suggestion dominates, and conviction creates conditions for the realization of suggestion. Thus, being opposite by their form, in fact they are solving a common issue from different angles.  

In the technological process of educational autogenic training activation of the unconscious sphere takes place by means of relaxation (at the stage of relaxation). Against this background moral-social information is formed with the educational goal setting by means of autosuggestion formulae. In terms of the structure, educational autogenic training has the form of sessions that make up a complete course of targeted educational content.

Structure of the sessions:

1. Initial conversation with the educator – 3-5 minutes
2. Entering into a state of relaxation – 6-8 minutes
3. Indirect suggestion in the form of an emotionally intense problematic situation – 12-15 minutes
4. Direct suggestion – 5-6 minutes
5. Exiting the state of relaxation  – 2-3 minutes
6. Toning exercises – 1-2 minutes

In the first 10 days a session lasts 40 minutes, later on it is 30 minutes long since the participants adapt to entering and exiting the state of relaxation. Duration of the course and content of the sessions depend on the educational goals and objectives.

Entering into a state of relaxation in educational autogenic training is based on 4 exercises: “Peace”, “Relaxation”, “Gravity” and “Heat” – a traditional approach to any kind of autogenic training. However, in the educational kind the last exercise focuses on the right arm (to ease the impact on the left brain). These exercises by themselves create the following mental set: “I can control myself!” 

Indirect suggestion in its content is presented as a problematic situation of a kind depending on the educational task at hand that should be logical, succinct, focused and extremely emotionally charged. As a reinforcement of the mental set there is direct suggestion (A.S. Novoselova, I.E. Schwarz, A.A. Opletin) [2, 3, 4].

The content is created in the following order based on the directed subject matter: “I WANT – I CAN! – I DO. I like to do…! I should do that!” or “May I always do that!”

Background music is preferable to enhance the emotional impact. According to psychologists, emotions are directly related to the formation of the motivation of a personality and are an essential factor in the regulation of behavior and activity of a person (C. Izard). It is on this basis that a certain attitude is formed that obviously includes needs, mental sets, and orientation.    

If beliefs form “concepts”, then suggestion brings forth “experiences”. According to psychologists, experiences occupy an important place in the structure of consciousness, their involvement in regulative physical culture is extremely significant (P.P. Blonsky). According to Maslow, the psychic inner world is governed by its own laws, it is a world of experiences, emotions, hopes and fears, love and fantasies. This is the base of the iceberg in the mind which is hidden in the subconscious and stays there till it’s called for [1]. It is actualized by means of educational autogenic training in accordance with the tasks at hand.

As an example here is a fragment of an educational autogenic training session on the topic “I can do it myself at physical education lessons”. 

Indirect suggestion:

Having just learnt to walk, man says: “I can do it myself”. This desire for self-actualization and self-assertion is so great that the best of the best representatives of humanity were ready to put their heads on the chopping block for it. And many did. “I can do it myself” is the eternal driving force of human activity and creativity. The stronger the voice sounded, the more powers were up to suppress it or make it whisper, or keep it silent completely. But it turned out to be impossible. “I can do it myself” is a living phenomenon. The more of it is in a person, the more talented and courageous the person is.

What about yourself? (An intermission with music playing).

What interesting and new things have you created for the cause you serve?

What do you think are the forms where your identity is best manifested?

How is your business appreciated by those it is intended to be useful and even necessary for? How often do you want things you do every day to bring joy to people and yourself? Have you ever felt pain of another person as your own? Have you ever managed to wholeheartedly share happiness of another person, not so close to you, being duty-bound?

It is not easy to answer these questions even to oneself. These questions are difficult. However, they are the essence of life itself, the very essence of a human being. As stated in the Bible: “Don’t enter into judgment with your servant, for in your sight no man living is righteous”.

First of all, one needs to find oneself. Finding oneself is a great accomplishment in life of every person. Find yourself in your business, find yourself in your home, find yourself among those close to you, find yourself among others. Finding oneself is finding truth. Look for your place in the world – and the search will be successful. “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you”. One just has to wish. Wish to look into oneself. Wish to compare oneself. Wish to become better, more useful, more beautiful within. Wish to clean oneself from filthiness in oneself. Wish to become wiser. Wish to live up to the expectations of one’s nearest and dearest, those whom one serves in business, with whom one works hand-in-hand.

And the world will unfold in front of you in color. You will hear the birds singing, the forest murmuring, the creek in the woods whispering, the heartbeat of yours and of those around you.  

Direct suggestion:

I am the infinite power of humanity.

I am capable of anything! But I cannot do everything and it is not always for good.

There is something for me to renounce.

There is something for me to obtain.

You will feel power within, and the words “I can do it myself” will sound proudly. I will deal with it myself, I will reopen these sores myself, will clean and heal them by myself. Myself – I will do it myself. As shown by experimental practice, this very way of impacting the personality of a student contains a lot of positive points. The student finds himself alone, with his thoughts and reflections. According to psychologists, it is essential for him. There is also background music that brings him into the mood for reflections, a conversation with oneself, for thinking over a lot of issues which the majority of us just never “get around to” in the daily routine.    

