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Labor as a sphere of social differentiation of modern society

Introduction

The social sphere occupies one of the central places in the systemic organization of society and is distinguished by the exceptional complexity and diversity of the various types of social communities that make it up and the relationships between them. The central element of this area is the concept of social differentiation, reflecting the division of society into certain social groups.

Social differentiation is the division of a social whole or its part into interconnected elements that appear as a result of evolution, the transition from simple to complex. Differentiation, first of all, includes the division of labor, the emergence of different professions, statuses, roles, groups, etc.

The essence of the division of labor lies in professional integration. Individuals begin to contact, exchange experiences and thus create a single whole, as a result of the ever-increasing specialization of labor.

1. The concept of labor and its essence. Troud as a social phenomenon

Work- this is the purposeful activity of people aimed at creating material and cultural values. Labor is the basis and an indispensable condition for human life. By influencing the natural environment, changing and adapting it to their needs, people not only ensure their existence, but also create conditions for the development and progress of society.

The labor process is a complex and multifaceted phenomenon. The main forms of its manifestation are the expenditure of human energy, the interaction of the worker with the means of production (objects and means of labor) and the production interaction of workers with each other, both horizontally (the relationship of participation in a single labor process) and vertically (the relationship between the manager and the subordinate) . The role of labor in the development of man and society is manifested in the fact that in the process of labor not only material and spiritual values are created that are intended to meet people’s needs, but also the workers themselves develop, acquire skills, reveal their abilities, replenish and enrich knowledge. The creative nature of labor finds its expression in the emergence of new ideas, progressive technologies, more advanced and highly productive tools, new types of products, materials, energy, which, in turn, lead to the development of needs.

Thus, in the process of labor activity, not only goods are produced, services are provided, cultural values are created, etc., but new needs arise with demands for their subsequent satisfaction. The sociological aspect of the study is to consider labor as a system of social relations, to determine its impact on society.

A person does not exist in isolation, separately from other people, which means that work is a social phenomenon or, in other words, has a social character. The labor process unfolds in the interaction of people among themselves: within certain social groups, society as a whole. People, in the process of work, enter into certain social relationships, interacting with each other. Under social interactions in the world of work, they understand the form of social connections realized in the exchange of activities and mutual action. The objective basis for the interaction of people is the commonality or divergence of their interests, close or distant goals, and views. This determines its important feature: labor involves both the production of goods and services and certain social relations between its subjects.

Social relations - these are relations between members of social communities and these communities regarding their social status, way of life and way of life, and, ultimately, regarding the conditions for the formation and development of personality and social communities. They manifest themselves in the position of individual groups of workers in the labor process, communication connections between them, i.e. in the mutual exchange of information to influence the behavior and performance of others, as well as to assess their own position, which influences the formation of interests and behavior of these groups.

These relations are inextricably linked with labor relations and are determined by them initially. Employees of any labor organization are directly participants in labor relations, but each employee manifests himself in his own way in relationships with each other, with the manager, in relation to work, to the order of distribution of work, etc.

Consequently, on the basis of labor relations, relationships of a socio-psychological nature are formed, characterized by a certain emotional mood, the nature of communication between people and relationships in a labor organization, and the atmosphere in it.

Thus, social and labor relations make it possible to determine the social significance, role, place, and social position of the individual and group. They are the link between the worker and the foreman, the leader and a group of subordinates, certain groups of workers and their individual members. Not a single group of workers, not a single member of a labor organization can exist outside of such relationships, outside of mutual responsibilities towards each other, outside of interactions.

2. Characterand sodalabor cessation. Division of labor

labor market social

Nature and content of work.

The nature of labor determines the technical and economic content, social form, socio-economic quality of labor, social differences: social position, social status, material well-being, use of free time, etc. Minister, academician, teacher, accountant, worker, builder, rural machine operator, cleaner - the basis of the socio-professional differences between representatives of these professions lies, first of all, in the nature of work.

