Most
Productive Years
After Vygotsky's presentation at the Psychoneurological conference, he
was offered
a job to help in restructuring the Psychological
Institute in Moscow.4 For the first while that he lived
in Moscow, he was staying in the basement of the Psychological Institute.
He took advantage of this opportunity to read much of the archived materials
stored there, giving him ample backgroud for his future theorizing.
In 1925, Vygotsky finished his dissertation, "The Psychology of Art," parts
of which he had begun as early as 1916, such as the manuscript he had written
on Hamlet. Vygotsky quickly established himself as a prominent psychologist.4
His students, Luria and Leont'ev joined him in Moscow and began to help
develop his ideas. It seemed that nearly everyone was in awe of this
great man with an amazing mind. Students would even stand outside
lecture hall windows to hear him speak because the halls themselves were
completely packed.
Vygotsky joined the Psychological Institute of Moscow University as a junior
staff psychologist.4 He planned to reformulate psychological
theories along Marxist lines and to develop ways to deal with social and
political problems in the USSR. He was particularily interested in
the psychology of education and remediation.
Because of his interest in children with handicaps and learning disabilities,
in 1925, Vygotsky formed the “Laboratory of Psychology for Abnormal Childhood”
in Moscow. He continued to be involved in this institution until
his death.
Through this time, Vygotsky was also doing empirical research and writing.
He wrote, "The Historical Significance of the Crisis in Psychology,” which
was a philosophical analysis of the foundations of psychology. “This
turning of psychology from a field of activity into a subject of inquiry
placed Vygotsky in a field of his own” (p. 18).2 He was
establishing new ideas and his creativity was being well-received by others.
What made Vygotsky such a leader in psychology? First, he had the
ability to take in, organize, and analyze large amounts of information
to develop new theories.4 Second, the social and political
environment in Russia at that time fostered creativity of Vygotsky's type
(see Russian Culture).
In the late 1920's, Vygotsky began traveling around Russia to lecture and
to help set up research labs in other cities.4 He was
spreading his knowledge and ideas and helping others to follow in his footsteps.
In 1931, he set up a main lab in Khar'kov where Vygotsky and some of his
close colleages could work out their ideas away from the hustle and bustle
of Moscow.
Vygotsky still spent most of his time in Moscow, however. He also
began studying medicine in the early 30's because of his interest in neurology
and language. He wrote a Russian translation of Piaget's "Le Langage
Et La Pensee Chez L’enfant" (The Language and Thought of the Child).
Through these years, Vygotsky
was suffering periodically from tuberculosis.4 He would
have times when it was worse, and he could not work much, however, the
majority of the time, he was writing at a frantic pace. He had a
desire to get all of his ideas out before he died.
Figure 4: Pedagogical Psychology Institute in Moscow
Previous: Russian Culture -
Next: After His Death
Menu