Manifestation of Russian character in a specific historical situation. Russians: ethnographic characteristics

The mysterious Russian soul (national character of Russians and peculiarities of communication)

The Russian people “can be fascinated and disappointed, you can always expect surprises from them, they are extremely capable of inspiring strong love and strong hatred.”

N. Berdyaev

National Character Traits

If they say about England “Good Old England”, meaning the preservation and observance of traditions, about France - “Beautiful France!”, meaning the beauty and splendor of the country for which it has always been famous in all its manifestations, then about Russia they say: “Holy Russia,” suggesting that Russia is a country historically oriented towards spiritual life, a country adhering to a traditional way of life, a country based on Orthodox values.

Historical and political transformations do not have a very positive impact on the character and mentality of the Russian people.

Vague, non-standard, non-traditional values ​​introduced into Russian society- the philosophy of consumption, individualism, acquisitiveness is one of the main reasons for the formation of modern national character.

First you need to decide what is considered Russian nationality. For a long time, a Russian was considered to be one who adopted the Russian system of values, traditions, aesthetics, etc. Historically, a Russian was considered to be one who accepted Orthodoxy. Thus, a third of the Russian nobility before the October Revolution was represented by Tatars. A.S. Pushkin, his ancestors were generally dark-skinned! And this despite the fact that the poet is considered the most important Russian (!) poet, who absorbed and described Russian life, customs, and traditions of that period in the life of Russia!

And those white-haired and blue-eyed Russians, who can still be seen in Vologda and Uglich, constitute the original Slavic branch of all Russians.

National traits of Russians

In order to understand the “mysterious Russian soul,” you need to get a little acquainted with the origins of the formation of the Russian national character.

The character of Russians was formed on the basis historical conditions, geographical location of the country, space, climate and religion.

Among the national traits is the famous breadth of the Russian soul. In this regard, despite all sorts of rules and regulations that dictate moderation in giving, partners, colleagues of the opposite sex, and “vertical” employees are given gifts that are disproportionate in value. Truly on a Russian scale. It is not without reason that the gift industry is replete with expensive and pretentious gifts that are sold out for every holiday.

The main distinctive features of the Russian people are also the following:

Compassion, mercy. Today, mercy and charity are in trend (this is very Russian - to help not even for the sake of image, but simply because someone is in need and suffering...): many people and companies actively help those who are in difficulty, transferring funds to the needs of the elderly, children and even animals. They travel at their own expense to disaster sites and actively help the victims.

A German Wehrmacht soldier wrote about this feature of the Russian character when he found himself in a Russian village during the Second World War: “When I woke up, I saw a Russian girl kneeling in front of me, who was feeding me hot milk with honey from a teaspoon. I told her: “I could have killed your husband, and you are worried about me.” As we passed through other Russian villages, it became even more clear to me that it would be right to conclude peace with the Russians as quickly as possible. ...The Russians did not pay attention to my military uniform and they treated me rather in a friendly way!”

Among the best qualities of the Russian people are the interests of their family, respect for parents, and the happiness and well-being of their children.

But this is also associated with the so-called nepotism, when a manager hires his relative, who is forgiven a lot, unlike an ordinary employee, which does not have a very good effect on the performance of professional duties

Russians are characterized by an amazing quality of self-abasement and self-denial, belittling their merits. Maybe this is related to all the words that foreigners hear when they are in Russia, that they are gurus, stars, etc., but Russians seem to have nothing to do with it. Foreigners cannot understand how a people with such a rich culture and literature, a colossal territory full of riches manages to deny itself in this way. But this is due to the Orthodox rule: humiliation is more important than pride.” Pride is considered the main mortal sin that kills the immortal soul, according to Christian beliefs.

TO national traits also applies:

Religiosity and piety exist in the soul of even a Russian atheist.

The ability to live in moderation. Not the pursuit of wealth (that is why Russian society is confused - people do not know how to live only by wealth). At the same time, many, “hungry” for “imports” during the Soviet period, tend to show off and throw money at them, which has already become a byword and is well known in Courchevel. This part of Russian nature is usually associated with “Asianism” and money obtained easily or unjustly.

Kindness and hospitality, responsiveness, sensitivity, compassion, forgivingness, pity, willingness to help.
openness, straightforwardness;
natural ease, simplicity in behavior (and even a fair amount of simplicity);
carelessness; humor, generosity; the inability to hate for a long time and the associated agreeableness; ease human relations; responsiveness, breadth of character, scope of decisions.

Wonderful creative potential (that’s why the Olympics were designed so beautifully, with the help innovative technologies). It’s not for nothing that in Russian culture there is a character called Lefty, who hooks a flea. It is known that Lefty is a right-brain person, that is, a person with creative thinking.

Russians are incredibly patient and tolerant. (see above example with a Wehrmacht soldier).

They endure until the last minute, and then they can explode. Repeating the phrase of A.S. Pushkin: “God forbid that we see a Russian revolt - senseless and merciless!”, and sometimes misinterpreting it (so in the Internet dictionary of aphorisms you can read “The Russian revolt is SCARY - senseless and merciless”), tearing it out from the context, some forget that this remark has a very informative continuation: “Those who are plotting impossible coups among us are either young and do not know our people, or they are hard-hearted people, for whom someone else’s head is half a piece, and their own neck is a penny.” “.

Negative qualities, of course, can also be noted. This is carelessness, laziness and Oblomov’s daydreaming. And, alas, drunkenness. To a certain extent this is due to climate. When there is no sun for six months, you want to warm up and don’t want to do anything. Under certain conditions, Russians know how to gather themselves, concentrate and ignore the climate in the name of an idea. Many feats of arms- confirmation. Carelessness is associated with serfdom, which almost every Russian will have to overcome. The Russian relies on “perhaps” for two reasons: hope for the master, the Tsar-Father and the “zone of risky farming,” that is, the uncertainty and unevenness of climatic conditions.

Russians are characterized by a certain gloominess. And you rarely see people with cheerful faces on the streets. This is due to the legacy of the socialist past, which had its difficulties, with the current state of affairs and, one must assume, with the harsh climate, where there is no sun for almost half the year. But in the office the situation is changing: Russians willingly communicate with people they know.

Insufficient ability to unite and self-organize suggests that a leader, ruler, etc. is definitely needed. At the same time, a man is often appointed as a leader, based on patriarchal stereotypes - a man is the best leader. However, the situation is changing, and today we can see many women in top positions.

Perhaps due to the fact that in last decades values ​​that are not characteristic of Russian peoples have been introduced - acquisitiveness, worship of the Golden Calf, Russian people, despite all the existing benefits, modern technologies, the absence of an “Iron Curtain” and opportunities, are often (and representatives of the middle class) in a state of increased anxiety and pessimism. Wherever Russians gather, at a festively and sumptuously laid table, there will certainly be a couple of people who will argue that “everything is bad” and “we are all going to die.”

Evidence of this is the active discussion on the forums about the Opening of the Olympics, which was excellent. At the same time, many did not see this beauty because they were discussing corruption and how much money was spent on preparing the Olympic Games.

Russians cannot live without ideas and faith. So, in 1917, faith in God was taken away, faith in the CPSU appeared, in the 90s faith in the CPSU and the communist future was taken away, bandits, outcasts, Ivans-of-kinship-not-remembering appeared, because It became unclear what and who to believe in.

Now the situation is slowly but leveling out. Despite the eternal criticism of everyone and everything (and of the Orthodox Church and its ministers), people turn to God and practice mercy.

Two faces of modern business society

Today the business community is divided roughly into two parts. These parts are presented like this. Directors are middle-aged and elderly, more often representatives of regions, former Komsomol members and party leaders. And young managers, with an MBA education, sometimes obtained abroad. The former are more closed in communication, the latter are more open. The former are more often endowed with instrumental intelligence and tend to view their subordinates as cogs in a single mechanism. The latter are more characterized by emotional intelligence, and they still try to delve into the problems of their employees, of course, not always.

The first category was not taught how to negotiate. At the same time, in the process of communication, some of them acquired good communication skills and were able to come to an agreement “with whoever needed” and had great connections in their environment. Some representatives of this group, on the contrary, communicated “from top to bottom,” in the usual authoritarian style, often with elements of verbal aggression.

Modern top managers have been trained in negotiation skills and continue their training after completing the basic course. But at the same time, “...It’s rare that foreigners who get into top positions in Russian companies last more than a year” (SmartMoney Weekly No. 30 (120) August 18, 2008).

What is the reason? The fact is that, despite their European education, young top managers are carriers of the domestic mentality.

The authoritarian management style is “imbibed with mother’s milk”; profanity may be heard at meetings and on the sidelines. This type was demonstrated by Nikita Kozlovsky in the film “DUKHLESS”. His hero has all the characteristics.

By the way, both the first and second are introverted. The latter may be completely immersed in the world of gadgets and prefer communication through communication devices.

Knowing these features, you can draw conclusions on how to adapt to communicating with Russians.

So, you have to understand that ambitious “red directors” need to be treated with great respect, like a gentleman during the times of serfdom, and young top managers - too, but at the same time understand that they are more democratic in communication. And yet they will prefer communications via the Internet.

Russian etiquette - sometimes meaningless and merciless

Despite all the kindness, generosity, and tolerance, the manners of Russians leave much to be desired, because... Russians are the successors of the Soviet people, who have long been taught that “bourgeois” is bad. It's ingrained into my subconscious. Therefore, sometimes you can observe the manifestation of not very correct behavior.

So, for example, at the Closing Ceremony of the 22nd Olympic Games, when the champion was awarded a medal on a ribbon and had to be hung around his neck, the athlete did not think to take off his hat, although he put it on during the anthem right hand to the heart. On special occasions, men need to remove their hats.

Once the author observed a situation also related to hats in another city. After a seminar on business etiquette and a conversation about what to do and what not to do, two participants stood up without warning, put on large caps right in the training room and left the room.

According to the rules of European and Russian etiquette, indoors and, especially, at the table, he takes off his headdress. Exceptions: artists who claim a certain image, and representatives of faiths where it is customary to always wear a turban or turban.

If a foreigner leans back in his chair, this may mean that he expects to relax and/or end the conversation. For Russians, the way of sitting, leaning back on a chair is the basic state. Only athletic and/or well-mannered people in Russia sit without leaning against the back of a chair (if the chair is traditional and not ergonomic), while the rest sit as they please, demonstrating many of their complexes and basic attitudes.

Russians are not used to standing elegantly; they may try to take a closed pose and/or shuffle in place.

The view of a Russian person depends on the situation. If this is a leader, then he can look, literally without blinking, with a prickly gaze into the face of his interlocutor, especially a subordinate, or quite benevolently if in front of him is his acquaintance or relative. Of course, intelligent and well-mannered people “wear” a friendly facial expression.

