The teacher: A few words of appreciation for Iosif Markovich Paley

Abstract

The article explores I. M. Paley, one of the most prominent representatives of the Ananyev psychological school. The scientific life of I. M. Paley focused on studies of individual differences. He made a significant contribution to the constitution of the Leningrad (St Petersburg) differential psychological school. His intensive scientific communication with representatives of Moscow and Perm differential psychological schools (especially with V. D. Nebylitsyn and V. S. Merlin) contributed to the integration of Russian differential psychology and the creation of common theoretical guidelines and comparable diagnostic methods. His psychological and psychophysiological studies were devoted to describing individual differences, explaining their origins (based on inter-level associations), and predicting behavior (how differences in properties of the nervous system, temperament, intelligence, and personality lead to variation in behavioral responses). His research interests addressed the structure and functions of personality with specific interest in the developmental stability and plasticity. Paley believed that an analysis of inter-level relations in the structure of the personality, as well as the elucidation of reasons for the relationship, are the key to understanding the integrity of the individual. In studies conducted under his leadership not only nomothetic, but also idiographic methods of analysis were used, especially micro-longitudinal studies, which allowed the estimation of intra-individual variability. He paid much attention to the methodology of psychological research: the analysis of research schemes, the development and adaptation of diagnostic methods, and the adequate use of statistical methods. Paley was a talented lecturer who taught people to see both the variety of personality manifestations and the variety of their determinants. He designed the first course of lectures in Russia dedicated to differential psychology of the personality. Perhaps his greatest strength was his scientific supervision, in which professional competence, scientific honesty, and genuine interest were combined with an amazing ability to enthrall the students. Science is a dialogue between nature and humanity. Paley knew how to hear the questions that arise in this dialogue and helped us, his students, to master this ability.