2017 Issue №4

This article stresses the need to develop a financial culture across the society. The authors analyse the results of surveys demonstrating a low level of financial literacy and competency in Russia’s population. It is necessary to create a financial culture, which is an important factor in the national longterm development and socioeconomic growth. The authors identify the areas of research and practice that can contribute to the development of a financial culture.

Irrational borrower behaviour is considered as failure to develop competencies set out in the federal requirements for non-economic professional education. The authors describe the structure of preparedness for rational borrower behaviour as part of the cognitive, socio-affective, and hortatory components and of the practical borrowing experience. The article presents the results of an empirical study into the common types of irrational borrower behaviour and their predictors in different lending entities. Common trends in the irrational borrower behaviour of citizens and municipalities in some Russian regions are identified.

This article analyses the public need for high-quality and effective professional training of police officers. The authors suggest the use of a systemic approach, which interprets training as a pedagogical processes aimed to contribute to the development of a police officer as a person and as a competent professional within the customer/client/student system.

This article presents the results of a cross-cultural study into the social representations of Russian and Polish university students as regards induced termination of pregnancy. The sample included 100 respondents divided into four groups. The study relies on the structural approach to the theory of social representations. The structure of social representations is examined using Vergès’s prototypical analysis. The authors consider the key differences in the structure of social representations of male and female Polish and Russian students as regards induced termination of pregnancy. The study investigates students’ attitudes to the ban on abortion.

This article summarises the findings of Russian and international authors on creative thinking. The authors present the results of an empirical study into the development of creative thinking in older preschool children. The article examines the common features in the development of creative thinking in five- and six-year-old children. The differences in the creative thinking development in girls and boys are identified. The authors outline the possibilities for creating a special programme for developing creative thinking in older preschool children.