Anxiety and tension are indicated by a transverse vertical fold between the eyebrows, which gives a stern, unattainable appearance, which can somewhat interfere with contact. It’s interesting that in our country such a fold can be seen even in very young girls.

When a lady approaches a colleague sitting on a chair, he does not always think to sit up, but at the same time he can, with an elegant gesture, invite her to enter the elevator, which is wrong, because Either the man or the one standing closest enters the elevator first.

Features of communication in Russia

Communication in our country has its own specifics:

- ungraciousness, poor manners, projective thinking (projection - the tendency to consider others similar to oneself); stiffness or looseness instead of free communication; gloomy facial expression; inability/unwillingness to give an answer and feedback, conflict, inability to have a “small conversation” and listen.

In informal (and sometimes formal) communication, the wrong thematic choice of conversation is often preferred (about politics, problems, illnesses, private affairs, etc.). At the same time, we have to admit that women more often talk about “everyday life” and their personal life(relationships with parents, husbands, children, and men talk about politics and the future, more often in gloomy tones.

In Russia, there is a wide range in the nature of communication - from a gloomy style to a feigned positive style, which came back in the 90s and was “copied” from communication models in the United States.

Along with other factors, the inability to communicate in general lowers the personal image of many compatriots, the level corporate culture and the image of the company as a whole.

Errors and main misconceptions in communication in Russia

The main mistakes and misconceptions in Russia include the opinion of the average employee, which still exists in some cases, that the guest owes him something and is obliged to do something: leave a lot of money, purchase an expensive tourist product, order luxurious dishes to the room, etc.

This is based on an irrational psychological attitude called “obligation” (a person believes that everyone owes him something, and when this does not happen, he is very offended) and affects communication in the most direct way. If hopes that a colleague, partner, or customer are not justified, and the interlocutor behaves as he does, then the Russian clerk may experience disappointment and even express his irritation.

A common misconception is also an unkind attitude and, accordingly, communication with a guest who is untenable, from the point of view of an employee.

What influences communication style. Past and modern.

On modern style communication affects:

- the huge flow of information that faces modern man;

— multiple contacts, open borders of countries and the associated willingness to travel, tourism of all types;

— new technologies, primarily online communication, which sets a certain communication style, fragmented perception of the world, “clip” thinking”;

— enormous speeds and rhythms of life;

- globalization, and the associated processes of interpenetration of languages, speech and communication styles.

Reasons for developing communication skills in Russia.

historical past, serfdom, political regime, climate and distances, mental duality (duality) - “black” and “white” in one person, geographical boundaries Russia, paternalistic (that is, when the ruler is like a father) management culture.

As a result, the formed national character encourage communication that is not associated with courtesy, openness, etc.

This manifests itself, for example, in an internal reluctance to say one’s name on the phone. Although after training they learn this.

Why is it so difficult in Russia to say your name on the phone?

An example of insufficient communicative competence is the low willingness of compatriots to give their name on the phone. This is due to the historical mentality and habits of Russians. And this may happen because

— previously the staff were not trained in business communication, courtesy, etc.

- it has been proven that the lower the social status person, the more difficult it is to introduce yourself.

- it is more difficult for a person from more distant from the centers to introduce himself by name to a stranger.

— For many decades, Soviet people were accustomed not to demonstrate themselves, to be secretive. It's connected with political regime, which existed for a long time in the USSR.

— The archetypal memory, the collective unconscious, “works.”

— Some mystical ideas (for example, in pre-Christian Rus' There was an idea that one’s name could cast the evil eye, and therefore amulets were hung around the neck - a bear’s claw, etc.)

Centers and regions

Speaking of modern Russian society One cannot help but mention the constant confrontation between central cities (Moscow, St. Petersburg...) and regions, which is due to the fact that Moscow was always replenished in Soviet times with products that were not available in all regions of the Russian Federation. During the period of stagnation, there were so-called “sausage trains”. People came from other cities of Russia and from the Moscow region to buy scarce products, including sausage

The first consider the inhabitants of the provinces to be not very well-mannered, sometimes cheeky, and that “they walk over corpses,” without taking anything into account.

There is even such a thing as “life outside the Moscow Ring Road,” that is, outside of Moscow. Starting from the nearest regional cities and places, life really seems to freeze and remains unchanged for a long time. Innovations come here with some delay.

At the same time, the regionals consider Muscovites, on the one hand, arrogant and rich, despite the fact that the true native residents of the capital in this generation are quite calm and friendly people, on the other hand, as “suckers” and “blunderers” who can easily be outpaced in in many directions.

And if Muscovites can look condescendingly but tolerantly at newcomers, then regional residents, even having settled in the capital, cannot always accept the lifestyle and mentality of a Muscovite, and, sometimes, they may even experience residual complexes, saying in a conversation with a native resident something like : “Is it okay that I’m not a Muscovite?” or: “Here you are, Muscovites!” The latter have to prove the “presumption of innocence” in the inadequate distribution system that took place during the years of the USSR.

Now the appearance, the face of the city is changing, and the style and morals of the inhabitants of the metropolis are also changing.

Bulat Okudzhava

Ch. Amirejibi

I was evicted from Arbat, an Arbat emigrant.

In Bezbozhny Lane my talent is withering away.

There are strange faces and hostile places all around.

Although the sauna is opposite, the fauna is not the same.

I was evicted from Arbat and deprived of my past,

and my face is not scary to strangers, but funny.

I am expelled, lost among other people's destinies,

and my sweet, my emigrant bread is bitter to me.

Without a passport or visa, just with a rose in hand

I wander along the invisible border on the castle,

and to those lands I once inhabited,

I keep looking, looking, looking.

There are the same sidewalks, trees and courtyards,

but the speeches are unhearted and the feasts are cold.

The thick colors of winter also blaze there,

but the invaders come to my pet store.

A master's gait, arrogant lips...

Ah, the flora there is still the same, but the fauna is not the same...

I am an emigrant from Arbat. I live, bearing my cross...

The rose froze and flew all over.

And, despite some confrontation - open or secret - at a difficult historical moment, Russians unite and become a united people.

Men and women

Russian men who serve in companies and do not work on construction sites are distinguished by gallant behavior: they will open the door for a lady, let them go ahead, and pay the bill in a restaurant. Sometimes even regardless of official chain of command. Should you hold the door for a lady? Should I give her a coat?

Until now, expert opinions are contradictory, and in each case it helps to understand the moment and intuition. According to American rules business etiquette: Under no circumstances should you hold the door and hand a coat to a lady colleague. But we live in Russia.

Women in Russia have a combination of femininity and homeliness, they are well-groomed, businesslike and very active. In Moscow, every second or third lady drives. Modesty in her traditional meaning seems to be a thing of the past.

At the same time, women continue to love it when office men look after them: hand them coats, etc. So foreigners who advocate emancipation, having arrived in Russia, will have to wait with their advice.

On the one hand, gallantry is pleasant, on the other, in Russia, as in many countries, there is a glass ceiling for women. And on leadership positions prefer to take men. Both men and women.

Traditional stereotypes are that a woman cannot think logically, is a weak leader, and will be disturbed by her family.

Moreover, if a woman occupies a leadership position, then she is a “real bitch”, “a man in a skirt” and walks over corpses...

In a mixed team, where both men and women work, office romances happen. Traditionally, the public takes the man’s side, so in some cases it is better not to take risks and not start an unnecessary relationship.

Women's groups have their own specifics. While some employee is doing well, others may sometimes feel envy. Therefore, it is better to try not to excite her by dressing, say, too brightly or stylishly. Moreover, if a misfortune befalls an employee, everyone unites and begins to provide her with all possible assistance: financial, organizational, etc.

According to the rules of etiquette, it is not pleasant to talk about illnesses and family matters at work. However, this rule is violated, especially in the women's team. And woe to the secretary who, in response to her boss’s confidential stories, began to share her problems. It can come back to haunt you harshly.

Men and women in Russia look different.

Clothing, dress code

In order to climb the career ladder, some men try to dress elegantly and even buy suits famous brands. These are mostly top managers and ambitious yuppies.

Another part of men is socially lower and has a lower educational level. This probably has something to do with the way I wear a black top and jeans on any day. The subway can be dark because of such clothes. Black jackets, black pullovers, sometimes black shirts (for negotiations, for which it is customary to wear light shirts) in combination with a black tie.

It is interesting that, as soon as the slightest opportunity is given not to wear a good, stylish suit, like the Italians or the French, Russian men immediately put on the “black style”. This is usually explained by the fact that it is “non-marking”. In fact, the desire to “hide” behind the color black would say a lot to social psychologists...

There is a special demographic situation in Russia: there are significantly more women than men. And, if earlier you had to be wary of harassment directed at a woman, now in Russia, due to natural competition, there is a “hunt” for accomplished men. Therefore, women resort to various tricks just to get a successful husband: neckline, mini, false nails, which does not meet corporate standards, but at the same time “promotes” the lady on the local “marriage market”. This comes as no surprise.

Both of them violate the dress code, which at the same time today has become softer and more democratic. And employers do not require ladies to wear a strict “sheath” suit, which was previously necessary.

Negotiations and reception of delegations

Much has been written about the rules of business negotiations on the pages of our magazine.

Russian negotiators: perceive the interlocutor as an adversary, treat him with suspicion and some hostility, consider it necessary to hide certain data (opacity allows many things to be done).

Local “princelings” have ambitions. Russian negotiators think that their city or region is the best. And, what’s worse, they try to “knock out” all sorts of preferences for themselves during negotiations, which most often go not for the development of territories, but into their own pockets. At the same time, at the local level, federal authorities often pose the most serious obstacle to innovative development territories.

At the same time, there are very positive examples of territorial development. Thus, Alexander Vasilievich Filipenko is considered the pride of Siberia, former head Administration of the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug, which glorified the region with innovations and amazing projects aimed at the improvement and development of Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug. The International Biathlon Center is named in his honor.
Specifics of negotiations

Speaking loudly without taking into account the other party's mannerisms can also derail negotiations.

Rigidity, i.e. hardness, inactivity, inadaptability in negotiations. No concessions.

Overt manipulation, when they try to “drive the interlocutor into a corner”

Inappropriate appearance (either jeans with a black pullover, or a very smart suit.

Reluctance to take responsibility, attempts to avoid a serious conversation.

Ignorance and not desire to know national characteristics representatives of the other side and the rules of good manners (they may take off their jacket at the wrong time, at the beginning of negotiations, or slap them on the shoulder)

Unfulfilled promises and negligence in paperwork complete the list.

Unpleasant hints of bribes (in the case of compatriots), so-called kickbacks.