In any study of social problems of labor in society as a whole or in a separate production team, the nature of labor, both collective and individual, is first taken into account. Contents of work determines specific work activities, functional responsibilities, the degree of physical and intellectual stress, sanitary and hygienic conditions and many other characteristics. The work of workers on the assembly line, railway, aviation, state farm, and construction has different content. The content of work is largely determined by the professional qualifications and personal characteristics of a particular employee, even with other characteristics being equal, say, the technical equipment of the workplace.

Division of labor.

For sociology, the idea of the division of labor and the history of its appearance in life is of great importance. For sociological science, it is important to understand the fundamental changes and stages in the social division of labor, its problems in relation to each specific production. Knowledge about the division of labor into mental and physical, controlled and performing, according to the severity and complexity of labor, according to professional specifics significantly deepens the understanding of the labor process and its components.

Division of labor is the separation of the activities of individual workers and their groups in the labor process.

E. Durkheim in his work “On the Division of Social Labor” formulated a clear idea that it is the division of labor that is the basic process that, in the course of evolution, leads to the transformation of society, determines in it the formation of integrative characteristics and properties, which in their unity form social integrity and moral cohesion of individuals.

Thanks to the division of labor, the professional capacity of workers increases, labor productivity increases, and tools of production and technology are improved.

There are three types of division of labor: general, particular and individual. TO general It is customary to attribute its division between the production and non-production spheres of human activity, and within these spheres - between industry, agriculture, transport, communications, trade, public education, science, public administration, culture, etc.

Private division of labor presupposes its division within spheres and branches of the general division of labor. For example, industry is divided into industries, sub-sectors, associations, and individual enterprises; agriculture - into farming and livestock breeding, and within them - into specialized industries (grain, cotton, potatoes, horticulture, meat, milk, wool, etc.).

Single division of labor involves the distribution of work and labor functions among employees of a separate enterprise or separate organization: by workshops, sections, teams, units, individual performing workers, as well as by their professional qualification groups. This type of division of labor is the most complex and important, since specific labor processes are carried out precisely within the framework of a single division of labor; At the same level, economic results are also realized: specialization of performers and increasing their professional skills, the use of specialized high-performance equipment, increased labor productivity and increased production efficiency in general.

3 . Social differentiationlike slconsequences of labor relations

The basis of social differentiation is usually considered to be the socio-economic division of labor. The social division of labor involves the distribution and assignment of occupations between participants in the process of social production. In a sociological sense, social production implies the reproduction of itself by society, i.e. the production of material objects, complexes, ideas necessary for life, the reproduction of certain relationships between people, as well as the replenishment of the population itself.

Sociali differentiation- division of a social whole or its part into interconnected elements that appear as a result of evolution, the transition from simple to complex. Differentiation, first of all, includes the division of labor, the emergence of different professions, statuses, roles, groups, etc. Members of one social group have a common identity, that is, a subjective sense of belonging to a given group, which is expressed in corresponding social behavior.

Signs of social differentiation

Social differentiation can be described in terms of the differences that exist between individuals and groups in an encompassing social system. The main features that record such differences are usually the following:

· Economic sign. In this case, the indicators considered are the presence or absence of private property, the type and amount of income, and the material well-being of individuals and groups. In relation to individuals and groups, the following distinctions are made - owners and those without private property, high-paid and low-paid strata, rich, moderately wealthy, poor.

· Labor sign (division of labor). In this case, the indicators considered are the sphere of application of labor, the type and nature of labor, and the level of qualifications. In relation to individuals and groups, the following distinctions are made - workers in various spheres of social production, highly skilled and low-skilled workers.

· Power sign (volume of power). In this case, the indicators are the ability to influence others through one’s official position. In relation to individuals and groups, the following distinctions are made - ordinary workers, managers at various levels, heads of government at various levels.

Additional signs of social differentiation include the following:

1. gender and age characteristics affecting social status,

2. ethnic or national characteristics,

3. religious affiliation,

4. cultural and ideological positions,

5. family ties.

Among the signs of social differentiation that determine people’s lifestyle and their level of consumption of goods are the following:

1. area of residence, size and type of housing,

2. places of recreation and entertainment,

3. quality of medical care,

4. consumption of cultural goods, in particular the volume and nature of education received, the volume and nature of information received and cultural products consumed.

