The classification of methods is based on various criteria. Isachenko takes as the basis for the classification of methods their division into main hierarchical levels.
· the highest level – the main worldview methods, as a rule, developed by philosophy (dialectical, metaphysical).
· actual scientific research, which is divided into
1) general scientific methods (they are also called scientific approaches). Systematic, genetic and a number of others.
2) specialized - scientific methods have application in certain systems of sciences or areas.
A broader classification was given by F.N. Melkov, who builds a classification of methods according to the degree of their universality (breadth of use). All methods are divided into 3 categories:
- General scientific methods– materialistic dialectics, its laws and basic principles constitute the methodology of physical geography.
The historical method is a systematic approach to the object of study.
Systematic approach considers the PTC as a complex formation consisting of various blocks that interact with each other.
- Interdisciplinary methods- common to a group of sciences, but in each specific science there are predominant characteristic features.
ü Mathematical methods – application of mathematical knowledge to solve scientific problems of geography. Mathematical statistics, probability theory, mathematical analysis, set theory, etc.
ü The geochemical method is a method for studying the relationships that occur in nature through the study of migration chemical elements PTK.
ü Geophysical method is a set of techniques that are used to study physical properties PTC: processes of exchange of matter, energy and information PTC with the environment and within oneself.
ü The modeling method is the study of the structure of PTCs, connections, processes between and within them, as well as with other phenomena in reality using a model. Models are divided into several groups:
Verbal (verbal) is the expanded name of the PTC, which is compiled during the research process.
Matrix models are a table in which PTCs are ranked according to a number of columns.
Graphic (cartographic model of PTK landscapes). Graphic models include CFGP
Mathematical models allow us to express the nature of the process in the form of formulas.
ü Zoning method - dividing a territory into homogeneous regions, taking into account one or more. Physical-geographical zoning is used (based on taking into account the nature of the natural component) and landscape zoning, which is based on the analysis and structure of landscapes in a certain area.
ü Geographic forecast - the scientific development of ideas about the geo-complexes of the future, their fundamental properties and the variety of variable components, including those caused by the intentional and unintentional results of human activity.
ü Geoecological method – study of PTC and PAK from the position of a humanitarian-ecological point of view.
Global - environmental problems of study at the level of the geographical envelope.
Regional – decided at the level of landscape regions, provinces and districts.
Local - problems are solved at the level of landscapes and tracts.
- Specific methods– these are methods that are used in a specific science (private, specific, specialized). The following specific methods:
ü Landscape – study of the distribution of structure, functioning, dynamics, genesis, trends of PTC. Widely used
ü Literary-cartographic - the study of PTC based on the analysis of literary and cartographic sources.
ü The comparative-descriptive method is used when conducting field research, when compiling map legends, and when writing text.
ü The expedition method is one of the organizational forms of field research, which is associated with route movement.
ü Stationary method - study of the states and changes in the properties of PTCs and their components, based on long-term observations in one place (years). Special physical-geographical stations and zonal testing areas are being created. Such observations are called monitoring.
ü The semi-stationary method is a method of short-term observations that are carried out not all year round, but only during its period.
ü Remote methods– study of PTC and the factors affecting them, using means located at a distance from the object or from the observer.
ü Aerospace methods - observations and filming from an airplane or helicopter. Space photography - from a satellite.
4 types of research:
1. visual
2. photographic
3. electronic
4. geophysical
The GIS technology method is a set of software tools used to enter, store, manipulate, analyze and display all available information. Complex databases about PTC are being created.
Paleographic method - the essence: to reveal the history of the development of PTC in the footsteps of the past PTC, therefore, various paleogeographic methods are used (relict plants, remains and imprints of decomposition)
On the basis of scientific novelty, i.e. data on their use. Zhuchkova and Rakovskaya classify:
· Traditional (comparative-descriptive, expeditionary, zoning).
· New or modern precision methods (landscape, geophysical, geochemical, stationary, mathematical, aerial photography).
· The latest methods (space, modeling, forecasting, GIS technologies and other methods).
Earth remote sensing (ERS)- obtaining information about the Earth’s surface and objects on it, the atmosphere, the ocean, the upper layer of the earth’s crust using non-contact methods, in which the recording device is removed from the object of study at a considerable distance. The general physical basis of remote sensing is the functional relationship between the recorded parameters of an object's own or reflected radiation and its biogeophysical characteristics and spatial position.
In the modern appearance of remote sensing, two interrelated directions are distinguished - natural science (remote sensing) and engineering (remote methods), which is reflected in widely used English-language terms remote sensing And remote sensing techniques. Understanding the essence of remote sensing is ambiguous. Aerospace School of Moscow University. M.V. Lomonosov, as a subject of remote sensing as a scientific discipline, considers the spatio-temporal properties and relationships of natural and socio-economic objects, manifested directly or indirectly in their own or reflected radiation, remotely recorded from space or from the air in the form of a two-dimensional image - a snapshot . This essential part of remote sensing is called aerospace sounding (ASS), which emphasizes its continuity with traditional aerial methods. The aerospace sounding method is based on the use of images, which, as practice shows, provide the greatest opportunities for a comprehensive study of the earth's surface.
In all countries, requests from military departments serve as an effective stimulus for the development of aerospace sensing. With the introduction of space methods and modern digital technologies, aerospace sensing is becoming increasingly important economically and is becoming an indispensable element higher education in natural history universities, turns into a powerful means of studying the Earth from local studies of individual components to the global study of the planet as a whole. Therefore, when presenting various aspects of aerospace sounding, it is advisable to consider it as a research method that is effectively used in all Earth sciences, and, above all, in geography.
History and current state of aerospace sensing
Remote sensing techniques have been used in Earth research for a very long time. Initially used hand-drawn pictures, which recorded the spatial location of the objects being studied. With the invention of photography, ground-based phototheodolite photography arose, in which maps of mountainous areas were drawn up using perspective photographs. The development of aviation provided aerial photographs with an image of the area from above, in plan. This equipped the Earth sciences with a powerful research tool - aerial methods.
The history of the development of aerospace methods indicates that new advances in science and technology are immediately used to improve image acquisition technologies. This happened in the middle of the 20th century, when such innovations as computers, spacecraft, and electronic imaging systems made revolutionary changes in traditional aerial photography methods - aerospace sounding was born. Satellite images have provided geoinformation to solve problems at the regional and global levels.
Currently, the following trends in the progressive development of aerospace sensing are clearly visible.
- Space images, promptly posted on the Internet, are becoming the most popular video information about the area for both professional specialists and the general public.
- The resolution and metric properties of open-access space images are rapidly improving. Ultra-high resolution orbital images - meter and even decimeter - are becoming widespread, which successfully compete with aerial photographs.
- Analog photographic images and traditional technologies for processing them are losing their former monopoly value. The main processing device was a computer equipped with specialized software and peripherals.
- The development of all-weather radar turns it into a progressive method for obtaining metrically accurate spatial geoinformation, which begins to be effectively integrated with optical technologies of aerospace sensing.
- A market for a variety of aerospace Earth sensing products is rapidly emerging. The number of commercial spacecraft operating in orbits, especially foreign ones, is steadily increasing. The most widely used images are obtained by resource satellite systems Landsat (USA), SPOT (France), IRS (India), mapping satellites ALOS (Japan), Cartosat (India), ultra-high resolution satellites Ikonos, QiuckBird, GeoEye (USA), including including radar TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X (Germany), performing tandem interferometric survey. The system of space monitoring satellites RapidEye (Germany) is successfully operated.
Schematic flow diagram of remote sensing of the Earth
Rice. 1
Figure 1 summarizes the basic diagram of aerospace research. It includes the main technological stages: obtaining an image of the research object and further work with the images - their decoding and photogrammetric processing, as well as the final goal of the research - a map compiled from the images, a geographic information system, and a developed forecast. Since it is in most cases impossible to obtain the necessary characteristics of the object being studied only from photographs without any field definitions, without referring to the “earthly truth,” their standardization is necessary. An important element of image research is also the assessment of the reliability and accuracy of the results obtained. To do this, it is necessary to attract other information and process it using other methods, which requires additional costs.
Snapshot - the basic concept of aerospace sensing
Aerospace images- the main result of aerospace surveys, for which a variety of aviation and space carriers are used (Fig. 2). Aerospace photography is divided into passive, which provide for the registration of reflected solar or Earth’s own radiation, and active, in which the registration of reflected artificial radiation is performed.
Rice. 2
An aerospace image is a two-dimensional image of real objects, which is obtained according to certain geometric and radiometric (photometric) laws by remotely recording the brightness of objects and is intended to study visible and hidden objects, phenomena and processes of the surrounding world, as well as to determine their spatial position.
The range of scales of modern aerospace images is enormous: it can vary from 1:1000 to 1:100,000,000, i.e., a hundred thousand times. At the same time, the most common scales of aerial photographs lie in the range of 1:10,000–1:50,000, and space ones – 1:200,000–1:10,000,000. All aerospace photographs are usually divided into analog(usually photographic) and digital(electronic). The image of digital photographs is formed from individual identical elements - pixels(from English picture element— pixel); The brightness of each pixel is characterized by one number.
Aerospace images as information models of terrain are characterized by a number of properties, among which are pictorial, radiometric (photometric) and geometric. Fine properties characterize the ability of photographs to reproduce fine details, colors and tonal gradations of objects, radiometric indicate the accuracy of quantitative recording of object brightnesses by image, geometric characterize the possibility of determining from photographs the sizes, lengths and areas of objects and their relative positions.
Important indicators of an image are coverage and spatial resolution. Typically, research requires large-coverage, high-resolution images. However, it is not possible to satisfy these conflicting requirements in a single image. Typically, the greater the coverage of the resulting images, the lower their resolution. Therefore, you have to make compromises or shoot simultaneously with several systems with different parameters.
Acquisition technologies and main types of aerospace images
Aerospace photography is carried out in atmospheric transparency windows (Fig. 3), using radiation in different spectral ranges - light (visible, near and mid-infrared), thermal infrared and radio range.
Rice. 3
Each of them uses different image acquisition technologies and, depending on this, several types of images are distinguished (Fig. 4).
Fig.4
Images in the light range are divided into photographic and scanner, which in turn are divided into those obtained by optical-mechanical scanning (OM-scanner) and optical-electronic using linear radiation receivers based on charge-coupled devices (CCD-scanners). Such images display the optical characteristics of objects - their brightness, spectral brightness. Applying the multi-spectral shooting principle, multi-spectral images are obtained in this range, and with a large number of shooting zones - hyperspectral ones, the use of which is based on the spectral reflectivity of the objects being photographed, their spectral brightness.
