The paper focuses on the psychodynamic mechanisms of Capgras phenomenon, a rare and insufficiently studied mental disorder, which has not been paid much attention to in clinical psychology and psychiatry up to the present. Despite the fact that the phenomenon was described in 1923 it has not been properly studied yet, though it is widely spread in psychiatric and psychotherapeutic practice. The most important issue at present is to understand the underlying psychodynamic mechanisms, which can make psychotherapeutic work more effective. The paper contains several clinic cases, which can facilitate understanding of psychic peculiarities of patients suffering from the syndrome. Emphasis is put on the necessity to reveal the syndrome’s causes and the resources hidden in the unconscious as a potential possibility to overcome Capgras phenomenon.

The article reflects the main approaches to the problem of adaptive potential. It featured the essence and content of the adaptive potential of modern psychology and analyzes the structural components of the adaptation potential, including neuropsychic stability, self-esteem, communicativity, psychic regulation, etc. The paper describes the features of adaptation of gifted adolescents and the structure of the adaptive potential, which is represented as a multi-level system. It is suggested that the structure of the adaptive potential of gifted adolescents includes emotional, reflexive, volitional and behavioral components. The test subjects were gifted adolescents aged 12–15, studying in specialized classes (engineering). The group included 56 people, 26 boys and 20 girls. The article describes the data of factor analysis by the method of principal components with rotation "varimax normalized". The analysis has demonstrated that the structure of the adaptive potential of gifted adolescents includes five factors explaining 57.02 % of the total variability. The results of factor analysis allow the authors to come to the conclusion that the adaptive potential of gifted adolescents includes five components: 1 and 2 components reflect the emotional component, i.e. the ability to understand how to express your feelings and feelings of others; 3 – reflexive component, i.e. ability to internal analysis of their actions and actions; 4 – behavioral component, i.e. propensity to react in a certain way to a particular situation; 5 – strong-willed component, i.e.  ability to regulate one’s emotional behavior in unusual situations.

Elderly patients represent a group of population in need of a rather wide range of medical and social services [1]. It has been found that the quality of life of the elderly population is inseparable from the level of medical and social services, which requires mutually coordinated efforts from healthcare and social authorities [2].

No abstract