Role-playing games. Competitions for students

Our whole life is a unique process that has a huge number of different features. From the very moment of birth, a person already has specific predispositions and inclinations. However, in order for him to effectively interact with society and with the people around him, he needs to regularly “pump up” his personality.

The process of pumping begins from young nails and does not end until the end of life, because there is no limit to perfection. In the modern world, there are a huge number of methods and practices for the formation and improvement of personal qualities. Today we will talk about the most effective of them – socio-psychological games.

Psychological games

In general, the scheme of psychological features of the game can be described as follows:

1. A person has a certain desire.

2. His superconsciousness prohibits him from realizing his desire.

3. The subconscious is looking for justification, a kind of psychological coupons, a ransom from the superconscious occurs, and with it the satisfaction of desire.

At the external level, such a game is a predetermined sequence of actions aimed at achieving a win. It is important to note that in this case, the psychological gain does not always have to be physical. It can be expressed in illness, accident or even death of the player, because the essence of winning is to confirm the player’s position in life.

Using this criterion, one can distinguish a psychological game from other forms of human behavior, including manipulation, the purpose of which is physical gain.

The term "psychological game" was coined by Eric Berne. At one time, his book “Games People Play” became a bestseller. She is still very popular. He views psychological play as one of six forms of time sharing: ritual, authentic relationships, activity, recreation, play, and pastime. In this case, the psychologist distinguishes three types of games:

Socio-psychological games

a) games of the first degree, acceptable in society;

B) games of the second degree, which do not always bring serious problems, but whose players are most likely to hide it from prying eyes;

C) games of the third degree, which can only be played once, and which necessarily end in the courtroom, in the intensive care unit or in the morgue.

It is quite difficult to combine all the elements in one game action; it is difficult to reveal its full potential. Thus, different types of gaming spaces emerge, which focus on a certain aspect of the game and focus on its specific capabilities.

In modern psychology, experts have divided all play spaces into five different types. In reality, they are often intertwined with each other, however, they still represent separate types of activities that have their own laws of creation, management and development.

Types of psychological games

1. Game shells

This type of psychological game is the simplest and most common. Here the game acts as a general background, a kind of frame for a psychological action, which may not be essentially a game, but, as is the case in most cases, a training one.

Game shells can be found very often in elementary schools; they work quite effectively with younger teenagers. Today, psychologists are very actively exploiting game shells, which are built on the principle of a New Year's performance for children: a New Year's fairy tale cannot happen without someone bad breaking, stealing or hiding something.

Positive heroes, sparing no effort, run to restore justice. Modern literature also describes various kinds of psychological games, and in them children also save someone and end up somewhere. Game shells can be very different. These include patterns in a magic kaleidoscope, a journey from station to station by train, an international meeting of journalists with master classes, etc. The use of game shells is very helpful when working with high school students.

2. Game - accommodation

With the help of this game you can create conditions for the development of a certain invented space. This can happen both jointly and personally, individually. Within this space, interpersonal relationships are built, and the value of one’s existence in a given situation is comprehended. Playing such a game is more difficult, both for the participants and for the presenter.

It is difficult to manage such a game process, and it is difficult for participants to get involved in building relationships and to address very difficult questions to their inner “I”. Players can be of any age.

You cannot evaluate such a game as successful or unsuccessful; it always happens differently. At the same time, any version of its occurrence is useful, because with its help it is possible to identify hidden destructive processes, and a person can advance in understanding what is happening to him.

3. Game - drama

But in such games, it is not just the selection process that is dramatic. After the participant decides for himself which path he chooses, he finds himself in the situation of living this path. During the symbolic living of the path, all gains and losses come to the surface, as well as all the consequences of his choice.

Some of these games involve not only making choices and accepting consequences, but they also focus on the ability to build your life in accordance with the choices you make: setting goals, developing relationships with people, organizing work. In other words, the game-drama is focused on completing an additional psychological task, which sounds something like this for the player: “you have already made your choice, how are you going to build your life?”

The quintessence of such a game is the moment of making a choice, which must be skillfully led to. The choices made will actually be deeply felt unless the player is fully emotionally involved in the game, which takes quite a long time. Gestalt living techniques, psychodramatic and meditative techniques have an excellent effect. This type of game is the most difficult.

Transformational psychological games

4. Project and business games

This is another type of psychological work. Such games are aimed at mastering and comprehending the instrumental tasks that are associated with the work of this activity, achieving specific goals, and also structuring the system of business interaction between players.

Such games can be organized as a seminar, or they can have a fairly simple plot character. As a rule, business games do not have a storyline, nor do they have a given emotional background of interaction. Players are either motivated to play from the very beginning, or motivation is created and maintained along the way.

Project games are somewhat different, whose function is to create project thinking in players, as well as their ability to work with the problem that has arisen. Project games have a plot, or they are based on real material, dedicated to some event.

Business gaming is a direction with a very high perspective. They help you learn how to collaborate, organize your work, and build collegial relationships.

5. Psychological actions

This is not a game as such, it is a certain gaming environment created for some time. At the same time, it does not interfere with other types of activities at all, but it has rules, content and an intended result. The main goal of such an “action” is to expand the living space of the players due to the appearance of sensual colors, new meanings and cultural meanings in their lives. Promotions can be insignificant in terms of time, number of players, they can also be sudden and episodic.

The main features of such games are unusualness and unobtrusiveness. They do not interfere with the usual rhythm of life of those people who do not want to notice it, but at the same time they add new colors to the life of those who agree to be included in it. During their life, stocks create a unique mood and emotional state.

