V. A. Romenets’ school of creative abilities education: the origins of success

Abstract

Volodymyr Andriyovych Romenets (1926–1998) – is an important figure in Ukrainian psychology, author of fundamental works on the history of psychology, psychology of creativity, theoretical and methodological foundations of humanitarian cognition. High evaluation of scientific achievements at the same time requires a constructive analysis of his work, interpretation of the last taking into account modern trends in the development of science and culture. Republication of V. Roments’ work in 1973 “Educating the students’ creative abilities” (2018 No. 3-4) stimulates psychologists to the canons of philosophical thinking. This is confirmed by the phenomenological analysis carried out by the scientist on the evolution of interest in science by young people (university entrants and students of the psychology department of the university), which is based on the reconstruction of the stages of their admiration for scientific cognition. It is proved that the entry of young people into the field of intellectual search is accompanied by her personal tension between the ideal of comprehensive development and the necessity of professional specialization. A human personalizes science, encyclopedicity, awareness, considers it as an individual project of some achievements in the cognition of truth of outstanding researchers. In further, there is a complication and “democratization” of the scientist’s image, which is connected with the personal crisis of comprehension the restrictions of scientific cognition. Some of the Western approaches to creativity are analyzed in the work of V. Romenets, including works of J. P. Guilford, E.P. Torrance and G. Gutman, are criticized either for excessive metaphysics and natural philosophy, or for “test mania”. In general, the psychodidactic study of creativity in the analytical experience of V. Roments is based on questionnaires and observations that is concerned only students of psychology department of philosophy faculty of Kyiv University named after Taras Shevchenko, which doesn’t give any grounds for wide generalizations. In addition, he doesn’t pay enough attention to the description of the program of his own empirical research, doesn’t indicate on the formation and composition of the sample, the time limits of experimentation, etc. The same applies to his proposed methodology for diagnosing the level of creative abilities. That’s why it is relevant a development of the hierarchy’s clarity and the sequence of stages of the interest deployment in scientific creativity, which would provide a brief description of each of them. At the same time, it is reasoned that the classical style of research activity in science, which is inherent to Volodymyr Romenets, is a kind of canon of philosophical thinking, which goes in very original ways and can not be completely restricted by formal requirements to publications without losing its exceptional content, conceptual integrity and didactic significance.