By conducting surveys using thermal radiation receivers - thermal surveys - thermal infrared images are obtained. Photography in the radio range is carried out using both passive and active methods, and depending on this, images are divided into microwave radiometric, obtained by recording the own radiation of the objects under study, and radar images, obtained by recording reflected radio emission sent from the carrier - radar photography.
Methods for obtaining information from images: interpretation and photogrammetric measurements
Information necessary for research (subject-related and geometric) is extracted from images by two main methods: decoding and photogrammetric measurements
Decryption, which should answer the main question - What shown in the picture, allows you to obtain substantive, thematic (mostly qualitative) information about the object or process being studied, its connections with surrounding objects. Visual interpretation usually involves reading photographs and their interpretation (interpretation). The ability to read photographs is based on knowledge of the decipherable features of objects and the visual properties of photographs. The depth of interpretive decoding significantly depends on the level of training of the performer. The better the decipherer knows the subject of his research, the more complete and reliable the information extracted from the image.
Photogrammetric processing(measurements) is intended to answer the question - Where the object being studied is located and what are its geometric characteristics: size, shape. To do this, the images are transformed and their image is brought into a specific map projection. This allows you to determine the position of objects and their changes over time from images.
Modern computer technologies for obtaining information from images allow solving the following groups of problems:
- visualization of digital images;
- geometric and brightness transformations of images, including their correction;
- construction of new derivative images from primary images;
- determination of quantitative characteristics of objects;
- computer interpretation of images (classification).
To perform computer decoding, the most common approach is used, based on spectral features, which are a set of spectral brightnesses recorded by a multispectral image. The formal task of computer image decoding comes down to classification—the sequential “sorting” of all the pixels of a digital image into several groups. For this purpose, classification algorithms of two types are proposed - with and without training, or clustering (from the English cluster - cluster, group). In supervised classification, the pixels of a multispectral image are grouped based on a comparison of their brightness in each spectral zone with reference values. When clustering, all pixels are divided into cluster groups according to some formal criterion, without resorting to training data. Then the clusters obtained as a result of automatic grouping of pixels are assigned by the decipherer to certain objects. The reliability of computer decoding is formally characterized by the ratio of the number of correctly classified pixels to their total number.
Computational algorithms based on the spectral features of individual pixels provide a reliable solution to only the simplest classification problems; they are rationally included as elements in the complex process of visual interpretation, which still remains the main method for extracting natural and socio-economic information from aerospace images.
Applications of aerospace sensing in mapping and exploration of the Earth
Aerospace images are used in all areas of Earth research, but the intensity of their use and the effectiveness of their application in different areas of research are different. They are extremely important in the study of the lithosphere, showing the fragmentation of the geological basement by linear faults and ring structures and facilitating the search for mineral deposits; in atmospheric research, where images provided the basis for meteorological forecasts; Thanks to images from space, the vortex structure of the ocean was discovered, the state of the Earth's vegetation cover at the turn of the century and its changes in recent decades were recorded. So far, space images are used much less in socio-economic research. The types of problems solved using images in different subject areas also differ. Thus, the solution of inventory problems is implemented in the study of natural resources, for example, when mapping soils and vegetation, since the images most fully reflect the complex spatial structure of the soil and vegetation cover. Assessment tasks and rapid assessment of the state of ecosystems are carried out as part of studies of the bioproductivity of the oceans, sea ice cover, and monitoring the fire hazard situation in forests. Forecasting tasks, the use of images for modeling and forecasting are most developed in meteorology, where their analysis is the basis of weather forecasts, and in hydrology - for forecasting melt runoff of rivers, floods and inundations. Research is beginning to predict seismic activity and earthquakes based on an analysis of the state of the lithosphere and upper atmosphere.
When working with images, all types of processing are used, but the most widely developed is image interpretation, primarily visual, which is now supported by the capabilities of computer enhancing transformations and classification of objects under study from images. The creation of various derivative images based on spectral indices from photographs has received great development. With the implementation of hyperspectral imaging, dozens of types of such index images began to be created. The development of methods for interferometric processing of radar survey materials has opened up the possibility of highly accurate determinations of displacements of the earth's surface. The transition to digital survey methods, the development of digital stereoscopic surveys and the creation of digital photogrammetric systems have expanded the capabilities of photogrammetric processing of space images, used mainly for creating and updating topographic maps.
Although one of the main advantages of space images is the joint display of all components of the earth’s shell, which ensures the complexity of research, nevertheless, the use of images in various areas of Earth study has so far been scattered, since in-depth development of their own methods was required everywhere. The idea of comprehensive research was most fully realized during the implementation in our country of a program of comprehensive cartographic inventory of natural resources, when a series of interconnected and mutually agreed upon maps were created from images. The awareness at the turn of the century of the environmental problems looming over humanity and the paradigm of studying the Earth as a system once again intensified complex interdisciplinary research.
Analysis of the use of images in different areas of research clearly shows that with all the variety of problems being solved, the main path to the practical use of aerospace images lies through a map that has independent meaning and, in addition, serves as the basic basis of GIS.
Recommended reading
1. Knizhnikov Yu.F., Kravtsova V.I., Tutubalina O.V.. Aerospace methods of geographical research - M.: Publishing Center Academy. 2004. 336 p.
3. Krasnopevtsev B.V. Photogrammetry. - M.:MIIGAiK, 2008. - 160 p.
2. Labutina I.A. Interpretation of aerospace images. - M.: Aspect Press. 2004. -184 p.
4. Smirnov L.E. Aerospace methods of geographical research. - St. Petersburg: St. Petersburg University Publishing House, 2005. - 348 p.
5. Fig. G.U. Fundamentals of remote sensing. -M.: Tekhnosphere, 2006, 336 p.
6. Jensen J.R. Remote sensing of the environment: an Earth resource perspective. — Prentice Hall, 2000. — 544 p.
Aerospace image atlases:
8. Interpretation of multispectral aerospace images. Methodology and results. - M.: Science; Berlin: Akademie-Verlag. - T. 1. - 1982. - 84 p.;
9. Interpretation of multispectral aerospace images. System "Fragment". Methodology and results. - M.: Science; Berlin: Akademie-Verlag. T. 2. - 1988. - 124 p.
10. Space methods of geoecology. - M.: Publishing house Moscow. University, 1998. - 104 p.
Introduction
Analytical chemistry is the science of determining the chemical composition of a substance and, partly, its chemical structure. Analytical chemistry methods make it possible to answer questions about what a substance consists of and what components are included in its composition. Even more important: what is the quantity of these components or what is their concentration. These methods often make it possible to find out in what form a given component is present in a substance.
The task of analytical chemistry includes the development theoretical foundations methods, establishing the limits of their applicability, assessing metrological and other characteristics, creating methods for analyzing various objects
Three functions of analytical chemistry as a field of knowledge can be distinguished:
1) Solving general questions of analysis
2) Development of analytical methods
3) Solving specific analysis problems
Chemical analysis may vary. Qualitative and quantitative, gross and local, destructive and non-destructive, contact and remote.
The purpose of this abstract is a more detailed study of remote analysis and its mechanism.
Remote sensing.
Remote sensing is the collection of information about an object or phenomenon using a recording device that is not in direct contact with the object or phenomenon. The term "remote sensing" usually includes the registration (recording) of electromagnetic radiation through various cameras, scanners, microwave receivers, radars and other such devices. Remote sensing is used to collect and record information about the seabed, the Earth's atmosphere, and the solar system. It is carried out using ships, aircraft, spacecraft and ground-based telescopes. Field-oriented sciences, such as geology, forestry and geography, also commonly use remote sensing to collect data for their research.
Remote sensing covers theoretical research, laboratory work, field observations and data collection from aircraft and artificial Earth satellites. Theoretical, laboratory and field methods are also important for obtaining information about the Solar System, and someday they will be used to study other planetary systems in the Galaxy. Some of the most developed countries regularly launch artificial satellites to scan the Earth's surface and interplanetary space stations for deep space exploration.
This type of system has three main components: an imaging device, a data acquisition environment, and a sensing base. A simple example of such a system is an amateur photographer (base) who uses a 35 mm camera (imaging device that forms an image) loaded with highly sensitive photographic film (recording medium) to photograph a river. The photographer is at some distance from the river, but records information about it and then stores it on photographic film.
Imaging instruments fall into four main categories: still and film cameras, multispectral scanners, radiometers, and active radars. Modern single-lens reflex cameras create an image by focusing ultraviolet, visible or infrared radiation coming from a subject onto photographic film. Once the film is developed, a permanent image (capable of being preserved for a long time) is obtained. The video camera allows you to receive an image on the screen; The permanent record in this case will be the corresponding recording on the videotape or a photograph taken from the screen. All other imaging systems use detectors or receivers that are sensitive at specific wavelengths in the spectrum. Photomultiplier tubes and semiconductor photodetectors, used in combination with optical-mechanical scanners, make it possible to record energy in the ultraviolet, visible, and near, mid, and far infrared regions of the spectrum and convert it into signals that can produce images on film. Microwave energy (microwave energy) is similarly transformed by radiometers or radars. Sonars use the energy of sound waves to produce images on photographic film.
Instruments used for imaging are located on a variety of bases, including on the ground, ships, airplanes, balloons and spacecraft. Special cameras and television systems are used every day to photograph physical and biological objects of interest on land, sea, atmosphere and space. Special time-lapse cameras are used to record changes in the earth's surface such as coastal erosion, glacier movement and vegetation evolution.
Photographs and images taken as part of aerospace imaging programs are properly processed and stored. In the US and Russia, archives for such information data are created by governments. One of the main archives of this kind in the United States, EROS (Earth Resources Obsevation Systems) Data Center, subordinate to the Department of the Interior, stores approx. 5 million aerial photographs and approx. 2 million images from Landsat satellites, as well as copies of all aerial photographs and satellite images of the Earth's surface held by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). This information is open access. Various military and intelligence organizations have extensive photo archives and archives of other visual materials.