The application of signs of social differentiation in relation to a specific social system allows us to present it as a certain hierarchy of social groups and communities.

Based on the above, the following conclusions should be drawn:

Labor, for economic sociology and sociology in general, must be considered as a system of social relations.

Labor relations are continuously connected with social ones: on the basis of labor relations, relationships of a socio-psychological nature are formed, characterized by a certain emotional mood, the nature of communication between people and relationships in a labor organization, and the atmosphere in it.

The basis of social differentiation is the principle of division of labor.

Bibliography

1. Radaev V.V., Economic sociology: textbook for universities / V.V. Radaev; State University - Higher School of Economics. - M.: Publishing house. House of State University Higher School of Economics, 2005.

2. Popov Yu.N., A.V. Shevchuk. Modern economics and sociology of labor. Tutorial. M. 2003.

3. Adamchuk V.V., Romashov O.V., Sorokina M.E. Economics and Sociology of Labor DOC. Textbook for universities - M.: UNITI, 2000.

4. Toshchenko Zh.T. Sociology of labor. - M.: Unity-Dana, 2008

5. Sociology of labor / Edited by N. I. Dryakhlov, A.I. Kravchenko, V.V. Shcherbiny M, 1993.

6. Yadov V.A. Man and his work in the USSR and after / Textbook for universities. 2nd ed., rev. and additional - M.: Aspect Press, 2003.

7. http://investments.academic.ru/.

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Introduction

The concept of labor and its essence. Labor as a social phenomenon

Work- this is the expedient activity of people aimed at creating material and cultural values. Labor is the basis and an indispensable condition for people’s life. By influencing the natural environment, changing and adapting it to their needs, people not only ensure their existence, but also create conditions for the development and progress of society.

Introduction

The concept of labor and its essence. Labor as a social phenomenon

As a result of studying this chapter, the student should:

know

theoretical and practical approaches to determining the sources and mechanisms for ensuring an organization’s competitive advantage;
fundamentals of personnel management methodology;

be able to

Take part in the development of corporate, competitive and functional strategies for the development of the organization in terms of personnel management;

own

Methods for developing and implementing personnel management strategies.

Categorical ideas about labor and their modern interpretation

All existing ideas about work can be divided into everyday and scientific. In the everyday view, human labor is the simplest phenomenon in his life. Therefore, at a superficial glance, it seems that the labor process lends itself easily to research and study. Work for a person can be both a severe punishment and a joy. What it will be - hard labor or happiness - depends on the organizer of work activity.

In economic theory, labor is one of the basic categories. The founders of classical political economy (W. Petty, A. Smith, D. Ricardo) considered the concept of “labor” as a special specific product. A. Smith, for example, believed that labor is any human production activity.

Until the beginning of the 21st century. labor was mainly viewed in categories oriented towards the views of 19th-century political economists. Traditionally, it has been defined as expedient human activity aimed at preserving, modifying, adapting the environment to meet one’s needs, and producing goods and services.

In subsequent periods, approaches to work focused not on the process of human interaction with nature, but on certain relationships between its participants. It was emphasized that labor has a dual nature, because it is both a means of “metabolism” between man and nature, and a means of communication between people in the production process.

This definition is typical for political economics, where preference was given to the problems of physical labor. It was believed that “...the labor process includes three moments:

1) purposeful human activity, or labor itself;
2) subject of labor;
3) the instruments of production with which a person acts on this object." From all these definitions it follows that the subject of labor is Human.

Proponents of neoclassical economic theory interpret the concept of “labor” as a factor of production along with “land” and “capital”, which flows into the production process through the efforts of individuals and is not a unique source of value creation.

A number of authors define labor as “expedient activity to create material and spiritual goods necessary to meet the needs of each individual and society as a whole,” i.e. its expediency and focus on the final result are emphasized, distinguishing meaningful human work from the activities of animals, reminiscent of labor, but of an instinctive nature (a squirrel collects nuts, a bear collects honey, bees make honeycombs)."

