Individual differences in perception in psychology. Perception. Neurophysiological basis of perception

Individual differences in perception are great, but nevertheless, certain types of these differences can be distinguished, which are characteristic not for one particular person, but for a whole group of people. Among them, first of all, it is necessary to include the differences between holistic and detailed, or synthetic and analytical, perception.

Rice.8.2. Individual differences in perception

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holistic, or synthetic, type of perception is characterized by the fact that in persons prone to it, the most vividly represented general impression from the subject, the general content of perception, the general features of what is perceived. People with this type of perception pay the least attention to details and details. They do not single them out on purpose, and if they catch them, then not in the first place. Therefore, many details go unnoticed by them. They capture the meaning of the whole more than the detailed content and especially its individual parts. In order to see the details, they have to set themselves a special task, the fulfillment of which is sometimes difficult for them.

Persons with a different type of perception - detailing, or analytical, - on the contrary, they are prone to a clear selection of details and details. That is what their perception is directed at. The object or phenomenon as a whole, the general meaning of what was perceived, fades into the background for them, sometimes they are not even noticed at all. In order to understand the essence of a phenomenon or adequately perceive any object, they need to set themselves a special task, which they do not always succeed in fulfilling. Their stories are always filled with details and descriptions of particular details, behind which the meaning of the whole is very often lost.

The above characteristics of the two types of perception are characteristic of the extreme poles. Most often they complement each other, since the most productive perception based on positive characteristics both types. However, even extreme options cannot be considered negative, since very often they determine the originality of perception that allows a person to be an extraordinary person.

There are other types of perception, for example descriptive And explanatory. Persons belonging to the descriptive type are limited to the factual side of what they see and hear, do not try to explain to themselves the essence of the perceived phenomenon. driving forces actions of people, events or any phenomena remain outside the field of their attention. On the other hand, persons belonging to the explanatory type are not satisfied with what is directly given in perception. They always try to explain what they see or hear. This type of behavior is more often combined with a holistic or synthetic type of perception.

Also allocate objective And subjective types of perception. The objective type of perception is characterized by strict correspondence to what is happening in reality. Persons with a subjective type of perception go beyond what is actually given to them, and bring a lot of themselves. Their perception is subject to a subjective attitude to what is perceived, an increased biased assessment, a preconceived preconceived attitude. Such people, talking about something, tend to convey not what they perceived, but their subjective impressions about it. They talk more about how they felt or what they thought at the time of the events they are talking about.

Of great importance among individual differences in perception are differences in observation.

Observation - this is the ability to notice in objects and phenomena that which is little noticeable in them, is not striking by itself, but which is essential or characteristic from any point of view. A characteristic feature of observation is the speed with which something subtle is perceived. Observing-

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Integrity is not inherent in all people and not to the same extent. Differences in observation largely depend on individual characteristics personality. For example, curiosity is a factor contributing to the development of observation.

Since we touched on the problem of observation, it should be noted that there are differences in perception in terms of the degree of intentionality. It is customary to single out unintentional (or involuntary) and intentional (arbitrary) perception. With unintentional perception, we are not guided by a pre-set goal or task - to perceive a given object. Perception is guided by external circumstances. Intentional perception, on the contrary, from the very beginning is regulated by the task - to perceive this or that object or phenomenon, to get acquainted with it. Intentional perception can be included in any activity and carried out in the course of its implementation. But sometimes perception can also act as a relatively independent activity. Perception as an independent activity appears especially clearly in observation, which is a deliberate, planned and more or less prolonged (even if intermittent) perception in order to trace the course of some phenomenon or the changes that occur in the object of perception. Therefore, observation is an active form of sensory knowledge of reality by a person, and observation can be considered as a characteristic of the activity of perception.

The role of activity of observation is exceptionally great. It is expressed both in the mental activity that accompanies observation, and in the motor activity of the observer. Operating with objects, acting with them, a person better knows many of their qualities and properties. For the success of observation, its planned and systematic nature is important. Good observation, aimed at a broad, versatile study of the subject, is always carried out according to a clear plan, a certain system, with consideration of some parts of the subject after others in a certain sequence. Only with this approach, the observer will not miss anything and will not return a second time to what was perceived.

However, observation, like perception in general, is not an innate characteristic. A newborn child is not able to perceive the world around him in the form of a complete objective picture. The ability of object perception in a child manifests itself much later. The child's initial selection of objects from the surrounding world and their objective perception can be judged by the child's examination of these objects, when he does not just look at them, but examines them, as if he is feeling them with his eyes.