The most important part of remote sensing is image analysis. Such analysis can be performed visually, by computer-enhanced visual methods, and entirely by computer; the latter two involve digital data analysis. Initially, most remote sensing data analysis work was done by visually examining individual aerial photographs or by using a stereoscope and overlaying the photographs to create a stereo model. Photographs were usually black and white and color, sometimes black and white and color in infrared, or - in rare cases - multispectral. The main users of data obtained from aerial photography are geologists, geographers, foresters, agronomists and, of course, cartographers. The researcher analyzes the aerial photograph in the laboratory to directly extract useful information from it, then plot it on one of the base maps and determine the areas that will need to be visited during field work. After field work, the researcher re-evaluates the aerial photographs and uses the data obtained from them and from field surveys to create the final map. Using these methods, many different thematic maps are prepared for release: geological, land use and topographic maps, maps of forests, soils and crops. Geologists and other scientists conduct laboratory and field studies of the spectral characteristics of various natural and civilizational changes occurring on Earth. The ideas from such research have found application in the design of multispectral MSS scanners, which are used on aircraft and spacecraft. The Landsat 1, 2 and 4 artificial Earth satellites carried MSS with four spectral bands: from 0.5 to 0.6 μm (green); from 0.6 to 0.7 µm (red); from 0.7 to 0.8 µm (near IR); from 0.8 to 1.1 µm (IR). The Landsat 3 satellite also uses a band from 10.4 to 12.5 microns. Standard composite images using the artificial coloring method are obtained by combining MSS with the first, second and fourth bands in combination with blue, green and red filters, respectively. On the Landsat 4 satellite with the advanced MSS scanner, the thematic mapper provides images in seven spectral bands: three in the visible region, one in the near-IR region, two in the mid-IR region and one in the thermal IR region . Thanks to this instrument, the spatial resolution was improved almost threefold (to 30 m) compared to that provided by the Landsat satellite, which used only the MSS scanner. Since the sensitive satellite sensors were not designed for stereoscopic imaging, it was necessary to differentiate certain features and phenomena within one specific image using spectral differences. MSS scanners can distinguish between five broad categories of land surfaces: water, snow and ice, vegetation, outcrop and soil, and human-related features. A scientist who is familiar with the area under study can analyze an image obtained in a single broad spectral band, such as a black-and-white aerial photograph, which is typically obtained by recording radiation with wavelengths from 0.5 to 0.7 µm (green and red regions of the spectrum). However, as the number of new spectral bands increases, it becomes increasingly difficult for the human eye to distinguish between important features of similar tones in different parts of the spectrum. For example, only one survey shot from the Landsat satellite using MSS in the 0.5-0.6 µm band contains approx. 7.5 million pixels (picture elements), each of which can have up to 128 shades of gray ranging from 0 (black) to 128 (white). When comparing two Landsat images of the same area, you're dealing with 60 million pixels; one image obtained from Landsat 4 and processed by the mapper contains about 227 million pixels. It clearly follows that computers must be used to analyze such images.
Image analysis uses computers to compare the gray scale (range of discrete numbers) values of each pixel in images taken on the same day or on several different days. Image analysis systems classify specific features of a survey to produce a thematic map of the area. Modern image reproduction systems make it possible to reproduce on a color television monitor one or more spectral bands processed by a satellite with an MSS scanner. The movable cursor is placed on one of the pixels or on a matrix of pixels located within some specific feature, for example a body of water. The computer correlates all four MSS bands and classifies all other parts of the satellite image that have similar sets of digital numbers. The researcher can then color code areas of "water" on a color monitor to create a "map" showing all the bodies of water in the satellite image. This procedure, known as regulated classification, allows systematic classification of all parts of the analyzed image. It is possible to identify all major types of earth's surface. The computer classification schemes described are quite simple, but the world around us is complex. Water, for example, does not necessarily have a single spectral characteristic. Within the same shot, bodies of water can be clean or dirty, deep or shallow, partially covered with algae or frozen, and each of them has its own spectral reflectance (and therefore its own digital characteristic). The interactive digital image analysis system IDIMS uses a non-regulated classification scheme. IDIMS automatically places each pixel into one of several dozen classes. After computer classification, similar classes (for example, five or six water classes) can be collected into one. However, many areas of the earth's surface have rather complex spectra, which makes it difficult to unambiguously distinguish between them. Oak Grove, for example, may appear in satellite images to be spectrally indistinguishable from a maple grove, although on the ground this problem is solved very simply. According to their spectral characteristics, oak and maple belong to broad-leaved species. Computer processing with image content identification algorithms can significantly improve the MSS image compared to the standard one.
Remote sensing data serves as the main source of information in the preparation of land use and topographic maps. NOAA and GOES weather and geodetic satellites are used to monitor cloud changes and the development of cyclones, including hurricanes and typhoons. NOAA satellite imagery is also used to map seasonal changes in snow cover in the northern hemisphere for climate research and to study changes in sea currents, which can help reduce shipping times. Microwave instruments on the Nimbus satellites are used to map seasonal changes in ice cover in the Arctic and Antarctic seas.
Remote sensing data from aircraft and artificial satellites are increasingly being used to monitor natural grasslands. Aerial photographs are very useful in forestry because of the high resolution they can achieve, as well as the accurate measurement of plant cover and how it changes over time.
Remote sensing data forms an important part of research in glaciology (relating to the characteristics of glaciers and snow cover), geomorphology (relief shapes and characteristics), marine geology (morphology of the sea and ocean floors), and geobotany (due to the dependence of vegetation on underlying mineral deposits) and in archaeological geology. In astrogeology, remote sensing data is of primary importance for the study of other planets and moons in the solar system, and in comparative planetology for the study of Earth's history. However, the most exciting aspect of remote sensing is that satellites placed in Earth orbit for the first time have given scientists the ability to observe, track and study our planet as a complete system, including its dynamic atmosphere and landforms as they change under the influence of natural factors and human activities. Images obtained from satellites may help find the key to predicting climate change, including those caused by natural and man-made factors. Although the United States and Russia have been conducting remote sensing since the 1960s, other countries are also contributing. The Japanese and European Space Agencies plan to launch into low-Earth orbits large number satellites designed to study the Earth's land, seas and atmosphere.
Remote methods for studying soil cover.
The use of aerospace methods in soil science has given a significant impetus to the development of soil mapping and soil cover monitoring. Back in the 30s of the twentieth century, at the dawn of the use of aerial methods for studying natural resources, significant opportunities were noted for using remote imagery in compiling detailed soil maps and for assessing the condition of crops.
Remote methods for studying soil cover are based on the fact that soils of different origins and degrees of secondary changes reflect, absorb and emit electromagnetic waves from different spectral zones in different ways. As a consequence, each soil object has its own spectral-brightness image, imprinted on aero- and space-based materials. By applying various methods of processing aerospace images, it is possible to identify different soils and their individual characteristics.
Long-term research by scientists shows that soils, depending on humus content, humidity, mechanical composition, carbonate content, the presence of salts, erosion and other features, are depicted in photographs with a wide range of tones. Spectral reflectance has been studied quite fully; in this regard, reference should be made to the fundamental research of I. I. Karmanov, who measured spectral reflectance coefficients in the range 400–750 nm of 4 thousand soil samples using an SF-10 spectrophotometer.
In black and white photographs, soils have a gray, dark gray tone, while vegetation has a light, light gray tone. The exception is saline, eroded and sandy soils. In the near-infrared zone (0.75–1.3 μm) for soils, a smooth rise of the curves is observed. The nature and level of spectral curves make it possible to fairly reliably determine genetic differences in soils. To study soils during multispectral photography, differences in the spectral brightness coefficient of soils in different spectral ranges are used.
When conducting remote soil surveys, the possibility of identifying saline and alkaline soils is often noted. In many cases, this applies to areas of natural salinity, as well as local salinization caused by irrigation measures. There is practically no work on remote assessment of technogenic salinization in connection with the development of oil and gas fields.
Technogenic salinization of soils in oil fields is a fairly common phenomenon; it is caused by technogenic flows pouring onto the surface, characterized by high mineralization of water with a predominance of sodium chloride in the salt complex. Salinization causes a sharp change in soil properties and causes depletion or degeneration of vegetation cover. First of all, this applies to solonetzic soils. Soil colloids saturated with sodium undergo peptization, soil aggregates disintegrate, and the physical properties of the soil change. The most obvious changes are the density, aggregate and mechanical composition of soils. Transformations of the organic component of soils are no less significant. First of all, this is expressed in the redistribution of the initial reserves of soil organic carbon across genetic horizons due to the increased flow of humus during the formation of sodium humates and fulvates.
It follows from the above that technogenic salinization dramatically changes various soil characteristics and, as a consequence, the spectral-brightness image of saline and solonetzic soils in oil fields is characterized by noticeable originality. At the same time, for their identification and mapping, the rather rich experience of studying natural saline territories and soil masses that have been salinized as a result of irrigation measures can be used.
The idea of the possibility of assessing the salinity of irrigated soils using remote sensing data arose in the 60s of the twentieth century, but the first data turned out to be very scarce. Subsequently, based on studies of arid, mainly cotton-growing areas, more detailed results were obtained, ideas emerged about what information about soil salinization can be obtained from images and what are the interpretive signs of soils of different types of salinity.
The need to identify saline and solonetzic soil varieties is encountered during large-scale soil mapping. It is noted that such differences are well recorded on aerial and satellite images due to changes in the tone (color) and pattern of the image. According to Yu. P. Kienko and Yu. G. Kellner, satellite images with a resolution of more than 10 m convey 100% of the information about the forms of elementary soil structures; for photographs with a lower resolution (20–30 m), no more than 80% of soil areas are depicted.
Applied interpretation of space images involves working with a series of images. It is recommended to use photographs of the same area, differing in the brightness of the image of identical points depending on the properties and state of objects or shooting conditions and parameters. The most commonly used of them are: images in different spectral ranges, multispectral images divided by wavelengths, multi-temporal images, images under different lighting conditions, different shooting directions, images of different scales, resolutions. One of the effective methodological techniques is sequential interpretation, which is used in cases where different objects are displayed on different zonal images. For example, salt marshes and the degree of salinity are well recorded in images in the blue zone, wetlands and the degree of moisture are clearly recorded in images in the near-infrared zone. Sequential decryption involves the analysis of individual time slices with the compilation of multi-temporal decryption schemes.
B.V. Vinogradov focuses on the “point-by-point” or “pixel-by-pixel” comparison of remote signals for aerospace monitoring of soil dynamics. This technique consists of comparing the remote signal, measured in photometric or radiometric units, of the same sites in different years and interpreting the corresponding soil indicators. Method for point-by-point comparison of photometric and radiometric measurements different years quite correct, but complicated. It requires standardization of natural and technical shooting conditions that would allow the correct identification of the same points on successive images. In addition, when photometric and radiometric point-by-point comparisons are made, it is necessary to take into account the spatio-temporal heterogeneity of the area under study. Temporal inhomogeneities are eliminated by comparing images obtained during the same agrophenological phases. To take into account spatial heterogeneity, the weighted average characteristics of the elements that make up each subsequent “target” are calculated. For comparison, points identified in successive images located in plowed fields and crops with vegetation coverage of up to 30% are used. Thus, when comparing large-scale early summer panchromatic images, the dynamics of humus content in the soils of Kazakhstan was revealed. For standardization, two optical “reference” areas were used, the reflectance of the soils of which is obviously stable: these are marmots with loess emissions on the surface, where the humus content is negligible, and the reflectance in the spectral range is 0.3–0.32; and stretches with meadow-chestnut soils, where the humus content is more than 5%, and the reflection coefficient is the lowest - 0.08–0.12.
