Ukraine

1. Provide current information on the teaching, research, and practice of psychology in this country.
Currently there has been a resurgence of popularity with around 50 psychology students graduating from each of Ukraine’s prestigious universities, making it the sixth most popular major. Psychology is taught in most schools as an elective. Since 1991, there has been much psychological research based in Ukraine. Stemming from Vygotsky’s teachings, Gregory Silovich Kostiuk has introduced a new theory on the effectiveness of a learning process. According to the theory, the combination of the development of personality and interactive teaching will lead to the highest success rate of any learning process. Research has been done in theories of activity, the development of personality, the puzzle theory. The country also was the source of using a broad cultural context when studying the history of psychology.

2. What is the history of psychology in this country?
The Russian Revolution in 1917 led some of their famous psychologists to seek refuge in Ukraine. The most famous of these psychologist was Vygotsky. Him and others set up a school of psychology at Kharkov University in Eastern Ukraine. Their main focus was on ethnic and developmental psychological research. Psychology as a study was gaining ground until Stalin took over in the 1930’s. In accordance with one of many of Stalin’s decrees, textbooks and educational materials pertaining psychology were destroyed. After Stalin’s rule, psychology again became a popular discipline in Pedagogical and Humanitarian Universities. The branch suffered in the 1990’s with an all-time low of only 50 students graduating in the field in the universities a year.

3. Who are some of the prominent psychologists in this country?
While actually being of Russian descent, Vygotsky was easily the most well-known psychologist from Ukraine. The most prominent psychologist to actually be of Ukrainian descent was Gregory Silovich Kostiuk, who’s research emphasized learning and the rearing of the child as significant roles in the development of personality. Taras Shevchenko, one of Ukraine’s most revered literary writer, was also credited for introducing topics in his works that contributed to much of the country’s early developments in psychology. Romenesh presented the idea of approaching the history of psychology in a broad, cultural context. Another influential Ukranian psychologist was Ball who worked on the puzzle theory.

**Source:**
Panok, V., Pavlenko, V., & Korallo, L. Psychology in the Ukraine. //The Psychologist, 19//(12). 730-733. http://www.thepsychologist.org.uk/archive.