Understanding of Values by Art Students and Political Science

Students for Personal Development in the Context of Sustainable

Education

Natalia B. Karabushchenko

, Tatiana S. Pilishvili

and Mikhail M. Shtyrev

Philological Faculty, The Department of Psychology and Pedagogics, RUDN University, Miklukho-Maklaya str.6, Moscow,

Russia

Keywords: Youth Socio-Political Leadership, Students, Young Artists, Personal Values.

Abstract: The essence of the research is a comparative analysis of the value-semantic sphere of young politicians and

artists as representatives of two different professional groups and leadership trends. The empirical part of the

study involved 165 respondents, including 81 students of the 2, 3, 4 courses of the Academy of Watercolors

and Fine Arts of Sergei Andriyaki and 84 students of political science of 2, 3 courses of the RUDN

University of Russia (Moscow, Russia). To study the value orientations of the individual, the method "Value

Questionnaire" (Sh. Schwartz) was used. The comparative analysis of the obtained results was carried out

using the Mann-Whitney U criterion in the IBM SPSS Statistics 22 program. The specific characteristics

determined by the social and professional activities of young politicians and artists, the nature of the

representatives of the two samples are revealed. Conformism, kindness, universalism, independence and

traditionalism are more characteristic to young artists, while hedonism, power and security distinguish

politically active young people. The results of the research can be used in the development of

recommendations for psychological support of youth political leadership and artistic creativity; in the creation

of training courses for the effective communication skills development, taking into account the of young

politicians and artists value representation.

1 INTRODUCTION

The relevance of the study of the youth leadership

representatives value-semantic personality sphere is

determined by the need for organizational efforts to

create socially active groups of young men and

women focused on their own development in the field

of political, socially-oriented influence on peers

during socialization. For the youth leadership

representatives in the political and creative

environment, the question of their value orientations,

the ability to realize his own individuality in the self-

development field, creativity in the moral choices

implementation, and the ability to take responsibility

becomes fundamental (Petrie, 2014). Modern youth

leaders work in a constantly changing socio-political

environment, and tasks high-quality performance in

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0885-8082

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5743-2627

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0456-1828

this mode implies the individual and flexible

behavioral strategies development. The leader needs

to take into account the opinions of various segments

of the population and interest groups. (Sims, Gong,

and Hughes, 2017). The leadership value-semantic

component contributes to the fact that a young leader

learns to correctly position himself in the world. A

deep understanding of the world order allows a young

manager to concentrate around himself unique

followers with similar values, due to which not

vertical, but network leadership is carried out, while

all participants maintain their authentic "I" (Song,

Fang, Wang and Shi, 2020). The individual political

socialization process today takes place in a stable

environment without drastic changes in value

orientations. Modern youth leaders make a significant

contribution to our society political culture, for

Karabushchenko, N., Pilishvili, T. and Shtyrev, M.

Understanding of Values by Art Students and Political Science Students for Personal Development in the Context of Sustainable Education.

DOI: 10.5220/0010596207010706

In Proceedings of the International Scientiﬁc and Practical Conference on Sustainable Development of Regional Infrastructure (ISSDRI 2021), pages 701-706

ISBN: 978-989-758-519-7

701

example, active participation in voluntary

organizations (Andersson, 2020).

A young leader acts as a source of universal

values, which in modern conditions is associated with

his ability to lead various groups of people

(Scherbakova, Misirov, Akopyan and Ogannisyan,

2020). Youth leadership today is constantly searching

for a unique relationships style within and outside of

socio-political movements, the main actors regulating

these relationships will be activists who are able to

offer people global supra-group life meanings, while

taking into account the benefits of the entire world

community (Turska-Kawa, 2011). Today, voluntary

youth meetings should take into account the high

level of the individual self-organization, moreover, it

is important to control the social constructive activity

of the target audience internal motivation level

(Panarin and Nazarova, 2018).

The individual sphere of personality values and

senses is structured by two elements, i.e. the value

orientations system and the individual life meanings,

and in generally accepted concepts it is the core of the

individual, which determines the nature and content

of a person life. Various psychological schools have

been studying the value orientations and life

meanings problems, in particular, A. Adler spoke

about the relationship between behavioral and life

meanings that come from the goal set by the subject

and the nature of its implementation (Adler, 1956).

Representative of another scientific school, K. G.