Abstract work in the material and material plane there is nothing more than the energy expended by a person (mental, physical) in the social plane - this is the relationship between people regarding the energy expended on the production of goods in the conditions of commodity production. In the process of production and manufacturing of goods, it is not labor power, the carrier of which is a person, that is consumed, but human energy (brain, muscles, etc.).

Good- this is everything that contains a certain positive meaning: an object, phenomenon, product of labor that satisfies one or another human need and meets the interests, goals, aspirations of people. Sometimes goods are considered as embodied utility, which can be understood not only as products of labor, but also as the fruits of nature.

Service is a purposeful human activity, the result of which has a beneficial effect that satisfies some human needs. Their satisfaction is perceived by people as consumption (purchase) of a good. The activity of a broker or stock speculator is, of course, labor, although they do not create wealth, but only redistribute them among people, thereby providing them with certain services. The principle of creating goods should also apply to those types of activities that are associated with ensuring and servicing the processes of changing ownership of certain goods.

Labor simultaneously acts as a process of interaction between man and nature, as a result of which various benefits are created and a person adapts to the external environment, and as certain relationships between its participants, as a result of which an impact is exerted on both the external environment and human nature itself.

At the same time, almost all modern researchers recognize that labor as a factor of production is unique, requiring a special approach to its study. However, analysis of the specifics of labor as a factor of production requires, first of all, consideration of the characteristics of labor in the entire diverse spectrum of human activity.

In a market economy, labor includes not only hired labor, but also labor activity within the household. In modern labor economics, home production refers to non-market labor activity that does not bring cash income to the household: growing and preparing food, cooking, doing home repairs, car or household appliance repairs, cleaning an apartment, caring for children, etc.

1) ontological category, based on the fact that labor is the realized nature of man as an individual and a representative of a species, in some cases even of the biological kingdom. Every person has achieved something in their life, created something (or maybe destroyed it). Modern science attempts to measure these achievements;
2) epistemological category, revealing the relationship of labor self-knowledge to the work that needs to be carried out (the work itself is considered in the categories of the meaning of human life). In this context, it is necessary to talk about what distinguishes one subject from another. There are two classes of individual properties:
- – primary individual properties are associated with gender, age and individual-typical (constitutional features, neurodynamic properties of the brain, features of functional asymmetry of the cerebral hemispheres);
- – secondary individual properties – dynamics of psychophysical functions and the sphere of organic needs. Thus, in the 21st century. human individuality came to the science of labor;
3) social category. Of all the sciences that have “dissolved” ideas about labor in their subject matter, sociology has to the greatest extent developed a conceptual apparatus that allows a correct approach to the study of this most complex phenomenon;
4) cultural category, including the study of the highest achievements of national cultures and the entire world culture. Culturological consideration of labor is associated with such concepts as “culture and labor”, “labor and its influence on cultural needs”, “being and consciousness”;
5) ethical category, expressed through the relationship “moral assessment and self-esteem of an individual’s own work activity”, “moral choice and self-design of labor technologies”, “the problem of commensurability of values and duty in labor processes”;
6) aesthetic category, coming from relationships: “the design of being is the chaos of needs”, “beautiful and ugly”, “sublime and base”, “heroic and treacherous”;
7) household category, expressed through the concepts of “workplace”, “organization of living space”, “distribution of labor roles”, “urban and rural labor”;
8) gerontological category, expressed through a range of concepts related to the work of older people and caring for older people;
9) crisisological category. In this case, hostility and destructiveness of the environment are studied. The destructive side of life is studied by various sciences, in particular crisisology. Work can ennoble, but it is often also a punishment. This is especially evident in the present period, when a whole range of new requirements for employees began to arise on the part of employers;
10) valeological category. In this case, the importance of a person’s mental and physical health as the basis of life and the foundation of labor processes is emphasized;
11) engineering category. Recently, science related to the design of labor processes has developed;
12) innovative category. By working, a person not only changes the world around him, but also changes himself. The balance of these changes is a very fragile and extremely complex thing;
13) ecological category. Labor was, is and will always be an environmentally significant phenomenon. It is through labor that man is currently preparing a global environmental catastrophe. And this makes labor another new category, which is the child of increased opportunities;
14) risk category. Although risk arises from any type of activity, it is only now that awareness of the need for a more detailed study and creation of risk protection systems for labor itself and at the same time from labor is emerging;
15) synergetic category. The synergetics of labor is only being realized by modern science, although labor is synergetic at its core. The synergy of labor strictly correlates with its systematic nature;
16) ergonomic category. The term “ergonomics” was first proposed in 1921 by V. N. Myasishchev and V. M. Bekhterev. In 1949, a group of English scientists led by K. Marell organized the Ergonomic Society, after which the term began to become widespread;
17) military category, presented through the concepts: “hard worker-warrior”, “military skill”, “home front workers”, etc.;
18) management category. In the literature of the late 20th century. Usually there are a number of stages.