Karpman triangle

It is also important to say a few words about the Karpman triangle, which was a continuator of the ideas of Eric Berne. He also talks about a game, only a subconscious one, which describes the connection between three main problems in relationships between people.

According to this point of view, all the roles that underlie human games can be reduced to three main ones - Rescuer, Victim of Persecution and Persecutor of the Guilty. These roles are combined into a triangle, which symbolizes their inextricable connection and replacement of each other.

“The three roles in this game - victim, pursuer and rescuer - are actually a simplification of real life. Each person sees himself as a generous rescuer of an ungrateful or grateful victim, a persecutor of infidels and a victim of evil persecutors. Immersion in any of these roles causes a person to begin to ignore reality, like an actor who knows that he is living a fictional life, but continues to “believe” in its authenticity in order to create a good performance.”

Codependents in Karpman's triangle

It is important to clarify the terminology here. When a person is in the position of a victim, he understands that absolutely nothing depends on him, and that he cannot choose his behavior depending on the situation. “Well, what can I do? It's all of them! In this interpretation, it becomes obvious that all the roles in the Karpman triangle are three types of victim position.

If a friend complains to you about life, then everything is clear - she is in the position of a victim. The persecutor is also a type of victim. But why? If you see someone who demands, harasses, screams and calls the victim names, and ask him why he is doing this, then the answer, as a rule, in this case you will get something like this: “He calls himself names, what should I do?” (“He always lets us all down”, “He is always late”, “He doesn’t cook the porridge”, etc.). When the Persecutor does not understand that he can act differently, he takes the position of the victim.

Here it is very appropriate to recall Perls’ expression “dog above and dog below.” “Dog on top” implies a situation when a person swears loudly, yells, that is, he bites. “Dog from below” is a situation when a suffering victim bites people with his sadness, longing, he howls with such force that everyone becomes very painful from it.

If you try to talk with the Rescuer about why and why he is doing this and whether it is worth doing it at all, then hatred may pour out on you: “The person is being persecuted, offended, he feels bad, he suffers!” The Rescuer is also a hostage; he, being in the role of the Rescuer, turned into a victim.

Karpman's Relationship Triangle

What is the essence of the game?

The victim begins to provoke people around her with one goal: she is looking for a stalker. This scenario is possible. The persecutor finds a person who is guilty of something, begins to blame, punish, demand, that is, persecute the victim. Then the victim tries to prove that it is not her fault, that in fact those around her are to blame, including the persecutor himself. She is looking for someone who will save her, showing the world her helplessness and suffering.

A rescuer appears, he wants to help the victim, save him from his pursuer, but since all the participants are just playing to save him, he doesn’t succeed. For this he receives accusations from the victim, after which the rescuer himself turns into a victim, and the victim into a persecutor.

How does this triangle work?

Karpman himself and many of his colleagues believe that such a triangle initially develops due to certain internal benefits. “When there is a game and there are relationships, it means that the situation is beneficial to all participants. Otherwise everything would have fallen apart. When a person participates in something, it only means that he needs it. The communication that takes place within the framework of such a triangle is a fairly effective method of not taking responsibility for one’s decisions and actions, and, moreover, being rewarded with powerful emotions and the right not to solve one’s difficulties (after all, someone else is to blame for them).”

Perhaps that's true. In any case, this is a well-functioning system for addressing important issues in psychotherapy. However, other possibilities can be explored, since it is likely that the basis of such a relationship will not be solely internal benefits, but also the ability to resist manipulation, a poorly internalized philosophy of life, or ordinary life habits.

So, the most important thing you need to know about the Karpman triangle is that you shouldn't be there. Whatever role you are actively offered there, or whatever role you are personally attracted to, don’t even think about being there. This triangle becomes a reality only for not very intelligent people who live only by feelings, do not have clear goals, do not know how to control themselves and constantly find themselves in the position of a victim.

The more intelligent a person is, the more responsibility he takes upon himself, and the more thoughtfully he goes towards achieving his goals, the less often he ends up in this madhouse.

To summarize, we can say that the main point that determines the essence of all psychological games lies in the numerous experiences of the participant, in his vision of reality. Game, along with any other non-game activity, is motivated by goals that are important to a person and his attitude towards them. The motives of the game are a person’s direct relationship to the world around him. The importance of certain aspects of it is experienced by the individual in the game based on the relationship to their inner essence.

* Eric Byrne

American psychologist and psychiatrist. He is best known as the developer of transaction analysis and scenario analysis. Developing the ideas of psychoanalysis, a general theory and method of treating nervous and mental illnesses, Berne focused on the “transactions” that underlie interpersonal relationships. He calls certain types of transactions that have a hidden purpose “games.” Berne considers three ego states: Adult, Parent and Child (which are not Freud's Ego, Superego and Id). When coming into contact with the environment, a person, according to Berne, is always in one of these states.

* Stephen Karpman

Doctor of Medicine from the University of California, psychiatrist, student of E. Bern, son of a student of Z. Freud, author of many developments in the theory of psychological games.

Stephen Karpman became famous thanks to his idea of ​​​​describing psychological games using the Rescuer-Victim-Persecutor triangle, later called by E. Berne the Karpman triangle, and also known as the Drama Triangle.

// Personnel service. – 2008. – No. 12.

