Lomonosov Psychology Journal, 2026, 1, 272.

Background. This article was prepared in connection with the 95th anniversary of the birth of E.A. Klimov (1930–2014), a prominent Soviet and Russian psychologist, academician of the Russian Academy of Education, head of the Department of Work Psychology and Engineering Psychology, and dean of the Faculty of Psychology at Lomonosov Moscow State University. The author focuses on work psychology, a branch of psychology that the scientist studied throughout his life. The theoretical relevance of this article is determined by the heuristic potential of E.A. Klimov’s work in the field of practice-oriented work psychology.

Objective. The goal is to analyze the work of the scientist in the field of work psychology.

Methods. The methods used were those of historical and scientific research, namely, a content-comparative analysis of texts. Elements of a scientometric analysis of the scientist’s work were also applied. The study was conducted within the framework of the traditions and principles of the subject-activity approach in the history of psychology as applied to the study of an individual personality.

Results. The proposed hypotheses are confirmed qualitatively and quantitatively (by the results of scientometric analysis). 1. The origins of the development of E.A. Klimov’s professional erudition as a work psychologist, as well as his experience as an organizer of psychological science are analyzed and described. 2. It is shown that E.A. Klimov made a significant contribution to the development of the key issues in work psychology: the disciplinary status of work psychology as a practice-oriented branch of science that can and should study the entire diversity of types of labor was clarified. The tasks and methods of work psychology were defined with its basic concepts being clarified. A typology of ergatic functions was developed. A psychological classification of professions and their components, and a psychological-labor concept of activity were created. The structure of mental regulators of labor activity is described. The diversity of mentalities among representatives of different professions is empirically proven. A programme for studying options for professional development, training, and education of work subjects is described, with the role of professional conflicts in these processes being outlined. An original typology of human failures as a component of the ergatic system has been developed. An innovative concept for the history of work psychology has been presented, among other things. The scientist’s research, devoted to issues of individual work style, professional self-determination, and psychological professional studies, has received the greatest recognition in Russian psychology. 3. The problem of moral standards in the work of a practicing psychologist is posed. Initially developed by the scholar for career counselors, it is also relevant for practicing psychologists in other fields. The characteristics of E.A. Klimov as an individual, researcher, teacher, and outstanding organizer of psychological science are highlighted.

Conclusions. 1. Based on a scientometric analysis of the publication citing dynamics for the scientist’s works in different years, a conclusion was made about the high level of reader interest in his works in the first decades of the 21st century and the continued relevance of E.A. Klimov’s views and position at the present time. 2. The author’s contribution to the development of key issues in work psychology is established, while the issues of greatest interest to readers in psychology are highlighted: research into individual activity styles; the psychology of professional self-determination; issues in psychological professional studies; and research into the mental characteristics of representatives of various professions. 3. Klimov’s innovation in conceptualizing work psychology as a branch of psychology, a field of knowledge, a profession, and an academic discipline is noted. According to this concept, work psychologists should be involved not only in the sphere of material production, but also in any other types of work. 4. Klimov proposed a new conception of the history of work psychology, including the pre-scientific stage of psychological knowledge about work and its subject. 5. The development of issues in work psychology by E.A. Klimov and his followers allows us to consider work psychology not only as a particular branch of psychology, but also as a fundamental basis (among other foundations) for many areas of applied industrial psychology that study work. 6. Klimov raised the issue of moral and ethical standards, which is important for psychologists-occupational consultants and for other practicing psychologists.