First stage associated, as a rule, with the works of F.U. Taylor - the founder of "scientific management". He was the first to pose the problem of managing people (workers) as a specific scientific discipline that has its own categorical apparatus.

The main objective of the Taylor system is “to ensure maximum profit for the entrepreneur combined with maximum welfare for each worker.”

Second phase associated with the concept of “human relations”, which considers the factors of job satisfaction, leadership, cohesion (E. Mayo, F. Roethlisberg, A. Maslow, etc.). Subsequently, all this was developed in the concepts of “labor enrichment”, “humanistic challenge”, where the psychological and economic factors of labor came first, in the doctrine of “quality of working life”, in the concepts of “humanization of labor” as an attempt to synthesize Taylorism and “human relationships." Theories of work motivation also occupy a special place (A. Maslow, F. Herzberg, D. McGregor), etc.

In the 1970s in the USA, attention is focused on ideas about “quality of life” (the term was introduced back in the 1950s by D. Riesman and J. Galbraith), “labor enrichment” (the term was introduced in the 1960s by L. David), which are related with theories of post-industrial society.

Third stage. In the West, especially in the USA, since the 1990s. A new direction, called “learning organizational systems,” is intensively developing. The fundamental ideas of this direction are drawn from cybernetics. The approach that considers the organization as a learning system that responds synergistically to various changes was partially proclaimed in the book by P. Senge “The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Self-Learning Organization.”

The basis of the approach being developed at this stage is the transition from the traditional understanding of labor to intellectual work.

From an economic point of view work is a process of conscious, purposeful, creative, legitimate activity of people to produce material and spiritual goods intended to satisfy both personal and social needs. Its functions are presented in Fig. 1.1 and 1.2.

In the extensive literature devoted to various aspects of labor, the question of the totality of labor functions has not yet received comprehensive coverage. Political economists are considering

Rice. 1.1.

Rice. 1.2.

mainly the first and second functions (labor as a way to satisfy needs and the creator of material wealth). Philosophers and sociologists, depending on the problems of their research, choose one of the other three functions (labor as a means of shaping a person, or as a force that improves society, or as the basis for the progress of freedom), while the concept of “labor function”, as a rule, is not used. As examples of a few exceptions, we can point out the work of R. Gellner, which examines two functions of labor - labor as a means of livelihood and labor as a creator and transformer of man

Ideas about work level of everyday consciousness can be generally characterized as follows. Many people associate work with difficulty, with inevitability, although sometimes with joy, and with the impossibility of being idle...

In the minds of many people ideas about work change over the course of life . Those starting to work have a lot of joyful expectations and illusions in relation to work, although for some this is mixed with a feeling of fear of an independent working life. Later, for many, some disappointment and skepticism towards work sets in. In adulthood, someone gradually develops an interest and a stable inclination towards “his” business (the person “gets involved” in his work). Before and after retirement, many people often have a positive attitude towards work (they often remember “only good things”), and a significant part of pensioners worry about their inactivity...