Pleasing trends. Some Russian local leaders are building roads and hospitals at their own expense. Isn't this Russian?.. After all, generosity and charity have always been on Russian soil.

When a delegation is expected in an organization or company, everyone strives to prepare in the best possible way.

Hospitality.

But if in modern companies young managers, with all their democracy, can even reach the point of some familiarity in communication (this is expressed in carelessness of address, the truncated name “Tatyan” instead of “Tatyana”, in ignoring the senior-junior positions, some even carelessness in communication, strange business cards cards), then in organizations with a traditional culture, ceremony, sedateness, and adherence to the rules of conduct adopted when receiving delegations are more honored. There is a protocol department that organizes receptions, delegations, meetings, and events.

Feast

In Russia it is accompanied by abundant eating and drinking wine. Only in diplomatic circles can only two snacks be served for “Breakfast” or “Lunch”. If you don’t serve too many treats at a corporate party, this may be perceived with surprise, if not offense. Russians at corporate parties eat generously, drink a lot and sometimes dance, but more often they prefer to break into groups and have a heart-to-heart talk.

Etiquette is not always observed, because why observe it if everyone has become friends and almost relatives at that moment?..

It is very important to control yourself at such moments, because office romances that begin at events quickly pass, and the words spoken about a leader under the influence of strong drinks are, “Not a sparrow. If it flies out, you won’t catch it.”

Greetings, address

After the October Revolution, the boundaries of communication between the sexes were erased and the address “comrade” and “comrade” appeared in everyday life, addressed to both men and women.

After Perestroika, when capitalism began to enter Russia, experts in the field of the Russian language tried to introduce into speech the addresses “master”, “madam”, “sir”, “madam”. Sometimes at pretentious corporate events you can hear “Mr. Ivanov”, “Mrs. Petrova”, but more often at the moment when they are spoken about in the third person.

When contacting directly, you have to find an option that is acceptable and convenient for both. So, in Russia an older person is addressed by his first name and patronymic, of course, with “you”; a younger person is addressed by his first name. At the same time, the practice of addressing even older people by name has become a practice (depending on the corporate style). This style came from the USA.

Particularly important today is the issue of switching to “You”. The initiator of such an appeal Maybe Only a higher-ranking person, only a client, only an older person, and in an equal situation, only a woman, can speak. Everything else is a violation of the rules of etiquette.

At the same time, in Russia “you” is heard all the time, especially on highways, where drivers seem to completely forget about the existence of the pronoun “you.”

Nowadays, as an initial address you can hear “respected” in relation to a man or “lady” said to a woman. Or the impersonal: “Would you be kind?”, “Can you tell me?”

Smile.

It should be noted that the traditional unsmiling and gloomy facial expression by which Russians are recognized all over the world are associated with a sincere desire to appear serious.

Russians smile willingly. But only when meeting friends. Therefore, foreigners could be philosophical about the fact that on the streets they will meet many people who walk with the most negative expression on their faces, with furrowed eyebrows. Obviously, the climate influenced this style. This is also due to the fact that Russians are characterized by a certain closedness, despite the fact that there is a proverb “Death is fair in the world!” Some actors are very reserved in life. But Russians will smile widely and sincerely at their acquaintances and friends. It’s just that in the minds of a Russian person, smiling and laughter are close in meaning, and “Laughter for no reason is a sign of a fool.”

Guests can come not only from abroad, but also from other regions

Forewarned is forearmed. In order to be well prepared for contact with representatives of a particular national culture, in this case modern Russians, it is important to study their customs and traditions, features and possible differences. If you know what certain traditions are associated with, this will make it possible to adapt in relation to partners and visitors, establish the correct style and intonation in communication with them, which will ultimately allow you to establish long-term business relationships. Knowledge of morals, characteristics, traditions will ultimately give a tolerant approach, which in turn will give understanding and create spiritual comfort and loyalty towards, in this case, the Russian people and their mysterious soul.

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1. Paternalism ( lat. paternus - paternal, paternal) - a system of relations based on patronage,guardianship and control by seniors of juniors (wards), as well as subordination of juniors to seniors.

___________________________________

Irina Denisova, member of the Council, coordinator of the “Personal Marketing” club, “Communications” workshop of the Guild of Marketers

This article was published in the paper business publication “Directory of the Secretary and Office Manager”, No. 4 2014. Please respect copyright and refer to the author and publication when reprinting. Published in the author's edition. - I.D.

The character of the Russian people was formed primarily under the influence of time and space. History and geographical position our homeland also made their own adjustments. The constant danger from possible raids and wars united people, gave birth to special patriotism, and the desire for strong centralized power. Climatic conditions, I must say, not the most favorable ones, forced the people to unite, tempered a particularly strong character. The vast expanses of our country have given a special scope to the actions and feelings of the Russian people. Although these generalizations are conditional, it is still possible to identify common features and patterns.

Since its inception, Russia has shown itself to be an unusual country, unlike others, which aroused curiosity and added mystery. Russia does not fit the mold, does not fit into any standards, everything in it is not similar to the majority. And this makes its character, the character of its people, very complex and contradictory, difficult for foreigners to understand.

Nowadays, scientists and researchers have begun to find an increasing role for national character in the development of society as a whole. It is a single, holistic system that has a hierarchy of traits and qualities that influence the way of thinking and action of a given nation. It passes on to people from generation to generation; changing it by taking administrative measures is quite difficult, but it is still possible, although large-scale changes require a lot of time and effort.

There is interest in the Russian national character not only abroad, but we ourselves are trying to understand it, although this is not entirely successful. We cannot understand our actions or explain some historical situations, although we notice some originality and illogicality in our actions and thoughts.

Today in our country there is a turning point, which we are experiencing with difficulty and, in my opinion, not entirely correctly. In the 20th century, there was a loss of many values ​​and a decline in national self-awareness. And in order to get out of this state, the Russian people must, first of all, understand themselves, return to their previous features and instill values, and eradicate shortcomings.

The very concept of national character is widely used today by politicians, scientists, the media, and writers. Often this concept has very different meanings. Scholars have debated whether national character actually exists. And today the existence of certain characteristics characteristic of only one people is recognized. These features are manifested in the way of life, thoughts, behavior and activities of the people of a given nation. Based on this, we can say that national character is a certain set of physical and spiritual qualities, norms of activity and behavior characteristic of only one nation.

The character of each nation is very complex and contradictory due to the fact that the history of each nation is complex and contradictory. Also important factors are climatic, geographical, social, political and other conditions that influence the formation and development of national character. Researchers believe that all factors and conditions can be divided into two groups: natural-biological and socio-cultural.

The first explains that people belonging to different races will express their character and temperament in different ways. It should be said here that the type of society formed by a particular people will also have a strong influence on its character. Therefore, understanding the national character of a people occurs through understanding the society, conditions and factors in which this people lives.

It is also important that the type of society itself is determined by the value system adopted in it. Thus, social values ​​are the basis of national character. National character is a set of important methods for regulating activities and communication, created in accordance with social values inherent in a given people. Therefore, in order to understand the Russian national character, it is necessary to highlight the values ​​characteristic of the Russian people.

The Russian character is distinguished by such qualities as conciliarity and nationality, striving for something infinite. Our nation has religious and ethnic tolerance. Russian people are constantly dissatisfied with what they have on their this moment, he always wants something different. The peculiarity of the Russian soul is explained, on the one hand, by “having your head in the clouds,” and on the other, by the inability to cope with your emotions. We either contain them as much as possible, or release them all at once. Maybe that’s why there is so much soulfulness in our culture.

The features of the Russian national character are reflected most accurately in works of folk art. It is worth highlighting fairy tales and epics here. The Russian man wants a better future, but he is too lazy to actually do anything for this. He would rather resort to the help of a goldfish or a talking pike. Probably the most popular character in our fairy tales is Ivan the Fool. And this is not without reason. After all, behind the outwardly careless, lazy son of an ordinary Russian peasant who can’t do anything, hides a pure soul. Ivan is kind, sympathetic, savvy, naive, compassionate. At the end of the tale, he always wins over the prudent and pragmatic royal son. That's why people consider him their hero.

The feeling of patriotism among the Russian people, it seems to me, is beyond doubt. For a long time, both old people and children fought against invaders and occupiers. Suffice it to recall the Patriotic War of 1812, when the entire people, the entire army asked to give battle to the French.

The character of a Russian woman deserves special attention. Enormous strength of will and spirit forces her to sacrifice everything for the sake of a person close to her. She can go to the ends of the earth for her loved one, and this will not be a blind and obsessive following, as is customary in eastern countries, but this is a conscious and independent act. You can take as an example the wives of the Decembrists and some writers and poets sent into exile in Siberia. These women very consciously deprived themselves of everything for the sake of their husbands.

One cannot help but mention the cheerful and perky disposition and sense of humor of Russians. No matter how hard it is, a Russian person will always find a place for fun and joy, and if it’s not hard and everything is fine, then the scope of the fun is guaranteed. They have spoken, are speaking, and will continue to speak about the breadth of the Russian soul. A Russian person simply needs to go wild, make a splash, show off, even if for this he has to give away his last shirt.

Since ancient times, there has been no place for self-interest in the Russian character; material values ​​have never come to the fore. A Russian person has always been able to make enormous efforts in the name of high ideals, be it the defense of the Motherland or the upholding of sacred values.

A harsh and difficult life has taught Russians to be content and get by with what they have. Constant self-restraint has left its mark. That is why the desire for monetary accumulation and wealth at any cost was not widespread among our people. This was the privilege of Europe.

For Russians, oral communication is very important. folk art. Knower of proverbs, sayings, fairy tales and phraseological units reflecting the reality of our lives, a person was considered educated, worldly wise, and possessing folk spirituality. Spirituality is also one of the characteristic traits of a Russian person.

Due to increased emotionality, our people are characterized by openness and sincerity. This is especially evident in communication. If we take Europe as an example, then individualism is highly developed there, which is protected in every possible way, but here, on the contrary, people are interested in what is happening in the lives of those around them, and a Russian person will never refuse to talk about his life. This also most likely includes compassion - another very Russian character trait.

Along with positive qualities such as generosity, breadth of soul, openness, courage, there is one, of course, negative one. I'm talking about drunkenness. But it is not something that has gone hand in hand with us throughout the country's history. No, this is an illness that we caught relatively recently and cannot get rid of it. After all, we did not invent vodka, it was brought to us only in the 15th century, and it did not immediately become popular. Therefore, it is impossible to say that drunkenness is a distinctive feature and feature of our national character.

It is also worth noting a feature that makes you both surprised and delighted - this is the responsiveness of the Russian people. It is embedded in us from childhood. When helping someone, our person is often guided by the proverb: “What comes around, so will it come back.” Which, in general, is correct.

