Infantile Behavior of Student Youth: Basic Indicators and Peculiarity Manifestation

Abstract

The essence of the concept of infantilizm as a form of dependent behavior that is characterized by saving childhood features that prevent successful development and personality self-actualization is revealed in the article. The main theoretical approaches to the nature and structure of this phenomenon are analysed. Based on the analysis four main approaches are distilled: psychoanalytic – considers infantilizm as a manifestation of the unconscious and immaturity of forms of mental protection of personality; humanistic – interprets infantile person, not like self-actualised, which inherent signs of immaturity; family system psychotherapy – treats infantilizm from the position of family systems where deficit or violation of its components is the cause of infantile manifestations in behavior and activity approach, which gives understanding of infantilizm as a disorder process of involution child’s development. Defined indicators of the infantile person’s behavior and factors of their formation. The main indicators of infantile behavior: dependency, children’s logic and imperfections of thinking, lack of initiative in decision-making, impulsivity, desire for inheritance, emotional instability, egocentrism, weakness volitional installations, conformity, rigidnost behavior, shyness, timidity, uncertainty, instability of interest level of self-esteem and others. The main factors of infantile behavior: congenital disorders of internal development; communicable diseases moved in the early age; intrapersonal conflict; violation in the parameters of family systems, confluences, protective mechanism regression and immaturity of personality. The results of empirical research manifestations of infantile behavior among the students are highlited. It is found out that the most pronounced manifestations of infantile behavior among modern students are: lack of initiative in making decisions (50%), emotional instability (40%) and conformability (40%). Inherent childness and storeys thinking, naive (37%), flexibility and rigidity behavior (33%), egocentrism are less distinctive features. The least pronounced manifestation of infantility was a high level of self-esteem (13%).