No matter what Voltaire or Descartes interprets,
The world for me is a deck of cards,
Life is a bank: rock moves, I play
And I apply the rules of the game to people.
M.Yu. Lermontov

One of the goals of a corporate party is to change the ordinary monotonous office environment to a bright and unusual feeling of celebration. Why is such a “change of scenery” necessary? Because monotony in work and in relationships leads to decreased performance. Communication in a relaxed atmosphere gives employees the opportunity to get to know each other better. Having had a heart-to-heart talk, colleagues may be pleasantly surprised that interesting people work in the same team with them (“Surprisingly, Marina is not at all as boring as she seems: she is witty and erudite”), better understand their opponents and - for a while or forever - declare a truce with them. Another goal of holding corporate parties may be to establish connections with new partners and the right people. Among other things, corporate parties allow employees and management to strengthen their authority and the authority of the company, and improve. It is at such events that the best are rewarded, and minor mistakes are forgiven to the guilty.

It must be emphasized that the atmosphere at a corporate event should be relaxed. Under no circumstances should a person be forced to attend a corporate party, no matter what it is dedicated to. You should not threaten with deprivation of the bonus or offending management - otherwise, the person will be forced to come to the holiday to the detriment of his personal or family interests and will harbor a grudge.

Corporate parties should not be too frequent. Of course, in a small team (6-10 people) it is possible to celebrate the birthdays of each employee. However, in corporations with more than 100 employees, this is quite difficult, and most importantly, it is not necessary. An annual corporate New Year's meeting is quite enough for a large company. In such companies, it is better to organize small parties for departments.

Corporate parties can be of several types. The presentation is usually dedicated to the opening of a new branch, the development of a new type of product, or a demonstration of the production capacity of new equipment. It is necessary to attract the interest of potential customers, advertise a new brand and increase its awareness. However, its goal is not to establish intra-corporate relations. As a rule, such holidays take place without a special entertainment program. The mood of the audience is set by the host of the event, whose selection must be taken very seriously. The second version of the presentation is the presentation of a shopping center or store. Such a presentation is aimed at potential buyers whose interest needs to be attracted. For this purpose, an entertainment program is needed, including competitions, prize draws and all kinds of quizzes. To organize a presentation, it is best to contact specialists. They will help you choose entertainment and choose a presenter who can maintain the mood appropriate to the occasion.

Outdoor recreation is one of the best ways to raise team spirit in a team. Usually such events are held in the warm season. These can be short trips to barbecues, or joint trips to a boarding house or holiday home for the weekend. As a rule, in such a relaxing environment, people feel calm, they are no longer in the mood for showdowns.

A banquet is the most traditional way to hold corporate events. It is usually held in restaurants or banquet halls. Traditionally, at a banquet, employees eat, drink, listen to a report on the work done and what remains to be done, have another drink and go home. You can diversify the banquet with the help of an entertainment program, fun quizzes, prizes, and employee incentives.

Home holidays are held directly at the enterprise. Families of employees are invited to attend. You can organize a short tour of the production or office and move on to entertainment. It is best to separate the program for children and adults (although at certain points they may overlap). Such events raise the prestige of the enterprise in the eyes of not only employees, but also their relatives.

So, one of the elements of a corporate holiday is entertainment. As a rule, these are games that lift the spirits, ignite employees with a sense of excitement, and raise team spirit. However, the range of corporate games is small. Apart from the traditional darts, sculpture competition and dancing on the newspaper, little comes to mind.

Meanwhile, according to A.S. Makarenko, “a good game” is similar to “a good job.”

Their similarities are as follows:

In every “good game,” as in “good work,” there is first of all effort: physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual;
- “a good game”, just like “good work”, brings joy - creativity, victory, quality;
- in a “good game”, as in a “good job”, there is just as much responsibility.

We propose to expand the range of entertainment at a corporate party through psychological games. This allows you to “kill two birds with one stone”: on the one hand, psychological games are fun and entertaining, on the other hand, they develop and, as they say, provide “food for thought.” For a corporate party, communication games and games for developing creativity are most suitable.
Communication games create a festive mood, promote the development of communicative competence, mutual understanding between participants and group cohesion.

You can start by getting to know each other. Even if you work together for a long time, this is not a guarantee that you know each other well - not professionally, but purely humanly.

An introduction allows you to get to know your colleagues better.
Each participant offers his own business card. This could be a song, poem, aphorism, motto, drawing, story about yourself, etc.

As an option for dating, the game “Name – Character Trait” can be used. Each participant names his name and the character trait that he expresses, starting with the letter of his name. For example, Olga is an optimist.

Rain.
This beautiful exercise can serve as a setup for some important event. Before performing it, we can talk about magic, which always has a place in our lives, but for this it is important to be sensitive and attentive. The magical rain that is about to fall can be heard if there is complete silence and attention.

All participants stand in a circle. The leader walks inside the circle, and when he looks into the eyes of each participant, he begins to repeat his movements until the leader comes up to him again, looks into the eyes and changes the movement. The leader walks in a circle and, looking one by one into the eyes of the participants, on the 1st circle he rubs his palm against each other, on the 2nd circle he snaps his fingers, on the 3rd circle he slaps his palms on his knees, on the 4th circle he knocks his palms on the knees and stomps his feet, on the 5th he slaps his palms on his knees, on the 6th he snaps his fingers, on the 7th he rubs his palm against his palm, on the 8th he simply lowers his hands.

So the rain ends and subsides. The purpose of this exercise is relaxation and a lyrical mood. We can say that the rain that just passed brought calm and reflection.

The wind blows…
It is known that in a group there can be different weather: sunny joy, thunderstorm tension, foggy inability to work, cool inattention. But it can also be quite windy. The forecasts in this case are good, because the wind that blows on the participants in this exercise contributes to the development of the territory, allows you to take a closer look at each other and even learn a lot of new information.
Participants sit in a circle on chairs (there should be no empty chairs). The leader stands in the center and says: “The wind blows on those who...” and names some external sign that the participants have, for example, those who are wearing black shoes.