According to scientists in the area of public health, autogenic training by itself has a positive effect on human health: it trains willpower, disciplines emotions, creates the effect of “psychological release”. When the sessions are conducted in compliance with a particular program in the form of unobtrusive indirect suggestion, when images of nature motivate the imagination, the effect is greater due to a certain system being present in it. It is not always conscious, but motivation for self-improvement, for attainment of truth comes forth, a desire to know oneself and to learn better about oneself is fostered.

Actions of a physical education teacher are aimed at physical and comprehensive development of a personality, formation of such moral values as self-confidence, vivacity, good humor, maintenance and strengthening of health, stress and tension relief. In this regard autogenic training is an important and appropriate means aiming at mental health and psychoprophylaxis, or as it is called as such – psychic self-regulation. It is based on the principles of classical autogenic training. Entering a state of muscle relaxation, experiencing a state of mental and physical rest using simple techniques of autosuggestion formulae, immersion in a state of abstractedness from reality, and against this background that is favorable for students using suggestion:

• in an indirect form by means of an emotionally charged text of a certain content;
• in a direct form, by means of concise autosuggestion formulae; 
• or in a combination of both types of suggestion to solve the issues that can be purely psychohygienic or successfully perform an educational function.

While using educational autogenic training at physical education lessons the author’s experimental program was developed providing solution of the following issues: health, education and self-development of a personality. Implementation of the experimental mode of this part of the program was carried out during the academic year. Initial cross-sectional data was collected at the beginning of the academic year, and control cross-sectional data – at the end of the academic year.

Research methods: Method of personal motivational orientation (i-МС) by L.S. Solntseva and F.G. Galkina; traditional WAM method; method of L.M. Fridman, T.A. Pushkina, I.Ya. Kaplunovich.

 Analysis of the obtained data has confirmed a positive tendency of emotional well-being of students according to the tests. For example, in the psychohygienic aspect the percentage of the borderline of anxiety decreased in 14% of students of the experimental course. Accordingly, in case of 6% of the total number of students the normal range indicator increased, and in case of 9% of students the indicator of the pedagogical correction sphere increased. A positive trend manifested itself in the values of the mental state of depression. In case of 15% of students the borderline indicator decreased, a significant number of students (13%) had an increased value of the indicator of the pedagogical correction sphere, and in case of 3% the normal range indicator increased. In the control group where lessons were conducted in accordance with the traditional program, there is almost no tendency of improved indicators.  

Analysis of experimental data obtained by means of the WAM method has revealed improved emotional well-being of students. Well-being of 54% of students has been improved (initial percentage was 32%), percentage of students with poor state of health has decreased to 22% (instead of the initial 36%). However, 24% of students still felt uncomfortable at physical education lessons. Activity of students has increased from 48% of the low level to 43% of the medium, that is, satisfactory level. Well-being in the control group has improved, but slightly – from 51% of the low level to 45%, activity has hardly increased.

The method of incomplete sentences to determine the motivation of students in terms of physical education classes by L. Solntseva and F. Galkina suggests that in the experimental group the students’ attitude to physical education has changed, the motivation with regards to this kind of activity in its self-development aspect has increased. Percentage of students who had a low level of attitude towards physical education has decreased almost three times (from 34% to 12%). The number of students who had a relative level has considerably increased (from 64% to 76%). An increase was recorded in the number of students who had a fairly high level (from 2% to 8%). Some students have shown the highest level (4%). Indicators of attitude to physical education classes in the control group that trained according to the conventional program remained unchanged. 

Conclusion. Educational autogenic training lessons require a certain conation from students - regular classes. Volitional processes are a complex mental phenomenon. Self-management and manifestation of conation contribute to the stability of an individual, and thus mental and physical health and increase of vitality, physical working capacity and optimism. In the course of educational autogenic training at physical education classes the mental sets to self-development and self-improvement are created, which provides for the formation of the professional orientation of an individual student. Later in the course of activity mental sets are fixed and transformed into social ones.

References

1. Maslow, A. Samoaktualizatsiya (Self-actualization) / A. Maslow // Psikhologiya lichnosti. Testy (Personality Psychology. Tests) / Ed. by Yu.B. Hippenreiter, A.A. Puzyrev. – Moscow, 1982. – 395 P. 
2. Novosyelova, A.S. Samorazvitie lichnosti studenta netraditsionnymi metodami fizicheskoy kul’tury: ucheb. posobie dlya samostoyatel'noy raboty studentov i prepodavateley vuzov (Self-development of student personality using unconventional methods of physical culture: study guide for independent work of students and faculty) / A.S. Novoselova, A.A. Opletin. – Perm: IVESEP, 2007. – 140 P.
3. Opletin, A.A. Pedagogicheskie osnovy sotsial'no-nravstvennogo samorazvitiya lichnosti studenta (na materiale fizicheskogo vospitaniya): monografiya (Pedagogical grounds of sociomoral self-identity of a student (based on physical education): monograph / A.A. Opletin. – Perm: SPb IVESEP, 2008. – 224 P.
4. Schwarz, I.E. Vnushenie v pedagogicheskom protsesse: ucheb. posobie dlya spetskursa. Sobranie sochineniy v 3 chastyakh. P. 2. – 2nd ed. (Suggestion in educational process: study guide for special course. Work in 3 parts. P. 2. - 2^nd ed.) / I.E. Schwarz. – Perm: Prikamsky Social Institute, 2009. – 246 P.

Corresponding author: opletin.a@yandex.ru