National character is not static, it constantly changes as society changes and, in turn, has its effects on it. The Russian national character that has emerged today has similarities with the character that once existed before. Some features remain, some are lost. But the basis and essence have been preserved.

The Russian people are representatives of the East Slavic ethnic group, the indigenous inhabitants of Russia (110 million people - 80% of the population of the Russian Federation), the largest ethnic group in Europe. The Russian diaspora numbers about 30 million people and is concentrated in countries such as Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Belarus, the countries of the former USSR, the USA and EU countries. As a result of the sociological research it was found that 75% of the Russian population of Russia are followers of Orthodoxy, and a significant part of the population does not consider itself to be a member of any particular religion. The national language of the Russian people is Russian.

Each country and its people have their own significance in the modern world; the concepts of folk culture and history of a nation, their formation and development are very important. Each nation and its culture are unique in their own way, the flavor and uniqueness of each nationality should not be lost or dissolved in assimilation with other peoples, the younger generation should always remember who they really are. For Russia, which is a multinational power and home to 190 peoples, the issue of national culture is quite acute, due to the fact that in recent years its erasure has been especially noticeable against the background of the cultures of other nationalities.

Culture and life of the Russian people

(Russian folk costume)

The first associations that arise with the concept of “Russian people” are, of course, breadth of soul and strength of spirit. But national culture is formed by people, and it is these character traits that have a huge impact on its formation and development.

One of the distinctive features of the Russian people has always been and is simplicity; in former times, Slavic houses and property were very often subjected to looting and complete destruction, hence the simplified attitude towards everyday issues. And of course, these trials that befell the long-suffering Russian people only strengthened their character, made them stronger and taught them to get out of any life situations with their heads held high.

Another trait that prevails in the character of the Russian ethnic group can be called kindness. The whole world is well aware of the concept of Russian hospitality, when “they feed you, give you something to drink, and put you to bed.” A unique combination of such qualities as cordiality, mercy, compassion, generosity, tolerance and, again, simplicity, very rarely found among other peoples of the world, all this is fully manifested in the very breadth of the Russian soul.

Hard work is another one of the main traits of the Russian character, although many historians in the study of the Russian people note both its love of work and enormous potential, as well as its laziness, as well as complete lack of initiative (remember Oblomov in Goncharov’s novel). But still, the efficiency and endurance of the Russian people is an indisputable fact that is difficult to argue against. And no matter how much scientists around the world want to understand the “mysterious Russian soul,” it is unlikely that any of them can do it, because it is so unique and multifaceted that its “zest” will forever remain a secret to everyone.

Traditions and customs of the Russian people

(Russian meal)

Folk traditions and customs are unique connection, a kind of “bridge of times” connecting the distant past with the present. Some of them have their roots in the pagan past of the Russian people, even before the baptism of Rus', little by little sacred meaning was lost and forgotten, but the main points were preserved and are still observed. In villages and towns, Russian traditions and customs are honored and remembered to a greater extent than in cities, which is due to more in a separate way lives of city residents.

A large number of rituals and traditions are associated with family life (this includes matchmaking, wedding celebrations, and the baptism of children). Carrying out ancient rites and rituals guaranteed successful and happy life, the health of descendants and the general well-being of the family.

(Colorized photograph of a Russian family at the beginning of the 20th century)

Since ancient times, Slavic families were distinguished by a large number of family members (up to 20 people); adult children, having already gotten married, remained to live in home, the head of the family was the father or older brother, everyone had to obey them and unquestioningly carry out all their orders. Typically, wedding celebrations were held either in the fall, after the harvest, or in the winter after the Epiphany holiday (January 19). Then the first week after Easter, the so-called “Red Hill,” began to be considered a very successful time for a wedding. The wedding itself was preceded by a matchmaking ceremony, when the groom's parents came to the bride's family together with his godparents, if the parents agreed to give their daughter in marriage, then a bridesmaid ceremony was held (meeting the future newlyweds), then there was a ceremony of collusion and hand-waving (the parents decided on the dowry and the date of the wedding festivities ).

The rite of baptism in Rus' was also interesting and unique, the child had to be baptized immediately after birth, for this purpose godparents were chosen, who would be responsible for the life and well-being of the godson all his life. When the baby was one year old, they sat him on the inside of a sheep's coat and cut his hair, cutting a cross on the crown, with such meaning that evil spirits would not be able to penetrate his head and would not have power over him. Every Christmas Eve (January 6), a slightly older godson should bring kutia (wheat porridge with honey and poppy seeds) to his godparents, and they, in turn, should give him sweets.

Traditional holidays of the Russian people

Russia is a truly unique state where, along with the highly developed culture of the modern world, they carefully honor ancient traditions their grandfathers and great-grandfathers, going back centuries and preserving the memory of not only Orthodox vows and canons, but also the most ancient pagan rituals and sacraments. And to this day pagan holidays are celebrated, people listen to signs and centuries-old traditions, remembers and tells his children and grandchildren ancient stories and legends.

Main national holidays:

• Christmas Jan. 7
• Christmastide January 6 - 9
• Baptism January 19
• Maslenitsa from 20 to 26 February

• Forgiveness Sunday ( before the onset of Lent)
• Palm Sunday ( on the Sunday before Easter)
• Easter ( the first Sunday after the full moon, which occurs no earlier than the day of the conventional vernal equinox on March 21)
• Red hill ( first Sunday after Easter)

• Trinity ( on Sunday on the day of Pentecost - the 50th day after Easter)
• Ivan Kupala July 7
• Peter and Fevronia Day July 8
• Elijah's day August 2

• Honey Spas August 14
• Apple Spas August 19
• Third (Khlebny) Spas August 29
• Pokrov day October 14

There is a belief that on the night of Ivan Kupala (July 6-7), once a year a fern flower blooms in the forest, and whoever finds it will gain untold wealth. In the evening, large bonfires are lit near rivers and lakes, people dressed in festive ancient Russian attires lead round dances, sing ritual chants, jump over the fire, and let wreaths float downstream, in the hope of finding their soul mate.

Maslenitsa - traditional holiday Russian people, celebrated during the week before Great Lent. A very long time ago, Maslenitsa was more likely not a holiday, but a ritual when the memory of departed ancestors was honored, placating them with pancakes, asking them for a fertile year, and spending the winter by burning a straw effigy. Time passed, and the Russian people, thirsting for fun and positive emotions in the cold and dull season, turned the sad holiday into a more cheerful and daring celebration, which began to symbolize the joy of the imminent end of winter and the arrival of the long-awaited warmth. The meaning has changed, but the tradition of baking pancakes remains, exciting winter activities: sledding and horse-drawn rides down hills, a straw effigy of Winter was burned, throughout Maslenitsa week relatives went to pancakes either with their mother-in-law or sister-in-law, an atmosphere of celebration and fun reigned everywhere, various theatrical and theatrical events were held on the streets puppet shows with the participation of Petrushka and other folklore characters. One of the very colorful and dangerous entertainments on Maslenitsa was fist fights; the male population took part in them, for whom it was an honor to take part in a kind of “military affair” that tested their courage, boldness and dexterity.

Christmas and Easter are considered especially revered Christian holidays among the Russian people.

The Nativity of Christ is not only a bright holiday of Orthodoxy, it also symbolizes the revival and return to life, the traditions and customs of this holiday, filled with kindness and humanity, high moral ideals and the triumph of the spirit over worldly concerns, are being rediscovered and rethought by society in the modern world. The day before Christmas (January 6) is called Christmas Eve because the main dish festive table, which should consist of 12 dishes, is a special porridge “sochivo”, consisting of boiled cereal, drizzled with honey, sprinkled with poppy seeds and nuts. You can sit down at the table only after the first star appears in the sky. Christmas (January 7) is a family holiday, when everyone gathered at one table, ate a festive treat and gave each other gifts. The 12 days after the holiday (until January 19) are called Christmastide. Previously, at this time, girls in Rus' held various gatherings with fortune telling and rituals to attract suitors.

Easter has long been considered a great holiday in Rus', which people associated with the day of general equality, forgiveness and mercy. On the eve of Easter celebrations, Russian women usually bake kulichi (festive rich Easter bread) and Easter eggs, clean and decorate their homes, young people and children paint eggs, which, according to ancient legend, symbolize drops of the blood of Jesus Christ crucified on the cross. On the day of Holy Easter, smartly dressed people, meeting, say “Christ is Risen!”, answer “Truly He is Risen!”, followed by a three-time kiss and an exchange of festive Easter eggs.

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Introduction

1. Psychology of the nation

1.2.2 Dynamic components of the psychology of a nation

2. Features of the psychology of the Russian nation

2.1 Features of the formation of Russian national identity

2.2 Psychological characteristics of Russians

Conclusion

List of sources and literature used

Introduction

From the whole variety of phenomena and socio-psychological problems of the community, the subject most attention Researchers-philosophers, sociologists and psychologists have always been interested in the psychology of nations. The study of national psychology has aroused interest in society since ancient times, since the nations themselves were formed with their inherent psychological characteristics. The development of human society was accompanied by an expansion of knowledge about the surrounding world, the accumulation of information about near and distant peoples. Already in ancient times, along with ethnographic observations, which were based on natural human curiosity, military, political and economic interests, attempts were made to theoretically generalize ethnopsychological data. Among the outstanding researchers of the psychology of nations were Herodotus (490-425 BC), Hippocrates (c. 460-370 BC), Democritus (c. 460-350 BC). ). Great contributions to the development of the theory of the psychology of nations were made by C. Helvetius (1715-1771), C. Montesquieu (1689-1755), D. Hume (1711-1776), G. Hegel (1770-1831).

The beginning of ethnic psychology proper as independent industry knowledge was founded by M. Lazarus (1824-1903) and H. Steinthal (1823-1899), whose ideas were then developed in the works of W. Wundt (1832-1920), G. Lebon (1841-1931), G. Tarde ( 1843-1904), N.K. Mikhailovsky (1842-1904), N.A. Berdyaev (1874-1948), V.M. Bekhtereva (1857-1927), D.N. Ovsyaniko-Kulikovsky (1853-1920), G.G. Shpet (1879-1937) and other scientists.

Of course, modern psychology of ethnic groups has been significantly enriched compared to past times. A significant contribution to its development was made by the works of domestic scientists S.M. Harutyunyan, Yu.V. Bromley, G.D. Gacheva, P.I. Gnatenko, V.G. Krysko, A.A. Nalchadzhyan, Yu.P. Platonova, Z.V. Sikevich, G.U. Soldatova, T.G. Stefanenko and others.