Abstract
Background. An appeal to the origins of a particular direction in psychological science is one of the forms of reflection on its achievements, allowing us to critically comprehend the path taken and determine the prospects for further development. For the psychology of work, which is experiencing a renaissance today in the context of global transformation of the social order and civilisational shifts, this is also an opportunity for self-determination in the interdisciplinary discourse of scientific knowledge. Here the problems of personality, professional activity, corporate culture, professional longevity and psychological wellbeing are woven into the context of a fundamental change in working conditions, attitudes to work and the place of professional activity in the life of a modern person. The history of occupational psychology in the Leningrad-St. Petersburg School of Psychology not only reflects the main stages and trends in the development of this field, but also emphasises the peculiarities of its formation in connection with the tasks of the socio-economic development of our state and the resources of scientific psychological knowledge at each stage.
Objective. The article is devoted to the Leningrad Psychological School of Work and Engineering Psychology. It summarises the directions and main results of scientific and practical research conducted within St. Petersburg State University, which were initiated by such outstanding scientists as A.A. Ukhtomsky, V.M. Bekhterev, V.N. Myasishchev, and B.G. Ananyev. A brief description of the scientific legacy of B.F. Lomov, the creator of the first industrial psychology laboratory and the founder of the first Russian department of ergonomics and engineering psychology. Other leading professors and associate professors are also included (including G.S. Nikiforov, S.A. Manichev, V.A. Ganzen, G.V. Sukhodolsky, N.E. Vodopyanova, N.N. Lepekhin, and others).
Methods. The historical genetic method allowed us to trace the continuity and transformation of the key areas of the industry’s development. The comparative historical method was used to compare the development of terminology in Western European, American, and Russian scientific traditions. Contextual analysis was used to interpret scientific discourse in the context of the socio-economic needs of practice.
Results. The development of occupational psychology, over a period of more than 100 years, at the Leningrad-Saint Petersburg State University spans 4 scientific periods: 1) the period of the 20s and 30s of the twentieth century, associated with the organisation of a new direction — ergonology – which was the formation of the foundations of the scientific study of labour organisation (V.M. Bekhterev, V.N. Myasishchev). It also covered the development of research into the physiology of work processes (A.A. Ukhtomsky); 2) the period of the 50s to 80s – with the development of large-scale scientific and applied research of complex activity (managing complex technical systems and working in extreme conditions such as space, aviation, and nuclear power (B.F. Lomov, B.G. Ananyev, G.V. Sukhodolsky). Organisationally, this period was marked by the opening of the Industrial Psychology Laboratory in 1959 and the creation of the Department of Ergonomics and Engineering Psychology in 1966; 3) the period of the 90s of the twentieth century and the first two decades of the twenty-first century, with the expansion of research based on two departments. The department of Organisational Psychology (headed by S.A. Manichev) dealt with the development of methods as applied to analyse professional activity, issues in cognitive ergonomics and personnel management. The department of Psychological Support to the Professional Activity (headed by G.S. Nikiforov) investigated the issues of occupational health psychology, and the psychology of management. 4) since 2024 — the establishment of the Department of Work Psychology (E.L. Soldatova) by merging the Departments of Ergonomics and Organisational Psychology and the Department of Psychological Support of Professional Activity. This continues the traditions of the Leningrad Psychological School of Engineering Psychology in three subject areas: “man — subject of labour”, “group/team — in the sphere of labour”, and “sociotechnical systems”.
Conclusions. Promising areas of modern research in the field of Russian occupational psychology are identified. These are: maintaining the health of a working person, professional risks in new working conditions, psychological support for the sustainability of an organisation’s activities in a changing business environment, inter-level interaction of organisational resources, psychological reliability and employee safety culture in an organisational context, cognitive ergonomics, integration of human resources and information and digital technology resources into industrial and business processes.

Background. As digital systems take over the functions of retaining reference information, specialists in various fields increasingly rely on electronic resources instead of their own memory. This generates the Google Effect — a phenomenon of transactive memory (Wegner, 1987) — which consists in not remembering information that was delegated to the computer for storage. The research focuses on whether this phenomenon manifest itself in a situation when it comes to long-term memorisation of professionally significant data. This question is still to be answered, although it is of fundamental importance for a number of professions, in particular, in the medical field.

Objective. The goal is to study the Google Effect in memorising professionally specific and non-specific information by doctors.

Study Participants. 100 doctors (the average age of 38 years, SD = 3.46; 38 male and 62 female participants), divided into four experimental groups, differing in the type of presented information and instructions took part in the study.

Methods. The experimental technique implemented using PsychoPy v.3.0 platform involved presenting subjects with professionally specific or professionally non-specific information with two different instructions: either to delete it or to save it on the computer.

Results. The Google Effect has been found to manifest itself only for professionally non-specific information. Subjects who received instructions to delete this kind of information demonstrated better results in reproducing and recognising facts than those who knew that it would be saved on the computer. For professionally specific information, such patterns were not statistically confirmed.