The task of identifying salinized soils is one of the most important in the process of remote soil reclamation studies. When monitoring the salt regime of irrigated soils, the degree and type of soil salinity, the direction of changes in rock salinity, salt reserves, and the causes of salinity are assessed. Soil salinization is detected by remote methods both with the direct appearance of salts on the soil surface and with changes in the reflectivity of agricultural crops due to the loss of individual plants, their suppression and the appearance of halophytic weeds. Due to these phenomena, the tone and pattern of the image of saline soils change. Similar studies were widely carried out on irrigated areas in the Amu Darya and Syr Darya basins [
Extensive experience in remote assessment of soil properties was gained in the compilation of the state soil map of the USSR using space information. In this case, multispectral images were used; the compilers used mainly two channels: 0.6–0.7 (red zone) and 0.8–1.1 μm (infrared zone).
The identification of saline soils was carried out during the compilation of a small-scale soil map of Uzbekistan. While working on the map, black and white satellite images of different scales were used. For salt marshes, a spotted and finely spotted photographic image structure and a light gray to dark gray tone have been established.
A specialized map of “Soil Salinization” was compiled for the Pamir-Alai. As the authors point out, in satellite images, salt marshes and highly saline soils were interpreted quite reliably based on the phototone and structure of the photographic image. Satellite images also decipher small spots of weakly and moderately saline soils developed among non-saline gray-meadow soils; these soils in the images have a spotty image with blurry boundaries of light gray and gray phototones.
Salinization processes were assessed by remote means in the Southern Stavropol region. Natural salinity in this region manifests itself mainly in soils formed on Maikop clays under conditions of increased hydromorphism. The predominant slightly and moderately saline soils have a gray tone on aerial photographs, which is the background color for such areas. Against this background, small, very light spots of highly saline soils stand out clearly.
Deciphering the salinity of irrigated soils in arid areas is carried out based on the condition of the cotton plant. Interpretation from the open soil surface is impossible under these conditions, since the spectral brightness coefficients of non-saline arid soils and saline soils are very close. The main decipherable signs of salinity are the tone and pattern of the photograph. Two contrasting gradations of tone are taken as a basis: dark - for areas with good condition of cotton plants and light - for a surface devoid of vegetation. The percentage of light spots within a field or contour and their size made it possible to establish and, on the basis of ground-based data, statistically substantiate the relationship of a photograph with the degree of salinity in a meter-long soil layer. This principle made it possible to identify four gradations of soil salinity during visual interpretation on large-scale images, three on medium-scale images, and two on satellite images.
The study of the phenomena of secondary salinization in the zone of influence of infiltration waters was carried out using aerial photography materials on the Pravo-Egorlyk irrigation system in the Stavropol Territory (Russia).
In the 80–90s of the twentieth century. interpretation of soil complexes in satellite images was carried out mainly by means of structural-zonal analysis. The latter consists of optical transformation of photographs and obtaining a quantitative assessment of the spatial frequency spectrum by optical filtering of the most informative features characterizing the spatial structure of the image. Currently, satellites are equipped with high-resolution optical scanning equipment, which allows obtaining images in digital form. In this regard, instead of optical coherent spectral analysis, other methods of processing digital source data are used.
The essence of the data fusion technique is to use an integrated approach to obtaining, processing and interpreting aerospace information. The data fusion technique is used when the system being studied by remote sensing methods is weakly structured and quite variable in time. Of course, information on soil salinization falls into this category, which is why the most interesting works on soil salinization have been published recently.
In 2003, a fairly extensive review was published on the current state of remote sensing methods as a tool for assessing soil salinity. This article reviews various sensors (including aerial photography, satellite and aircraft multispectral, microwave, video, airborne geophysical, hyperspectral, electromagnetic inductometers) and approaches used for remote indication and mapping of saline areas. The important role of processing initial remote sensing data is noted; among the most effective methods for assessing saline soils, such techniques as spectral separation, maximum likelihood classification, classification based on fuzzy sets, range combination, principal component analysis, and correlation equations are discussed. Finally, the paper demonstrates the modeling of temporal and spatial salinity variability using combined approaches involving data fusion and data separation techniques.
Large-scale experimental work on the use of remote sensing to map soil salinity was carried out in 1998-99. in the province of Alberta (Canada). As part of this work, two key areas were studied, one with natural salinity, the second with salinity due to artificial irrigation. Soil salinity was monitored using a ground-based electromagnetic salinity inductometer in the soil layer from 0 to 60 cm. Remote sensing was carried out using a multispectral sensor mounted on an aircraft. In the first year of research, images were obtained with a resolution of 3-4 m, in the second - 0.5 m. Four ranges of electromagnetic waves were used: blue (0.45–0.52 μm), green (0.52–0.60 μm ), red, one way or another, use elements of Data Fusion Technology.
“ERDAS Image 8.4” procedures were used by V. I. Pridatko and Yu. M. Shtepa to analyze satellite images and classify the earth’s surface of the Crimean Peninsula. Based on the interpretation of four Landsat-7 ETM images obtained in 1999 and 2000, classifications of the land surface of Crimea were developed, including the identification of saline areas.
The use of fuzzy modeling to improve the efficiency of identifying types of saline soils based on remote sensing data is considered by D. A. Maternite. She studied Landsat TM images taken over a saline area of Bolivia. Modeling using fuzzy sets made it possible to increase the accuracy of the results; the separation of soils with the chloride-sulfate type of salinity from the sulfate-chloride type was achieved in 44% of cases. Higher accuracy was obtained when separating sulfate-chloride solonchaks and solonetzic soils; the most informative data turned out to be in the near and thermal infrared spectral ranges.
To map saline soils, it is proposed to use integrated multi-temporal classifications of remote sensing data, physical and chemical properties soils and attributes of land forms]. Three expert systems using fuzzy sets and linguistic rules of fuzzy sets to formalize expert knowledge about the actual possibility of change are processed and entered into the GIS. The systems use the approach of semantic import of non-fuzzy sets, which makes it possible to integrate heterogeneous data into databases according to the rules of fuzzy sets. The output of the system is three maps representing “plausible changes,” “nature of changes,” and “magnitude (size) of changes.” These maps are then combined with landscape information presented in various GIS layers.
Other work by D. A. Mothernight shows that salt-tolerant vegetation as an indicator for separating saline and alkali soils from unamended soils is not always applicable when using Landstat TM or Spot optical sensors. Radar materials are more effective for this purpose. The fuzzy set method is used to classify radar satellite images (JERS-1). The experience gained indicates that the classification of radar data provides a reliable determination (overall accuracy is 81%) of areas degraded due to salinization and solonetzization processes. The main problems arise due to different soil roughness; certain classes of surface roughness with saline and solonetzic soils are mistakenly classified as unaltered.
Remote sensing techniques using vegetation type and condition as a proxy for soil salinity were used to provide a broad spatial assessment of salinity and flooding in the Eastern and Western Counties of Ukaro, Australia. In the Murray and Darling river basin (Australia), studies of the spectral features of saline soils in irrigated areas were carried out.
Research to assess the impact of soil salinity on crops through the use of GIS and remote sensing technologies has been undertaken in the southeastern part of the Harran Valley (Turkey), where saline soils are quite common.
Integrated interpretation of aerial photographs was used to identify varying degrees of saline cropland and wasteland in Shanxi Province (China), according to the authors, a reproducibility of 90% was achieved. Landsat TM images were processed to assess the degree of soil salinization and urbanization of agricultural areas in the Nile Delta and in the adjacent areas , dated 1984-93 The results of processing multi-temporal images showed that for 3.74% of agricultural land in the delta, soil productivity is decreasing.
A study on the feasibility of establishing the salinity of gypsum-bearing soils using Landsat TM data was undertaken in the Ismailia province of Egypt]. Using controlled image classification, gypsum-bearing soils are separated from saline soils and from other soils. The most effective way to separate gypsum-bearing and saline soils is to use the thermal range.
The use of satellite imagery materials has made it possible to develop a new direction in the study of soil salinity. As the review shows, research is being carried out in many countries, regardless of whether they own spacecraft or not. The most widely used for research are satellite images of Landsat satellites, the advantage of which is the presence of many imaging channels, accessibility, resolution, good binding and correction.
The problem of remote indication of soil salinity is acute, especially in countries with arid climates (Australia, India, Turkey, southern Russia, etc.). Almost always, the use of remote methods to assess natural and irrigated soil salinization brings good results. In many cases, researchers rely not so much on the study of soil characteristics, but on the degree of degradation of vegetation in salt marshes and solonetzes. Changes in vegetation cover can also be used to identify and assess technogenically saline soils. But they are also characterized by such distinctive features, as a peculiar configuration of halos and a sharp difference from unamended soils in many characteristics, including in the upper surface layer. Modern techniques for processing source satellite images with appropriate resolution make it possible to confidently identify such effects. Since technogenic soil salinization is always associated with the presence of a technological facility, the search area for contamination sites can be significantly reduced by having accurate map objects - potential soil pollutants. Such a map is created using GIS technologies, and the availability of medium and high resolution satellite images from spacecraft (SC) Landsat, SPOT, Ikonas, QuickBird in combination with processing tools embedded in modern programs, for example ERDAS Imagine, allows us to solve the problem of assessing man-made soil salinization in oil and gas fields.
№ 26. Remote research methods in modern geography
Remote sensing data
Remote sensing materials are obtained as a result of non-contact photography from aircraft and spacecraft, ships and submarines, and ground stations. Some types of remote sensing are shown schematically in Fig. 10.1. The resulting documents are very diverse in scale, resolution, geometric, spectral and other properties. It all depends on the type and height of the shooting, the equipment used, as well as the natural features of the area, atmospheric conditions, etc.
The main qualities of remote sensing images, especially useful for mapping, are their high detail, simultaneous coverage of vast areas, the ability to obtain repeated images and study hard-to-reach areas. Thanks to this, remote sensing data was found in
cartography has a variety of applications: they are used to compile and promptly update topographic and thematic maps, mapping poorly studied and inaccessible areas (for example, high mountains). Finally, aerial and satellite images serve as sources for creating general geographic and thematic photographic maps (see Section 11.5).