Participants in black boots change places with each other (you cannot change places with neighbors).

The driver’s task is to take an empty seat.
One of the participants who did not have time to take a seat becomes the driver.
Some employees find it difficult to shake off emotional stress and leave thoughts about work even at a party. The games below will help them and their colleagues relax.

Pig race
Before the start of the game, the host announces that a new Olympic sport has been opened, which is rapidly winning the sympathy of the participants. And now everyone present can try themselves in it. So, we got to the competition in a new Olympic sport - pig racing. In order to win, we need to pass the “grunt” around the circle as quickly as possible. First let's practice grunting.

Now let's start the game. The competition is held against time. “Grunt” is transmitted from one participant to another by turning the head. Try to achieve a record.

A group of 30 people usually manages it in two seconds. It looks like a single long “grunt” - a wave. This seemingly simple and frivolous exercise improves the emotional level, promotes group cohesion and encourages participants to interact.

Typewriter
All participants are given letters. The presenter commands: “Pay in alphabetical order!” Then some phrase is given, for example, a proverb or a line from a poem, and it is “printed” in this way: everyone taps off their letter, their punctuation mark. Everyone pauses. This game helps to establish relationships with partners.

My darling
Participants are asked to conduct an “audit” of the contents of their bags and pockets and find any item that they like, about which they could say: “My precious” (as Gollum, a character in Tolkien’s books, said about the One Ring). For a few minutes, participants reflect on the questions: Why do I like this subject? What does it symbolize for me, why do I carry it with me? How might this item appeal to others?

Then each of the participants in turn gets the floor to make a public presentation of “their charm” (1-2 minutes for each), which would present the answers to these questions. The form of presentation can be different - an oral story, a small pantomime, etc. The exercise promotes self-discovery, overcoming shyness and developing communicative competence.

Nonsense
Each participant receives a sheet of paper and writes on it the answer to the presenter’s question, after which he folds the sheet so that the answer is not visible and passes it to his right neighbor. He answers the presenter’s next question in writing, folds the sheet again, passes it on, etc. When the questions are over, the last participant unfolds the sheet in his hands and reads the answers written on it out loud, like a coherent text.

Sample list of questions.
Who?
Where?
With whom?
What did you do?
How did this happen?
What do you remember?
And what happened in the end?

Outwardly, the game resembles a joke, but the resulting texts sometimes turn out to be quite unexpected and make you think about the problems that are significant to the participants.

Guessing game + broken phone
The presenter makes a wish for an object and whispers its name to the first participant. This participant (and all subsequent ones) must tell the rest of the chain about this item in a whisper, not naming it, but describing its properties and areas of application. The listener can ask clarifying questions. The last participant in turn names the intended object. You can make the game more difficult by introducing a time limit and an element of competition.

K.U.B.O.U
The mysterious name of this game stands for “Karate Kid Killed the Bull with One Punch.” The game is very similar to “Broken Phone”, but requires precise recording of the evidence on paper. Both children and adults really like it, because it allows them to come to serious and important conclusions from the ease and excitement of participation.

Several participants (usually 7-8 people) go out the door, one of them remains in the room. The presenter says the phrase to the remaining participant: “The karateka killed the Bull with One Punch.” One participant enters, and the first one explains this phrase to him without the help of words; he writes it down on paper as he understood it, without voicing it. Then he shows the next person what he himself understood (written down on paper), etc. At the end of the exercise, all phrases are read in the reverse order of their writing. This exercise helps develop participants' creativity and non-verbal communication skills.

Interview
The presenter gets the role. Sample roles: winner of a beauty contest; famous wit, merry fellow and chatterbox; a very serious, taciturn type who does not know how to laugh or joke; a lady academician who made an important discovery; mask man, without emotions; a sharp, direct person who does not hide his dissatisfaction with the world; an invariably friendly person, happy with the whole world and with himself. Everyone else plays the role of meticulous journalists who interview him at a press conference. Participants in the game must ask the presenter tricky questions, and he must try to answer them adequately. Time is limited. After the end of the game, it is interesting to ask the host which question caused the greatest difficulty in answering and why.

Newspaper dragging
Participants are divided into pairs (it is desirable that the partners are approximately equal in physical capabilities), receive a newspaper and roll it into a tube. Then they stand on one leg at a distance of about a meter from each other, bending the other and holding it with one hand. With their free hand, they take a tube from the newspaper and begin to pull it, trying to throw each other off balance, but dosing the force so that the newspaper does not tear.

The exercise illustrates the scenario in which interpersonal conflicts develop: partners “pull” each other, but at the same time cannot use force and are forced to act softly, relying more on cunning, otherwise this threatens to break the relationship.

Laurencia
A very good game for motor activity, but before playing it, you need to assess the degree of physical readiness of the participants for this game. This is an old German game. Laurencia is a girl's name.
All participants stand in a circle and repeat the following words after the leader:

Laurencia, where are you?
Laurencia, we are waiting!
Well, when will we go dancing with you?
So when will Monday finally come?
And you and I will dance?
Laurencia!

Then next time Tuesday is added, then Wednesday, and so on all the days of the week. Participants do squats for each day of the week and name. The pace of the game is constantly increasing.

Bouquet
The participants of the game are 9 people, all the rest are observers who should not communicate with the participants. 9 chairs are placed in a circle in the center of the room. The presenter invites participants and invites them to sit on chairs in the center of the audience. All others (observers) are located at a distance of 1-1.5 m from the main participants.

