Democratic political culture suggests. Typology of political cultures

In the last decade of the 20th century, there has been an increased scientific interest in the fundamental position of the theory of political culture about the congruence of the system of cultural values and democracy, shown by analysts specializing in the field of comparative studies of the countries of Western Europe and the United States (characterized by a high level of democratization and stability in the development of political and value systems). The key research questions of the 1990s were:

a system of democratic values and orientations to support democracy;
tolerance as a key normative democratic value, a criterion of trust and support for democracy.

One characteristic feature is noteworthy. A more general formulation of the problem and its presentation in terms of support for democracy has become characteristic of the study of transitional societies. Western democracies are studied mainly in terms of tolerance of political cultures.

In the 1990s, a significant body of literature was formed, represented by empirical studies of the system of democratic values and the political culture of post-Soviet Russia. A significant proportion of them is represented by the works of Gibson and his colleagues.

An extensive empirical basis on this issue was laid by the studies of Richard Dobson, Stephen Grant, Raymond Duch, Ada Finifter, Helen Mikkievich, Geoffrey Hohn, Arthur Miller, Vikki Hesley, William Zeyzinter, Christine Maher.

In the 1990s, James Gibson conducts an empirical study of such a key democratic value as political tolerance (tolerance) in the context of democratization in Russia. The starting point of his project was the thesis of intolerance as one of the key features of Russian political culture, which is the result of the lack of traditions and cultural norms for the cultivation of tolerance, which is associated with the underdevelopment of liberal traditions, as well as the preservation of the influence of Soviet norms and traditions, with their cult of intolerance. to political opponents. Based on the well-known position of Seymour Martin Lipset about political culture as the main requisite of democracy, Gibson, like many of the analysts, proceeded from the fact that successful democratization cannot be guaranteed only by institutional transformations (changes in the constitution, legislation, institutions of political power, etc.). but presupposes, and moreover, makes necessary the formation of a completely definite system of cultural values. Lipset called it a political culture of support for democracy, which presupposes the existence of such democratic values as freedom of speech, the media, freedom of assembly, religion, the rights of opposition parties, human rights, and so on. Tolerance appears to be one of the key normative values of such a culture. The key position in the system of democratic values belongs to tolerance due to the fact that without it the implementation of basic democratic norms and values is impossible. The tolerance of political culture makes freedom of choice possible: without it, neither the free struggle of parties in elections, nor the freedom of an individual voter to support those socio-political movements that correspond to his preferences and his political choice become unrealistic. Gibson, like most analysts, sees tolerance as a core element of the democratic value system. The optimal feature of his approach to the study of this democratic norm is the concentration on the study of the functions of intolerance, its influence on the political behavior of the individual. Gibson's conceptual model of intolerance is systemic and includes the following conceptual components:

1. The concept of "fundamental intolerance", which is associated with a system of political and ideological orientations in relation to democratic institutions and processes. It is characterized by a high level of resistance to democratic changes and a wary attitude towards any argument regarding certain democratic symbols.

2. The concept of "pluralistic intolerance" and the related concept of "focused intolerance". Pluralistic intolerance means intolerance focused on many socio-political groups. Focused intolerance - intolerance towards a particular group.

3. The concept of "majoritarian intolerance" as a greater threat to democratic values than minority intolerance. Individual intolerance towards a particular group, for example, shared by the majority, is considered as "potentially effective intolerance", in terms of its ability to incline the individual to commit political actions against a political opponent.

4. The concept of "leader's intolerance", which implies a focus on the views and values of the elite.

Gibson's intolerance acts as an antithesis of support for democracy and tolerance as its integral part. Based on the concept of threat as the main cause of intolerance, Gibson formulates postulates that determine the negative impact of intolerance on the prospects for democratization. According to Gibson, the process of democratization is significantly complicated by the factor of intolerant political culture with its main attributes:

fundamental intolerance,
when intolerance focuses on specific groups,
when individual intolerance is reinforced by the belief that it represents the views of the majority of society,
when the intolerance of political leaders has a significant impact on the views and actions of other members of the political elite.

The results of the study, carried out within the framework of the conceptual model of intolerance developed by Gibson, showed a relatively higher (in comparison with the countries of Western Europe) level of intolerance of Russian citizens. However, compared with respondents from Central and Eastern Europe, Russian citizens showed relatively high tolerance. The attributive characteristics of Russian intolerance are formulated as follows:

intolerance has not taken root and has not developed into a special anti-democratic system of orientations, the corresponding relations are disintegrated, manipulative and tend to form more in a democratic direction than in the opposite direction;
intolerance is dispersive (scattered) in nature, which creates conditions for manipulation and preservation of a wide range of potential victims of an intolerant attitude;
intolerant attitudes are based on the belief in their majority (the idea of the predominance of intolerant people) and the idea of a minority of tolerant people;
the political elite is not inclined to put up and get along with their political opponents.