Filming is carried out in the visible, near-infrared, thermal infrared, radio wave and ultraviolet zones of the spectrum. In this case, the images can be black-and-white zonal and panchromatic, color, color spectrozonal, and even - for better visibility of some objects - false-color, i.e. made in conventional colors. It is worth noting the special advantages of shooting in the radio range. Radio waves, almost without being absorbed, pass freely through clouds and fog. Night darkness is also not an obstacle to photography; it can be done in any weather and at any time of the day.
Photographs - this is the result of frame-by-frame recording of the own or reflected radiation of terrestrial objects on photosensitive film. Aerial photographs are obtained from airplanes, helicopters, hot air balloons, space photographs are obtained from satellites and spaceships, underwater - from underwater vessels and pressure chambers descending to depth, and ground - using phototheodolites.
In addition to single plan photographs, stereo pairs, montages, photographic diagrams and photographic plans, panoramic photographs and photographic panoramas, frontal (vertical) photographs, etc. are used as sources.
Unlike photographic TV pictures and television panoramas are obtained by recording images on the photosensitive screens of transmitting television cameras (vidiconov). Filming from an airplane or satellite covers a fairly large swath of terrain - from 1 to 2 thousand km wide, depending on the flight altitude and the technical characteristics of the filming system. High-orbit satellites make it possible to obtain an image of the entire planet as a whole and transmit it in real time to ground-based remote information receiving points. Therefore, television photography is convenient for operational mapping and tracking (monitoring) of earthly objects and processes. However, in terms of resolution and the amount of geometric distortion, television images are inferior to photographs.
Television images can be narrow- and wide-band, they cover different zones of the spectrum, can have different scans, etc. A special type of sources are photo-television images, in which the detail of photographs is combined with the efficiency of transmitting images via television channels.
Most widely used in mapping scanner images, stripes, “scenes” obtained by element-by-element and line-by-line registration of radiation from objects on the earth’s surface. The word “scanning” itself means the controlled movement of a beam or beam (light, laser, etc.) for the purpose of sequential review (inspection) of any area.
During shooting from an aircraft or satellite, a scanning device (oscillating mirror or prism) sequentially, strip by strip, scans the terrain across the direction of movement of the carrier. The reflected signal arrives at a point photodetector, and the result is images with a stripe or line structure, and the lines consist of small elements - pixels. Each of them reflects the total average brightness of a small area of the terrain, so that the details within the pixel are indistinguishable. A pixel is an elementary cell of a scanner image.
During flight, surveying is carried out continuously, and therefore scanning covers a wide continuous strip (or tape) of terrain. Individual sections of the strip are called scenes. In general, scanner images are inferior in quality to still photographs, but promptly obtaining images in digital form has a huge advantage over other types of shooting.
There are a number of modifications of scanner imaging that produce images with different geometric and radiometric properties. Thus, scanning devices with lines of semiconductor receivers provide shooting of an entire line at once, and it is obtained in a projection close to the central one, which significantly reduces geometric distortions. Photography using multi-element linear and matrix radiation receivers (charge-coupled device - CCD) is based on this principle. They make it possible to receive very high-resolution images of the terrain via radio communication channels - up to several meters.
To map vast territories, they use montages of scanner images and even special scanner “photo portraits” that convey the appearance of large areas of the planet, continents and countries as they are visible from space.
Radar images received from satellites and aircraft, and sonar images - for underwater photography of the bottom of lakes, seas and oceans. Onboard side-scan radars installed on aero-, space- and underwater carriers conduct surveys on the right and left sides perpendicular to the direction of movement of the carrier.
Thanks to the side view, the terrain is clearly visible in the photographs, the details of its dissection and the nature of its roughness are clearly visible. When photographing oceans, the disturbance of the water surface is clearly visible. Radar made it possible for the first time to map in detail the relief of distant planets.
Among the new types of location images, we note images taken in ultraviolet And visible ranges using laser locators - lidars. Continuous technical improvement of scanning and location systems, the multiplicity of survey ranges, the possibility of their wide combination - all this creates a truly inexhaustible variety of sources for thematic mapping.
Of particular importance for mapping is multi-spectral shooting. Its essence is that the same territory (or water area) is simultaneously photographed or scanned in several relatively narrow spectral zones. By combining zonal images, you can obtain the so-called synthesized images, on which in the best possible way certain objects are manifested. For example, by selecting different combinations, you can achieve the best image of water bodies, geological deposits of a certain mineralogical composition, different forest species, agricultural land under certain crops, etc. Therefore, multispectral survey materials are a valuable source, especially for compiling thematic maps.
Remote sensing methods are methods for studying the Earth and other cosmic bodies from air or spacecraft. Remote methods include aerial photography, space photography, image decryption, as well as visual observations: inspection of the territory by an observer on board an aircraft.
Aerial photography is the filming of the earth's surface from aircraft using imaging systems (information receivers) operating in various parts of the electromagnetic wave spectrum. There are: - photographic aerial photography (aerial photography); - television aerial photography; - thermal aerial photography; - radar aerial photography; and - multispectral aerial photography.
The resulting aerial photographs (aerial photographs) can be: - planned, if the axis of the filming apparatus was located vertically; or - perspective, if the axis of the filming apparatus was located obliquely.
Depending on the shooting height and the equipment used, the images have different scale, detail and visibility.
Deciphering images is the study of aerial and space images, identifying the objects depicted on them, and establishing relationships between them. Deciphering images is the most important remote sensing method for studying the Earth.
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Space photography - photographic, television, etc. photography of the Earth, celestial bodies and space phenomena using equipment located outside the Earth’s atmosphere (on artificial Earth satellites, spacecraft, etc.) and producing images in various areas of the electromagnetic spectrum.
The space images obtained as a result of space photography differ from aerial photographs in a much greater visibility, huge coverage of the territory: in a medium-scale image 3-4 thousand sq. km, in a small-scale image - tens of thousands of sq. km. The average scale of satellite images of the Earth is 1:1000000, 1:10000000.
Depending on the position of the axis of the filming apparatus, planned and prospective space surveys are distinguished.
To observe the Earth from space, remote methods are used: the researcher has the opportunity to obtain information about the object being studied from a distance.
Remote methods, as a rule, are indirect, i.e. with their help, they measure not the parameters of objects that interest us, but some quantities associated with them. For example, we need to assess the condition of agricultural crops. But the satellite equipment only records the intensity of the light flux from these objects in several parts of the optical range. To “decipher” such data, preliminary research is required, including various experiments to study the state of plants using contact methods; to study the reflectivity of leaves in different parts of the spectrum and at different relative positions of the light source (Sun), leaves and measuring device. Next, it is necessary to determine what the same objects look like from an airplane, and only after that judge the condition of the crops using satellite data.
Remote methods are divided into active and passive. When using active methods, the satellite sends a signal from its own energy source (laser, radar transmitter) to Earth and registers its reflection. Radar allows you to “see” the Earth through clouds. Passive methods are more often used when the solar energy reflected by the surface or the thermal radiation of the Earth is recorded. The main advantages of space assets when used to study natural resources and control environment are: efficiency, speed of obtaining information, possibly delivering it to the consumer directly during reception with a spacecraft, variety of forms, clarity of results, cost-effectiveness.
Table No. 1 Wave ranges of electromagnetic radiation.
It is no coincidence that methods of studying the Earth from space are considered high technologies. This is due not only to the use of rocket technology, complex optical-electronic devices, and computers, but also to a new approach to obtaining an interpretation of measurement results. And although labor-intensive sub-satellite studies are carried out over a small area, they make it possible to generalize data over vast spaces and even over the entire globe. Breadth of coverage is a characteristic feature of satellite methods for studying the Earth. In addition, these methods, as a rule, allow obtaining results in a relatively short time interval.End of form
Beginning of the form
Photographic photography of the Earth's surface from altitudes of more than 150 - 200 km is usually called space photography. A distinctive feature of the CS is a high degree of visibility, covering large surface areas with one image. Depending on the type of equipment and photographic films used, photography can be carried out in the entire visible range of the electromagnetic spectrum, in its individual zones, as well as in the near-IR (infrared) range.
The scale of shooting depends on two important parameters: shooting height and lens focal length. Depending on the inclination of the optical axis, space cameras make it possible to obtain plan and perspective photographs of the earth’s surface. Currently, for filming from space, multispectral optical-mechanical systems are most often used - scanners installed on satellites for various purposes. Using scanners, images are formed that consist of many individual, sequentially obtained elements. The term “scanning” means the scanning of an image using a scanning element (oscillating or rotating mirror), which element by element scans the area across the movement of the wearer and sends a radiant flux to the lens and then to a point sensor that converts the light signal into an electrical one. This electrical signal arrives at receiving stations via communication channels. The image of the terrain is obtained continuously on a tape made up of strips - scans, composed of individual elements - pixels. Scanner images can be obtained in all spectral ranges, but the visible and infrared ranges are especially effective.
Radar (RL) or radar imaging is the most important type of remote sensing. Used in conditions where direct observation of the planetary surface is difficult due to various natural conditions: dense clouds, fog, etc. It can be carried out in the dark, since it is active. For radar surveys, side-scanning radars (SLRs) installed on aircraft and satellites are usually used.
With the help of LBO, radar imaging is carried out in the radio range of the electromagnetic spectrum. The essence of the survey is to send a radio signal that is reflected normally from the object being studied and recorded on a receiver installed on board the carrier. The radio signal is generated by a special generator. The time it takes to return to the receiver depends on the distance to the object being studied. This principle of operation of a radar, which records different travel times of a probing pulse to an object and back, is used to obtain radar images. The image is formed by a light spot running along a line. The further away the object, the more time it takes for the reflected signal to travel before it is recorded by a cathode ray tube combined with a special film camera.
Infrared (IR), or thermal, imaging is based on identifying thermal anomalies by recording the thermal radiation of Earth objects caused by endogenous heat or solar radiation. 0na. widely used in geology. Temperature inhomogeneities of the Earth's surface arise as a result of unequal heating of its different parts.
Spectrometric (SM) surveying is carried out to measure the reflectivity of rocks. Knowledge of the values of the spectral brightness coefficient of rocks expands the possibilities of rheological interpretation and gives it greater reliability. Rocks have different reflectivity, and therefore differ in the value of the spectral brightness coefficient.
Lidar imaging is active and is based on the continuous receipt of a response from a reflective surface illuminated by laser monochromatic radiation with a fixed wavelength. The frequency of the emitter is tuned to the resonant absorption frequencies of the scanned component (for example, near-surface methane), so that in the case of its noticeable concentrations, the ratio of responses at the points of concentration and outside them will be sharply increased. In fact, lidar spectrometry is a geochemical survey of the near-surface layers of the atmosphere, aimed at detecting trace elements or their compounds concentrated over modernly active geoecological objects.