At the first stage, a label with an image of a flower and the name of the role in the organization (director, sales manager, psychologist, personnel officer, technician, etc.) is glued to the forehead of each of the main participants using tape. All participants will see each other’s social roles, but no one will know their own role, since according to the rules of the game, their names cannot be spoken out loud. All participants, by asking indirect questions and giving indirect clues, should help each other determine their role as soon as possible. The name is considered guessed if the participant himself names his role correctly. At the second stage, participants must make three flower compositions: sit next to each other and make a justification for combining these three social roles into a composition.

Pum-pum
Presenter: Now we will play the game “Pum-Pum”. “Pum-pum” is some characteristic that is present in some participants, and in others it is not. This will definitely be an objective characteristic. In order to confirm the presence or absence of this characteristic, it is not necessary to know each other well.

For example, I can wish for a simple “pum - pum” - shoelaces. Any person who accidentally enters the room will confirm that some have laces and others do not. The same “objective” will be the “pum-pum” that I will now wish for, but, of course, it will not be shoelaces.

Ask me open-ended questions. I will give honest answers. Based on my answers, you can guess what kind of pum-pum this is. Your questions might be: “What is this pum-pum for? How does it manifest itself in humans? Etc." You can’t ask just one question: “What is pum-pum?” The game promotes a better understanding of your partner and teaches you to ask open questions.

Games for the development of creative abilities are aimed at developing and activating creativity - the system of creative abilities. The purpose of these exercises is to teach a person to act productively in new and uncertain situations, relying on his creative potential, to navigate in rapidly changing circumstances, to make adequate decisions in rapidly changing circumstances, to make adequate decisions when information is incomplete.

Ads
Host: We all know well what advertising is. Every day we see commercials on TV screens and have an idea of ​​how different the ways of presenting a particular product can be. Since we are all consumers of advertised goods, it would not be an exaggeration to consider us advertising specialists.

Let's imagine that we have gathered here to create our own commercial for some product. Our task is to present this product publicly in such a way as to highlight its best aspects and create interest in it. Everything is the same as in the usual activities of an advertising service.

One small nuance - the object of our advertising will be specific people sitting here. Each of you will draw a card with the name of one of those present written on it. You may end up getting a card with your own name on it. It's OK! This means you will have to advertise yourself. There will be one more condition in our advertising: you must not mention the name of the person you are advertising. Moreover, you are asked to imagine a person in the form of some product or service. Think about who your protégé could have turned out to be if he had not been born in human form. Maybe a refrigerator? Or a country house? Then what kind of refrigerator is this? And what is this country house like?
Name the category of population your advertisement will be aimed at. Of course, the advertising video should reflect the most important and true advantages of the advertised object.

The duration of each commercial is no more than one minute. The group then has to guess which of its members was featured in the advertisement. If necessary, you can use any objects as an entourage and ask other players to help you.

Make it more useful
Participants are asked to think about what things would be more useful if they were:
increase decrease);
raise (lower);
make it more expensive (cheaper);
change their geometric shape;
make edible (inedible).

The exercise is performed in teams of 4-5 people for 10-12 minutes. After this, representatives from each of the subgroups voice their options. In addition to training the ability to generate ideas, the exercise helps to unite the group and identify leaders.

Original use
This game involves coming up with as many different, fundamentally feasible ways of using ordinary objects in an original way as possible, for example:
paper sheets or old newspapers;
sports hoops, dumbbells;
bricks;
car tires;
bottle caps;
torn tights;
burnt out light bulbs;
plastic bottles;
aluminum beverage cans.

The task is performed in teams of 4-5 people for 10 minutes. The game is most visual and fun if it is possible to give the participants the items in question and ask them not only to name them, but also to show the proposed ways of using them. The team that proposes and demonstrates the largest number of original ways to use items wins.

Changing market
Group game for 10-15 people. Its conditions are as follows. There are a number of specific resources. Everyone’s task is to sell their resources at a high price and buy other people’s (needed) ones cheaply. Every five to ten minutes the presenter changes the resource cost rates (plus or minus, changes can be large or small). In addition, the players themselves can change or maintain the current course (this should cost a lot, but proper use should bring dividends, especially if it is not just one player who is spending, but a coalition). The game should have implicit coalitions - groups of people whose goals do not contradict each other.

What to do, if...
Participants are presented with difficult situations related to their work, from which they need to find an original way out. The participant who, in the opinion of the audience, will give the most resourceful answer receives a prize point.

Example situations:
What to do if you lost your employees' salaries or public money in a casino?
What to do if you are accidentally locked in the office late at night?
What should you do if your dog ate an important report that you have to submit to the director in the morning?
What to do if you are stuck in an elevator with the CEO of your company?

Secret line
One of the participants comes up with a line from a famous song or poem, consisting of 6-7 words. Participants can ask the person who made the line 10 questions. In 6 or 7 answers (depending on how many words are in a line), he must include one word from this line.
Words cannot be changed by cases, tenses, or numbers. Prepositions are included along with the next word. In answers, words appear in any order.

Complete the poems
Add two lines:

Once upon a time, an eccentric
My head hit the attic...

My friend Valery Petrov
I've never been bitten by a mosquito...

The fly is drowning in sweets,
In a jar on the window...
Japanese haiku
It is proposed to add the ending in three lines (haiku) of the Japanese poet.

Willow is bent over and sleeping
And it seems to me
Nightingale on a branch
……………….
This is her soul.

