I am pleased to note that, unlike most authors who traditionally (mainly because of their ignorance) do not appeal to the brilliant discoveries of Sigmund Freud, the authors actively use the psychoanalytic concept, while not only referring to the works of this outstanding scientist, but also actively disputing with him. On the whole, the book is distinguished by the substantiation and novelty of the view on a number of key problems of psychic and somatic pathology, imbued with the spirit of scientific optimism and humanism. It will undoubtedly be positively welcomed by both the scientific and the general public.
Head of the Department of Medical Psychology of YSMU, PhD in Psychology им. Гераци, к.п.н.
Khachatur Gasparyan
The monograph “Male’s Health in the Objective of Stressology – beyond the usual” is devoted to the study of male health from the point of view of medicine, psychology and psychiatry. A detailed and in-depth analysis of all those stressogenic impacts, factors and peculiarities of male socialization that affect health and longevity of male life has been done. Male’s health is seen as the result of the effect of multi-aspect factors including somatic problems, stressful life situations and psychological traumas. The authors demonstrate system and interdisciplinary approach to the problem of male health in which the entire structure of the personality and not just of a man as a carrier of a particular disease, is considered which corresponds to the modern approaches in medicine and medical psychology.
For a long time female gender role and the limitations associated with it have been in the focus of researchers’ attention. However, it should be noted that the traditional male role also has a number of stereotypes and limitations that overlap their carriers and men also suffer from gender prejudices and stereotypes. In this regard, the authors consider the historical development of concepts about male sexuality, male gender role and those difficulties that affect the psychological and physical health of men.
The authors pay great attention to phylogenetic and ontogenetic development of the concept of male sexuality. The phenomenon of body, phallic symbolism and phenomenon of libido energy are analyzed at different stages of the historical development of mankind, as well as within the life cycle of each male. The authors analyze the views of different scientists on the problems of consciousness, spirituality, relationship of ideal and material principles and conduct deep psychological and culturological analyses of the development of male identity. As part of the analysis of life stages of the development of libido energy and sublimation of this energy, the psychological aspects of erectile dysfunction along with the enormous influence that the psychological reasons have on the development of this problem are considered. The system approach to this problem of male health opens new opportunities for doctors, psychologists and patients since only with an interdisciplinary approach and taking into account the whole range of psychosomatic relationships it is possible to effectively treat not only the symptoms but also the disease itself.
Considering the above, it should be noted that this monograph is undoubtedly a valuable contribution to the scientific literature in the fields of psychology, medicine and stressology.
INTRODUCTION
The wisdom of my grandfathers
stuck in my head:
we were born to enjoy work, fight, love,
we were born for this and for nothing else.
Isaak Babel
The Armenian painter Aram Vramshapu Vanetsian in early 1939 began writing I. Babel’s portrait which turned out to be the last lifetime portrait of the writer (repressed and shot at the age of 46, January 1940).
Isaak Babel
A serious scientific question can be put to Babel’s words. If he is right, then the male mortality at a relatively young age is the result of the biological characteristics of the male body and its functioning.
Further presentation of the material is a search for the answer.
We searched for the answer proceeding from the following provisions:
1. “Human evolution is an important part of the universal evolution as an open nonlinear system, and the most complex one” (V. E. Klochko, 2017).
2. “A person is such a level of system research, when the not very favorite word “system” can be quite adequately replaced by the more euphonic concept of “integrity” (I. Prigogine, 1986).
3. “A person is an integrative entity” possessing the brain and higher nervous activity (HNA) owing to which an internal notional subjective world is formed, including:
Conscious triunity (biological/psychic/social);
“appropriate” part of information from outside, from the collective unconscious;
the soul of a particular person (“affective/emotional clot”);
will and faith.
4. The psychology of the development of culture and religion led us to the need not to ignore the stages of development of the studied paradigms both in phylo- and ontogenesis.