Relevance of course work. Today, interest in the fundamentals of national psychology is dictated by the urgent needs of reality, the harsh reality of the modern world. The processes of expanding interethnic ties, the collapse of a number of multinational states, aggressive nationalism, a whole series of bloody ethnic conflicts, and international terrorism completely refute the humanistic illusions about a single humanity and the future erasure of national local differences. Globalization and modernization of society, including in our country, are marked by ethnic tensions. These processes affect the psychological atmosphere of society, including the state of psychology of the peoples of Russia. Recently, there have been many transformations in various areas of activity, which are taking place as a “carbon copy”, according to Western patterns. This is due to the fact that with liberal reforms and globalism brings values, culture, technology, ideas, scientific thought, and images of the Western world to our country. And very often, these innovations do not take into account our native specifics, the specifics of the Russian people and society, which were formed throughout the entire period of our Russian history. In this regard, the study of the psychology of the Russian nation is especially relevant.

In the course of this study, I would like to touch upon some problems directly related to the ethnic conditioning of the individual, to the problem of self-determination of an individual living in a society that is heterogeneous in its national components.

The psychology of a nation has its basis: language; consciousness and self-awareness, including national ethnicity, national stereotypes, national values; national interests and tastes; culture; their specific media. The psychology of a nation is a combination of the properties of each specific nation, unique in its individuality, forming a unity and reflecting what this community has in common. National psychology consists of the following structural elements: national temperament, national character, national mentality, national traditions, national feelings and emotional states. It should be noted that in reality, in national life, all the identified components act as an undifferentiated whole, therefore the division of national psychology is possible only in abstraction, as methodical technique necessary for their more detailed study.

The object of the study is the psychology of the Russian nation.

The subject of the study is the specifics of the psychology of the Russian nation.

The purpose of this work is to study such a phenomenon as the psychology of the Russian nation.

To achieve this goal, it is necessary to solve a number of problems:

1. study the psychological basis of nations;

2. study the content of the psychology of nations;

3. summarize the features of the formation of Russian national identity

4. identify the psychological characteristics of the Russian nation

The structure of the course work. The course work consists of an introduction, two chapters, a conclusion and a list of references.

1. Psychology of the nation

1.1 Psychological basis of the nation

psychology nation Russian self-awareness

The set of traditional characteristics of behavior and mental activity inherent in the representatives of a given people, transmitted from generation to generation, is usually considered as the psychology of nations or national psychology. It represents one of the stable foundations of behavior of people of one nation, even those belonging to different social strata. There are implicitly two components of this phrase - “national” and “psychology”. The word “psychology” has two meanings: everyday, everyday and scientific. In everyday language, the word “psychology” is used to characterize the mental make-up of a person (its “mentally colored” part), the characteristics of a particular person, a group of people: “he (they) have such a psychology.”

Nation is a very vague polysemantic concept in modern science, used to characterize large socio-cultural communities of the industrial and post-industrial era. There are two main approaches to understanding a nation. In historical materialism, a nation is highest form historical community, which, in addition to ethnic characteristics, also presupposes economic, political (has own statehood), cultural community. In modern European science, a nation is a civil community that includes people of different ethnicities, but united by the state, law, and political and legal culture. The nations are Germans, French, Americans, etc. .

The original concept of the main features and conditions for the formation of a nation was proposed by the Russian-American sociologist P.A. Sorokin. According to P.A. Sorokin, a nation is a diverse (multifunctional), solidary, organized, semi-closed socio-cultural group, at least partially aware of the fact of its existence and development. This group consists of individuals who:

1) are citizens of the same state;

2) have a common or similar language and a common set of cultural values ​​originating from a common past history these individuals and their predecessors;

3) occupy the common territory on which they live or their ancestors lived.

P.A. Sorokin emphasizes that state, linguistic, cultural and territorial communities by themselves do not yet give rise to a nation. Only when a group of individuals belongs to a single state, is bound by a common language and territory, does it truly form a nation.

Thus, a nation is a historical community of people, consisting of a national elite, intelligentsia, people, united by a national-civilizational idea, spiritual culture, state power, a social formation, a way of life and competing with other nations for a place in human and earthly space. In this regard, the nation acts as a historically earlier community compared to civilization and is the basis and obstacle to the development of the latter. The most important structural element of a nation is the national elite (spiritual, political, economic), this is its brain and consciousness, it governs the nation in difficult historical conditions.

Let us explain some important characteristics of a nation (people). Historical destiny includes the totality historical events, which were experienced by representatives of a given people during its existence. Mongol-Tatar yoke, Battle of Kulikovo, Troubles of the 16th century, invasion of Napoleon, October Revolution, building socialism, the Great Patriotic War, etc. - these are the events that Russians experienced and which they know about from training and communication with elders.

One of the main signs of the existence of a nation is historical memory, which represents the testaments of antiquity, the traditions of our fathers, the feeling of only one birth, i.e. involvement in the spiritual mission of one’s clan, people, nation, Motherland. A person with historical memory is aware of his place in the spiritual relay of generations. A representative of a particular nation can understand who he is only by remembering who his ancestors were.

The most important feature of a nation is the self-identification of its members. Thus, E. Gellner writes that a group of people becomes a people if and when the members of this group firmly recognize certain common rights and obligations towards each other by virtue of the membership that unites them. It is the mutual recognition of such an association that turns them into a nation, and not other qualities - whatever they may be - that separate this group from all those standing outside it. E. Gellner insists that it is the conscious, ideological aspects of people, and not objective factors (territory, language, economy, state, as was believed in Marxism-Leninism) that turn people into nations.

The concept of “nation” is somewhat broader and more complex than the concept of “ethnicity”. “Ethnos” translated from Greek means “tribe”, “people”. This concept is very ambiguous and multifaceted. In colloquial language it is traditionally called the people. In scientific discourse, scientists have not reached a consensus on its content. Some consider racial differences to be the main distinguishing feature of an ethnic group, i.e. a special combination of hereditary biological characteristics such as skin color, facial features and physique. Other researchers, such as the American sociologist N. Smelser, consider ethnicity as a social community, while others, for example, L.N. Gumilyov - as a behavioral one. There are other approaches to defining ethnicity. Note that, despite the diversity existing points In general, all researchers are talking about approximately the same set of features.

Nations can be homogeneous or heterogeneous. The difference between them is that the former were formed on the basis of one ethnic group (for example, the Polish nation), and the latter as a result of the interaction of various ethnic groups (for example, almost all Latin American nations). Therefore, for a national community, in contrast to an ethnic one, the most characteristic features are socio-economic (primarily the presence of a common market throughout the entire territory of the country), political (the presence of a certain form of statehood, as well as the unification of the language, etc.).

Derived from the word “nation” is the term “nationality” - a certain genetic, socio-economic and cultural community people, social characteristics of representatives of specific nations. In the traditional sense, a person can belong to only one nation (Russian, Korean, Japanese, etc.). This makes it possible to identify whether a person or group of people belongs to a particular nationality or nation (for example, in a population census, questionnaire, passport registration system).

Each nation exists due to a system of stable internal connections and relationships of its constituent people. The possibility of a long-term existence of a nation is determined by the functioning and constant improvement of the foundations of an original national psychology, which are expressed in the national language, consciousness and self-awareness, national interests and tastes. The manifestation of all these components constitutes the life of a nation.

The fundamental basis of any nation is language - an objective form of accumulation, preservation and transmission of human experience. The term "language" has at least two interrelated meanings:

1) language in general, language as a certain set of sound, vocabulary and grammatical means of expressing thoughts;

2) a specific, so-called national language - a specific really existing sign system used in a specific community, at a specific time and in a specific space. The plurality of languages ​​is inversely proportional to the number of people who speak them: out of 1500 languages, 22 belong to 75% of humanity, and 7 languages ​​belong to 50% of humanity.

There are about 3 thousand languages ​​in the world, of which 2796 are described, another 4 thousand languages ​​are dead. All this diverse material, on the basis of genealogical classification, is reduced into related groups and branches, united in the highest classification form - the language family. Language is a socio-historical phenomenon, therefore the concept of family when applied to them means only that these languages ​​are interconnected in the process of origin and historical development, the character of which is determined by its social nature.

Those that do not show any genetic connections are allocated to a special group of isolated (or independent) languages. The latter include Basque (Spain, France), Andamanese (Russia), Ainu (Russia, Japan), Japanese and Korean (recently, connections between Korean and the Tungus-Manchu languages ​​have been found). One of the most studied and numerous language families is Indo-European, whose languages ​​are spoken by 45% of the world's population. This family is divided into 11 groups, including the Slavic, which includes three subgroups: East Slavic (Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians); West Slavic (Poles, Sorbians, Czechs, Slovaks) and South Slavic (Slovenians, Croats, Bosnians, Serbs, Montenegrins, Macedonians, Bulgarians). Until now, the time of formation of the Indo-European language family and the place of the initial formation of the peoples included in it have not been established precisely - these issues continue to be the subject of debate.

The national language is the conceptual and logical apparatus that is inherent in the worldview of a particular people.

Structural properties of language:

a) symbol dictionary - a warehouse of elements for creating messages. For example, in the English language there are about 500 thousand common words and 500 thousand. special words. But in normal communication, about 5 thousand words are used. Educated person can know up to 15 thousand. Shakespeare's dictionary is approximately 30 thousand words.

b) grammar - the rules by which sentences (patterns) are constructed. Grammars vary in complexity. English is classified as simple, and German or Russian is classified as complex.

c) syntax - rules for managing words. The Russian language is syntactically freer than English. Perhaps this is due to the attitude of Russian people towards order.

d) languages ​​are redundant: one word can express different meanings. For example, a complete English dictionary lists about 14,000 possible definitions for the 500 most common words. A simple word like round has 79 meanings.

Language is not only differentiated (diverse), but also stratified by levels. The main forms of language are distinguished: literary, colloquial, vernacular, territorial dialects, social dialects (sociolects).

It is obvious that representatives of different nations look at the world with different eyes. It's not even about the eyes. We may know another people's customs, preferences and taboos, we may even internalize their beliefs and philosophy, but only by learning their language would we be able to throw off (in terms of our ability to describe the world) the shackles of our native language and perceive reality as fully as they do. Different languages ​​correspond to different experiences, and we have no choice but to study languages. We cannot learn them all, but the mere fact that we are familiar with the problem and take into account the picture of the world of a foreign friend will help establish such a level of mutual understanding as is possible with differences in national psychologies.