The flowers have faded...
Seeds are scattering and falling
……………………………
It's like tears

Our life is a dewdrop
Let just a drop of dew
………………………
Our life - and yet

According to J. Huizinga, play decorates life, complements it, as a result of which it is vital for every person, regardless of his age and social status. It is necessary for the individual as a biological function, society needs it because of the human meaning contained in it, because of its expressive value, because of the social and spiritual connections it establishes. The game is on the border with the serious: it itself turns into serious, turning the serious into a game. She formalizes the holiday and at the same time is included in it as an integral part. The modern game allows one to go beyond the usual course of things and provides a person with the opportunity to create. The game gives you the opportunity to escape from the depths of your feelings, to turn away from yourself, overwhelmed with work and everyday worries, to other people, to feel unity with them. And where there is unity and cohesion, there are no destructive conflicts, no manipulations and intrigues. In a word, no – to “wars” and infighting in the organization, yes – to a constructive game that promotes personal growth and expands horizons.

Human life and activity are unique processes with many features. A person is born already having certain predispositions, inclinations, and abilities. But in order for his interaction with the outside world and society to be more effective and productive, a person needs to “improve”, “pump up” himself and his personality. And the process of this improvement begins from a very young age, but it never ends, one might say, because, as they say, there is no limit to perfection. In order to form, consolidate and improve personality qualities, a huge number of different methods and practices are used today. But we will talk about perhaps the most popular and effective of them – socio-psychological games.

On this page we will understand what psychological games are in general, what their features are and what they are needed for. We have all heard more than once that there are games for children, for teenagers, for schoolchildren, for students, small, large, role-playing, business. They can be aimed at developing any qualities, at developing communication skills, at unity, etc. Games are held in kindergartens, schools, holiday camps - these are children's games. Games are also held in higher educational institutions, enterprises and large firms, but these are games for adults, which are often included in the program of some trainings and seminars. There are even computer psychological games - they are very popular nowadays, when almost every person has a home computer or laptop. So what is the reason that games have become an integral part of human life and are present in almost every area of ​​it? And what games can and should be used for yourself? We present the answers to these and many other questions to your precious attention.

What is a game?

A game is a type of activity, the motive of which is not the result, but the process itself, where the recreation and assimilation of some experience occurs. Also, play is the main activity of children, through which mental properties, intellectual operations and attitudes towards the surrounding reality are formed, changed and consolidated. The term “game” is also used to refer to programs or sets of items for performing gaming activities.

The study of human psychology and the psychological realities of his life becomes more interesting and effective when carried out through activities of interest to the researcher himself. And such an activity, of course, is play. Experience has shown more than once that socio-psychological games help people to perceive the reality of the psychological aspect of their lives very seriously and deeply.

The functions of gaming activities are as follows:

• Entertaining - entertains, lifts the mood;
• Communicative – promotes communication;
• Self-realization – allows a person to express himself;
• Game therapy – helps to overcome various difficulties that arise in life;
• Diagnostic – allows you to identify deviations in development and behavior;
• Corrective – allows you to make changes to the personality structure;
• Socialization – makes it possible to include a person in the system of social relations and contributes to his assimilation of social norms.

Main types of psychological games and their features

Games can be business, positional, innovative, organizational-training, training, organizational-thinking, organizational-activity and others. But still, there are several main types of psychological games.

Game shells. In this type of game, the game plot itself is the general background against which developmental, correctional and psychological problems are solved. Such activities contribute to the development of basic mental properties and personality processes, as well as the development of reflection and self-reflection.

Living games. In living games, there is an individual and joint exploration of the gaming space with a group of people, the building of interpersonal relationships within it and the comprehension of personal values. This type of games develops the motivational aspect of a person’s personality, his system of life values, and personal criticality; allows you to independently build your activities and relationships with others; expands ideas about human feelings and experiences.

Drama games. Drama games contribute to the self-determination of their participants in certain situations and the improvement of value and semantic choice. The motivational sphere, the system of life values, readiness to make choices, the ability to set goals, and planning skills develop. Features of reflection and self-reflection are formed.

Project games. Project games influence a person’s mastery and comprehension of instrumental tasks that are associated with the construction of activities, the achievement of specific results and the systematization of the system of business relationships with others. The skills of goal setting, planning and the ability to adapt actions to specific conditions are developed. Self-regulation skills are formed, personal criticism and the ability to relate one’s actions to the actions of other people develop.

The types of psychological games presented above can be used both independently and used in conjunction with others. The descriptions we give are the most general and give only a superficial idea of ​​psychological games.

Now we move on to the most interesting block – the games themselves. Next, we will consider some of the most popular and effective games, and their benefits in human development and life.

The most popular and effective games and their benefits

Karpman-Bern triangle

The Karpman-Byrne triangle is, to be precise, not even really a game. More precisely a game, but an unconscious one. A game that people play without having the slightest idea that they are participating in it. But, due to the fact that this phenomenon exists, it needs to be mentioned.

This triangle is a simplified model of psychological manipulation that occurs in almost all areas of a person’s life: family, friendship, love, work, business, etc. This interconnection of roles that arise in the process of human relationships was described by the American psychotherapist Stephen Karpman, who continues the ideas of his teacher, the American psychologist Eric Berne. This relationship, provided that it develops according to the “pattern” of a given triangle, is in itself destructive and affects the people participating in this triangle exclusively negatively.

Because This is a triangle, it has three sides: the person acting as the victim (“Victim”), the person applying pressure (“Aggressor”) and the person intervening in the situation and wanting to help (“Savior”).