Gibson's conclusion is to state a fact that indicates a rather high level of intolerance in the political culture in Russia.

Thus, modern foreign political studies of the problems of the formation of a democratic political culture and the corresponding system of values in transitional societies are focused primarily on studying the system of mass and individual orientations to support democracy. Tolerance is considered as the main criterion of trust and support for democracy. Political tolerance (tolerance) is classified by the majority of modern foreign analysts as key normative democratic values, which largely determines the prospects for the formation of political culture in the context of democratization.

Notes

Waldrone–Moore P. Eastern Europe at the Crossroads of Democratic Transition: Evaluating Support for Democratic Institutions, Satisfaction with Democratic Government, and Consolidation of Democratic Regimes // Comparative Political Studies. 1999 Vol. 32. No. 1. P. 32-62; Mc Donough P. Identities, Ideologies and Interests: Democratization and the Culture of Mass Politics in Spain and Easten Europe // Journal of Politics. 1995 Vol. 57. P. 649-676; Evans G., & Whitefield S. The Politics and Economics of Commitment: Support for Democracy in Transition Societics // British Journal of Political Science. 1995 Vol. 25. P. 485-514.
Davis D. Exploring Black Political Intolerance // Political Behavior. 1995 Vol. 17. No. 1. P. 1-21; Chanley V. Commitment to Political Tolerance: Situational and Activity - Based Differences // Political Behavior. 1994 Vol. 16. no. 3. P. 343-363; Chong D. Tolerance and Social Adjustment to New Norms and Practices // Political Behavior. 1994 Vol. 16. No. 1. P. 21-53; Golebiowska E.A. Individual Value Priorities, Education, and Political Tolerance // Political Behavior. 1995 Vol. 17. No. 1. P. 23-48.
Gibson J. The Resilience of Mass Support for Democratic Institutions and Processes in the Nascent Russian and Ukrainian Democracies. Vladimir Tismaneanu, ed. // Political Culture and Civil Society in Russia and the New States of Eurasia, 1993. P. 53-111; Gibson J. A Mile Wide But an Inch Deep: The Structure of Democratic Commitments in the Former USSR // American Journal of Political Science. 1996 Vol. 40. P. 396-420; Gibson J. Political and Economic Markets: Connecting Attitudes Toward Political Democracy and a Market Economy within the Mass Culture of Russia and Ukraine // Journal of Politics. 1996 Vol. 58. P. 954-984; Gibson J. The Struggle Between Order and Liberty in Contemporary Russian Political Culture // Australian Journal of Political Science. 1997 Vol. 32. P. 271-290; Gibson J. and Duck R. Political Intolerance in the USSR: The Distribution and Etiology of Mass Opinion // Comparative Political Studies. 1993 Vol. 26. P. 286-329; Gibson J., Duch R., and Tedin K. Democratic Values and the Transformation of the Soviet Union // Journal of Politics. 1992 Vol. 54. P. 329-371.
Dobson R. and Grant S. Public Opinion and the Transformation of the Soviet Union // International Journal of Public Opinion Research. 1992 Vol. 4. P. 302-320; Duke R. Tolerating Economic Reform: Popular Support for Transition to a Free Market in the Former Soviet Union // American Political Science Review. 1993 Vol. 87. P. 590-608; Fnifter A. Attitudes Toward Individual Responsibility and Political Reform in the Former Soviet Union //American Political Science Review. 1996 Vol. 90. P. 13-52; Finifter A., and Mickiewicz E. Redefining the Political System of the USSR: Mass Support for Political Change // American Political Science Review. 1992 Vol. 86. P. 357-374; Hahn J. Contiguity and Change in Russian Political Culture // British Journal of Political Science. 1991 Vol. 21. P. 393-421; Miller A., Reisinger W., and Hesli V., eds. Public Opinion and Regime Change: The New Politics of Post-Soviet Societies. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1991; Understanding Political Change in the Post-Soviet Societies: A Further Commentary on Finifter and Mickiewicz // American Political Science Review. 1996 Vol. 90. P. 153-66; Miller A., Hesli V. and Reisinger W. Reassessing Mass Support for Political and Economic Change in the Former USSR. American Political Science Review. 1994 Vol. 88. P. 399-411; Comparing Citizen and Elite Belief Systems in Post-Soviet Russia and Ukraine // Public Opinion Quarterly. 1995 Vol. 59. P. 1-40; Reisinger W., Miller A., Hesli V., and Maher K. Political Values in Russia, Ukraine and Lithuania: Sources and Implications for Democracy // British Journal of Political Science. 1994 Vol. 45. P. 183-223.
Gibsom S.L. Putting Up With Fellow Russians: An Analysis of Political Tolerance in the Fledgling Russian Democracy // Political Research Quarterly. 1998 Vol. 51. No. 1. P. 37-68, 38, 40; Lipset S. The Social Requisites of Democracy Revised. Presidential Address, American Sociological Association Annual Meeting, Miami Beach, Florida, 1993, pp. 7-8.
Opt. cit. P. 42-43, 53, 55, 57-58, 59-60.