Thanks to a single language of communication for the entire community, the most important information communications are realized, justice and public administration are carried out. In the Soviet Union, the equality of the languages ​​of all peoples inhabiting the vast country was officially proclaimed. But formal equality does not mean actual equality. Different languages ​​cannot really be equal in terms of the scope of functions they perform. Therefore, in a multinational state, a certain hierarchy of languages ​​is certainly established - spontaneously or legislatively. The language of interethnic communication is of primary importance. Historically, this role was played by the Russian language on the territory of the Russian Empire and then the USSR. In the newly formed states the situation has changed radically. The situation of the Russian and Russian-speaking population almost everywhere became more and more difficult. A civilized solution to this problem is seen in the legislative introduction of bilingualism.

So, a common language lays the foundation for the formation of a unified national culture and ethics. And also such a subtle psychological phenomenon, which in psychology is called the collective unconscious. National language, being effective means communication, accumulation and expression of the experience of members of a nation, allows us to give their culture and all life a specific sound and self-expression. And, of course, based on it, mutual sympathy, trust in interpersonal relationships, and compatibility of all representatives of the nation arise and constantly manifest themselves, functioning as a result as a single and indivisible organism.

The interaction of such features of a national community as territory, historical memory, language, etc., their total influence on its preservation are expressed in the form of a secondary phenomenon - national consciousness. National consciousness is the totality of a nation’s ideas about its origin, history, place in the modern world, and relations with other similar communities. This is part of public consciousness (theoretical and everyday, social psychology, political, legal, moral, religious, philosophical consciousness, etc.), which bears the features of national identity.

National consciousness exists at the theoretical and everyday levels. The theoretical level of national consciousness is a scientifically formalized, systematized structure consisting of national ideas developed by a nation over a long period of its existence and determining the strategy of its development.

The national idea is ideas, firstly, about a national society, which in the national consciousness is represented as an ideal, and secondly, about the place of this national society in the global system. This is a systemic quality of a nation (people) and characterizes it in relationships with other peoples of humanity. This idea orients the state toward certain goals and objectives that are of decisive importance in given specific historical conditions. The national idea characterizes the nation as a state whole and is the core of national identity and the defining feature of the nation. By acquiring its idea, a nation rises to a higher level of self-awareness, organization, cohesion, initiative and activity.

Several ideas can be listed that people, represented by their ruling elites, choose as national:

1) preserving oneself among other peoples in demographic, cultural, economic, political terms;

2) state self-determination within a federation or the creation of an independent national state for the purpose of developing one’s land, preserving and developing one’s national culture and civilizational identity;

3) participation together with other peoples in the development of the Earth and the organization of the life of earthlings;

4) the desire for regional or world domination, etc.

The listed types of national ideas can be combined. The choice of one or another idea as a national one depends on the number of people, the size of its territory, economic power, military potential, the ruling class, the ruling elite, the preached ideology, and leaders.

Today, in the public consciousness of Russians, a wide range of very different, sometimes mutually exclusive ideas have emerged - from nostalgia for “developed socialism” to a reckless desire for “pure capitalism”, from extreme “Westernism” to modern versions Eurasianism. In some circles of the public there are calls for the promotion of a national idea for Russia. It is believed that it should be formulated briefly, expressively, understandably for the people and correspond to the worldview of our ideocratic society, accustomed to living under the shadow of some inspiring idea.

The ordinary level of national consciousness includes the needs, interests, value orientations, attitudes, stereotypes, feelings, moods and traditions of members of this community, manifested in everyday life and activities. All these components are in close unity and are inextricably linked with each other. It should be noted that ordinary national consciousness is the main psychological basis various kinds of interethnic tensions and conflicts, since it is in it that national prejudices, negative attitudes, and intolerance to other characteristics are formed.

In general, national consciousness has the following characteristics:

The presence of a holistic ethnic picture of the world, which is a set of stable, coherent ideas and judgments about social existence, life and activities inherent in members of a particular ethnic community;

Its “correct” transmission from generation to generation in the process of socialization normally developed by a given ethnic community;

His determination of the entire holistic and complex perception of life by the ethnic community;

Its correlation with behavioral stereotypes characteristic of members of a given ethnic group;

Its compliance with the social conditions of life of an ethnic community, the stage of its social development, the structure of life support (material base), as well as the relationship of the ethnic picture of the world with the norms and values ​​​​dominant among other peoples, which can be expressed as inclusion of oneself in some interethnic cultural unity or as isolation , opposing oneself to other nations.

National consciousness is a product of long historical development, and its central component is national self-awareness, which is understood as the awareness by members of an ethnos of their group unity and belonging to a particular ethnic community. National identity can express the interests of both a separate ethnic group (Western and Eastern Buryats, Northern and Southern Udmurts) and the nation as a whole (Russians, French).

National self-awareness usually has three main components - cognitive, emotional-evaluative and behavioral. The cognitive component of self-awareness characterizes the content of the ethnophor's (individual as a bearer of national consciousness) ideas about himself. It includes everything that allows him, on the one hand, to feel a community with his people, other ethnic groups, to unite himself with them, and on the other hand, to distinguish himself from everyone else, to recognize himself as a special, unique person.

The emotional-evaluative attitude towards oneself is manifested in self-esteem. National self-esteem is a value that, to varying degrees of significance, is attributed to both the nation as a whole and its individual aspects. It combines an individual’s assessment of his capabilities and qualities, his role in the ethnic community with an assessment of the significance of the nation as a whole among other nations. National self-esteem can be:

Understated, when a person does not know the capabilities and merits of his people, has not revealed his and his potentials, is burdened by the imaginary inferiority of his fellow tribesmen and therefore, if possible, disowns them (in this case, such human states as humiliation, depression, oppression, humility, etc.) .p., which are often transformed into the state of the ethnic group as a whole);

Adequately low, when a person is convinced of the significance and value of his nation, is aware of its so far insignificant or not fully appreciated contribution to interethnic cooperation, but is not depressed by this, believes in the future, although he does not flaunt this conviction (he, together with his people takes upon himself all the hardships of his real situation);

Adequately high, when a person is convinced of the significance and value of his nation, knows its historical and modern contribution to the world community, is proud of famous representatives of his people, idolizes them and strives to follow their path (pride, a sense of national dignity, respect for oneself and one’s ethnic group - this is what such a person experiences);

Overestimated, in which a person, for some reason, overestimates the weight of his own nation among others, deliberately emphasizes its exclusivity, constantly emphasizes its well-known and little-known advantages, inadequately overestimates the importance of its representatives, while identifying himself with them:

The level of self-esteem predetermines a person’s behavior in relation to both his own and other ethnic groups. Extreme levels of self-esteem - both low and high - have a negative impact. The danger of the first is that a person with low national self-esteem behaves inertly, passively, does not strive to change the current situation and can become a silent instrument in the hands of unscrupulous people. Equally, if not more, dangerous for interethnic contacts is inflated national self-esteem, especially for those people who dogmatically believe in its infallibility. Such an assessment naturally determines appropriate behavior towards other people. D. Carnegie noticed this very subtly, although with a certain bias, when speaking about the irrepressible craving for awareness of one’s own high importance among people of different nationalities: “Don’t you think that you are higher than the Japanese? But, in truth, the Japanese believe that they are much higher than you. Thus, a conservative Japanese becomes furious when he sees white man, dancing with a Japanese woman...” .

The result and outcome of the identification process is ethnic identity. Ethnic identity of a person is awareness of oneself as a representative of a certain ethnic group, a person’s experience of his identity with one ethnic community and separation from others. It is necessary to differentiate the concepts of ethnic identity and ethnicity - a sociological category related to the definition of ethnicity according to a number of objective characteristics: ethnicity of parents, place of birth, language, culture. If ethnicity is an ascriptive (attributed by society) characteristic, then ethnic identity is achieved by an individual in the process of constructing social reality based on ethnicity, but is not reduced to it.

There are two main components in the structure of ethnic identity:

1. Cognitive, which characterizes the content of ethnic identity and consists of:

Ethnic awareness - objective knowledge and subjective ideas about ethnicity, about one’s own and other ethnic groups, their history and traditions;

Ethnic label-ethnonym (self-name).

2. Emotional-evaluative, which combines:

A person’s experience of identity with an ethnic community;

Satisfaction with one’s own ethnicity and assessment of its significance;

Desire to belong to an ethnic group;

A complex of ethnic emotions and feelings (pride, love, devotion, commitment, solidarity, resentment, shame, guilt, infringement, humiliation, etc.).

Recognition of the unity of one’s origin with other members of the community and difference from others is recorded in the name of the people - the ethnonym. It is formed both in the process of ethnogenesis and in interaction in contacts with other peoples. Ethnonyms are divided into endoethnonyms (endononyms) and exoethnonyms (exononyms). Endononyms are self-names, i.e. what the people themselves call themselves. An exononym, in contrast to an endononym, is a name given to an ethnic group by another ethnic group.

Ethnic identity is more pronounced among those people who live in a cultural environment that is significantly different from their own. An important role is played by the fact which ethnic majority (or minority) group a person belongs to. Ideas about ethnic groups are formed more quickly and sharply among members of an ethnic minority, but sometimes in childhood members of a minority do not prefer their own group, but want to be in the group of the ethnic majority.

There are three main types of ethnic identity: ethnocentric, multiethnic and transethnic. Ethnocentric identity denotes a person’s orientation towards only one thing, his ethnic community, with which he associates his expectations, life plans, installations, your destiny. Everything that is ours, “ours,” is the best, superior to everything else. But there are cases when people not only do not consider their own culture, morals, and customs to be the best, but, on the contrary, they display something like an inferiority complex, revering everything foreign. Multiethnic identity is characterized by an equal attitude towards several ethnic groups, knowledge or desire to know several languages, a desire to simultaneously be in two or more cultural environments. Transethnicity manifests itself when a person, without classifying himself as a member of any ethnic group, considers himself to be part of all humanity, reaching the supra-ethnic level of understanding his “I” as a subject of the world community (citizen of the world).

Under the influence of various factors, ethnic identity is updated and undergoes certain transformations. Highlight the following types transformations:

a) ethnic indifference (indifference to one’s ethnicity, national values, independence from the traditions of one’s ethnic group, etc.);

b) hyperidentity (national fanaticism, ethno-isolationism, ethno-egoism);

c) hypoidentity (ethnonihilism - denial of the value of ethnicity as such, usually associated with a derogatory assessment of the status of the ethnic group with which the person is related by origin).

Ethnic identity, being one of the most important components of social identity, is closely interconnected with civil, religious, European and other identities.

Stereotypes are important elements of national identity. A national stereotype is a simplified, schematized, emotionally charged and extremely stable image of a national community, easily extended to all its representatives ( ethnic image), as well as a schematized program of behavior typical for representatives of any ethnic group.