Jung believed that the existence of a meaning in life

is associated with the setting of a certain goal by a

person. Mental health, according to the scientist,

directly depends on the aspirations of a person to

establish spiritual or cultural goals for oneself (Jung,

1978). According to the logotherapy creator V. Frankl

the main engine of the individual behavioral

development is the search and realization of the

meaning of life, this is an innate motivational

tendency. Logoterpy assumes that the meaning of life

is always outside of a person, which allows a person

to conduct a continuous search and implementation.

S. Muddy attributed meaning to the role of the

personality highest integrative principle. A mature

person clearly divides the types of activities and

selects those that contribute to the realization of the

meaning of his or her life (Maddi, 1999).

In Russian psychological thought, the

development of life-meaning concepts took place

within the framework of the subject-activity

approach. S.L. Rebinstein described meaning as a

product of the self-consciousness development,

which is expressed in the everyday achievements of

the individual. A person is often inclined to rethink

his or her life principles, due to the age-specific

nature of the process, which greatly affects his or her

relationship with himself or herself and the

surrounding reality. Meaning is objective in nature,

so any action always reflects a certain motive, it is

embodied in objective meanings, as A.N. Leontiev

wrote in his works. The meaning of life as a

concentrated descriptive characteristic of the core and

most generalized dynamic semantic system

responsible for the general direction of the subject life

as a whole, considers D.A. Leontiev (Leontiev,

2005).

B.S. Bratus' defines values as the fundamental

meanings of a person's life realized and accepted by

him or her (Bratus', 2005). In his writings, M. Rokich

divides values into two classes: instrumental and

terminal, in the general category of stable beliefs.

Instrumental values are a belief that justifies the

choice of the most preferable way for a person to

implement a task. Terminal values are the belief that

the ultimate goal of individual existence is worth all

the effort to achieve (Rokeach, 1973). A.V. Seriy and

M.S. Yanitsky describe the formation of value-

semantic orientations in the format of 3 psychological

processes. The first process of interiorization involves

testing social experience through culture, everyday

life, and traditions that characterize the social

structure of society. The second process is the process

of identification. A person begins to relate himself or

herself to other individuals or groups of people on the

basis of an emotional connection, which subsequently

allows this person to adopt and master the norms and

values of others. The third and final stage is the

internalization process. Conscious and active

perception of the surrounding world by the individual

allows to transform the accepted and realized values

into stable internal qualities. According to the

authors, these processes are conditions for the

individual socialization (Yanitskij, Seryj, Braun,

Pelekh, Maslova, Sokolskaya, Sanzhayeva,

Monsonova, Dagbaeva, Neyaskina, Kadyrov, and

Kapustina, T.V., 2019).

During study of youth political leadership

representatives, significant values were identified for

the selected category of people, such as interesting

work, respect for people, active life, self-confidence,

financially secure life, purposefulness. Thus, the data

obtained on the priorities of modern young leaders

show that the future Russian politicians sphere of

activity is externally aimed at society, while

internally it involves maintaining social status and

position in society (Popova and Riabushko, 2017).

The creative leadership representatives on the

example of artists are more introverted, working with

ISSDRI 2021 - International Scientiﬁc and Practical Conference on Sustainable Development of Regional Infrastructure

702

images, but it is through symbolic images that the

influence on the masses occurs, and therefore their

value content becomes no less important than the

political speech of the leader.

Modern research in the field of studying the

psychological characteristics of the individual

involves the identification of patterns and diverse

aspects in the value-semantic sphere of the individual

in adolescence (Arendachuk, 2018). Nevertheless, the

comparative characteristics of this sphere among

people who make important socially significant

decisions in political and socially significant

activities in comparison with artists as representatives

of creative youth remain insufficiently studied. The

hypothesis of this study was the possibility of

identifying the specific features in the value-semantic

sphere of personality among the representatives of

modern youth political leadership and students of a

leading art university as leaders in the creative sphere.

The practical significance of the research results lies

in the possibility of applying the obtained data in the

development of psychological support programs for

young leaders and creative youth in order to increase

the meaningfulness and humanitarian orientation of

their activities, increase awareness and responsibility

with the resources available to them.