The term "democracy" appeared in Ancient Greece and literally means "rule of the people". In modern political science, democracy is understood as a political regime (sometimes they talk about a political system, a form of state-political structure), based on the recognition of the people as the source and subject of power. The first democratic forms of political life appeared in ancient times: Athens is considered a classic example of ancient democracy.
Principles of democracy:
1) recognition of the people as the source of power and the bearer of sovereignty;
2) equality of citizens (albeit only formally legal), equal opportunity to participate in political life;
3) the existence of fundamental human rights and freedoms, their recognition, guarantee and protection by the state;
4) the principle of the majority - it is the majority, and not the minority, that expresses its will through the institutions of democracy;
5) the right of the minority to oppose (subject to the decisions of the majority);
6) political pluralism, i.e. the presence of various autonomous socio-political parties, movements, groups that are in a state of free competition;
7) the rule of law;
8) a system of separation of powers, in which the various branches of state power are quite independent and balance each other, preventing the establishment of a dictatorship;
9) publicity in the actions of state bodies and officials, the possibility of unimpeded control over them by society;
10) electivity of the main authorities on the basis of universal, direct, equal suffrage by secret ballot;
11) a developed system of local governments.
Democracy Conditions:
1) a high level of socio-economic development capable of providing the necessary well-being to all citizens, without which it is impossible to achieve social harmony, stability and strength of basic democratic principles;
2) the diversity of forms of ownership, the mandatory recognition and guarantee of the right to private property, since only in this case is it possible to really ensure all human rights and freedoms, his, even relative, independence from the state;
3) a high degree of development of the general and political culture of society, significant social and political activity of individuals and their voluntary associations, ready to defend the institutions of democracy.
According to many studies, democratic political culture (on the concept of "political culture" see ticket 9, question 2) is characterized by a deep awareness of the significance of the government's activities, a sense of pride in the country's political interests, an interest in the activities of government institutions, an open and loyal manifestation of opposition sentiments, competence of judgments, a positive attitude towards the democratic system of government.
In accordance with the way the people exercise their power, two forms of democracy are distinguished: direct (immediate) and indirect (representative). The institutions of direct democracy, within which the people directly make political decisions and exercise their power, are elections and referendums, while representative democracy implies the ability of the people to exercise power through their representatives in various state bodies. A special role among them is played by the parliament - the highest legislative and representative (elected) body of power in the country.

Democracy, its characteristics. Democratic politichesky culture.

The concept of "democracy"

(translated from the Greek "demos" - people, "kratos" - power, literally means "power of the people", "democracy") is a political regime based on the recognition of the people as a source of power.

Characteristic features (signs) of a democratic political regime

social groups

Pluralism

* social, * economic, * political (multi-party system, that is, the presence of two or more parties), * ideological (lack of any official ideology) → pluralistic political culture.

The legal opposition is endowed with all political rights and freedoms, like the ruling majority. It is an integral element of the political process. The media are free from censorship and can legitimately criticize the authorities, but cannot call for their violent overthrow. Power structures provide internal and external security, their activities are regulated by laws. They are out of politics.

Forms of democracy

straight

representative

parliamentarism,

state, * non-state

Democracies

countries of Western Europe, USA, Canada

Democratic personality type

The person who is characterized by:

literacy, education; polyphonic thinking; tolerance (tolerance for dissent); constructiveness and creativity, tolerant attitude towards the existing authorities; emancipation, lack of obsession; multidimensionality of perception; the need for self-realization; conscious choice of path; achieving goals now, with a focus on the future;

Guarantees for the Functioning of a Democratic Political Regime

* a system of control by civil society over the activities of state bodies and apparatus;

* the elimination of the system of privileges associated with the possession of power;

* timely full political informing of citizens;

* limiting the term of stay in representative bodies of power;

* simplification of recall of deputies and change of officials;