According to B. M. Teplov, the signs of object perception in a child begin to appear in early infancy (two to four months), when actions with objects begin to form. By five or six months, the child has an increase in cases of fixing the gaze on the object with which he operates. However, the development of perception does not stop there, but, on the contrary, is just beginning. So, according to A. V. Zaporozhets, the development of perception is carried out at a later age. In the transition from pre-preschool to preschool age, under the influence of play and constructive activities, children develop complex types of visual analysis and synthesis, including the ability to

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mentally divide the perceived object into parts in the visual field, examining each of these parts separately and then combining them into one whole.

In the process of teaching a child at school, the development of perception is actively taking place, which during this period goes through several stages. The first stage is associated with the formation of an adequate image of the object in the process of manipulating this object. At the next stage, children get acquainted with the spatial properties of objects with the help of hand and eye movements. At the next, higher stages of mental development, children acquire the ability quickly and without any external movements to recognize certain properties of perceived objects, to distinguish them from each other on the basis of these properties. Moreover, any actions or movements no longer take part in the process of perception.

One may ask what is essential condition perception development? Such a condition is labor, which in children can manifest itself not only in the form of socially useful labor, for example, in performing their household duties, but also in the form of drawing, sculpting, playing music, reading, etc., i.e., in the form of a variety of cognitive subject activities. It is equally important for the child to participate in the game. During the game, the child expands not only his motor experience, but also his understanding of the objects around him.

The next, no less interesting question that we must ask ourselves is the question of how and in what way are the features of children's perception manifested in comparison with an adult? First of all, the child makes a large number of mistakes in assessing the spatial properties of objects. Even the linear eye in children is much worse developed than in adults. For example, when perceiving the length of a line, a child's error can be about five times greater than that of an adult. Even more difficult is the perception of time for children. It is very difficult for a child to master such concepts as "tomorrow", "yesterday", "earlier", "later".

Certain difficulties arise in children in the perception of images of objects. So, looking at the picture, telling what is drawn on it, children preschool age often make mistakes in recognizing the depicted objects and name them incorrectly, relying on random or unimportant signs.

Important role in all these cases, the lack of knowledge of the child plays. small it practical experience. This also determines a number of other features of children's perception: insufficient ability to distinguish the main thing in what is perceived; omission of many details; limitation of perceived information. Over time, these problems are eliminated, and by the senior school age, the perception of the child practically does not differ from the perception of the adult.

DEVELOPMENT OF PERCEPTION IN ONTOGENESIS - from the Greek. ontos - being + genesis - origin. The process of structural changes in the processes of perception as individual development. Practical steps for converting items environment are the main factor determining the construction of adequate perceptual actions. With the development of activity, there is a reduction in outwardly practical components and a curtailment of perceptual actions. It is typical for a person that the most significant changes in perception occur in the first years of life. At the same time, the assimilation of sensory standards and techniques for examining stimuli, developed by society, plays a decisive role. The child develops complete system operational units of perception and sensory standards that mediate perception. Already before reaching the age of six months, in conditions of interaction with adults, active search actions arise: the child looks to see, grasps and feels objects with his hand. On this basis, intersensory connections are formed between various receptor systems (visual, auditory, tactile). So the child becomes able to perceive complex complex stimuli, recognize and differentiate them. At the age of 6-12 months, the motor system develops rapidly, and objective actions and manipulations act as the leading activity, which requires constant perception. At the same time, reproducing movements that model the features of perceived objects become the main way of perception. In the future, the development of perception occurs in the closest connection with the development various kinds activities of children (playing, visual, constructive and elements of labor and educational). After reaching the age of four, it acquires relative independence.

The main types of mental operations: comparison, analysis and synthesis, abstraction and concretization, induction and deduction

Comparison is one of the logical operations of thinking. Tasks for comparing objects, images, concepts are widely used in psychological studies of the development of thinking and its disorders. The grounds for comparison that a person uses, the ease of transition from one of them to another, etc. are analyzed. Comparison. The operation of establishing similarities and differences between objects and phenomena of the real world is called comparison. When we look at two objects, we always notice how they are similar or how they differ.

Analysis is a mental operation of dividing a complex object into its constituent parts. Analysis - this is the selection in the object of one or another of its sides, elements, properties, connections, relations, etc.; it is the dismemberment of a cognizable object into various components.