As already noted, the problem of studying the personality of a politician is one of the most difficult problems in political psychology. This complexity is aggravated by multiple determination, ideological assessments of politicians’ personalities, mythologization, and sometimes mystification of their activities. This problem is complicated by the practice of using various methods of manipulating public consciousness in the political life of the country.
The problem is also that the personality of a politician in real life is a practically inaccessible object for direct, instrumental psychological study. Politicians do not like and are afraid of psychological diagnostics and do not want to be examined. Moreover, many of them are afraid of looking at themselves objectively. They are not interested in information about their psychological status and personal characteristics, strengths and weaknesses, becoming the property of others. At the same time, they rightly believe that this information can be used to their detriment. That is why the construction of a psychological portrait of a politician and the recognition of his real image are carried out in most cases in absentia, indirectly, using distant diagnostic methods (at-a-distance assessment). Its main techniques are based on observation of the actual behavior of a politician.
Observation is the basis of any science and, as a method of general psychological significance, observation, unlike other methods of this category (testing, survey, conversation, experiment), is not only possible in any research and circumstances, but also inevitable. All psychologists, when conducting research, in one way or another, directly observe the natural environment.
Observation, being an active form of sensory cognition, makes it possible to accumulate empirical data, process initial ideas about objects of observation, or test initial assumptions associated with them. It is precisely because observation provides knowledge through direct contact through the senses with the object of study that it historically became the first scientific method.
Observation often served as a radical solution to theoretical problems. Psychology does not yet have such amazing stories of great discoveries by observation, such as, for example, Newton’s falling apple or Archimedes’ water being forced out of a bathtub. But psychologists are well aware of the identified direct connections between the observations of ethologists and aspects of human behavior, such as attachment in infants, aggressive instincts, courtship, individual distance, ritual reorientation, pacifying mechanisms of behavior, the reaction of inspiration, social inhibition, etc. The most famous of the These ethologists are, apparently, K. Lorenz 1 and N. Tinbergen.
IN in a certain sense All people are “observers of man,” but observation as a scientific method stands above conventional wisdom and is a source of data that can be trusted to a certain degree of validity and generality.
The observation method in studying the personality of a politician is extremely important and very informative. In the system of methods and techniques for studying personality and assessing it, observation traditionally occupies one of the first places, as it can provide the observer with rich specific data. Observation can give maximum effect It is in political psychology to the extent that the researcher in this field of knowledge is psychologically prepared for the greatest completeness and depth of perception of a person’s mental state and behavior.
Even if some other method is used as the main way to study an object, observation necessarily accompanies it and is an integral part of its procedure. Perhaps only the study of documents can do without direct observation of the object of study. Although the political psychologist indirectly uses observational data here, it is the observations of other people. Thus, the basis of the “universality” of observation is the inalienability of perception when using any research techniques.
Here it seems appropriate to note that all test questionnaires originate from the observation method. All of them are based on the observation procedure or, more precisely, on its special case - self-observation. Moreover, during testing, the researcher observes the reactions and behavior of the subject, monitors compliance with the rules and conditions of the experiment. The need for the creation and development of test methods and techniques did not arise because the observation method is less informative or less reliable. This is wrong. The problem is that the observation method can be quite expensive in terms of time, financial, organizational and other resources.
“Observation in psychology,” noted S.L. Rubinstein, - appears in two main forms - as introspection, or introspection, and as external, or so-called objective observation” 1. The term “observation” in its latest form, as E.A. rightly believes. Klimov, is used in three different meanings: observation as an activity, as a method and as a technique.
Observation is used not only in scientific research, but also in various types of social life and industrial practice, while maintaining its basic features. Whether observation is scientific or practical is determined primarily by the nature of the goals. Scientific observation always pursues research and educational goals. Observation included in practical activity is aimed at its maintenance, the results of observation are immediately used to achieve the goal of practical activity, the truth and objectivity of the research results are immediately checked.
Scientific work using objective observation 1 can range from an experiment where one or more variables are monitored and measured, to studies where psychologists observe the behavior of one or more individuals in a natural setting over a significant period of time. An example of the first is the work of A. Bandura, where strictly directed observation was used to quantitatively study aggression in controlled experiments. An example of the second approach is the now classic study by D. Rosengan on the psychiatric diagnosis of pseudo-patients with minor symptoms.
So, in the system of methods for studying the personality of a political figure, observation occupies one of the first places. Observation involves a more active attitude towards reality compared to passive contemplation. It is no coincidence that already in the 17th century, the English philosopher and naturalist R. Bacon clearly distinguished passive observation (contemplation) from active, purposeful, scientific observation, calling on researchers to apply it in their work. As an example, we can cite one of the first cases of observation by F. Engels in the process of studying the situation of the working class in England.
In real practice, distant and participant observations are used. The latter involves observation “from within” a social group, when the observer becomes a full member of it. This observation is used in both psychological and sociological research. It was described at the beginning of the 20th century in D. London’s story “People of the Abyss” (1912), as well as in N. Anderson’s book “The Tramp” (1923) and in W. White’s book “Street Corner Society” (1937). The researchers went into the midst of the layers they were studying and made observations there. This approach is widely used in political psychology. Participant observation has great advantages. It will make it possible to reveal many sides of the person being studied. However, participant observation is not always possible and appropriate when studying the personality of a politician.
Although we always observe to gather information, the term "observation" used to describe psychological research usually means that, at a minimum, observations are made of a subject's behavior at a specific time or in the context of specific events. But observation also acts as a special methodical method with its own characteristics, and then we can talk about it as a special method in one or another scientific discipline. “The great advantage of observation is that it... reveals in an object its countless properties and relationships. Observation gives a holistic and natural image, and not a set of points. The simpler the method of observation and the less we rely on means of magnification and highlighting individual details, the wider the field of investigation and the more naturally it remains intact” 1 .
Observing the external course of a person’s actions, that is, actually carrying out visual psychodiagnostics, we study not external behavior in itself, as if it were given in isolation from the internal mental content of the activity, but it is this internal mental content that observation should reveal. In objective observation, the external side of activity is only the initial material of observation, and its true object is its internal mental content. According to S.L. Rubinstein “this is the main principle of observation in our psychology, in contrast to behavioral psychology, which made the external side the only subject of psychological observation.”
Thus, the object of psychological observation is the one being observed - an individual person or a group of people in their joint activities. The subject of observation, in the interests of psychodiagnostics of the individual, are only the external exaggerated components of behavior and activity, which, in turn, are intertwined in inner world personality and are the external form of existence and manifestation of the mental world of the individual.
Psychologists include the following external components of behavior and activity: a) motor components of practical and gnostic actions; movements, movements and immobile states of people; speed and direction of movement; the distance between them; contacts, shocks, blows; joint actions of (groups of) people; b) speech acts, their content, direction, frequency, duration, intensity, expressiveness, features of the lexical, grammatical and phonetic structure, expression of sounds 1;
c) facial expressions and pantomimes; d) external manifestations of some vegetative reactions: redness or paleness of the skin, changes in breathing rhythm, sweating, etc., as well as a combination of these signs.
Research by domestic psychologists is based on the principles of the unity of consciousness and activity, the general structure of external and internal activities, the relationship between meaning and personal meaning. These principles, set out in the works of B.G. Ananyeva, L.S. Vygotsky, A.N. Leontyev and S.L. Rubinstein, form the methodological basis for the application of the observation method in empirical psychological research and suggest the possibility of studying various levels of mental reflection based on highlighting their regulatory role in activity.
In our opinion, by taking into account the above-mentioned general provisions related to the observation method - as the basis for organizing visual psychodiagnostics of a politician, it is possible to resolve the fundamental difficulty associated with objective observation in psychology. How can one study mental, internal processes through objective, external observation?
The considered approach to the psychological category “observation” determines the goal of visual psychodiagnostics: through the psychologist’s perception of the external manifestations of a politician’s behavior, to diagnose the internal mental content of a particular person.
A brief definition of observation can be found in V.V. Nikandrova. He has “observation: organized perception” 1 . Another, no less brief, definition is given by A.T. Nikiforova, V.E. Semenov: “planned perception”. In more detail: observation is a purposeful, organized and recorded perception of mental phenomena with the aim of studying them under certain conditions. At I.D. Ladanov and Yu.V. Chufarovsky observation is “a systematic, purposeful, systematic study of mental phenomena through the researcher’s personal perception of external manifestations of the psyche directly in life...”. At B.G. Meshcheryakov and V.P. Zinchenko defines observation as “intentional and purposeful perception, determined by the task of the activity.” Finally, S.V. Popov’s observation is interpreted as a systematic, purposeful and task-driven perception of objects, events and phenomena of the surrounding world.
Almost all authors provide for the main requirements for observation as a scientific psychological method. These are: the presence of a goal, mediation by theoretical concepts, organization of the observation process and registration of the data obtained. To this it is necessary to add the requirements of completeness and relevance of the recorded material to the phenomena being studied.
From a methodological point of view, observation in psychology is characterized by “universality,” that is, its application to the study of such a wide range of mental phenomena that, perhaps, no other method of psychology has. Observation has flexibility, that is, the ability to change the “field of coverage” of the object being studied or the hypothesis being tested along the way, and there are no or minimal hardware requirements for conducting observation. These characteristics still allow observation to retain its importance as the main method of psychology.
According to the definition of observation on another basis, direct and indirect observation are distinguished. In the first case, the politician is observed by a psychologist. Indirect observation occurs in cases where the psychologist receives information about observations made by other persons.
Observing an object is always the perception of its actions and behavior. From all possible information, we invariably make a selection, which depends on our orientation and the characteristics of our personality. We often perceive what we think to perceive, and often arbitrarily interpret what we perceive. We must take this observation pattern into account in order to avoid subjectivity. In this regard, the following requirements are imposed on the psychologist. First, he must know the characteristics of his personality by observing objects. Secondly, be able to conduct observation in various ways. Thirdly, plan observation.
According to their ability to observe, P. Frass and J. Piaget divide all people into three groups:
- a) those who correctly evaluate themselves; these people have high intelligence and a sense of humanity;
- b) those who correctly evaluate their friends and acquaintances; these people are less sociable than the previous ones, but have a more artistic nature;
- c) those who evaluate strangers better; These people are smart, artistically gifted, but not fully adapted to social life.