Political cultures can be classified in various ways. Thus, the American scientists G. Almond (born in 1911) and S. Verba (born in 1932) identified three “pure” types of political culture on the basis of the revealed peculiarities of individual countries and regions. First, the patriarchal culture. This culture is characterized by a lack of people's interest in politics, lack of knowledge about the political system and significant expectations from its functioning. Secondly, a subservient culture, where orientations towards political institutions and loyalty to them are strong, but the level of individual activity of citizens is low. Thirdly, the culture of participation, which reflects the critical attitude of citizens to power, their interest in political participation and political activity.
In practice, these types of political culture interact with each other, forming mixed varieties with a predominance of certain components. Moreover, the most massive and at the same time optimal is the synthetic culture, called civil culture by scientists. It is dominated by the attitudes of a subservient culture,

giving rise to support for state power, as well as attitudes of a culture of participation that generate requirements for power structures. This creates the balance necessary to ensure the stability of the political system. Civic culture is today called the political culture of developed democratic countries.
In developed democratic countries, as a rule, 60% of citizens are representatives of a participatory culture, 30% of a subservient culture, and 10% of a patriarchal culture. (
Political culture, being an important part of the political system, is largely determined by its type. In this regard, many political scientists believe that the most general typology is the one based on the types of political systems. In other words, totalitarian, authoritarian and democratic types of political culture dominate in totalitarian, authoritarian and democratic political systems. Thus, in totalitarian political systems, the conviction of citizens in the justice of the unlimited power of the state over the individual, the belief that the world is divided into two hostile camps - "friends" and "enemies" is formed. The image of an enemy that needs to be destroyed is cultivated in the political consciousness, and the struggle is perceived as a universal method for solving complex political problems. There is a deification of the personality of the political leader (leader), there is a feeling of merging with the authorities, which is one of the components of its legitimacy and largely determines the stability of the regime. Motives of omnipotence predominate in the political behavior of the elite, modesty and enthusiasm dominate in the behavior of citizens, and their participation in political life is of a mobilization nature.
The authoritarian type of political culture differs significantly from the totalitarian type. Society is aware of alienation from power, the feeling of merging with it disappears. Since the army is most often the backbone of an authoritarian regime, there is no deification of the personality of a political leader as a factor in the legitimacy of power. Competence requirements predominate in the political behavior of the elite, professionalism and obedience, a certain detachment from politics are required from citizens.
The democratic type of political culture is dominated by orientations towards democratic values and norms. A person, his rights and freedoms are of particular value. In relation to the authorities, moods of criticality prevail. People view the state as an institution controlled by civil society, and at the same time

an important factor in its integration. Openness becomes more important political positions and orientation towards political participation. Commitment to laws, a sense of responsibility of citizens for their political choice and ways of implementing it, pluralism and tolerance in public opinion.
The political culture of modern Russia has not yet settled down. On the one hand, it retains its traditional features: servile attitude to any center of political power; low self-discipline and self-organization; distrust of the state; a tendency to anarchy with a simultaneous thirst for strong power; weak respect for the law, the rights of the individual. Many Russians still prefer radicalism and revolutionary methods in politics, measures of an evolutionary, reformist type. There is confidence in the possibility of simple and quick decisions complex political issues.
On the other hand, there is a gradual acceptance of political pluralism as a necessary quality of political life and a guarantee of the irreversibility of democratic reforms. There is an open expression of various political orientations and preferences (while still traditionally the widest range of political extremes: from monarchism to anarchism). There is a growing understanding of the importance of personal responsibility, a desire for independence in political assessments and decisions. In other words, there is a transformation of political culture based on values of a democratic type.
till Basic concepts: political participation, political culture, types of political culture.
IISI Terms: political role, political subculture.
Check yourself What is meant by political participation? 2) What are its forms? 3) Expand the content of the concept of "political culture". 4) What types of political culture do you know? 5) What are the features of Russian political culture?
Think, discuss, do Make a table "Typology of political culture". Democratic political culture presupposes the presence of such personal qualities as tolerance, humanity, criticality. What else would you add to this list? Explain the answer. Among the functions of political culture, scientists especially note: value-oriented, normative-regulatory, integration, innovation. How do you understand
do you have these features? Expand them on the example of one of the types of political culture. Imagine that you are instructed to organize a small sociological study on the topic "The political culture of high school students in our school." Prepare a general research plan, including organizational questions, as well as questions for respondents. Discuss and implement this plan with your like-minded people. Make a report on the results of the work done.
Work with the source
Read the arguments of the modern Russian scientist E. B. Shestopal about the political socialization of the individual in the UK.
Many ordinary Englishmen have been brought up (both by family, school and propaganda) in the belief that activity, active participation in all spheres of life can bring personal success. An active character is a national trait. This is facilitated by the socialization of the younger generation through all sorts of voluntary organizations, committees, clubs, commissions, associations, flourishing in all social strata.
In politics, too, socialization implies the upbringing of an active position from childhood (through school discussion clubs, youth branches of parties, etc.). This applies, first of all, to professionals, from whom "gladiator" qualities are required, but involvement, although more superficial, is promoted as a positive characteristic of an ordinary person.
Shestopal E. B. Personality and politics. -M., 1988. -S. 94.
§§§| Questions and assignments to the source. 1) What is the political socialization of the individual? 2) What institutions contribute to the political socialization of the British? 3) Based on the text, show the connection between political socialization and political culture. 4) Are the processes of political socialization similar in Great Britain and Russia? Justify your answer based on your personal experience.