Synthesis is a mental combination of parts of objects or phenomena into a single whole, as well as a mental combination of their individual properties. When we look at the individual parts of the mechanism that lie before us, we can understand what this mechanism looks like and how it works. Synthesis, as well as analysis, is characterized by mental operation of the properties of an object. Listening to the description of a person, we can recreate his image as a whole. Synthesis can be carried out both on the basis of perception and on the basis of memories or ideas. After reading the individual phrases of any statement or l The process of abstraction is the mental (temporary) abstraction of one property of a thing from its other properties, one object from other objects with which it is actually connected. In order to think abstractly of its properties when analyzing an object, “one must leave aside all relations that have nothing in common with the given object of analysis,” says Marx. So, studying the patterns of the athlete's reaction process at the start, the experimental psychologist singles out only one element of this process - the latent period, distracting (for the time being) from such side effects as the influence of spectators on the athlete, his personal attitude to this competition, etc. e. Abstraction allows you to penetrate "deep" of the subject, to reveal its essence, forming the appropriate concept of this subject.

Abstraction is a mental operation that allows you to think of a given phenomenon in its most general, and therefore most significant, salient features. It is the source of the knowledge of truth.

logical statement, we can recreate that phrase or statement as a whole.

Specification. Abstraction always presupposes the opposite mental operation - concretization, i.e., the transition from abstraction and generalization back to concrete reality. IN educational process concretization often acts as an example for the established general position.

Deduction - (from lat. deductio - inference), a method of thinking in which a new position is derived in a purely logical way from the previous ones, a conclusion according to the rules of logic; chain of inference (reasoning)

Induction - (from Latin inductio - guidance) - a conclusion in which the connection of premises and conclusions is not based on a logical law, due to which the conclusion follows from the accepted premises not with logical necessity, but only with some probability.

Perception largely depends on the characteristics of the individual. Our knowledge, interests, habitual attitudes, emotional attitude to what affects us. affect the process of perception of objective reality. Since all people differ in their interests and attitudes, as well as in a number of other characteristics, we can argue that there are individual differences in perception (Fig. 8.2).

A holistic, or synthetic, type of perception is characterized by the fact that persons prone to it most clearly present the general impression of the object, the general content of perception, the general features of what is perceived. People with this type of perception pay the least attention to details and details. They do not single them out on purpose, and if they catch them, then not in the first place. Therefore, many details go unnoticed by them. They capture the meaning of the whole more than the detailed content and especially its individual parts. In order to see the details, they have to set themselves a special task, the fulfillment of which is sometimes difficult for them.

Persons with a different type of perception - detailing, or analytical - on the contrary, are prone to a clear selection of details and details. That is what their perception is directed at. The object or phenomenon as a whole, the general meaning of what was perceived, fades into the background for them, sometimes they are not even noticed at all. In order to understand the essence of a phenomenon or adequately perceive any object, they need to set themselves a special task, which they do not always succeed in fulfilling. Their stories are always filled with details and descriptions of particular details, behind which the meaning of the whole is very often lost.

The above characteristics of the two types of perception are characteristic of the extreme poles. Most often they complement each other, since the most productive perception is based on the positive characteristics of both types. However, even extreme options cannot be considered negative, since very often they determine the originality of perception that allows a person to be an extraordinary person.

There are other types of perception, such as descriptive and explanatory. Persons belonging to the descriptive type are limited to the factual side of what they see and hear, do not try to explain to themselves the essence of the perceived phenomenon. The driving forces of the actions of people, events or any phenomena remain outside the field of their attention. On the other hand, persons belonging to the explanatory type are not satisfied with what is directly given in perception. They always try to explain what they see or hear. This type of behavior is more often combined with a holistic or synthetic type of perception.

There are also objective and subjective types of perception. The objective type of perception is characterized by strict correspondence to what is happening in reality. Persons with a subjective type of perception go beyond what is actually given to them, and bring a lot of themselves. Their perception is subject to a subjective attitude to what is perceived, an increased biased assessment, a preconceived preconceived attitude. Such people, talking about something, tend to convey not what they perceived, but their subjective impressions about it. They talk more about how they felt or what they thought at the time of the events they are talking about.

Of great importance among individual differences in perception are differences in observation.