Conclusions. The limited action of the Google Effect depending on the significance of information for professional activity can be explained through “responsible remembering” mechanisms (Murphy, 2025).

Background. The modern IT industry is characterized by a paradox of high economic growth against the backdrop of growing professional burnout and meaning deficit among specialists. The theoretical relevance is determined by insufficient study of the role of existential factors in the professional well-being of IT specialists and the absence of integrative models explaining the specifics of existential needs realization in digital environments. The practical relevance is defined by the need to develop differentiated psychological support programmes for IT specialists, considering the transformation of basic existential categories in virtualized professional activities.

Objective. The goal is to identify relationships between existential fulfillment and mental health drivers among IT specialists, as well as to determine the specifics of their manifestation in various demographic groups.

Study Participants. The study involved 86 IT specialists aged 19 to 51 years (M = 32.5, SD = 6.9; 60.5% male) with IT experience from 0.5 to 15 years (M = 4.7). The sample included representatives of various work formats and job levels.

Methods. An adapted version of the Test of Existential Motivations (α = 0.87) and the “Mental Health Drivers” questionnaire (α = 0.91) were used. Statistical processing was performed in Jamovi 2.3 using correlation analysis, Student’s t-test, and one-way ANOVA.

Results. Statistically significant correlational associations between existential components and mental health drivers were revealed. The hypothesis of a negative association between the existential components “space” (r = –0.29, p < 0.01) and “closeness” (r = –0.34, p < 0.001) with mental health drivers was confirmed, consistent with theoretical assumptions about the transformation of existential categories in the digital environment. Hybrid work format demonstrated significant advantages in maintaining psychological well-being, outperforming office and remote formats. Statistically significant age (η² = 0.07–0.14), gender (d = 0.51–0.64), and professional-hierarchical differences in existential resources were revealed.

Conclusions. Existential resources demonstrate significant associations with psychological well-being among IT specialists. The results substantiate the need for a differentiated approach to supporting the psychological well-being of IT specialists, taking into account their demographic and professional characteristics.

Background. This article presents the results of a study examining the structural and level-based organisation of the mental regulation of psychological states in different situations of students’ educational activities. The work identifies integral stable regulatory functional complexes that perform control function during self-regulation of psychological states by a human. The findings are based on the proposed structural and functional model of mental regulation of psychological states, which includes mental experience, reflection, semantic structures, emotional experiences, mental representations, the self-system, and target characteristics.

Objective. During the validation of this concept, the objective was to identify functional mental complexes that perform a control function in the process of psychological states self-regulation.

Study Participants. 63 student-psychologists of both sexes participated in the study. The average age was 19.4 years, 68% were girls and 32% were boys.

Methods. The study was conducted three times in three different learning activities: a lecture, a seminar, and a written exam. The following methods were used: a technique for studying individual mental states, a questionnaire for assessing self-regulation methods, a questionnaire for assessing the subjective effectiveness of self-regulation, and a technique for studying the severity of mental structures (reflection, semantic structures, self-attitude, and experience). The SPSS 23.0 statistical program was used for mathematical calculations.

Results. During lectures, changes in the characteristics of mental states are determined by indicators of mental structures and the overall effectiveness of self-regulation. During seminars, changes are associated with the higher values of the determination coefficients between mental states, regulatory actions, and mental structures. During exams, mental states are determined by the regulatory methods used. the self-attitude indicator, as well as regulation methods associated with social interaction (active communication, discrete communication) demonstrate the greatest involvement in interaction with the indicators of mental states.

Conclusions. The study established that the level characteristics of mental structures determine the degree of interaction between indicators of consciousness structures and self-regulation methods, with the greatest integration between them observed at high levels of mental component expression.

Background. According to VTsIOM, the demand for psychological services in the Russian Federation continues to increase along with the increase in the demand from the system of rendering psychological assistance to the population for training of competent specialists (counseling psychologists, educational psychologists, psychologists in emergency services, sports psychologists, psychologists for social and medical institutions). One of the key professional tasks of these specialists is to provide psychological counseling. At the moment, there is insufficient data in the literature on the psychological analysis of psychologists’ work activity related to the task of counseling.