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Federal Agency for Education

Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation

Moscow State University technology and management

Department: Political Science

Test

Topic: "Political culture"

Student

Sorokina N.S.

Introduction

Bibliography

Introduction

political culture tolerance compromise

1. Political culture: history of origin, concept and functions

In its origin, political culture is directly related to the emergence of political relations. So, in ancient Rome, they constantly turned to the ideal of the valiant past with its severe self-restraint and militant courage, bearing in mind that these qualities are the most important condition for the greatness and success of the created power. The first to use this term was the 18th-century German philosopher-educator Johann Herder.

However, the term “political culture” was introduced into political science by the American political scientist G. Almond in the 1950s and 1960s. This was due to the fact that at that time the countries freed from colonial oppression tried to copy the political institutions of the United States, but, in the end, their attempt was doomed to failure. Finding out the reason for such a result, American political scientists formulated the concept of "political culture". The greatest contribution to the theoretical development of this political science direction was made by G. Almond, S. Verba, L. Pye, D. Elazar, W. Rosenbaum.

There are extremely many definitions of political culture - from the narrowest in content to the extremely broad ones. The classical definition of political culture given by G. Almond and G. Powell says: “Political culture is a set of individual positions and orientations of participants in a given political system. It is the subjective sphere that forms the basis of political actions and gives them meaning. This interpretation of political culture revealed a number of vulnerable features, which were pointed out by other researchers. First, in this case, the functional plan of the political institutions themselves is not revealed; secondly, the extremely important behavioral aspect of this side of politics is not considered; thirdly, the actual autonomous quality of political culture as a value-normative system is not specified.

Domestic researcher E.Ya. Batalov, who summarized numerous interpretations of the phenomenon under study, proposed his own version of the definition: "political culture is a system of historically established orientations of consciousness, patterns of behavior of individuals and groups, as well as models of the functioning of political institutions, manifested in the direct activities of the subjects of the political process."

An example of a broad interpretation is given by the American political scientist L. Pye. It includes in the content of the category "political culture" such concepts as "political ideology", "national character and spirit", "national political psychology" and "fundamental values of the people".

There is a view of political culture as a system of symbols included in a broader system of political communication (L. Ditmer). A number of political scientists (for example, R. Putnam) understand political culture only as a set of answers to questions related to the political sphere: what is the essence of a person? What is society and what lies at its basis: harmony or conflict? What is a political system, etc.

The Polish scientist E. Vyatr gives a concise definition that fully reflects the meaning of this category: “Political culture is a set of attitudes, values and behavioral acts relating to mutual relations between government and citizens”

Thus, each of the above definitions reflects one or another aspect of political culture. In general, the following general definition can be given: political culture is a complex of those elements of public consciousness and general culture that have a significant impact on the formation and development of political institutions, give significance and direction to the political process in general and the political behavior of the population in particular. Each specific society corresponds to a kind of basic model of political culture, which manifests itself in specific forms.

Political culture performs certain functions in society:

theoretical-cognitive;

satisfaction of political needs;

integrative;

communicative;

educational

The epistemological function lies in the complete and concrete knowledge of certain aspects of the political life of society, in understanding it as an integral phenomenon. This is the accumulation of political knowledge, their systematization, the arming of citizens of society with them.

The function of meeting political needs. This function is associated with the growing importance of politics as a social phenomenon. If at the beginning of our century politics was assigned the role of the "night watchman" of the freedom of the individual, now no one can feel free from politics. Politics is a necessity and need of modern man, since it is a pointer and a limiter to his diverse actions. This contributes to the formation of people's needs not only in political convictions and assessments, but often in political activity, in the forms of participation that seem most preferable to a person. Modern society as a whole is characterized by an excessively high interest in politics.

The educational function is to form the political consciousness of citizens: political values, feelings for the authorities, the government, the political system as a whole, assessments, judgments, opinions about politics, etc. It includes the consolidation and transmission from generation to generation of political norms, values, attitudes .

communicative function. The joint participation of people in the political process contributes to their communication, and, consequently, mutual understanding. It presupposes the presence of a certain interdependence of people, which should be based on contacts between them and on a conscious commonality in political views and beliefs. The condition for the implementation of this function is such a situation when people participate in the political process and at the same time feel that they are free to support any political parties.

The integrative function of political culture directly follows from the communicative one. The process of forming the political culture of society, individual individuals contributes to the unification of heterogeneous elements of the social system, increasing the level of its integrity and organization. It helps to streamline relations between individuals, political parties, the state, etc.

