Characteristics of female psychology in the views of P. F. Kapterev

The article presents the content of five lectures by p.f. kapterev (1849-1922), a prominent na-tional educator and psychologist, “on the specific mental properties of women” that discuss the essence of women's psychological type, specifics of the women's thinking, intellect and educa-tion. to provide the ground for his statements the author relied on the historical facts, on the findings and concepts from philosophy, psychology, medicine, theology, ethnography and law, and examples from fiction literature, memoirs and diaries were used as illustrations. According to kapterev two main reasons have impact on the features of the psychological constitution of women: the specifics of the physical type and the historical position of women. These reasons manifest them-selves in women’s physical self-knowledge, in the need for love as a generic instinct, rather than personal enjoyment and in the sense of dependence. p.f. kapterev did not share the views of the most researchers that in one way or another were belittling women’s intellectual activities and limiting their social significance only to the role of mother, wife and lady of the house. he was convinced that women’s intellectual interests differ from the ones of men, that the woman’s mind is of a different kind and there is no need to equate it with the male type of thinking. P.F. kapterev believed that in the future, if properly evolved, a female psychic type will unfold in all its beauty and uniqueness.

1. Kapterev P.F. Spenser kak pedagog i ego russkie kritiki // Narodnaya shkola. 1879. №1.
2. Kapterev P.F. O harakternyh psihicheskih svoistvah zhenshin. 1-ya lekciya // Obra-zovanie. 1894. №4.
3. Kapterev P.F. O harakternyh psihicheskih svoistvah zhenshin. 2-ya lekciya // Obra-zovanie. 1894. №5-6.
4. Kapterev P.F. O harakternyh psihicheskih svoistvah zhenshin. 3-ya lekciya // Obra-zovanie. 1894. №7-8.
5. Kapterev P.F. O harakternyh psihicheskih svoistvah zhenshin. 4-ya lekciya // Obra-zovanie. 1894. №9.
6. Kapterev P.F. O harakternyh psihicheskih svoistvah zhenshin. 5-ya lekciya // Obra-zovanie. 1894. №10.