Observation is the ability to notice in objects and phenomena that which is little noticeable in them, is not striking by itself, but which is significant or characteristic from any point of view. A characteristic feature of observation is the speed with which something subtle is perceived. Observing-

Integrity is not inherent in all people and not to the same extent. Differences in observation largely depend on the individual characteristics of the individual. For example, curiosity is a factor contributing to the development of observation.

Since we touched on the problem of observation, it should be noted that there are differences in perception in terms of the degree of intentionality. It is customary to single out unintentional (or involuntary) and intentional (arbitrary) perception. With unintentional perception, we are not guided by a pre-set goal or task - to perceive a given object. Perception is guided by external circumstances. Intentional perception, on the contrary, from the very beginning is regulated by the task - to perceive this or that object or phenomenon, to get acquainted with it. Intentional perception can be included in any activity and carried out in the course of its implementation. But sometimes perception can act as a relatively independent activity. Perception as an independent activity appears especially clearly in observation, which is a deliberate, planned and more or less prolonged (even if intermittent) perception in order to trace the course of some phenomenon or the changes that occur in the object of perception.

Therefore, observation is an active form of sensory knowledge of reality by a person, and observation can be considered as a characteristic of the activity of perception.

mentally divide the perceived object into parts in the visual field, examining each of these parts separately and then combining them into one whole.

One may ask what is the most important condition for the development of perception? Such a condition is labor, which in children can manifest itself not only in the form of socially useful labor, for example, in the performance of their household duties, but also in the form of drawing, sculpting, playing music, reading, etc., i.e., in the form of a variety of cognitive subject activities. It is equally important for the child to participate in the game. During the game, the child expands not only his motor experience, but also his understanding of the objects around him.

Certain difficulties arise in children in the perception of images of objects. So, looking at a drawing, telling what is drawn on it, preschool children often make mistakes in recognizing the depicted objects and name them incorrectly, relying on random or unimportant signs.

An important role in all these cases is played by the lack of knowledge of the child, his little practical experience. This also determines a number of other features of children's perception: insufficient ability to distinguish the main thing in what is perceived; omission of many details; limitation of perceived information. Over time, these problems are eliminated, and by the senior school age, the perception of the child practically does not differ from the perception of the adult.

Perception and observation of a person are characterized by both general patterns and individual features. All people are characterized by common manifestations of the psyche, due to which the main patterns of reality are reflected. The presence of something in common in reflective mental activity makes it possible for people to understand each other, to come to conclusions understandable to all, to objectively reflect the world around them.

Perceives and observes a specific person. Therefore, in the process of perception and observation, each of us discovers his individual characteristics. This is due to the mental make-up of the personality, apperception. Individual characteristics may also depend on differences in the integration and functioning of the sense organs. This determines visual acuity, hearing sensitivity, subtlety of smell, taste, touch.

Individual features give the perception of each person a special color, make the reflection individually unique. The individual nature of perceptions and observations is manifested in their dynamics, accuracy, depth, degree of generalization and in the features of emotional coloring.

In human practice and in the psychological study of the characteristics of people's perception, knowledge has developed about the following basic types of perception and observation: synthetic, analytical, analytical-synthetic and emotional.

In people synthetic type, there is a clear tendency to generalize the reflection of phenomena and to determine the main meaning of what is happening. They do not attach importance to details and do not like to go into them.

People analytical types to a lesser extent show a tendency to a generalized description of the phenomena of reality. They are characterized by the desire to single out and analyze, first of all, details, particulars. They scrupulously delve into all circumstances, details. Exaggeratedly attentive to details, such people often find it difficult to understand the main meaning of phenomena.

In people analytical-synthetic the type of perception and observation equally reveals the desire to understand the basic meaning of the phenomenon and its actual confirmation. Such people always relate the analysis of individual parts to the conclusions, the establishment of facts - to their explanation. This type is more common in life than others. The perception and observation of people of such a warehouse is the most favorable for activity.

People emotional types of perception - those that are characterized not so much by highlighting the essence of the phenomenon and its particulars, but by the desire, first of all, to express their experiences caused by this phenomenon.

Perception largely depends on the characteristics of the individual. Our knowledge, interests, habitual attitudes, emotional attitude to what affects us, as already noted, affect the process of perception of objective reality. Since all people differ both in their interests and attitudes, as well as in a number of other characteristics, we can argue that there are individual differences in perception.