In various historical conditions - most often with unstable political processes, some functions of political culture may fade and even cease to operate. In particular, it can significantly decrease communicative ability political norms and traditions of state life, as a result of which the controversy between various social groups and especially those who hold opposite positions regarding the government course will inevitably intensify. On the other hand, in transitional processes, the ability of political culture to disintegrate systems of government based on goals and values that are unusual for the population often increases.

2. The constituent elements of political culture

There are several elements in the structure of political culture:

1. cognitive - political knowledge, political education, political consciousness, ways of political thinking;

2. moral and evaluative - political feelings, traditions, values, ideals, beliefs;

3. behavioral - political attitudes, types, forms, styles, patterns of socio-political activity, political behavior;

4. value relations - general cultural orientations, attitude to power, political phenomena.

These elements are determined by socio-economic, national-cultural, socio-historical and other long-term factors. They are characterized by relative stability and constancy.

The cognitive element implies knowledge and understanding by citizens of political interests (personal, collective, state, public), the Constitution and laws of the country, the program provisions of the main political parties and other socio-political forces, the political relations that have developed in the country, ongoing political events and phenomena. Political knowledge includes knowledge of the essence and structure of the main state, party and socio-political bodies and organizations, basic political norms and procedures; forms and methods of participation of citizens in social and political life, in the management of society and the state; the main political processes of international life.

Political culture is inextricably linked with the national culture, socio-cultural, national-historical, religious, national-psychological traditions, customs, stereotypes, myths, attitudes.

A political stereotype is understood as a simplified, schematic, deformed and value-oriented idea of political objects. Distinctive features of the stereotype are: personification of events, strong emotional coloring in the perception and interpretation of events, irrationality, stability. In everyday consciousness, stereotypes can replace knowledge about political objects, greatly simplifying the process of orientation, development and decision-making in the world of politics. A political myth is a static image based on beliefs that allows ordering and interpreting confusing facts and events, structuring the vision of the collective present and future. A political symbol is a sign that performs a communicative function between a person and power. Political symbols include the flag, coat of arms and anthem of the state, slogans, memorable dates, political rituals.

An integral part of political culture are elements of political consciousness, primarily dominant in a given society or most common among members of a given social group. These, first of all, include rooted ideas about various aspects of the political life of society: about the political system, its individual institutions; about the political regime, etc. Stable political ideas, being a part of political culture, can play a very significant role in social practice, largely determining the state of political consciousness.

The moral and evaluative element of political culture includes values, ideals, beliefs. Political culture has historically manifested itself primarily in the understanding and search for Russian man social ideal. The most vivid reflection of the social ideal was found in the political mentality, which also means the national way of seeing the world and acting in certain circumstances. The most stable are traditions in political culture. In a certain sense, traditions act as an objective phenomenon that does not depend on the will of people. Traditions deposit those elements of previous political experience that objectively meet the interests and goals of society. Political traditions are a way of transmitting patterns of political consciousness and behavior formed under the influence of social factors.

behavioral element. The structure of political culture is not limited to moral assessments. The behavioral element presupposes the conscious participation of citizens in the discussion of draft state and party documents, in the elections of subjects of state power; in the work of various state and socio-political bodies; in other specific types, campaigns, events of social and political activity, as well as membership in political parties, socio-political organizations and movements.

An essential aspect of the behavioral element of political culture is the political attitudes typical of a society or a group. The political setting is the attitude of the subject to political phenomena, it contributes to the translation of ideas and values into the plane of their practical implementation. value relationships. In the structure of value relations of political culture, general cultural orientations, attitudes towards power, political phenomena are singled out. The nature and direction of general cultural orientations reveals the place of political phenomena in the structure of values of an individual, group, society. The significance of worldview orientations lies in the extent to which a person's choice of political positions depends on his preferences for individual or collective values.

Political culture appears as the result of a long search by various generations of political values and ideals, their careful selection in the course of verification and consolidation in practice.

Being integral, monolithic, political culture at the same time acts as an internally contradictory, complex phenomenon. It always presents creative (new) and routine (residual from the past), stable and changeable, integral and partial. Reflecting the search for new ideals, ways and means of their implementation, it contains a lot of conflicts, contradictions between the personal and the public, the motive of behavior and the behavior itself. Thanks to this, it is able to orient people towards political action or inaction.