Objective. The goals include: analyzing objective data on normative components of work for psychologists who carry out psychological counselling for the population; revealing subjective representations of counselling psychologists about the content and process of their professional activity; revealing stress-factors in the profession of counselling psychologist, based on the comparison of objective data on labor components and counselling psychologists’ subjective representations about their work.

Study Participants. 20 counselling psychologists who provide psychological counselling service to the population.

Methods. Document analysis, structured interview, analysis of professional standards, as well as labor method were applied.

Results. The obtained results reflect the matches and differences between objective requirements to the structure of labor activity realization and subjective representations of the specialists about the profession “psychologist”. These consistencies along with inconsistences were obtained in the process of analysis and comparison of the normative components of professional activity and subjective ideas of counselling psychologists about work. Stress factors in the work of consulting psychologists were identified.

Conclusions. The correspondence of objective requirements to normative components of work and subjective perceptions of normative components of work in the professional activity of counselling psychologists is revealed. The conducted analysis allows to make assumptions about the factors of professional stress in their work.

Background. The rapid development of the information technology (IT) sector leads to work intensification, which affects the physical and mental health of specialists. However, the same workplace conditions, the nature of team interaction, and job content can be perceived differently by men and women, thus acting as threat factors to their professional well-being. The relevance of the research is associated with the insufficient study of the barriers to healthy behaviour among IT specialists, which may be related to both organizational environment factors and the specialist’s personal health potential.

Objective. The goal is to identify gender differences in the subjective assessment of barriers to healthy behaviour among IT specialists.

Study Participants. The study involved 187 IT professionals (118 men and 69 women) with an average age of 29 and an average professional experience of 7 years.

Methods. The study used the authors’ questionnaire, the “Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile” questionnaire adapted by M.D. Petrash, O.Y. Strizhitskaya, and I.R. Murtazina, the “Self-organization of Activity” questionnaire adapted by E.Y. Mandrikova, the Brief Personality Questionnaire adapted by A.S. Sergeeva, B.A. Kirillova, and A.F. Dzhumagulova, as well as the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale adapted by A.A. Zolotareva. The data were processed using descriptive statistics, comparative analysis (Mann — Whitney U-test, Pearson’s chi-squared test), and exploratory factor analysis.

Results. Barriers to healthy behaviour among IT specialists are, in general, moderately pronounced. The most significant barriers are high workload and unrealistic deadlines, while the least significant are the lack of management’s care for employee health and the necessity for continuous learning. Women perceive barriers related to the lack of support and feedback from the supervisor, the complexity of work tasks and the necessity for continuous learning, as well as high responsibility, as more significant than men. Women demonstrate a higher level of general stress, emotional vulnerability, and neuroticism, but they more frequently use self-care practices and exhibit a higher level of self-organization. The factor structure of the barriers is consistent with the JD-R model and COR theory.

Conclusions. The results obtained provide insights into barriers to healthy behaviour at the individual and organizational levels. The hypothesis that women in the IT sector experience more stress and more acutely perceive a lack of support compared to men has been confirmed. This can serve as a basis for creating individualized corporate well-being programmes.

Background. The relevance of the study of the quality of professional life is due to its relationship with motivation, job efficacy, and performance quality, the psychological well-being of medical workers. However, the variety of approaches to understanding the quality of life determines the need to find scientific guidelines for the development of analytical methods and tools for psychological diagnostics and monitoring the quality of professional life in modern realities.

Objective. The focus is on the analysis of the ratio between objective and subjective criteria for the quality of professional life in medical professionals.

Study Participants. 100 professionals from outpatient clinics in Moscow and Moscow region (M_age — 36.5 years; M_experience — 14.2 years); 71 doctors and 29 mid-level medical personnel; 15 men and 85 women; 42 employees of state outpatient clinics, 58 — non-state medical institution.

Methods. included job satisfaction questionnaire, Maslach Burnout Inventory for medical personnel, the general self-efficacy scale, and the author’s questionnaire for collecting demographic and professional information.