In general, it is believed that similarity in the activities of the observer and the observed leads to a more accurate assessment. Hence, men evaluate men better, women evaluate women, blacks evaluate blacks, etc. However, this rule has its limits: a person who has more high level empathy. Increasing the number of observers only improves the quality of the assessment to a certain extent. To get a fairly objective picture of a person with a reliability coefficient of 90, it is enough to process the data of four to five observers 1 .
The presence of a conscious goal creates an appropriate attitude towards the object and subject of observation. The observer already knows what he should see and record in a given situation. It is on these facts and phenomena that he focuses his attention, noticing them even in cases where they are not obvious, subtle, masked by other events or deliberately hidden by the object of observation.
The purposefulness of observation determines its selective nature and highlights the main thing that is essential for the researcher. At first glance, the selectivity of observation seems to contradict the requirement of completeness, which is sometimes understood as the absolute correspondence of the recorded data to the observed situation, and, in the limit, photographicity. But, as we know, “no one can grasp the immensity,” that is, it is fundamentally impossible to capture all the infinite diversity of reality even in the limited space and time conditions of a specific observed situation.
It is impossible to observe “everything and in general.” Let us recall the selectivity of perception as one of the properties of perception. Therefore, the selection of relevant information from the entire variety of stimuli affecting a person is inevitable. But it is precisely the presence of a goal that transforms this selection from a spontaneous process into a conscious and planned process. Spontaneity is fraught, on the one hand, with obtaining facts that are not related to the phenomenon being studied, and on the other, with omissions in information relating to this phenomenon. Systematicity ensures the necessary completeness of knowledge about the object of observation.
Planfulness also presupposes systematic observation, that is, such a perception of an object that can give a holistic idea of it. This already allows us to avoid significant gaps in knowledge about the object of study. Planfulness and consistency introduce into observation an element of uniformity of attitudes and conditions of perception. The latter in natural situations do not depend on the observer. Without a plan, it is much more difficult for a researcher to determine why differences in different observations arise: either due to unaccountable changes in conditions, or due to the phenomena themselves.
Observational study designs can vary in three main ways. Firstly, according to the setting: artificial or natural. In the usual order of life and activity, the behavior of the object of observation turns out to be more natural, and the experiment assumes a certain artificiality.
Secondly, by structure: observational data are recorded on a predetermined basis or collected in an open, qualitatively diverse form. Structured methods are used to collect quantitative data. Quantitative assessment can be made either directly during observation or based on recordings. What is important about formalized approaches is that recording observations has a common basis and observers usually require prior training to master the recording technique. Controlled observation using a formalized data collection system is often called systematic observation. Studies of this type rely on the highest possible interobserver reliability. A completely different group consists of studies that do not have a predetermined observational design and are open to the collection of a wide range of data that are later analyzed. Qualitative observational research typically involves the collection of a large body of qualitative field data. The purpose of research is usually to explain “life as it is” in an observed situation, as well as to make sense of it.
Thirdly, by awareness: does the subject know that he is being monitored. A political psychologist must always take into account the possible unpredictable reaction of the object of observation and those around him - assistants, support group, security and other persons, if they identify the surveillance being carried out on them.
S.L. Rubinstein defines the presence of a goal setting as the first basic requirement for observation. “A clearly understood goal must guide the observer, giving him the correct attitude towards the subject of observation. In accordance with the purpose, an observation plan must be determined, recorded in a specific scheme” 1. In terms of visual psychodiagnostics of politics, a scheme for assessing observable parameters of behavior is understood as “a cognitive structure that belongs to a class of similar actions that have a certain sequence” in tracking and recording external factors of behavior that characterize the mental state and properties of the person being studied. The observation scheme serves as the basis for a targeted study of the politician’s behavior in the process of visual psychodiagnostics. It provides the psychologist with the opportunity, on the one hand, to systematize his own observation process, and on the other, to develop specific techniques for solving the problems of studying an object.
The use of photographic and video equipment makes it possible to increase the objectivity of observation, analyze the recorded parameters, and carry out an additional and independent assessment of the factual material in addition to its primary interpretation. The use of instrumental visual observation, in particular video recording, which makes it possible to record the behavior of persons of interest, is currently being used in modern psychological practice. Observation results must be accurately and comprehensively recorded. At the same time, the essence of the principles during indirect (technical) observation is preserved in the same way as when observed directly by the organs of vision.
Purposefulness and the resulting plannedness and systematicity of observation constitute the most essential feature of it as a scientific method. They ultimately take shape in its organization. Organization is understood as a certain orderliness of the observer’s actions, which increases the rationality and efficiency of perception and registration of the observed phenomenon. Consciously organized observation represents a special procedure for obtaining information about the object of study. This procedure primarily provides for the order and sequence of actions. But this order may change depending on the prevailing circumstances, since the hierarchy of significance of possible events has been determined. Organization of observation minimizes the likelihood of missing significant things and increases the likelihood of detecting subtle facts. The degree of organization may vary. From a minimum of random observations, when there is only a psychological attitude towards the perception of the unexpected, to extremely algorithmic observations.
IN recent years Some researchers, to which the author belongs, organize observation in a special way and use it in a version of the so-called formless diagnosis 1. With this organization of observation, the psychologist works with the parameters of various classical test methods, for example 16 PF and / or MMPI, but obtains empirical material without forms, through actual observation, expert assessments and other available procedures. Such diagnostics require the experience and skill of a specialist, since the data that a psychologist can mainly count on in the conditions of Russian political reality are data obtained by recording human behavior in everyday life, the so-called “b” data (from “life record data”).
Of course, it would be ideal to have complete and detailed description lifestyle of the politician we are interested in, but in practice this is not feasible. At best, it is possible to obtain information regarding individual periods or aspects of his life and political career. Therefore, most often “b” data is obtained by formalizing the assessments of experts and respondents who observe the behavior of the object of our interest in certain situations and during a certain period.
Preliminary research usually begins with “b” data, and it is important to cover the scope of research with sufficient completeness. R. Cattell believes that “b” data is optimal for identifying those behavioral signs that need to be studied. “b” data is also convenient because almost all types of behavior are already represented in linguistic form. This guarantees not only an optimal initial selection of variables, but also a more accessible interpretation of the resulting factors.
“b” data is also used as an external criterion against which the validity of results obtained using other methods is measured. However, such use of “b” data is not entirely legal, since external assessments are not a sufficiently reliable measure of behavior. The perception of another person's behavior is always somewhat distorted due to the personality characteristics of the expert himself. Since different experts will give different assessments, the problem arises of measuring the reliability of the expert himself. Currently, this problem has not been solved and is the subject of study. Nevertheless, a number of methods have been proposed for determining the average reliability of experts in cases where the assessment is carried out by several experts.
An important task when organizing and conducting observation is to increase the reliability of external estimates by removing systematic distortions. One example of systematic errors in external assessments can be the influence on assessments of the expert’s positive or negative attitude towards the politician being studied, which is called the “halo effect”. An example of systematic distortions in the method of external assessments is also the impact on the assessment of the difference in the status of the expert and the politician being assessed. It is not surprising, therefore, that external assessments given to the same person for the same set of personality traits by people occupying different positions in relation to the person being studied may turn out to be weakly correlated with each other. Distortions introduced into the measurement of personality traits by a particular measurement method are defined as instrumental distortions. Moreover, they are most significant precisely with the method of external assessments.
To increase the reliability of “b” data, special requirements have been developed for the process of obtaining expert assessments. Here are some of them.
- 1. The traits being assessed must be defined in terms of observable behavior.
- 2. The expert must have the opportunity to observe the behavior of the person being assessed for a sufficiently long period of time.
- 3. At least ten experts are required per person being assessed.
- 4. The ranking of subjects should be carried out by experts on only one trait instead of assessing one subject at once for the entire set of characteristics. That is, instead of asking an expert to rate one subject on several traits at once, he is asked to rank the entire group according to one attribute, for example, to rank 20 people by their sociability, defined as their willingness to talk to others. stranger. On another day, when the expert has already forgotten about the ranking order based on sociability, he is given the task to rank based on another trait, etc.
The use of this method of conducting an expert survey can raise the reliability of the data obtained to a level sufficient for practical use.
As a scientific method, observation also includes the moment of recording data. Without clearly recorded observational data, it is impossible to obtain any further scientific results and advance knowledge. Not only the facts of the observed mental activity of the object of study are subject to recording, but also objective and subjective conditions, accompanying circumstances and phenomena, and even the researcher’s hypotheses arising during the observation. Quite often, events, facts, and remarks that are insignificant and even extraneous at first glance later become of great importance. Therefore, they should not be neglected and it is advisable to include the relevant information in the registration documents. The latter is most often an observation diary, in which relevant records are kept, protocols of one-time observations, drawings, photographs and other illustrative material are collected.
Speech occupies an essential place in the observation process. Observation involves a clear verbalization of goals, objectives and results obtained. This range of problems was experimentally studied by A.V. Belyaeva and V.N. Nosulenko. The conducted research made it possible to identify different types of strategies for verbalizing observation results. The authors identified three types of strategies, each of which, in turn, includes two polar and one neutral options.
The first type is characterized by the method of performing comparison and categorization operations of significant features of a verbally described image. The second type of strategy is characterized by a way of establishing structural relationships when constructing a verbalized image through a description of a state or process. The third type is identified by the authors according to the direction of the process of constructing a verbalized image: from the whole to the details or vice versa. The extreme options here are global and element-by-element strategies. In real observation situations the ratio different options strategies are very dynamic.
So, the following requirements are imposed on psychological observation as a scientific method: 1) purposefulness, 2) reliance on theoretical and methodological foundations, 3) selectivity, 4) planning, 5) systematicity, 6) organization, 7) fixability, 8) relevance , 9) completeness.
The definition of observation as a research method also includes the factor of “certain conditions”. In the most general form, conditions mean a certain situation, that is, the circumstances in which events unfold and the mental activity of objects of observation develops. Observation situations can be classified according to the following types: 1) natural or artificial; 2) controlled or uncontrolled by the observer (they are also defined as controlled or uncontrolled); 3) spontaneous or organized; 4) standard or unusual; 5) normal or extreme; 6) gaming - educational - production. In addition, according to the type of contacts, situations are distinguished: 7) direct-mediated; 8) verbal - non-verbal; 9) short-term - long-term.
Purposeful scientific observation is used in the following cases: 1) orientation to the problem - obtaining information that helps clarify the problem, clarify questions, and formulate hypotheses; 2) collecting information about the object of study when other methods are unacceptable or their use is limited; 3) addition, clarification or control of results obtained by other methods; 4) illustration of the proposed hypotheses, interpretations, guesses, theories.
Based on the analysis carried out to solve the problems of psychological diagnosis of a politician’s personality, we will highlight the possibilities and limitations of observation as a method of scientific research.