2 MATERIALS AND METHODS

The empirical part of the study involved 165

respondents, including 81 students of the 2, 3, 4

courses of the Academy of Watercolors and Fine Arts

of Sergei Andriyaki and 84 students of political

science of 2, 3 courses of the RUDN University of

Russia (Moscow, Russia). To study the value

orientations of the individual, the method "Value

Questionnaire" (Sh. Schwartz) was used. The

comparative analysis of the obtained results was

carried out using the Mann-Whitney U criterion in the

IBM SPSS Statistics 22 program.

3 RESULTS

The results of the comparative analysis using the

Mann-Whitney U criterion showed significant

differences in most scales of the methodology.

Moreover, both at the level of nominal ideals and

individual priorities, the same trend can be traced.

The mentality of the Russian political elite is

determined by its characteristic features, i.e. personal

loyalty, general idea consecution and efficiency. This

is due to the need to maintain power and achieve a

strategic goal. However, the results of the

comparative analysis on the "Conformity" scale (U =

2,889 at p = 0.043) specify a different reality. Young

political activists (Cp = 77.21), unlike art students

(Cp = 92.33), are not inclined to follow the majority

opinion, to accept the prevailing social and political

order. This is the category of active, energetic people

who have their own opinion and life position, who

want to bring new ideas and views to the social order.

Young artists are ready to follow the authority, to

adhere to the positions of the school in which their

talent develops. Becoming a human creator is a long

and complex process. Therefore, at the first stage, the

artist must master the craft, at the second the he or she

must become a master, a professional, and at the third

he or she must become a creator. Students are at the

first stage of their development, following the

tradition set by the art school.

According to the "Kindness" scale (U = 2,547 at p

= 0.002), there are also differences between the

samples. The value of human kindness is recognized

by students of art universities more (Cp = 96.56). The

artistic view involves penetration into the inner world

of another person, a willingness to understand their

feelings and experiences, so kindness in relationships

is more appreciated. Art students are somewhat

closed and vulnerable, immersed in their own reality,

that is filled with images, colors, and forms. They see

individuality and uniqueness in everything, e.g. in a

person, in nature, in the urban world, conveying their

attitude and emotions through paintings, sculptures,

miniatures. Politically active young people value

"kindness" to a lesser extent (Cp = 73.28), which is

due to high social activity, focused not on a single

individual, but on communities, large groups and the

population segments. The ambitions of young

managers to make changes in society, in the political

and economic system can distance them from the

difficulties and problems that a particular person

faces. Consequently, the value of personal qualities

aimed at relationships is reduced.

Also, art students (Cp = 95.89) are more

committed to traditions than young politicians (Cp =

73.90). According to the scale of "Traditions" (U =

2,601 at p = 0.003), statistically significant

differences were revealed, indicating the tendency of

a creative person to follow the norms and traditions

that have developed in society, to adhere to the

established canons of the artistic tradition in which

their talent matures. Politically active students are

focused on transformations, both socio-political and

economic-technological. Sometimes they become the

initiators of reforms and changes themselves.

Understanding of Values by Art Students and Political Science Students for Personal Development in the Context of Sustainable Education

703

Undoubtedly, the political activity involves the

development, without which it is impossible to

adequately position an individual state on the world

stage. Undoubtedly, political activities involve the

development, without which it is impossible to

adequately position an individual state on the world

stage. All innovations should be based on collective

memory, only then they will be relevant to the time

and place.

At a statistically significant level, there were

differences on the "Universalism" scale (U = 2,452 at

p = 0.001). The attention of creative youth (Cp =

97.72) is directed to understanding the surrounding

world, to determining their place in it, to specific

details that reflect the state of nature and a man. The

receptivity to everything external makes art students

more caring and tolerant. They readily oppose the

environmental pollution and support the ecological

balance preservation. Politically active youth (Cp =

72.19) are less care-oriented. The ecological aspect

takes a back seat, as the urban space urbanization, the

production facilities deployment, the use of land

resources, so necessary for the life of the country,

become of primary importance for the politician. And

although the trend for a green economy is beginning

to gain momentum in the world, the Russian

establishment is not yet ready for such changes.

The "Independence" value (U = 2,677 at p =

0.007) also indicates differences between the

samples. Art students (Cp = 94.94) are more likely to

express an independent opinion and to behave

independently. Perhaps they are not always ready to

present their view of the world with ease, but at the

same time they appreciate the freedom of self-

expression. For the creative nature, the spirit of

rebellion and the originality of the ideas expressed in

the period of professional maturity are quite

appropriate and characteristic. In the process of

becoming a political figure, on the contrary,

independence values less and less. This trend begins

to be traced at the student age (Cp = 74.78). The

ability to restrain themselves, to control thoughts and

actions, to follow a certain general idea to achieve a

certain goal allow young activists to work more

effectively in a team.