Usually it turns out like this: a problem or a difficult life situation arises between two people. Thus, “Aggressor” and “Victim” appear. The “victim”, looking for a solution to the problem, turns to a third party - a person who becomes the “Savior”. The “Savior”, due to his kindness, knowledge or some other reasons, decides to help and advises something. The “Victim” follows the advice and behaves according to the advice of the “Savior”. As a result, the advice only leads to a worsening of the situation and the “Savior” turns out to be the last one - he becomes the “Victim”, the “Victim” - the “Aggressor”, etc. From time to time, each of us plays the role of one of the sides of the Karpman-Byrne triangle. The triangle itself often becomes the cause of big quarrels, troubles, misfortunes, etc.

So that you can get acquainted with the Karpman-Bern triangle in detail, find out its features and see visual examples that are relevant to our everyday life, you can visit Wikipedia.

Now we move directly to games that have a very serious psychological aspect. These games are deliberately organized by people both with the goal of winning/winning, and with the goal of having a certain impact on a person’s personality. Organization and participation in these games give a person the opportunity to delve deeper into the essence of his relationships with himself and the people around him. The first game that we should consider as psychological is the game "Mafia"

"Mafia"

"Mafia" is a verbal role-playing game created in 1986 by Moscow State University student Dmitry Davydov. It is recommended for people over 13 years of age to play it. Optimal number of players: from 8 to 16. The process simulates the struggle of a smaller organized group with a larger unorganized one. According to the plot, city residents, tired of the activities of the mafia, decide to put all representatives of the criminal world in prison. In response to this, the bandits declare war on the townspeople.

At the beginning, the presenter distributes to the participants one card each, which determines their affiliation with the mafia or townspeople. The game takes place “day” and “night”. The mafia is active at night, the townspeople are active during the day. In the process of alternating the time of day, the mafiosi and city residents each conduct their own activities, during which there are fewer and fewer players on each team. Information about events guides all further actions of participants. The game is considered over when one of the teams wins completely, i.e. when either all the townspeople are “killed” or all the bandits are “imprisoned”. If there are very few players, then the game turns out to be too short, but if there are more players than necessary, turmoil and confusion arises, and the game loses its meaning.

The Mafia game is, first of all, based on communication: discussions, disputes, establishing contacts, etc., which brings it as close as possible to real life. After all, in the game all the traits and properties of the human personality are used and manifested. The psychological aspect of the game is such that in order to successfully interact with others, a person must try to use and develop his acting abilities, the gift of persuasion, leadership, and deduction. “Mafia” perfectly develops analytical thinking, intuition, logic, memory, intelligence, theatricality, social influence, team interaction and many other important qualities in life. The main psychology of this game is which team will win. After all, one team is mafiosi who know each other, but are in no way inclined to play at a loss and, moreover, have the opportunity to eliminate the townspeople. And the second team is civilians, unfamiliar with each other, who can act most effectively only by interacting with the mafia. "Mafia" contains enormous potential and brings great pleasure intellectually and aesthetically.

Details of the game “Mafia”, its rules, strategic and tactical features and many other detailed and interesting information related to it can be found on Wikipedia.

"Poker"

Poker is a world famous card game. Its goal is to win bets by collecting the most profitable combination of four or five cards or by making all participants stop participating. All cards in the game are either completely or partially covered. The specifics of the rules may vary depending on the type of poker. But all types have in common the presence of trading and gaming combinations.

To play poker, decks of 32, 36 or 54 cards are used. Optimal number of players: from 2 to 10 at one table. The highest card is the Ace, then the King, Queen, etc. Sometimes the low card may be an ace, depending on the card combination. Different types of poker consist of different numbers of streets - betting rounds. Each street begins with a new distribution. Once the cards are dealt, any player can place a bet or leave the game. The winner is the one whose combination of five cards turns out to be the best, or the one who can displace other players and remain alone until the cards are revealed.

The psychological aspect of poker is very important because... plays a serious role in the tactics and strategy of the game. The moves players make are based largely on their skills, habits and perceptions. Thus, player styles are based on a certain psychological basis and are a reflection of the desires and fears of people, the understanding of which gives some players an advantage over others. Also, a player's style is an excellent reflection of his character traits. After all, any personal characteristic, as is known, influences a person’s behavior and, consequently, his behavior in the game and the decisions he makes in certain game conditions. Of course, poker is a game of chance played for money. And without gaming skills, a person risks finding himself in an unenviable situation. But if you play poker without bets for the sake of training, for example, with friends, then it will be an excellent way to develop and hone such qualities as intuition, logical thinking, the ability to “read” people and mask your intentions, psychological stability, endurance, cunning, attentiveness , memory and many others. It should be noted that playing poker, among other things, develops self-control, tactical and strategic thinking, as well as the ability to understand the motives of other people. And we so often need these qualities in our everyday life.

Details of the game of Poker, rules, strategies and other interesting details can be found on Wikipedia.

"Dixit"

Dixit is an association board game. Consists of 84 illustrated cards. It can be played by 3 to 6 people. At the beginning, each player receives 6 cards. Everyone takes turns. One of the game participants is declared the Storyteller. He takes one card and places it in front of him so that the picture is not visible. Then he must describe it with a word, phrase, sound, facial expression or gesture that he associates with the picture. Others do not see the card, but among their cards they look for the one that most matches the Storyteller’s description, and also lay it out on the table face down. After that, all these cards are shuffled and laid out in a row, and the players, using tokens with numbers, must guess the card that the Storyteller originally described. Next, the players reveal all the cards and count the points. The player who guessed the card moves his chip forward. When all the cards are gone, the game is over. The one with the most points wins.