Opportunities: 1) observation as a method is a source of comprehensive data; 2) observation does not rely on the reliability of the observer's memory; 3) observation excludes distortion due to interaction with the observer (except in cases of direct observation); 4) a political psychologist can observe what the politician himself does not notice due to the extreme familiarity of the situation; 5) observation allows you to study those politicians who do not want to answer questions; 6) observation allows the use of various methods and techniques for systematizing and formalizing the information obtained as a result of observation; 7) the collection of information by observation does not affect the natural course of events and does not interfere with the naturalness of the psychological manifestations of those observed. Usually the people being monitored do not know about it. This lack of awareness may raise ethical issues that require a skilled and sensitive approach on the part of the political psychologist.
Limitations: 1) the observed behavior of a politician is interpreted from the point of view of an observer, in connection with this all kinds of distortions and biased selection of information are possible; 2) the parameters of mental phenomena are described indirectly - by appearance, behavior, etc., in which psychological states and characteristics are not directly reflected; 3) an unpredictable reaction of the object of observation is possible if it detects the fact of observation; 4) individual phenomena that are not observable; 5) inaccessibility to this method of some hidden manifestations of the psyche - experiences, thoughts, motives; 6) observation is almost always associated with a significant expenditure of time and money; 7) there is a problem with analyzing qualitative data if they are processed using quantitative methods; 8) the difficulty of formalizing the obtained data, which complicates their quantitative analysis; 9) passive role an observer waiting for events that interest him, despite the fact that the probability of their occurrence is not high; 10) the difficulty of accurately establishing the causes of observed phenomena due to the impossibility of taking into account all influencing factors.
We can only agree with the words of the classics of Russian psychology that “the main method of research, as everywhere else, is observation.” The observation method can give maximum effect to the extent that the researcher in this particular area of psychology is ready for the greatest completeness and depth of perception of the behavior of the political figure being studied.
Psychologists obtain important information about the policy being studied by analyzing documents. At the same time, documents in the social sciences are understood quite broadly. These include official documents and personal documentation in the proper sense, including autobiographies, diaries, letters, notes, photographs, materials of mass communication, literature and art, etc.
All documents that a political psychologist works with can be classified according to three bases. Firstly, by the method of recording information: handwritten and printed documents, electronic and other media. Secondly, according to the status of the document: personal and official documents. Personal documents are diaries, letters, notes, etc. Official documents: reports, certificates, articles, published interviews, brochures, books. Thirdly, by the nature of the documents: naturally functioning and created specifically for some purpose. In each specific case, a particular document will have a different informative weight.
When working with documents, a problem arises in connection with who interprets the document - a person with his own, inherent individual psychological characteristics and passions. The most important role when studying a document is played, for example, by the ability to understand the text. The problem of understanding is a special problem in psychology, but here it is included in the process of applying the methodology, so we will not take it into account 1.
Content analysis is an effective method for overcoming this type of "subjectivity" (researcher's interpretation of a document). The essence of content analysis lies in the systematic recording of given units of the content being studied and their quantification. This can be done for a wide variety of purposes in line with one or another theory or conceptual scheme, including for the needs of psychodiagnostics.
Content analysis is based on the principle of repetition, the frequency of various semantic and formal elements in documents - certain concepts, judgments, themes, images, etc. Therefore, this method is used only when there is a sufficient amount of material for analysis, that is, quite a lot is presented separate homogeneous documents, letters, photographs, etc. or there are several or even one document, for example, a diary, but of sufficient volume. At the same time, the content elements that interest us should also occur in the documents under study with sufficient frequency. Otherwise, our conclusions will lack statistical significance. The criterion here is the law of large numbers.
In the history of the development of the method of studying documents, there is quite a varied experience of its application for psychological purposes. Since the 20s of the 20th century, in sociology and psychology, in addition to the intuitive-qualitative approach to the study of documents, quantitative methods have increasingly begun to be used. In the USSR, back in the 20s, quantitative methods were used in the study of documents by psychologists N.A. Rybnikov, I.N. Spielrein, P.P. Blonsky, sociologist V.A. Kuzmichev et al.
In the 1920s, the famous Russian researcher of biographical materials N.A. used qualitative and quantitative analysis of content in his works. Rybnikov, who in particular considered autobiographies as psychological documents documenting a personality and its history 1 .
In the USA, at the same time, quantification in the study of mass communication materials was introduced by M. Willey, G. Lasswell and others. In the 40-50s, a special interdisciplinary method of studying documents was formed in the USA - content analysis (English, content analysis; from content - content). Later he came to European countries. In our country, since the late 60s, this method has also become widespread in sociological, socio-psychological, and later in political-psychological research.
Various modifications of the content analysis method are very actively used by foreign political psychologists. For example, in the studies of famous American scientists D. Winter and M. Hermann and co-authors, the texts of speeches by George W. Bush and M. Gorbachev were subjected to content analysis.
D. Winter and his co-authors write: “How can psychologists assess the motives of people whom they have not met and whom they cannot study directly? In previous years, many objective methods have been developed for measuring motives and other personal characteristics “at a distance” using systematic content analysis of speeches, interviews and other spontaneous verbal materials” 1. These methods have often been used in general studies of political leadership, such as predicting foreign policy orientations or propensity for violence. However, in some cases, distant methods were used to create systematic portraits of political leaders. The main hypothesis of a distant study of this type is that the words of a politician and the indicators based on them are acceptable ways of studying his personality.
The authors of the study assumed that the study of personality variables, which are measured using specially designed procedures, does allow one to overcome the influence of authorship, impressions and ego defenses. The qualitative method of content analysis considers the author's text as a kind of projection of the personality, reflecting the characteristics of his psychology. The unit of analysis is not words, but images. Qualitative content analysis allows us to highlight important and relevant aspects of a politician’s personality and make their analysis reliable through explicit coding of text fragments in accordance with certain variables and quantitative data processing. Along with purely qualitative features, the content analysis method allows the use of quantitative parameters, which make it possible to obtain more reliable results. Thus, the experience of using qualitative and quantitative analysis of various documents demonstrates its significant capabilities in psychological portraiture.
The method of expert assessments is used along with content analysis. It allows you to assess individual qualities of a politician’s personality and give a forecast of her behavior. An example of the use of the expert assessment method is the approach of P. Couvert, based on Q-sorting. This method allows the researcher to compile expert assessments of the personality of those people whose direct study of behavior is not available. Like content analysis, Q-sort is a rigorous and objective method for comparing subjective assessments of a politician's personality.
The advantage of the expert assessment method is that it allows one to take into account the so-called solidarity coefficients of respondents. At the same time, expert assessments are not always based on systematic personality research criteria. In some cases high coefficient solidarity among respondents may simply indicate that the survey result is a set of generally known information and myths regarding the personal characteristics of politicians.
The disadvantage of the expert assessment method is that it is uneconomical and cumbersome. For example, to collect data for his study on the influence of personality on the phenomenon of the American presidency, P. Covert 1 interviewed forty-two experts. S. Rubenzer and his co-authors, when creating their work on US presidents, met with hundreds of biographers, political scientists, journalists and officials, achieved cooperation with one hundred and ten experts who filled out a total of one hundred and fifty-six evaluation forms containing six hundred and twenty points each .
The method of expert assessments can hardly be used to study politicians in the midst of election campaigns, when it is especially necessary to give an accurate assessment of the personality of a candidate in terms of his psychological suitability for a future position. In such conditions, historians and biographers are not the most optimal sources of information. It would be more practical to obtain data directly from the writings of experts, which requires their active collaboration with researchers.
In contrast to the broad and abstract cognitive elements that rely on psychological theories of personality, the operational code concept was developed primarily for the study of political beliefs. The concept of an operational code is a kind of mediator, a connecting link between political consciousness and behavior. With its help, a political psychologist has the opportunity to study a politician through both qualitative and quantitative analysis, using the texts of the leader’s speeches and interviews with his associates and biographers. Based on verbal manifestations of political consciousness, a political psychologist can also reconstruct the behavioral characteristics of an individual.
By combining different operational code dimensions, a researcher can identify the specific characteristics of a particular leader and compare his characteristics with those of other politicians. In addition, this method provides opportunities for studying the influence of a politician's belief system on his political behavior. Operational code researchers generally agree that a politician's beliefs influence his political behavior, determining his positions on certain issues. At the same time, in most of both theoretical and empirical works on the operational code, the focus of analysis was precisely the nature of the politician’s belief system, and not his political behavior. Operational coding is the optimal method for analyzing the cognitive characteristics of the personality of a politician who is influenced by the effects of power and political crises.
Methods of psycholinguistic analysis of political texts have significant diagnostic potential2. In this case, the text is understood as any segment of coherent speech, starting with a simple statement in everyday speech- before a story, novel, journalistic article or any scientific text. B.F. Porshnev
writes that “of all the means of sign, of all the mechanisms of human communication, speech, of course, has primary importance” 1 . By carefully listening to the speech of an unfamiliar interlocutor, observing him in different communicative situations, we can draw up a portrait of a linguistic personality. Human speech carries information about a variety of personality traits of the speaker. “A speaking person” appears as a multifaceted, multifaceted object of research, the uniqueness of which is determined by a unique combination of socio-psychological characteristics.
So, a political psychologist who uses a variety of diagnostic methods must fully know their potential - this is an important condition for the effectiveness of his work and reflects an orientation towards professionally justified opportunities for obtaining significant psychological information. At the same time, in real practice, even experienced psychologists often rely either on the text spoken by a politician or on psychological tests. Various psychodiagnostic methods and computer testing programs do not exclude or replace psychological observation, which may turn out to be more informative and dynamic than machine characteristics. A politician more often “speaks” with his face, posture, and clothes than with “crosses” on test forms. A political psychologist should strive not only to master a variety of instrumental methods of psychological diagnosis, but also to master unformed psychodiagnostics, which Professor G.V. Sukhodolsky called it “organoleptic psychodiagnostics,” that is, recognition of a person’s personal qualities with maximum use primarily of the senses, and not just psychometric tools.
All methods listed in this work require for their application not only professionalism in execution and appropriate professional ethics, but also skills in interpreting the results obtained. They consist not only of psychological techniques themselves, but also of the ability to combine them with an analysis of the political context in which the politician acts and which gives appropriate meaning to his actions. Unfortunately, there are many examples of professional psychologists who have no experience working with politicians who have failed to connect with clients in a specific political situation that they do not understand well. From this we can conclude that for efficient work It is not enough for a political psychologist to just own psychological methods. He needs to competently analyze the political context, know the balance of political forces both in the situation as a whole and in the politician’s immediate environment 1 .