Hedonistic values are more important for young

politicians (Cp = 95.31) than for artists (Cp = 72.89).

This scale indicates the statistically significant

differences (U = 4,464 at p = 0.003) between the

samples. Thus, artistic natures do not seek sensual

pleasure and enjoyment, while students and political

activists are not alien to hedonistic needs.

Presumably, this fact is due not only to the specifics

of the respondents future activities, but also to the

specifics of the sample. Among artists, there are more

women, and among politicians there are more men.

The intention to achieve a high social status and

gain power is undoubtedly more significant for

politically active young people. The "Power" scale (U

= 4,482 at p = 0.002) also indicates the statistically

significant differences between the samples. Art

students (Cp = 72.67) think differently. Many of them

are well aware that, most likely, their financial life

will not be provided at the proper level, that the

results of their work will not be in demand en masse,

that only a few can achieve fame. In a conversation

with young artists, it turned out that they are attracted

to the very process of creativity. They find

recognition and understanding in narrow circles of

like-minded people. The well expressed introverted

orientation of some respondents indicates an inner

stiffness and tightness, about not wanting to let

anyone into their own world. Many people are

repelled by publicity, and the fear of performing in

front of an audience is present. According to the

classification of E.A. Klimov this professional

activity belongs to the type of "person-artistic image".

It is the images creation, the transmission of

emotional experiences through a creative product that

become the basis for the artist interaction with the

surrounding world. Consequently, power and

domination over other people do not attract them, and

influence through the education of aesthetic feelings

is the goal of creative personalities. Young politicians

(Cp = 95.52), on the contrary, are focused on the

creation of public associations, surround themselves

with followers. Power is expressed in organizational

activity, in the ability to influence the minds of

supporters, in the willingness to transform and

innovate for them. In the professions of the "Man -

man" type, the managerial function is particularly

expressed, but the nature of its manifestation is

different. For professions such as psychologist,

teacher, doctor, etc. it has a connotation of support

and help, and in management and politics it has a

connotation of influence and leadership.

Thus, the differences in the scales of

"Conformity", "Tradition", "Kindness",

"Universalism", "Power" in nominal and personal

values are equally strong. Hedonistic orientations

appeared only in the general profile, at the individual

level no differences were found, and the picture is

also observed with a careful study of the

"Independence" scale. But on the "Safety" scale (U =

4,149 at p = 0.047), statistically significant

differences between the samples were found in the

individual profile. Due to the high level of public

activity, publicity, and representation in various

ISSDRI 2021 - International Scientiﬁc and Practical Conference on Sustainable Development of Regional Infrastructure

704

social networks, young politicians (Cp = 91.69) pay

more attention to their own security. A certain degree

of art students closeness (Cp = 76.78), individualism

and restrained contact reduces the importance of the

value of security.

4 DISCUSSION

It should be noted that the value orientations of art

students differ significantly from the life-sense

orientations of novice politicians. On the one hand,

this happens due to the specifics of their social and

professional activities. On the other hand, with the

characteristics of the two samples representatives.

Conformism, kindness, universalism, independence

and adherence to traditions are characteristic of

creative natures, while hedonism, power and security

are characteristic of politically active youth. This fact

indicates that the significance degree of a particular

value for respondents depends on the individual

ideological position, on the acceptance of their place

in society, on the importance of the activity that a

person performs, on the awareness of their vocation

and readiness for creation.

5 CONCLUSION

Summarizing the results of the study, it is possible to

identify the specific features of students of artistic and

political education profiles.

So, young politicians are more active, building

their own development strategy. Even at a small stage

of development, future managers are aware of the

effectiveness of their own activities, which inevitably

leads to a decrease in the value of personal qualities

aimed at relationships. For young politicians, it

becomes important to acquire power resources, due to

which they see the possibility of their own influence

on their circle.

Young artists tend to allocate their time and effort

to develop the skills that are characteristic to the

masters, following a certain tradition. They are

characterized by kindness as a value, which allows

them to penetrate into the inner world of another

person, to empathize with him or her. They are less

satisfied with their life activities results over the past

period of life than future politicians, so they are not

alien to new sensory experiences. At the same time,

young artists strive to realize themselves within the

framework of existing traditions. The value of

"universalism" is expressed more among young

artists. The representatives of this group are

distinguished by greater independence, asceticism,

the ability to accept other people, the willingness to

protect nature and the world around them, and the

desire to come to the aid to a stranger.