The game “Dixit” has a number of features, one of which is that the associations should not be very simple, not very complex, because then the card will be very easy or very difficult to guess. The game itself is an excellent means for developing analytical and associative thinking, intuition, imagination, intelligence and other qualities. During the game, participants learn to feel other people, understand them without words and explain them in the same way. We can say that, among other things, effective nonverbal communication skills are also formed. The game is very interesting and always takes place in a positive, friendly atmosphere.

You can find out more about the game “Dixit” and some of its features on Wikipedia.

"Imaginarium"

"Imaginarium" is an analogue of the game "Dixit". It also requires selecting associations for pictures with different meanings. The rules of the game are the same as in “Dixit”: one player (Storyteller) chooses a card and describes it using associations. The remaining players choose one of the most suitable cards from among their own and place them face down on the table. Afterwards, all the cards are shuffled and the player begins to guess them.

The game “Imaginarium” is in no way inferior to its prototype and has an extremely beneficial effect on the development of many qualities of the human personality, namely: it develops intelligence, analytical thinking, intuition, imagination, and fantasy. The game activates creativity, the ability to intuitively understand others, and in every possible way helps to improve communication abilities and increase the effectiveness of communication.

You can get acquainted with a more detailed description of the game “Imaginarium” on the Mosigra website.

"Activity"

"Activity" is a collective associative game in which you need to explain the words written on the cards. There are a total of 440 cards in the game with six tasks on each. The standard set is designed for people over 12 years old. But there are options “For children” and “For kids”. The minimum number of players is two. The maximum is practically unlimited. You can explain words using facial expressions, drawings or synonymous words. To explain what is hidden, you have only one minute. There are individual tasks, and there are general ones. Players must move pieces around the game map. The team that reaches the finish line first wins. You can also choose more complex or simpler tasks during the process. More points are awarded for a more difficult task.

The game "Activity" is perfect for relaxing and having fun and is a great way to lift your spirits. "Activity" develops strategic thinking, intelligence, imagination, teamwork, intuition, and analytical skills. The game helps to unlock potential and gives each person the opportunity to express themselves from completely different sides. And many tactical options and behavioral options contribute to this even more. Both children and adults will get a lot of pleasure and positive emotions from this game.

"Monopoly"

Monopoly is one of the most famous educational board games in the world. Game genre: economic strategy. Minimum number of players: two. The essence of the game is to achieve economic stability for yourself and bankruptcy for other players using starting capital. The starting amount is the same for each player. Players take turns making moves around the playing field by rolling the dice. The one who earns the most money wins. The game ends when someone goes completely broke or when the ATM stops dispensing cash notes and luck cards.

The game "Monopoly" has remained popular among a huge number of people for many years. Firstly, it perfectly lifts your spirits and gives you a lot of positive emotions. Secondly, the game forms a culture of communication, thanks to the close interaction of participants with each other. Thirdly, during the game the inclinations of entrepreneurship and financial literacy are developed, mathematical knowledge, logical and strategic thinking, and a sense of tactics are improved. It is also important that the game “Monopoly” trains memory, develops attention, and also reveals leadership abilities, independence, responsibility and a person’s desire to be the master of his own life. In addition to this, qualities such as the ability to wait, patience, perseverance, and calm are developed.

You can find out more information about the game Monopoly on Wikipedia.

Other games

The games we briefly mentioned are by no means the only ones of their kind, but they can safely be called worthy examples of some of the best psychological games. The direction and form of psychological games can be completely different. The main thing is to find the most interesting game for yourself and just start playing it. Better yet, try all the games. This, at the same time, will have a positive impact on many of your personal characteristics, and will help you decide which type of games is most suitable for you personally.

As an addition, there are a few more games that you can master. This is a wonderful game “Telepathy”, the main focus of which is self-knowledge, self-awareness and the development of one’s hidden abilities. There is a wonderful game for developing listening skills and attentiveness called “The Lost Storyteller.” By the way, it also affects interpersonal relationships. A good game for trust and mutual understanding is “Coin”. It also involves close interaction between the participants, which allows them to deeply explore each other’s psychological characteristics. The category of similar games can also include the games “Homeostat”, “Docking”, “Rank”, “Choice” and others. You can easily find information about these and many other interesting psychological games on the Internet. By the way, about the Internet: today a large number of very interesting computer and online games have been developed that have a pronounced psychological orientation. You can find such games in computer stores or download them from the Internet. Good games installed on your home computer will always contribute to a more relaxed and friendly atmosphere in your home. You can always take a break from your daily routine by playing, for example, online Monopoly. And your children will find it interesting and fun to watch you play and participate in the process themselves. Naturally, there are educational online games for children, which are a pleasure to play. Search the Internet for something suitable, and you will definitely find a worthwhile option for yourself and your loved ones.

Games as a way of effective psychological influence, as mentioned earlier, have found application in a variety of areas of human activity. A person begins to play from a very young age - at home with his parents, in kindergarten with other children. Then we encounter different games in junior and senior school, college, and university. In adult life, we are also surrounded by games, but these are already games for adults. With the help of such games, people striving for success and self-improvement develop their strong qualities and work on their weak ones. And this actually makes them stronger and more developed individuals, increases their efficiency and effectiveness, makes interaction with the outside world and themselves deeper and more harmonious.

You shouldn’t neglect this method of self-development either. Play games, change them, invent your own. Take games into your “arms” and make them a part of your life. This way you can always be in the process of development. And the process of personal growth itself will never bore you and will continue to remain interesting and exciting.

We wish you success on the path of self-improvement and studying human psychology!