Individual differences in perception are great, but certain types of these differences can nevertheless be distinguished. Among them, first of all, it is necessary to include the differences between holistic and detailed, or synthetic and analytical, perception.

holistic, or synthetic, the type of perception is characterized by the fact that in persons prone to it, the general impression of the object, the general content of perception, the general features of what is perceived are most clearly represented. People with this type of perception pay the least attention to details and details. They do not single them out on purpose, and if they catch them, then not in the first place. Therefore, many details go unnoticed by them. They capture the meaning of the whole more than the detailed content and especially its individual parts. In order to see the details, they have to set themselves a special task, the fulfillment of which is sometimes difficult for them.

There are other types of perception, for example descriptive And explanatory. Persons belonging to the descriptive type are limited to the factual side of what they see and hear, do not try to explain to themselves the essence of the perceived phenomenon. The driving forces of the actions of people, events or any phenomena remain outside the field of their attention. On the other hand, persons belonging to the explanatory type are not satisfied with what is directly given in perception. They always try to explain what they see or hear. This type of behavior is more often combined with a holistic or synthetic type of perception.

It is also possible to single out another sign by which individual differences in perception are described - this is his emotionality. Emotional the type of perception is characterized by an increased sensory reaction to the situation that has arisen, which, as a rule, interferes with its adequate perception. It is obvious that at the other pole there must lie rational type of perception.

Now let us ask ourselves the question, which set of the individual characteristics of perception just described is the most favorable for managerial activity? Obviously, none of the extreme poles of the first pair is suitable for a manager; in this continuum, an intermediate one should be chosen, i.e. analytical-synthetic type of perception. Further, it can be noted that of the two following pairs, the most favorable for the manager, of course, are explanatory and objective types of perception, while descriptive and subjective in managerial activity will not be effective. Regarding the last continuum, it can be argued that a pronounced emotional type of perception generally acts as a contraindication to leadership. However, the extremely rational type will obviously not give the desired effect, since emotions usually characterize the significance of a particular phenomenon for the perceiver. Therefore, in this case, apparently, we should also talk about some intermediate meaning, which should still be closer to the rational type.

Of great importance among individual differences in perception, especially for managers, are also differences in observation.

Observation - this is the ability to notice in objects and phenomena that which is little noticeable in them, does not catch the eye by itself, but which is essential or characteristic from any point of view. A characteristic feature of observation is the speed with which something subtle is perceived. Observation is not inherent in all people and not to the same extent. Differences in observation largely depend on the individual characteristics of the individual. The development of observation, for example, is facilitated by curiosity.

In relation to managerial activity, it is customary to talk not just about observation, but about “sophisticated observation” (B.M. Teplov) as an important quality of a leader.

Since we touched on the problem of observation, it should be noted that there are differences in perception in terms of the degree of intentionality. It is customary to single out unintentional (or non-voluntary) and intentional (arbitrary) perception. With unintentional perception, we are not guided by a pre-set goal or task - to perceive a given object. Perception is guided by external circumstances. Intentional perception, on the contrary, from the very beginning is regulated by the task - to perceive this or that object or phenomenon, to get acquainted with it. Intentional perception can be included in any activity and carried out in the course of its implementation. But sometimes perception can act as a relatively independent activity. Perception as an independent activity appears especially clearly in observation, which is a deliberate, planned and more or less prolonged (even if intermittent) perception in order to trace the course of some phenomenon or the changes that occur in the object of perception.

For the success of observation, its planned and systematic nature is important. Good observation, aimed at a broad, versatile study of the subject, is always carried out according to a clear plan, a certain system, with consideration of some parts of the subject after others in a certain sequence. Only with this approach, the observer will not miss anything and will not return a second time to what was perceived.

Having become acquainted with how complex the process of perception is, we can easily understand that different people it runs differently. Each person has his own individual “manner” of perceiving, his usual ways of observing, which are explained common features his personality and those skills that have been created in the course of his life.

Let us list the most characteristic signs in which individual differences in perception and observation can be expressed.

Some people are inclined in the process of perception and observation to pay attention mainly to the facts themselves, others - to the meaning of these facts. The former are mainly interested in description, the latter in explaining what they perceive and observe. Perception and observation of the first type are called descriptive, the second type - explanatory.

These typological differences are largely explained by the peculiarity of the relationship between the two signal systems. The inclination and ability for an explanatory type of observation are associated with the relatively greater role of the second signal system.