Western social psychologists identify four characteristics of a stereotype:

2. Uniformity - the degree to which people agree in their attributions national group certain characteristics.

3. Orientation - the general positive or negative perception of the object of stereotyping.

4. Intensity - the degree of prejudice towards the stereotyped group, expressed in the stereotype.

National stereotypes are formed on the basis of selectivity - comparison of one's nation with others. Stereotypes are positive, negative and neutral; overgeneralized and overly simplified; accurate and approximate.

A behavior stereotype is a system of stable, regularly repeated forms of behavior, transmitted from generation to generation through training and education and, to a greater extent, through the conditioned reflex of imitation. The first relates to conscious actions - to the sociosphere, the second to subconscious - to the biosphere, as well as to the ethnosphere. Historically, the formation of each ethnic group has always been associated with a specific territory, but in the modern world a very small number of ethnic groups live compactly - many of them are scattered across countries and continents.

National differences are manifested in the way people dress, eat, and in their favorite postures of standing or sitting, although all people on earth dress, eat, and sit. These differences are manifested in the design of actions, while the nature of the actions remains universal (you can eat with a spoon, chopsticks, hands, etc., but you cannot eat at all). Even if they get into a traffic accident, representatives of the same nationality explain this objective reasons(for example, poor visibility, road condition), while in relation to a representative of another nationality the reason is attributed to the driver’s personality. Stereotyped forms of behavior include rituals, customs, standards of communication (etiquette), technological processes ( work practices and skills), traditional ways of raising and teaching children, play behavior, organizing recreation, holidays, fashion, methods of courtship, insults, punishment, etc.

Changes national stereotypes occur very slowly and are determined by the relationship between national and ethnic groups; for example, the stereotype of Hungarians changed several times, although the national character could not change at such a speed.

The phenomenon of ethnocentrism is closely related to national identity. Ethnocentrism is defined as the ability of national self-awareness and national consciousness to perceive and evaluate the world around us through the prism of the traditions and values ​​of one’s own ethnic group, which is obviously recognized as better than all others. The extreme form of ethnocentrism is the belief in the biological and cultural superiority of members of one's own ethnic group over other groups, but even in its mildest forms, ethnocentrism manifests itself as a tendency to evaluate all other ethnic groups from the perspective of the interests of one's own.

Being one of the mechanisms for uniting an ethnic group, ethnocentrism is often purposefully stimulated and exploited by ideological and political structures for the purpose of rapid and effective ethnopolitical mobilization and consolidation. Ethnocentrism can have both positive consequences, acting as the basis of patriotism, and negative ones, leading to nationalism and chauvinism. Nationalism is an ideology, social practice and policy based on the idea of ​​the superiority of some, “superior” nations over others, “inferior”, “inferior”. Nationalism is characterized by preaching exclusivity and superiority, and a disdainful attitude towards other nations and nationalities.

A special role in the life of a nation is played by its national interests, which are understood as a generalized expression of the urgent needs of the majority of members of a particular ethnic group related to ensuring its existence and development. They are the result of understanding history, the actual state of affairs and the long-term goal of the nation’s development. Long-term national interests include: maintaining or restoring the territorial integrity of the regions where an ethnic group lives, preserving or achieving national independence, ensuring its optimal numbers, preserving the national language and culture, etc.

National interests are the basis of patriotism, channeled emotions, such as historical optimism, faith in the future, etc. National interests are one of the powerful driving forces of behavior and activity of both the ethnic group itself and its members - individuals. Therefore, any attempts to infringe on national interests are perceived as an attack on the vital foundations of the corresponding ethnic community and are fraught with aggravation of interethnic relations. An attempt to infringe on the interests of a nation is always considered by its members as an attack on their freedom and vital rights. Possessing a developed national consciousness, representatives of various ethnic communities strive for unity, do not compromise their national interests, protecting them by all possible means, not only political, but also legal, as well as armed.

The national interests of the Russian people, for example, have always been expressed in the desire of its representatives to live in peace with other nations, the desire to provide them with help and support and, thus, maintain an atmosphere of friendship and mutual assistance in the multinational Russian society, thereby ensuring its cohesion.

National interests are based on the values ​​of the nation. In the very in a broad sense Values ​​are usually understood as phenomena of reality (facts of the ideal and material world) that have one or another meaning for societies, their groups or individuals. They appeared in the history of the human race as certain spiritual supports that help a person to organize reality and introduce evaluative moments into its understanding. Values ​​are revealed in the connection between the subject, who cognizes and transforms the world, and the object on which the subject’s influence is directed.

In the context of globalization, the question of the relationship between universal and national values ​​arises. A number of documents and declarations of major international organizations (UN, UNESCO) note the paramount importance of universal human values ​​and assert that they should form the spiritual basis of modern society, going beyond social, religious and national boundaries. These statements are sometimes met with an ironic or even clearly negative attitude. However, universal human values ​​undoubtedly exist. For example, among the universal human values ​​common to Russians and Europeans are the following: 1) respect for the intellect, science, education and enlightenment; 2) love for the motherland, patriotism; 3) a tendency to be proud of the history of one’s country, its culture and great figures; 4) natural desire to be happy; 5) predominance of traditions, conservatism; 6) thirst for justice; 7) temperament and sensitivity; 8) sense of humor; 9) artistry, taste, penchant for artistic creativity; 10) sociability, love of conversation.

National values ​​act as social and psychological regulators of the behavior of people of the same ethnicity. Different ethnic groups may give preference to different values: for example, in one community heroism on the battlefield is valued, and life is viewed as war, in another, humility and renunciation of the joys of life come to the fore, i.e. asceticism. Moreover, such values ​​are, if not universal, then very widespread, characteristic of a given nation.

The specificity of national interests is given by national tastes, which represent a historically established uniqueness in the understanding, assessments and attitude towards significant values, life phenomena, good and bad among the majority of representatives of a particular ethnic community. National tastes are manifested in behavior, everyday culture, lifestyle, home decoration, clothing, relationships between people, art, literature, painting, dance and music of representatives of specific ethnic groups.

The psychology of a nation is a complex structural formation. It includes static (system-forming, conservative, long-term) and dynamic (mobile, short-term) components.

1.2.1 Statistical components of the psychology of a nation

The main elements of the static component of national psychology are psychological makeup (in the narrow sense of the word), national mindset and traditions. The psychological makeup usually includes national temperament and character as components. The concept of “national temperament” is borrowed from general psychology. It defines temperament as constant and stable natural properties individuals who determine the dynamics of mental activity regardless of its content. The properties of temperament are: 1) extraversion and introversion; 2) sensitivity; 3) the rate of reactions; 4) plasticity and rigidity; 5) reactivity and activity. Extraversion - introversion determines what a person’s reactions and activities primarily depend on - on external impressions arising at the moment (extrovert), or on a person’s internal images associated with the past and future (introvert). Extroverts include sanguine and choleric, and introverts include phlegmatic and melancholic. Sensitivity characterizes the least force of external influence necessary for the occurrence of a particular mental reaction, and the speed of its development. A person who is characterized by sensitivity subtly senses the mood of others, knows how to take it into account, knows how to console and support another person. High sensitivity in the absence of neurotic reactions makes a person calm. Such a person is sensitive and attentive, but will not tolerate inappropriate behavior and will calmly answer or refuse communication. By nature, the most sensitive melancholic people.

The rate of reactions characterizes the rate of occurrence mental processes and reactions (speed of mind, pace of speech, dynamics of gestures). The rate of reactions is increased in choleric people, sanguine people and well-rested melancholic people and decreased in phlegmatic people and tired melancholic people. Reactivity is the degree of involuntary reactions to external and internal influences and irritations (critical remark, offensive word, harsh tone, external influence). These are automated defense and orientation reactions. High reactivity is in choleric and sanguine people, low - in phlegmatic people. Activity - characterizes the expression of a person’s energy potential, with which a person overcomes obstacles and achieves goals. Activity is expressed in perseverance, focus, concentration and is the main quality of temperament that contributes to achieving the goal. A phlegmatic person is most active, although due to low reactivity he gets involved in work more slowly. The phlegmatic person is highly active and is not in danger of overwork. In a choleric person, high activity is combined with reactivity. Sanguine people are quite active, but if the activity is monotonous, they may lose interest in it. Melancholic people are characterized by low activity.

Temperament leaves its mark on business communication: sociability, or sociability, is different for people with different types of temperament. The most pronounced communication abilities are among sanguine people, who easily and quickly establish psychological contact with communication partners and maintain an active dialogue with them.

Phlegmatic people, compared to sanguine people, do not establish contact with people as easily, but they are able to maintain stable business relationships with partners for a long time, although, of course, their circle of contacts is less wide than that of sanguine people.

Melancholic people experience specific difficulties in communication, which are associated with an internal fear of new situations and new people. In progress business communication Melancholic people are often lost and confused and require psychological support from others.

A choleric person is psychologically difficult to communicate: it is difficult for him to communicate and it is difficult for him to communicate with him. The choleric person is prevented from establishing good and long-term psychological contact by his temper and lack of restraint. The choleric person constantly strives for leadership in interpersonal relationships, which causes opposition from other partners.

National temperament is determined by a genetic factor, the type of higher nervous activity prevailing in a given country. Its originality is explained by the influence of the physical and climatic environment, lifestyle, occupation of ethnophors, and specific ethnic culture. Hence the obvious differences in emotional reactions to life situations, phenomena of the familiar and unusual environment. In popular scientific literature, as a rule, the “southern” (subtropical) temperament is distinguished southern peoples and the “cold” temperament of the northern peoples. It is generally accepted, for example, that residents of central Russia are sanguine by temperament, while representatives of the Caucasian peoples are choleric. However, this does not exclude the presence of other temperaments among these people.

Features of temperament are often masked and transformed by systems of connections developed under the influence of life, education and self-education, i.e. character - an individual combination of stable psychological characteristics a person, determining a typical way of behavior and emotional response for a given person in certain life situations and circumstances.

The structure of character includes such interconnected essential components that are common to all people. The structure and content of each person’s character are determined by:

a) the dynamics of the will (depending on how capable a person is of achieving his goals, i.e. whether his will is weak or strong);

b) the specificity of the manifestation of a person’s emotions and the emotional background (for example, conflict) that accompanies certain of his actions;

c) intellectual characteristics of a person;

d) the interconnection of all these components (for the structure of character, what is important is how fused they are, harmonious with each other, or, conversely, in conflict or contradicting each other.

A person’s character is determined by his attitude towards the world, other people, business and himself. Relationships are related to beliefs and worldview. Belief is a certain mental state, which is characterized by a genetic inseparability of intellectual-rational, sensory-emotional and volitional components. This is a sensory experience of knowledge as value-significant, reliable, filled with the energy of will.

