The paper was written to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the outstanding Russian psychologist Tatyana Gavrilovna Stefanenko. The paper describes the life and professional career of the scientist, shows the origins of her professional specialization. The merits of Tatyana Gavrilovna in the field of social psychology, ethnopsychology and psychology of culture are highlighted. The circle of issues she succeeded in are laid special emphasis on.

The author narrates about the research and teaching activities of Tatyana G. Stefanenko, introduces her published scientific works. The participation of Tatyana G. Stefanenko in the international research projects is shown. Her outstanding merits as the author of textbooks and manuals on ethnopsychology basic in many educational institutions of Russia, and also as the organizer of scientific conferences and round tables are placed value on.

It is emphasized that Tatyana G. Stefanenko was an active and creative person, an attentive teacher, a talented scientist, a friendly and responsible person, and an erudite.

Relevance. Foreign scientists have developed several models of the emergence of social loafing. These models are widely presented in foreign psychological and management literature. Russian scientists when considering the phenomenon of social loafing does not even mention the existence of these models. In connection with this situation is very important to produce translations into Russian language of the common models of the emergence of social loafing and to perform them. Knowledge of models of social loafing will help competently conduct theoretical and empirical researches of the phenomenon under consideration and manage it.

The objective of the theoretical study is to facilitate provision of fundamental and objective knowledge of social loafing to scientists and practitioners who study groups or work with them. Knowledge of models of social loafing will help competently conduct theoretical and empirical researches of the phenomenon under consideration and manage it. 

Description of the course of theoretical research. The article considers the following foreign models of the origin of social loafing: R. E. Kidwell and N. Bennett’s model (1993), the collective effort model by S. J. Karau and K. D. Williams (1993), D. R. Comer’s model (1995) and S. M. Davoudi and his colleages’ model (2012). The author of the article indicates limitations of the research conducted and outlines variants of the future researches on the concerned problem. 

Conclusions. On the basis of the analysis of the foreign models the author reaches several conclusions. Firstly, almost all the models indicate only motivational causes of social loafing while coordinating causes are omitted. Such an approach is not entirely proper as a number of empirical researches revealed that social loafing emerges due to both coordinating and motivational causes. Secondly, the authors of almost all the models refer to deindividualising of personality and social comparison as motivational causes of social loafing. Thirdly, almost all the models do not distinguish between causes and factors of social loafing. This approach is not entirely justified as implies causation while factors suggest correlation. Fourthly, almost all the models consider situational factors of social loafing while dispositional factors are ignored. Finally, all the models do not exhaustively describe causes and factors of the phenomenon under consideration.

The paper studies the methodological aspect of developing social intuitionist approach to moral psychology. The paper reveals the possibility of applying this approach to the study of morality and moral functioning today, emphasizes the representation of issues in moral psychology methodological origins of social psychology, both in Russia and abroad. Social and psychological foundations of social intuitionist approach are described in detail. The research results show that the child perceiving the concept of fairness and variability in the framework of a specific group membership is culturally determined. The matter of special consideration is the theory of the American social psychologist George Haidt. The results of his work and his colleagues’ works are presented herein describing the concept of cultural variable moral intuitions, the findings of empirical studies carried out in the framework of this approach are summarized. The paper reveals the fundamental provisions of the social and intuitionistic theory. The comparative analysis of the social intuitionistic and cognitive approaches in moral psychology is presented. The conclusion that the relativistic understanding of morality is not an obstacle to its study, and the presence of various determinants of moral functioning should be based on further empirical research.

The authors conceptualized the current state of social intuitionistic theory of moral functioning, which describes the theoretical and methodological sources of this area (Rawls, 2010; Freud, 2005; Hume, 1996; Hare’s, 1981). As justification for this approach the paper considers the phenomena studied in psychology, social cognition, and those that create the possibility of developing this area, namely affective motivation (Zajonc, 1980), fair-world hypothesis (Lerner, 1965), the objectivity of the illusion (Perkins, Allen, & Hafner , 1983), the phenomenon of «naive realism» (Griffin, & Ross, 1991), group interaction in a situation of regulatory uncertainty (Zimbardo, Lyayppe, 2011).

The author, being a former student of the Department of Psychology, Lomonosov Moscow State University, and now is teacher, professor, remembers those who created and maintained such traditions of the Department as depth of knowledge and coherence of ideas, methodological clarity and dialogue, holistic view of the issue and using problem solving in teaching, and also the joint work of professors and students in the way of perceiving the truth. According to the author the 50th anniversary of the Department of Psychology is an occasion to both recall the path members of the Department went over the years, including several epochs, and to outline the prospects for further development. Considerable attention is paid to the personality of G.M. Andreeva, who is a gifted teacher, a brilliant scholar, and one of the founders of social psychology in the Russia. Particular attention is drawn to Galina Andreeva collecting the brightest staff of the Chair of Social Psychology, whose key feature was involvement in both the scientific and also collective life of the Department, which contributed to the development of the new important branch of psychology. The author also singles out the figure of the wonderful teacher L.A. Petrovskaya who encouraged the students to cherish their individuality as she believed it to be the main tool of the professional psychologist. With much gratitude the author recalls tips for organizing the teaching process received from A.U. Kharash.

The paper characterizes the current state and the importance of the Department, and outlines the prospects for further development. In particular, the author speaks of the need for developing student personal involvement in professional activities, and also of creating favourable conditions at the Deaprtment for a student successful transition from training to real life.

The history of scientific conflict discourse based on the analysis of philosophic studies, social psychology, economics, and evolutionary biology is shown. The main current theories concerning the conflicts in society and ways to resolve them are considered. The views of local and foreign scientists in the paradigm of tolerance and the perspectives of building tolerant behavior in modern society are presented.

The paper comprehensively describes the issue of the relationship between social cognition and social problems.

A brief excursion into the history of social study in social psychology in this country and abroad is reviewed. The methodology of the psychology of social cognition can be used both for explaining the individual elements of the emerging problems, and for the understanding of the whole process. The essence of ideas by Wundt, K. Levin, A. Teshfel, P.A. Sorokin, V.M. Bekhterev, L.S. Vygotsky and other related problems of social psychology are presented. Current prospects of social cognition in the study of social problems are outlined. The emergence of a new specific industry of social psychology, identified as the psychology of social cognition, is mentioned. Its challenges and opportunities, the development of methods for the study of social problems in today’s theory of social representations by S. Moscovici are presented.

Relevance of social study today is shown. The author notes that a strong need to address significant (global) problems in the society always arises in a period of radical change, social transformations, and from this point of view, the period of reform in Russia is a situation that cries out for the need to study the existing social problems.

The paper is devoted to Boris Dmitrievich Parygin, a talented Russian psychologist and educator, who trained many generations of students and postgraduates.It briefly touches upon the main facts of the scholar’s life, highlights the results of his research and reveals the scope of his scientific and educational work. It is shownthat B.D. Parygin was also an outstanding science develper. Upon his initiative, the Department of Social Psychology and the first “Social psychological research” laboratoryon the basis of Leningrad Gertsen Teacher-Training Institute was the first one to be established in the USSR.

There are facts that point to Boris Parygin’s contribution to the establishment and development of social psychology. The author notes that the scholar established the basisof methodology and developed the subject area of social psychology as an independent science, and justified its status in the humanities.

Particular emphasis is put on the conceptually important aspects of scientific creativity of B.D. Parygin’s recent years that are relevant to today critical problems of humandevelopment, culture, and society.

The author writes about the scholar’s idea of personal integrity, humanistic function of psychology and the coherent worldview principle of dialogue as an alternative toanti-human communication.