Biographical method of personality research occupies an important place in the arsenal of modern psychology and related sciences. Its development has a long, rich history created by philosophers, historians, sociologists, art historians, scientists and, of course, psychologists. Among those who have made a significant contribution to the development of biographical psychology in XX century there are psychologists Sigmund Freud, Charlotte Buhler, Viktor Frankl, Alfred Adler, Hans Tome, Gordon Allport, Maslow and others.
There is a growing trend in the modern science for the integral study of personality throughout the whole life on the scale of historical epoch, which is why the biographical method gained popularity and development. However, many issues remain unresolved in the theory of human life course, methodological tools for the study of life as a natural historical process on a personal level, interrelation between of personality and biographical and socio-historical time.
Duality of psychology was noted a long time ago. Attempts are still taken to separate psychology from other disciplines, to present it as unique, to which common criteria and standards of science cannot be applied. The question of possibilities for the scientific study of personality in its entirety, as a carrier of the inner world, the subject of social life, individuality is still topical. In these matters, competition between psychology and art is particularly noticeable and artistic perception looks better. Identity - is it the subject of science or art? - the question was put bluntly by prominent American psychologist G. Allport. He spoke in defense of science and proved indispensability of the scientific method with art. G. Allport did a lot for the development of scientific methods and personology, including biographical, which is in close proximity to the art and is used in a number of human sciences, as well as in personality psychology.
Along with the historical, literary, scientific biography there is a psychological and in the arsenal of psychology there has long been a biographical method (more precisely, methods), which aims to study the unique whole person as the subject of life, so to speak, a wanderer in life. This method combines the analytic, scientific rigor with synthetical and artistic metaphors describing complex psychological phenomena.
Appeal to the biographical method in modern psychology is conditioned by the lack of experimental and test methods, which are designed to obtain information about the identity in artificial, controlled environment, apart from the natural process of human life with its events and circumstances in connection with and against the background of a historical epoch in which the person lives. Vital validity of these methods is not always convincing. Biographical method is by definition related to living, considering the identity in the natural historical process in the course of life. Psychological research on the basis of the biographical method is the study of the individual’s life. It is aimed at the psychological mechanisms and laws of social behavior. Viktor Frankl wrote that the identity reveals itself in its biography. It opens itself, its so-being, its unique essence only to the biographical explanation, without exposure to direct analysis. Ultimately, biography is nothing other than an explanation of the individual over time.
The subject of the biographical method is the individual life path, precisely, the individual as a subject of this path. Hence comes all the specifics of the biographical method. This specifics is found when accessing the theoretical foundations of the method, its conceptual apparatus, as well as its operational side, the specific methods of collecting, processing and interpretation of the biographical information about the person.
Today the biographical method is actively developing and expanding its technical tools, which allows us to talk about the method in the plural form. Often these methods are called in psychology psycho biographical to emphasize the identity of this particular science, its focus on the psychological manifestations and mechanisms of life personality as the subject of life.
The word life here refers to the story of life, and to its description. Existence of its own history is the hallmark of the individual. Biography as a psychological branch deals with psychological mechanisms involved in social life, life choices, including the existential experiences, spiritual work of the inner world of individuality. Such structure of personality as talent, character, vision, life philosophy, personality as a whole can not be understood without the biography of the individual and, therefore, without the biographical method.
Biographical method is often used in different kinds of research. For instance, Walker et al. used it is their research of successful combat control trainees (2011). The objective of the study was evaluation of psychological, physiological and demographical characteristics that are related to successful progression through CCT pipeline program. There were several methods used in the study, among them analysis of the biographical information, physiological measurements and various psychological tests. The study of biography as a part of experiment was absolutely reasonable, as it allowed for better understanding of the trainee’s personality. The results of the study showed that CCT trainees with 3-level rating have higher than average levels of anaerobic and aerobic fitness, mental toughness, power and other indicators.
References
Berecz, J. M. (2008). Theories of Personality: A Zonal Perspective. London: Pearson.
Walker, T. B., Lennemann, L. M., McGregor, J. N., Mauzy, C., & Zupan, M. F. (2011). Physiological and psychological characteristics of successful combat controller trainees. J Spec Oper Med,11(1), 39-47.