Beliefs contain what people are actually committed to, what they are guided by in their daily activities, and what they embody in patterns and patterns of behavior. When beliefs change, the entire complex of personal orientations in the world around us radically changes. The evolution of beliefs relates, first of all, to their content. The features of the individual’s worldview, which constitutes the core of character, increasingly appear in them.

Almost all scientists admit that character can be decomposed into certain elements (traits, properties, qualities, etc.). What is the specific list of these elements, the way they are organized, and other structural problems? Different theories give different answers to these questions. Scientists are more united in general requirements for the structure of traits than in describing exhaustive structures, of which there are very few in science today. So, N.D. Levitov proposed one of the most complete classifications of character traits. By traits he understands complex individual characteristics that are indicative of a person. The main thing when studying traits is to identify the leading ones among them. He divides all traits into two groups: traits of orientation and volitional traits. Traits related to the content and subject of focus include issues of worldview and culture, attitude towards science and art, attitude towards oneself and other people, attitude towards work, focus on non-existent goals. On the traits associated with the psychological nature of orientation, N.D. Levitov refers to meaningfulness, rationality; emotional traits; strong-willedness, enthusiasm. Traits associated with directional strength include depth, stability, and flexibility.

N.D. Levitov believes that a character type is a specific expression of general traits in the individual character. Because a person’s character is always a product of society, which reflects a variety of typical traits: professional, age, national.

An integral characteristic of a representative of a nation is national character - a historically established set of stable psychological traits of representatives of a particular ethnic community that determine their habitual manner of behavior and typical image actions and manifested in their attitude to the social and everyday environment, to the surrounding world, to work, to their own and other nations.

The concept of “national character” includes only those character traits that are characteristic of the majority of representatives of an ethnic group, which arose as a result of their common communications, experiences, and lifestyle.

National character can be described by such parameters as conservatism, religiosity, optimism, pessimism, efficiency, practicality, accuracy, punctuality, commitment, enterprise, passivity, disorganization. For example, representatives of some ethnic groups, according to Russians, look like this: Englishman: prim, calm, reasonable, critical, smart; German: practical, organized, hardworking, punctual, efficient; Russian: frank, generous, reckless, kind, impractical, trusting, peace-loving; Georgian: selfish, impulsive, combative, aggressive; Tatar: proud, self-confident, quick-witted, hardworking, cunning, quick-tempered.

The basis of character is an attitude - a person’s unconscious predisposition to perceive and evaluate certain situations, people in a certain way and an unconscious readiness to act in a certain, pre-formed way, without taking into account the specific situation, i.e. attitude is readiness for a certain activity.

In sociology there is the concept of “social character,” which includes socially determined elements of a person’s character, primarily needs, interests, beliefs, i.e. those elements of character that orient a person in the social environment. In this regard, the “market character” is distinguished, traditional character(focused on the traditions of society), individualistic character (focused on oneself), collectivist character (focused on others), etc.

Recently, the concept of “national character” has been used less and less in scientific literature; it has been replaced by the concepts of “mentality” and “mentality” to denote the psychological characteristics of ethnic communities. The category “mentality” originates from the adjective mentalis, which appeared in the 14th century and in medieval scholasticism denoted belonging to reason, reason, intellect. The advent of the term in science came from spoken language gradually. Ethnology, psychology, and anthropology began to use it.

Mentality is a generalized socio-psychological property of a subject (people, nation, nationality, social group, person), which has developed as a result of a historically long and fairly stable influence of natural-geographical, ethnic, socio-political and cultural living conditions on the subject of mentality, arising on basis organic connection past with the present.

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The living conditions of the Russian people, their historical fate formed specific features of the national character. Among the many positive traits of the Russian character, such as kindness, sensitivity and responsiveness, the ability to sympathize and empathize, cordiality, openness, one can especially highlight unselfishness and preference for spiritual goods over earthly, material ones.

Since ancient times in Russia, wealth was not perceived as the result of a person’s activity, his enterprise, energy, efficiency or hard work; on the contrary, a person who became rich was most often perceived as a dishonest or not very decent person who profited at the expense of others, and it was not believed that wealth could be created by the labor of generations and the transition “from father to son.” This is confirmed in numerous placers folk wisdom- proverbs and sayings: “You cannot build stone chambers from righteous labors,” “We are poor, but proud,” etc. This idea is based on the postulates of the orthodox branch of Christianity - Orthodoxy, which preaches the preference of spiritual wealth over material wealth (eternal hell for the rich and heaven for the materially poor).

By their nature, the Russian people are a collectivist people; in their culture, the interests of the collective have always stood above the interests of the individual, which is why personal plans, goals and interests are so easily suppressed (“everything for the collective, nothing against the collective, nothing outside the collective”). For life in a team, in a community, it is very important that everything there is organized according to the principle of justice, the desire for which is another feature of the Russian character. Justice is understood as universal happiness and prosperity. Fairness is defined as follows: “Fair is when everyone is happy.” The eternal Russian craving for justice is very closely intertwined with Russian kindness.

Justice is closely related to another quality, namely maximalism, because there can only be one truth. Russian dogmatism logically follows from a heightened sense of justice and maximalism.

Russian hospitality, cordiality, and hospitality are well known. In the word “hospitality” in the foreground is a person’s willingness to let a stranger into his home or even provide him with shelter. Cordiality indicates, first of all, courtesy and special friendliness towards the guest.

Another one specific trait: tolerance for other people's morals and customs, developed through life in a multinational team. Historically, Russians have always been open to newcomers. Russian culture has long been associated with the cultures of neighboring countries. All this contributed to the formation of interest in them in Russia, the inclusion of these cultures, primarily Western European ones, into the Russian culture. Russians easily grasped and adopted foreign things, possessing the ability to process them beyond recognition, which indicates the flexibility and receptivity of their minds.

A distinctive feature of the Russian psychotype is its introversion. Introverts are contemplative, self-sufficient, and place greater importance on interactions than results. Russians tend to think about “what to do and whether to do it at all” and, often, cannot come to a clear conclusion until they push themselves to the extreme.

The combination of right hemisphere and introversion gives whole line effects. First of all, this is a characteristic need for physical contact (kissing etiquette, hugs). Another consequence of this combination is the mythologization of existence: we love to live in an imaginary world more than in the real one.

If we talk about the dominant psychotype of the Russian person, we can make the following generalizations. Russian thinking is characterized by emotional and sensory perception, imagery, and focus on large-scale problems. They are acutely aware of trends and upcoming changes in life. However, they experience significant difficulties when it is necessary to translate the result of a premonition into a rational form, concrete decisions. The activities of Russians are characterized by a tendency to think, which does not always result in actions, indecisiveness in choosing a specific alternative, and impulsiveness. Russians tend to think about what to do, whether to do it, and how to do it. Compare, for example, the Russian “the morning is wiser than the evening” and the Latin “don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today.”

From the momentary attitude of the Russians, stems a cheerful carelessness, a thoughtlessness of character, which is so attractive in direct live communication and is often contrasted with the dryness of Europeans. Researchers have identified the following features inherent in Russian communicative behavior: sociability - quick rapprochement, lack of formality; sincerity - Russians can be very frank with unfamiliar people; a pronounced negative reaction to the interlocutor’s restraint; craving for a heart-to-heart conversation: official communication is unacceptable; collectivity of communication - Russians show great curiosity about the affairs of colleagues and neighbors; may ask a stranger for advice; dominance - a Russian in a conversation strives to talk about himself, his affairs, to express his opinion on any issue, i.e. conversation is perceived as a means of self-expression; lack of tolerance, tolerance for other people's opinions; everyday unsmiling - a smile among Russians is a gestural greeting, appropriate when meeting someone or as a sign of regret and consolation.

Russians are very sociable; they love to get together in groups and discuss not only production, but also personal issues. They cannot stand loneliness, which they perceive as punishment for some erroneous actions. Russians are very democratic in the process of communication.

For them, the difference between acquaintances and strangers is small; in any case, they quickly and without hesitation overcome this conditional barrier. In the process of communication between them, class, social, professional, and age distances are not taken into account. An unprepared European may be confused by such casual familiarity with unexpected questions or frank stories “about life”. For an ordinary European, all this requires preliminary, close and long-term acquaintance. In such a situation, it is better for a foreigner not to demonstrate his reluctance to talk, otherwise the Russian will perceive this as arrogance and conceit. Russians have a negative attitude towards such qualities: “Another kind of arrogance is worse than drunkenness.”

The love of strong drinks has long been known and traditional in Rus'. Firstly, this is due to the cold climate: alcohol significantly warms you up in the cold. Grapes do not grow in Russia. So at first they used honey, beer, bread wine. Vodka appeared no earlier than the 15th century. Secondly, there is a long historical tradition. It is known that at one time the Kiev prince Vladimir could not accept the Koran for several reasons: an incomprehensible language, a strange custom of not eating pork and not drinking wine. The latter was simply unacceptable - and not at all because of rampant alcoholism, but because of ancient Russian traditions.

According to N.O. Lossky, “Russian people are characterized by a desire for an absolutely perfect kingdom of being and, at the same time, excessive sensitivity to any shortcomings of their own and others’ activities.” From here arises a cooling towards the work begun and an aversion to continuing it; the idea and general outline of it are often very valuable, but its incompleteness and therefore inevitable imperfections repel the Russian person, and he is lazy to continue finishing the little things. Thus, Oblomovism is in many cases the flip side of the high qualities of the Russian person - the desire for complete perfection and sensitivity to the shortcomings of our reality.” However, the negative properties of the Russian people do not represent their primary, basic nature, but arise as the reverse side positive qualities or even as a perversion of them.

Such experts in the psychology of Russian people as L.N. Tolstoy, A.N. Tolstoy, V.S. Soloviev, N.A. Berdyaev, N.O. Lossky, K.M. Simonov and other Russian thinkers and writers emphasized that the distinctive features of the Russian national character are unpretentiousness, bravery and courage. F. Engels, comparing Russians with representatives of Western European countries, wrote: “They never give in to panic. In addition, the Russian is well built, in good health, an excellent walker, undemanding, can eat and drink almost anything and is more obedient... than anyone else in the world.” The high moral and political qualities of Russian military personnel were also recognized by our former opponents. Hitler’s general G. Blumentritt wrote that “the Russian soldier is a worthy opponent; he is persistent, brave, resilient, formidable in defense, swift in attack.” A significant role in the nature of Russian military valor is played by indifference and contempt for life (the fatalistic Russian formula: “two deaths cannot happen, but one cannot be avoided”).

Thus, the genesis of the formation of the Russian national character was determined by racial-ethnic, historical-geographical, geopolitical aspects, dominated by a constant external threat. Great influence on the formation of Russian cultural character adoption in the 10th century also had an impact. Christianity, which came to Rus' from Byzantium in the Orthodox form.