The topic of labor has long been of concern to the best minds of humanity. Below are some thoughts and statements about the work of famous figures of culture, science and politics :

Nothing ennobles a person like work. Without work, a person cannot maintain his human dignity" (L.N. Tolstoy);
“Life without work is theft, work without art is barbarism” (D. Ruskin);
“Work is the father of pleasure” (Stendhal);
“Work saves us from three great evils: boredom, vice and want” (Voltaire);
“If you want to have little time, then do nothing” (A.P. Chekhov);
“It’s better to do nothing than to do nothing” (L.N. Tolstoy);
“A person needs free labor not for its own sake, but for the development and maintenance of a sense of human dignity” (K.D. Ushinsky);
“By the degree of greater or lesser respect for work and by the ability to evaluate work ... according to its true value, you can find out the degree of civilization of the people” (N.A. Dobrolyubov);
“Idlers rarely visit a busy man; flies don’t fly to a boiling pot” (B. Franklin);
“The one who wants to does more than the one who can” (G. Merye);
“Work does not dishonor a person; unfortunately, you come across people who dishonor work” (U.S. Grant);
“Hunger looks into the toiler’s house, but is afraid to go there” (B. Franklin);
“The writer’s wife just can’t understand one thing: when the writer stares out the window, he is also working” (B. Raskow);
“If a slacker doesn’t annoy you, then you yourself are somewhat like him” (E.W. Howe).

Of particular interest are philosophical ideas about work. To better understand the specifics of the psychology of work, it is useful to consider the concept of “work” in a broader, philosophical context, since work is a general cultural phenomenon, moreover, it is, first of all, an ethical phenomenon. It is difficult to give a complete picture of opinions on this matter within the framework of this manual. Let us limit ourselves to only a few points of view that are most important for the topic of this book.

The Concise Encyclopedia of Philosophy defines labor as “a process where human energy and the resistance of a thing collide.” Labor is seen as “the desire to become above a thing”, as a “way of knowing a thing and oneself” (see. Brief philosophical encyclopedia, 1994. P. 463).

In the "Philosophical Encyclopedic Dictionary" work is defined as "the purposeful activity of a person, during which he, with the help of tools of labor, influences nature and uses it to create objects necessary to satisfy his needs" (see Philosophical Encyclopedic Dictionary, 1983. P. 696). If you look carefully, this definition (essentially reproducing the ideas of K. Marx) reveals the main provisions of the theory of activity of A.N., created much later. Leontyev.

If we compare concepts: work, study, play, rest , then we must remember that work is, first of all, an expedient productive activity that has its own specific result. Although, upon closer analysis, it turns out that both play and study also have their own specific results, so it is difficult to draw a clear boundary between these concepts.

Extremely important to us views on the nature of labor by K. Marx , which laid the foundation not only for the modern understanding of work activity, but also in many ways became the basis for the development of domestic ideas about human activity in a broader sense (see. Marx, Engels, Lenin, 1984). In general, the main provisions of K. Marx boil down to the following:

Main characteristics of work:

This is a goal-directed activity ("a bee building its wonderful honeycomb is always inferior to even the worst architect, because it acts instinctively, it has no conscious goal").

Labor is objective in nature (in the most general sense, labor affects “nature”).

Labor is of an instrumental nature: the worker (in his consciousness) separates himself from the conditions, although in the real labor process this separation does not occur; material conditions are, in the most general form, means of labor, i.e. the object with which he acts on the material; “an object that a person masters directly... becomes a means of labor, an organ that he attaches to the organs of his body, thus lengthening, contrary to the Bible, the natural dimensions of the latter”... (we will also get acquainted with more “modern” approaches, which also talk about the continuation human abilities in the means of labor, but using other terms - “organ projection” and “object projection” - see topic 6).

Labor (as activity) materializes in the object of labor: from the form of activity, labor passes into the form of being, into the form of an object; By changing the object, labor changes its own form, i.e. transforms the (working) person himself.

Labor is of a social nature (since in labor a person “submits to someone else’s will,” then he treats the results of his labor as “someone else’s result” ... “thus, labor denied as isolated labor is actually affirmed social or combined labor”) .

Historical division of labor:

The very division of labor into various industries and types of activity (division into professions) is considered as a condition for progress, because as a result, production quality improves.

The division of labor (especially into “physical” and “mental” labor) is also considered as the main condition for the emergence of social inequality and classes, because those who govern and those who obey were distinguished.

Labor exists in two main forms:

“Living labor” (as the possibility of creating goods and wealth - this is the labor process itself, the labor activity itself).