Results. It was found that the main stressors for medical professionals are interaction and communication with patients (distrust, mutual misunderstanding), negative representation of the Other (patients, colleagues), high result responsibility and high workload. Employees of state and non-state medical institution differ significantly in job satisfaction, general self-efficacy, and burnout symptoms (p < 0.05). Job satisfaction clasterisation allowed identifying groups differing significantly in burnout symptoms and self-efficacy, though not differing in objective parameters (volume of workload, qualifications, job level). Indicators of work experience, qualification category, “healthcare link” (nursing personnel and doctors), and the volume of workload related to working with documents and patients did not allow us to identify significant differences in subjective criteria.

Conclusions. The obtained results indicate the prospect of using a number of subjective and objective parameters for further analysis of the quality of professional life in medical professionals.

Background. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are being actively implemented in various fields: scientific, industrial, military, and others. At the same time, the need for training personnel and ensuring the effectiveness of UAV operators’ professional performance is exponentially increasing. When applying engineering psychology approaches, it is common to describe the operator’s activity by assessing, among other things, the structure of its conceptual model. By studying the structure of the conceptual model — that is, describing the relationships and contributions of individual components within the conceptual model — it is possible to determine the level of an operator’s readiness to perform tasks independently. At the same time, by considering the specifics of how the conceptual model components are formed, effective operator training programmes can be developed in a short timeframe.

Objective. The study is focused on the analysis of UAV operators’ professional activities, taking into account the need to develop and use conceptual models to successfully solve professional tasks.

Study Participants. 10 operators — heads of unmanned aerial vehicle units.

Methods. A series of interviews was conducted to analyse the external aspects of activity. Elaboration of a professiogram and analysis of theoretical approaches to understanding the conceptual model were involved.

Results. A professiogram was developed, describing the tasks, work process, and equipment used by the UAV operators, confirming the classification of this new type of work as operator work. Based on the analysis of theoretical approaches to understanding the conceptual model and taking into account the multi-level components necessary for a detailed description of its structure for UAV operators, a comprehensive definition is proposed in which the identified components are hierarchically organised. The analysis of individual components of the conceptual model and proposed methods for its experimental study are also presented.

Conclusions. An approach for a qualitative analysis of the professional performance of UAV operators is presented. It includes studying the external (creating a professiogram) and internal (conceptual models) aspects of their work. Using a professiogram, it is possible to take into account the characteristics of operators of various UAV types, and studying the conceptual model will allow us to assess the process of developing and shaping professionalism in UAV operators.

Background. To substantiate the reliability assessment of the operating personnel at a nuclear power plant (NPP) under conditions of increasing load, it is necessary to specify the existing general patterns of the functional state dynamics depending on the work and sensory load in relation to the specifics of the work of the NPP operator.

Objective. The aim is to determine the influence of psychophysiological reliability on the probability of errors in NPP operating personnel.

Study Participants. The operational personnel of the nuclear power plant consisting of 40 men.

Methods. Methods for assessing functional state indicators were applied using the hardware and software complex of the Electronic Health Monitoring System. Timesheet analysis, as well as the analysis of the number of general, working and emergency signals during shifts were conducted. Methods of statistical data analysis involved the Statistica statistical package and Excel spreadsheets: descriptive statistics, assessment of the distribution of features, data standardisation; ANOVA and post-hoc analysis (η2p, Tukey HSD).

Results. It was found that the probability of errors made by operational personnel was more closely related to the indicators reflecting the functional state than to the characteristics of the workload. Of these, the probability of mission is more closely related to the indicators of states and the influence of sensory load. The probability of an Erroneous Response is related to both the functional state and a large number of workload factors. The influence of the level of sensory load on the functional state of the operator was also established. A low level of sensory load allows maintaining optimal reaction time and adaptation to work activity for up to 5 working days. An average level of sensory load reduces the duration of the optimal performance period, while a high sensory load causes excessive activation and an increase in mental stress even on the first work day.

Conclusions. Four consecutive uninterrupted work days are the critical duration of uninterrupted work that does not affect the functional state of the operator. From the fifth day, accumulated fatigue significantly affects the reaction speed indicators, and most importantly, the degree of conscious control of the reaction. By the eighth day, compensatory functional reserves are depleted. The direction of future research is the analysis of the influence of methods of psychological and psychophysiological support of the functional reliability of workers, developed in the NPP’s psychophysiological laboratories.