The prospects of the research consist in further

comparative study of the value-semantic aspects of

political leadership and creative activity of young

artists when comparing different groups, taking into

account their professional activities.

REFERENCES

Adler, A. (1956). The Individual Psychology of Alfred

Adler. H. L. Ansbacher and R. R. Ansbacher (Eds.).

N.Y. Harper Torchbooks.

Andersson, E. (2020). A transactional and action-oriented

methodological approach to young people’s political

socialisation. Education, Citizenship and Social

Justice, 15(3): 243-257. DOI:

10.1177/1746197919853807

Arendachuk, I.V. (2018). Dynamics of Value and Meaning

Characteristics of Social Activity of Modern Youth.

RUDN Journal of Psychology and Pedagogics. 15(3):

287-307. DOI: 10.22363/2313- 1683-2018-15-3-287-

307

Bratus', B.S. (2005). On the Problem of Man in Psychology.

Journal of Russian & East European Psychology. 43

(6): 73-94. DOI: 10.1080/10610405.2005.11059273

Jung, C.G. (1978). The meaning of Psychology for modern

man. In Collected Works. 10: 134-156.

Leontiev, D. (2005). Three facets of meaning. Journal of

Russian and East European Psychology. 43(6): 45-72.

DOI: 10.1080/10610405.2005.11059270

Maddi, S.R. (1999). The personality construct of hardiness:

Effects on experiencing coping and strain. Consulting

Psychology Journal: Practice and Research. 51(2): 83-

94. DOI: 10.1037/1061-4087.51.2.83

Panarin, I.A. and Nazarova, A.A. (2018). Experience of

Empirical Research of Social Responsibility of

Volunteers. Scientific Notes of Russian State Social

University. 17((3)(148)): 14-21. DOI: 10.17922/2071-

5323-2018-17-3-14-21

Petrie N. (2014). Future Trends in Leadership

Development. Greensborough, North Carolina: Center

for Creative Leadership. DOI: 10.35613/ccl.2014.2033

Popova, O., Riabushko, A. (2017). Political loyalty of the

Russian youth in the context of economic crisis. Proc.

of the Internationsl Conference on Electronic

Governance and Open Society: Challenges in Eurasia

(eGose '17). Association for Computing Machinery,

New York, NY, USA, 85–90. DOI:

10.1145/3129757.3129773

Rokeach, M. (1973). The Nature of Human Values, N.Y.,

Free Press.

Sims C.M., Gong T., Hughes C., 2017. Linking leader and

gender identities to authentic leadership in small

Understanding of Values by Art Students and Political Science Students for Personal Development in the Context of Sustainable Education

705

businesses. Gender in Management: International

Journal, 32 (5): 318-329. DOI: 10.1108/GM-06-2016-

0121

Song, Y., Fang, Y., Wang, M., Shi, J., 2020. A multiplex

view of leadership structure in management teams.

Personnel Psychology, 73 (4): 615-640. DOI:

10.1111/peps.12388

Scherbakova, T., Misirov, D., Akopyan, M. and

Ogannisyan, L. (2020). The student as a subject of

transformative activity in the period of professional

training. E3S Web of Conferences, 175, № 15013. DOI:

10.1051/e3sconf/202017515013

Turska-Kawa A. (2011). Political Activation of Young

People. On the Importance of the Humanities for Social

Practice. The Humanities Today and the Idea of

Interdisciplinary Studies. Warszawa: «Matrix». 267-

280.

Yanitskij, M.S., Seryj, A.V., Braun, O.A., Pelekh, Y.V.,

Maslova, O.V., Sokolskaya, M.V., Sanzhayeva, R.D.,

Monsonova, A.R., Dagbaeva, S.B., Neyaskina, Y.Y.,

Kadyrov, R.V. and Kapustina, T.V. (2019). The value

orientations system of generation Z: Social, cultural and

demographic determinants. Sibirskiy Psikhologicheskiy

Zhurnal, (72), 46-67.

ISSDRI 2021 - International Scientiﬁc and Practical Conference on Sustainable Development of Regional Infrastructure

706