Abstract labor, expressed in the value of the goods produced (although the value is often determined not by the quality or usefulness of the product, but by its assessment by buyers). In this case, there is often a discrepancy between the labor expended (“living labor”) and its value (the worker does not always receive the appropriate remuneration, i.e. abstract labor).

This in turn allows abstract labor to be unfairly redistributed (for example, someone who does not work at all can have a lot of money - this is a problem posed by Plato, back in early Christianity). As a result, “alienation of labor from capital” occurs, i.e. there is a devaluation of living human labor.

Note that money (capital) itself can be considered as “accumulators” of human strength, abilities, hopes, etc. In other words, money is a kind of “pieces of human souls” . According to K. Marx, the most important result of labor is not the product produced, but “the man himself in his social relations.”

4. The ideal for K. Marx is a “harmoniously developed individual,” understood as a worker who constantly changes various types of activities, masters them and becomes a versatile person, better aware of his place in the world. K. Marx categorically opposed the idea of a “vocation,” which assigns a certain work function to a person for the rest of his life. He wrote: “The nature of large-scale industry requires the constant movement of the worker ... every five years it is necessary to learn a new profession.” Let us note that the experience of Western countries has largely confirmed these ideas of K. Marx; even the term “continuous professional education” has appeared.

5. The most important condition for the development of a person himself is time free from unfair, routine labor, where time itself is understood as a “space for personal development.” Capitalism provided free time (for development) for certain social strata of society (for the exploiting classes) and this is its historical meaning. This is all the more important because other people, focusing on the upper strata of society, also catch up in their development. But at the same time, K. Marx and F. Engels in their works identified the main problem - how to provide free time (for development) to the majority of people, and this is only possible with the transition to a new formation - to socialism...

An interesting attempt to connect similar reasoning of K. Marx and F. Engels with the psychological understanding of labor was made by E. Fromm(cm. Fromm, 1992). Speaking of "alienated character", E. Fromm defines it as a person’s loss of identity, as the separation (alienation) of a person and the business in which he is engaged, as a result of which “the value of the work itself is lost” and the value of “selling one’s labor” comes first. In such a situation, a person turns from a subject of labor into a “commodity” in the “labor and services market”...

If, according to K. Marx, “labor is objectified in capital,” and, according to E. Fromm, the main psychological feature of a working person becomes his “identity to his work” (a feeling of this identity), then the question still remains open: what are the meanings labor activity, which largely determine the work of a particular person. Let us note that only by reaching the level of meaning of a particular person’s activity can we consider work as a psychological phenomenon.

It seems promising here to highlight such a concept as "a sense (or sensation) of one's own importance" , which arises in a person as a result of the successful completion of a specific task, in particular, as a result of successful work ( Pryazhnikov, 2000b). Only by successfully creating something does a person realize himself as a real subject, and also realizes the improvement of himself, because it is known that by improving the world around us, we improve ourselves in this world. Even K. Marx said that “the main result of labor is not the goods produced, but the person himself in his social relations.”

Moreover, not every kind of work contributes to such development of a person in work, but only that which allows the maximum revelation and development of the talents inherent in each person, only if it is possible to achieve harmonious development, understood as successive forms of work activity that do not allow a person to turn into a narrow , limited only by the scope of his activity as a specialist, into a “professional cretin” (or a “professional idiot”), as K. Marx quite figuratively and emotionally characterized “narrow specialists”.

The introduction of the concept of “sense of self-worth” allows us to highlight new meanings in the work activities of specific people. It is also important to emphasize that a person strives for the best in his work, and ideally, he strives for the best, the elite. At the same time, a sense of one’s own importance (ideally, one’s own elitism) allows us to analyze in a new way the problems that arise in the distribution of benefits obtained through labor.

If in the socio-economic concept of K. Marx people exchange materialized and objectified results of labor (in particular, money and capital), then upon psychological examination it turns out that people exchange perhaps more important things - feelings of self-worth (feelings of elitism). True, another problem remains - the very sense of self-worth (sense of elitism) is understood by each person in his own way, which either gives rise to confusion (what is being exchanged after all?), or gives rise to various speculations and manipulations in this regard (see . Pryazhnikov, 2000a, 2000b).