3. Typology of political culture

A systematic understanding of the phenomenon of political culture is helped by its typology, since it helps to distinguish empirical political cultures on a substantive basis and determines their hierarchy in relation to some ideal, “perfect” model. Models and types of political cultures are extremely diverse, manifest themselves in different ways and in various modifications. Their classification depends on what criterion will be chosen to distinguish the types of crops. The typology of culture proposed by G. Almond and S. Verba is considered classical. Analyzing and comparing the political systems of Italy, Germany, the USA and Mexico, they identified three "pure" types of political culture:

1. patriarchal. Here, citizens are oriented towards local values (genus, clan, community), specific individuals (leaders, shamans). Knowledge about the political system among members of the community is completely absent, political orientations are not separated from economic and religious .;

2. subject. Here, the individual is already oriented towards the political system, associates his expectations with it, but at the same time fears sanctions from it;

3. participation, or activist. Active inclusion of individuals in political life. Citizens skillfully defend their interests and through elections influence the process of policy making].

However, according to the concept of Almond and Verba, in real political life, the political culture of any society represents special kind mixed culture, which they called the culture of citizenship. Its most characteristic feature is the rationally active behavior of citizens, which corresponds to a democratic political system. The content of the ideal type of citizenship culture G. Almond and S. Verba revealed through a set of qualities that its carrier possessed:

a general positive assessment of the significance of the activities of the national government for him personally and a deep awareness of this fact;

a high level of interest in the activities of the government and good awareness in this area;

a sense of pride in the political institutions of one's nation;

the expectation that he will be given equal and considerate treatment by officials;

desire to discuss political issues in public or among friends and acquaintances;

open and loyal manifestation of opposition sentiments;

a feeling of satisfaction with the holding of national political events, such as election campaigns;

competence in judgments about government policy and a developed sense of responsibility to influence this policy personally or jointly with one of the fellow citizens;

competence in the use of legal provisions in order to successfully counter acts of arbitrariness;

the belief that participatory democracy is a necessary and desirable system of government.

The typology based on the allocation of types of political culture according to the degree of fragmentation and integration is of substantive importance. A fragmented culture is characterized by a sharp disunity of society, there is no basic consensus between the main socio-political forces, local interests prevail over common ones. On the contrary, an integrated political culture is characterized by the presence of a national consensus, loyalty to the political regime and conflict resolution procedures. However, any political culture normally provides (through its interactive function) one or another type of national consensus. The difference of political cultures in this context is determined by the leading principle of national consensus. Thus, political scientists define American political culture as rational-consensus, English - traditionalist-consensus, German - as statist-subordinate.

Another criterion for the etymologization of cultures is the social class criterion. At the same time, the social structure of society is taken as the basis of the study. Proceeding from it, it is legitimate to single out the political culture of the working class, the intelligentsia, businessmen, etc.; the political culture of the youth, the middle generation and the elderly; even the political culture of men and women. So women are less active in politics than men, that women vote in elections for people who are peaceful, honest and frank, and men give preference to candidates who seek to strengthen economic well-being.

If we consider society from the standpoint of the formational approach, then we can apply the formational criterion of the typology of political culture. Each formation (slave-owning, feudal, capitalist, etc.) is an integrity into which, along with other elements, political knowledge, beliefs, orientations, and political activity are organically woven. The type of political culture corresponds to the type of social formation. If we consider the typology of political cultures of modern civilized societies, then it is legitimate to choose the type of political regime, manifested in the totality of means and methods of exercising state power, as a criterion. The political regime always generates a model of political culture corresponding to it, characterized by certain features. In their pure form, these models rarely function; mixed forms are more common. Nevertheless, two main models of the political culture of modern societies can be distinguished: totalitarian and democratic.

The totalitarian model of political culture is distinguished by the following features:

commitment to a single universal goal (for example, industrialization or racial domination);

unpredictability and uncertainty (yesterday's hero today can become a traitor):

widespread use of organized violence;

efforts to achieve universal participation in public organizations committed to a common goal, and to subjugate or liquidate those organizations that are not committed to the regime.

This model is characterized by the absence of a division into civil society and the state; there is an absorption of both society and the state by one party. All disagreements in society are regarded as an evil that must be eradicated. Totalitarianism is impossible without mass character, the dissolution of the individual in the mass. The life and consciousness of a person seem to bifurcate: at work, meetings, rallies, he is a completely loyal citizen, and in private life he shows complete indifference and distrust to the political leadership of the country and to political life in general. The totalitarian model of political culture is built on violence, on the one hand, and official optimism, on the other. But at the same time, one cannot but admit that it has a relative share of stability and organization, which, as a rule, manifests itself at a specific stage of development and in a specific society due to the above properties.

Totalitarian systems turn against themselves the vast majority of the population. Sooner or later there comes a crisis and the collapse of the totalitarian system, and there is a tendency to move towards democracy. But this process is long and complicated. Such traces of totalitarianism as political denunciation, pretense and lies, loss of self-esteem, flattering servility cannot be destroyed immediately.