There is a very important difference between objective and subjective types of perception. Objective perception is a perception characterized by accuracy and thoroughness, which is little influenced by the observer's preconceived thoughts, desires and mood. A person perceives the facts as they are, without adding anything from himself and little resorting to conjecture. Subjective perception is characterized by opposite features: what a person sees and hears are immediately joined by images of the imagination and various assumptions; he sees things not so much as they really are, but as he wants them to be.

Sometimes the subjectivity of perception is expressed in the fact that a person's attention is directed to those feelings that he experiences under the influence of perceived facts, and these feelings obscure the facts themselves from him. It is not uncommon to meet people who, no matter what they talk about, most of all talk about their own experiences, about how they got excited, frightened, moved, and very little can be said about the events that caused all these feelings.

In other cases, the subjectivity of perception is manifested in the desire to form a general impression of the observed fact as soon as possible, even if there were not sufficient data for this. This feature is clearly revealed in experiments with a tachistoscope, when a word is shown for such a short period of time that it is obviously impossible to read it in its entirety. For example, the word "desk" is shown. With an objective type of perception, a person first reads "kont"; at the second indication, he can already read “offices” and, finally, after the third indication - “desk”. The process of perception is quite different for a representative of the subjective type. After the first showing, he reads, for example, “basket”, after the second - “castor oil”, after the third - “desk”.

In characterizing individual differences in perception and observation, the feature called observation is of the utmost importance. This word denotes the ability to notice signs and features in things and phenomena that are essentially important, interesting and valuable from any point of view, but little noticeable and therefore eluding the attention of most people. Observation is not limited to mere ability to observe. It involves curiosity, a constant desire to learn new facts and their details, a kind of "hunting for facts." Observation is manifested not only during those hours when a person is specially engaged in observations in a laboratory, museum, at an observation post, etc.

We call observant a person who is able to notice valuable facts “on the go”, in any situations of life, in the course of any activity. Observation implies a constant readiness for perception.

Observation - very important quality, the value of which affects all areas of life. It is especially necessary in certain types of activity, for example, in the work of a scientist. No wonder the great Russian scientist I.P. Pavlov made the inscription on the building of one of his laboratories: “Observation and observation”.

Without observation, the work of a writer-artist is impossible: it enables the writer to accumulate those stocks of life impressions that serve as material for his works.

Review questions

1. What is perception and how does it differ from sensation?

2. What are the physiological basis of perception?

3. List the conditions on which the grouping (grouping) of individual spots and lines in visual perception depends.

4. What is the significance of past experience for perception?

5. What is called an illusion?

6. Explain the illusions depicted in fig. 12 and 13.

7. What is called observation?

8. List the conditions on which the quality of observation depends.

Chapter V. ATTENTION

General concept about attention

Attention is the focus of consciousness on a particular object. The object of attention can be any object or phenomenon of the external world, our own actions, our ideas and thoughts.

I am reading a book and am completely occupied with the content of the story; I hear conversations going on in the room, but I don't pay attention to them. But then one of those present began to tell something interesting, and I notice that my eyes are automatically running over the lines of the book, and my attention has turned to the conversation.

And first and then I simultaneously heard the conversation and read the book. But the organization of my mental activity was completely different in both cases. At first my consciousness was directed to understanding what was being read; the content of the book was in the center, and the content of the conversation was on the periphery, on the edge of consciousness. Then consciousness went to listen to the conversation; the conversation became the center of consciousness, and the reading of the book was at the edge of it. My attention, we say, has shifted from reading a book to listening to a conversation.

As a result of the direction of consciousness on a certain object, it is recognized clearly and distinctly, while all other stimuli acting at the same time are experienced more or less vaguely and indistinctly. At the time when my attention was occupied by the book, I perceived its content with complete clarity, but I heard the conversation vaguely, as they say, "out of the corner of my ear." If I were suddenly asked what the conversation was about, I would probably be able to reproduce only fragments of phrases that were little connected with each other. But the matter immediately changed as soon as my attention shifted from the book to the conversation. Now I perceive the content of the conversation with complete clarity, and from the book only vague shreds of thoughts reach me, although my eyes continue to read.

In the phenomena of attention, the selective nature of consciousness is revealed: if a person pays attention to some objects, then he is thereby distracted from others.

Attention cannot be called special mental process in the same sense as we call perception, thinking, recollection, etc., special processes. At every moment of his life, a person either perceives something, or remembers something, or thinks about something, or about something dreams. But there cannot be a moment when a person is busy with the process of attention. Attention is a property of the psyche, it is a special side of all mental processes.