DEVELOPMENT OF THE FUTURE PSYCHOLOGISTS’ PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY IN THE CONTEXT OF TRAINING FOR WORK WITH ADOLESCENTS PRONE TO DEVIANT BEHAVIOR

Abstract

The paper analyzes the meaning of the concept "professional identity" in the context of future psychologists’ training for work with adolescents prone to deviant behavior. Based on the analysis of theoretical sources, it was established that the organization of the educational process in the institution of higher education creates a basis for the formation of the future specialist’s professional identity, forms the readiness to work in the chosen direction, helps to form a conscious image of themselves as professionals.

The approaches to the definition «professional identity» are summarized and the own vision of the future psychologists’ professional identity is formulated. The author believes that the professional identity of future psychologists in the context of preparation for work with adolescents prone to deviant behavior should be considered as a conscious positive attitude to work in the specified direction, which is expressed in the readiness to implement psychodiagnostic, preventive, consultative and psychocorrectional work with deviant adolescents.

It was found that a significant part of future psychologists lack confidence in their desire to work with adolescents prone to deviant behavior, which is due to insufficient experience working with them. The diagnostic results of the features of the future psychologists’ professional identity evidenced that students of the fourth year have a higher percentage of people with formed professional identity compared to the students of the second year. The obtained results can be partially explained by the presence of more thorough, systematized knowledge about the specifics of working with adolescents prone to deviant behavior and the formed professional skills and abilities that the applicants received in the process of professional training at a higher education institution.

The author considers that the conditions for the development of the professional identity of future psychologists in the context of training for work with adolescents prone to deviant behavior are the gradual enrichment of the professional training content in the indicated direction, the expansion of the applicants’ knowledge regarding the outlined problem, the development of personal resources during psychological trainings, the implementation of innovative teaching methods in an educational environment.