In contrast to totalitarianism, the main component of the democratic model of political culture is pluralistic democracy, which implies the presence of many political parties, movements, movements that conduct legal political struggle among themselves, compete, collide, compromise, enter into various alliances, coalitions, conclude agreements and etc.

One of the central points of this model is the idea of civil society as a system of public institutions and initiatives independent of the state. A democratic society is based on the principles of the freedom of all citizens and the dependence of all on a single common legislation. The most important provisions of the pluralistic theory of democracy were formulated by M. Weber. Proponents of his theory view the competition of interest-based political leaders of open elites who share common views on the rules of democratic politics as a means of achieving equality of influence of major social groups and at the same time an obstacle to strengthening the independence of the state from civil society. The democratic model of political culture is, of course, not ideal, but it is the most optimal of the real-life conditions, since it is precisely this model that presupposes civilized relationships between people in the field of politics.

The following main features of the modern political culture of a civilized society are distinguished. political tolerance. It means tolerance for other political views, for other people's behavior, feelings, opinions, ideas, beliefs. This principle is not acceptable in totalitarian societies, because they are based on a firm belief in the possession of the highest truth, the only recipe for achieving happiness. In a democratic society, tolerance determines the possibility of a legal struggle for power, the existence of legal opposition to the ruling party, as well as agreement between all the political forces of society regarding the observance of the "rules of the game" in the political sphere. It is especially important to observe this principle during periods of major political campaigns (for example, elections), as well as in times of serious political crises.

The art of dialogue and compromise. The pluralistic democracy of modern society implies a kind of eclecticism: a combination and interaction of a wide variety of social and political forces, interests, needs, and this, in turn, entails the need for dialogue between them, finding common positions, points of contact. The result of the dialogue is a compromise. The art of compromise is one of the most important qualities that characterize a high level of political culture, and compromise is an indispensable tool for balancing interests. Its essence lies in the ability to clearly present the priority of goals, to sacrifice less significant ones in order to achieve more significant ones in the end, not to be afraid of today's minuses, if tomorrow, thanks to this, you can get serious pluses. Legitimacy - recognition by citizens of their obligation to obey the government, arising from a common belief in the good will of the authorities, from the confidence that the government came to power legally and will not abuse power, but will use it in accordance with established traditions and law, as well as the interests of the population. The higher the legitimacy, the less violence and coercion in society. The process of formation in society of the listed signs of political culture is complex and lengthy. A major role in it is played by political tradition, which gives specific concrete historical and national content to political values: democracy, pluralism, etc. Such features of political culture as the desire for compromise, tolerance, predictability of political behavior, rejection of dogmatism, have developed to varying degrees in various countries in Europe and other regions of the world.

The political culture of any society objectively strives for consensus, i.e., for the acceptance of common values by all members of society, but this is really impossible, since in all societies there are many subgroups with different political orientations, beliefs, views and traditions. Therefore, such a phenomenon as a “political subculture” is much more common, which perceives part of the values of a common culture, but is based mainly on other values.

By political subculture we mean a system of political orientations, beliefs and values that distinguish a group from the majority of society. It is formed under the influence of such factors as social class, ethnic origin, religion, place of residence, etc. Democrats, communists, nationalists, supporters of other socio-political orientations can be carriers of a political subculture.

Conclusion

If we consider the typology of political cultures of modern civilized societies, then it is legitimate to choose the type of political regime, manifested in the totality of means and methods of exercising state power, as a criterion. The political regime always generates a model of political culture corresponding to it, characterized by certain features. In their pure form, these models rarely function; mixed forms are more common. Nevertheless, two main models of the political culture of modern societies can be distinguished: totalitarian and democratic.

Thus, political culture appears as a set of attitudes towards political activity which predetermine the choice of the direction of this activity; as a structure of orientations, which includes knowledge about the political system, feelings and judgments and opinions about it.

List of used literature

1. Almond G.A., Verba S. Civic culture and stability of democracy // Political research. - 1992. - No. 4.

2. Weber M. Selected works. - M., 1990.

3. Vyatr G. Sociology of political relations. - M., 1979.

4. Gadzhiev K.S. Political culture: a conceptual aspect//Political studies. 1991. No. 6.

5. General and applied political science. - Under the total. ed. prof. Zhukova V.I., Krasnova B.I. - M.: Publishing House of MGSU "Soyuz", 1997 Gadzhiev K.S. Political Science: Tutorial. - 2nd edition. - M.: International relations, 1995.

6. Political science: Textbook for universities. / Ed. M.A. Vasilika.- M.: Yurist, 2001.

7. Workshop on political science: Textbook for universities. - Ed. Vasilika M.A. - M., 2001.

8. Farukshin M.Kh. Political culture of society // Socio-political sciences. - 1991. - No. 4.

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Democratic political culture suggests. Typology of political cultures

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