Moreover, as with K. Marx, so with E. Fromm, unfortunately, cases are possible when a person is alienated from his work. Likewise, in our consideration, a person is alienated from the feeling of self-worth that is due to him for his work, pride in successfully completed work. Even when a person is unjustly deprived of most of what he has earned, he is, first of all, deprived of the opportunity to feel like a true subject, the master of his work, and is deprived of pride and joy for his work.

And then it turns out that the one who works honestly and effectively is not always happy about it, but the one who has learned to sell his lower-quality work at a high price, or has learned to unfairly redistribute ("detract") the sense of self-worth from other people with the help of various communicative games and techniques, he feels much better (“more elite”).

These reflections are close to the understanding of the “primary good” highlighted by the philosopher and sociologist J. Rawls in his famous book “The Theory of Justice” (see. Rawls, 1995). According to J. Rawls, itself "primary good" is, first of all, "self-esteem" . Self-esteem itself (according to J. Rawls) includes two main aspects. First, it includes “a person’s sense of his own importance, his firm conviction that his concept of his own good, his life plan, deserves to be realized.” Second, self-respect includes confidence in one's own abilities because one has the power to carry out one's own intentions.

Thus, only that person who is “confident in his own abilities” and is ready to realize his concept of good can consider himself worthy, i.e. ready to be the subject of building your own happiness. But a person lives and works in a real society and interacts with other people, and all these people have their own “concepts of the good,” which often come into inevitable contradiction with each other. And only in a “just society,” notes J. Rawls, should people strive to balance their interests, i.e. “agree” and make certain concessions to each other. This means that even in a “fair society” certain concessions and internal compromises are inevitable. Moreover, concessions become inevitable in the most important thing - in self-esteem. But only in this case, conceding even in something as important to oneself as self-esteem, a person and the whole society receive a much greater gain - the stability of this entire society and its further development, and therefore the expansion of opportunities for self-realization of each individual member of such a society .

And it is here that a person turns from a “separate individual” into a genuine personality, involved in public interests, and a person acquires what is “late” A. Adler called "a sense of belonging to society" (from German Gemeinschaftsgefuhl) and what he called for to strive for ( Adler, 1997). In fact, a person oriented toward the interests of society (and even better, Culture) not only does not “lose” his dignity in the inevitable concessions to the interests of other people, but elevates it. In this case, we can say that dignity undergoes a real test - a test of the significance of the goal and meaning for which a person lives and may or may not consider himself a Personality, and the highest such goal is service to other people and society as a whole (see Fig. 3.1).

But, as the French revolutionary and writer N. Chamfort said, “too great virtues sometimes make a person unsuitable for society: they don’t go to the market with gold bars - they need small change, especially small change.” This means that the problem still remains for many people.

Criticizing traditional ideas about justice, J. Rawls notes that in the classical utilitarian understanding of justice it is assumed that all people are altruists, that all people seem to converge into one person (almost like the Lord God...). But at the same time, such people do not have the problem of (freedom) choice and risk, and therefore the opportunity to self-determinate. And only in a true understanding of justice, in “justice as fairness” (according to J. Rawls), does a person have the right to choose and take risks, i.e. has the right to be a person ( Rawls, 1995. pp. 166-168). J. Rawls himself identifies two basic principles of justice:

1) equal rights of people in relation to fundamental freedoms;

2) inevitable inequalities (differences) should not infringe on anyone’s sense of self-worth (Rawls, 1995, pp. 66-71).

Let us note that the varied professional work itself largely presupposes a certain inequality (both in terms of contribution to the public “piggy bank” and in terms of earnings for these contributions), and it depends on the person himself what kind of work (and, accordingly, position in society) he will choose for himself. Even Plato, discussing justice, wrote that “justice consists in everyone having his own and doing his own” (see. Man, 1991. P. 87).

Thus, It is precisely access to the semantic component of work that will in the future significantly expand the possibilities of the actual psychological analysis of professional work.

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