Issue 4 2020

Entire issue in PDF format

 I. Philosophy

II. Psychology

III. Sociology

IV. Recensions and reviews

The crisis state of the modern capitalist, global, ‘liquid’, neoliberal, etc. society (i.e. modern civilization) can be expressed in various aspects: economic, geopolitical, ecological, social-class, etc. However, all these aspects are only external manifestations, phenomena of a more fundamental problem — the crisis of human essence or, more specifically, its alienated nature. There are various approaches to understanding the human and its essence in modern philosophical literature. In this article, the author considers one of the versions of the Marxist representation of this subject, according to which the essence of the human is manifested in the mode of its existence, i.e. self-development through the transformation of all forms of matter. This method of the human’s production of its own life can be expressed in the form of a hierarchical structure of its essential attributes or forces. Such a plan of human essence is an abstract scheme that is modified in accordance with the concrete historical conditions of human existence, filling it with new content each time. Since the emergence of private property, classes and the state, the model of social development has been such that society as a whole develops due to the degradation of its individual members. This reaches its climax today, when the alienation of human from its generic essence, from its actual mode of existence turns it into a partial and one-dimensional. This process is understood by the authors as a crisis one since, apparently, it reveals a certain limit beyond which there takes place either the transition to a new model, where the development of each is a condition for the development of all, or — stagnation and destruction of the entire system.

Keywords: human essence, essential properties, labor, relations, consciousness, crisis of civilization, alienation.

The article deals with the correlation of transformations of social processes and their reflection in the social theory of philosophy. Comparative analysis of the classical form of Marxism and the concept of G.V. Plekhanov as a representative of ‘Russian’ Marxism reveals differences in the interpretation of the main methodological principle — the principle of materialistic understanding of history. According to the research hypothesis, there are existential characteristics found in G.V. Plekhanov’s Marxism in the interpretation of the essence of social subject. The paper reveals the intersubjective nature of social subject, which is considered in the concept of G.V. Plekhanov as the main driving force in history. It is shown that «Russian» Marxism is always demarcated from the position of economic determinism. In this context, an attempt is made to minimize the risk of social analysis losing its effectiveness in the existing philosophical directions of thought. The paper proves the leading role of the principle of materialistic understanding of history in modern social analysis. The analysis of modern social relations allows us to note high relevance of studying the essence of social subject. The author emphasizes the contradictory nature of human inclusion in society, which, in the context of the difficult geopolitical situation in the world and globalization of communication flows, acquires the status of a problem of individual peoples’ culture security. In this context, the importance of analyzing the existential characteristics of social subject is noted. The main characteristics of the productive forces of society as a source of social stability are formulated in order to minimize the risk of massization of social subject. The research results can be applied both in the subsequent analysis of the specifics of Russian philosophical thought and in the theoretical consideration of the social relations dynamics and the logic of history.

Keywords: society, Marxism, social subject, social communications, principle of materialistic understanding of history.

The epistemological study of the features of theistic and atheistic thinking outside the axiological and cultural-historical opposition of the corresponding worldview positions reveals the interaction and moments of identity of theism and atheism. The principle of academic objectivism minimizes the axiological dependence of the oppositions of theism and atheism. In the epistemological aspect, it allows for determining the interreliance between theism and atheism, identical anthropomorphic cognitive components in theistic and atheistic thinking, identical development of the oppositions of the general and singular to the extent of the original concepts of theistic and atheistic explanations of the world. The man’s existential demand for the certainty of absolute being also leads to a similar process of rational expression of the theism and atheism principles. In this expression, a significant role is played by symbols that form the semantic field of rationalization of these principles. The moments of epistemological coincidence of the theism and atheism identity allow us to draw a conclusion about the possibility of positive productive interaction between the subjects of virtual communication on the Internet and global interaction of cultures. Moreover, the rapidly increasing religiosity in Russia after the era of atheization is largely explained by the epistemological components of the identity and coincidence of theism and atheism. Epistemological features of theistic and atheistic thinking in the aspect of their relationship allow us to reconcile different worldview positions of the educational process subjects, especially the teaching of social disciplines and humanities.

Keywords: theistic thinking, atheistic thinking, God, matter, being, sign, symbol.

The article discusses the methods of anesthetization of the image of androgyne as one of the ways of androgynization of modern culture. A modern understanding of the phenomenon of androgyny is mainly considered in the context of gender identity. It is based on the psychological concept of Sandra Bem that has proved that a person, regardless of his or her biological sex, is able to combine feminine and masculine psychological characteristics and behavior models. That allows them to become more adaptive in society and act as efficiently as possible, choosing exactly what qualities to show depending on the situation. Some studies have noticed the dominance of the androgynous type among the youth, which possibly indicates the intensification of the androgynization process in modern society. Androgynization goes at various social and cultural levels: professional, economic, cultural, psychological and pedagogical. Moreover, some researchers observe the trend of formation of androgynous gender identity type. They also consider the process of androgynization in line with the civilizational approach. The present study focuses on analyzing one of the aspects of this global androgynization process — the effect of an art cinema work on the positive reception of androgyny in society through modeling of an aesthetically attractive androgynous image. As an illustration the author chose an image of the main hero in «Orlando» movie (1992) directed by Sally Potter.

Keywords: androgyne, androgyny, androgynization, transitioning, gender, gender studies, non-binary gender, aesthetization, cinematograph, modern culture.

The article is devoted to the description and justification of the author’s model representing possible demarcation of subject areas in psychological and non-psychological studies of the phenomenon of pain. In the first part of the paper, the deficiencies of existing approaches to the study and explanation of pain are analyzed, and the need for rethinking the existing biopsychosocial approach is indicated, which can be done based on the understanding of pain as a phenomenon of mental reflection. As prerequisites for solving and concretizing these problems, we briefly analyze the historically established non-psychological areas of the pain study (physiological, algometric, and humanities-based), within which we identify the main issues and statements about the nature of pain (particularly as a phenomenon of the subjective world). These issues are considered in a more specific form on the basis of methodological difficulties in psychological research on pain. The main questions are formulated, including the following: the relation of the objective basis of pain to the subjective experience; determination of the subject area of psychological research into pain; determination of the categorical status of pain and its relation to other phenomena of the psyche, to the categories of «subject», «personality». In the second part of the article, based on the indicated theoretical and empirical assumptions, a graphical model illustrating potential subject areas of psychological and non-psychological research is derived. The model reflects the place of various pain phenomena within a single selection process, and the exclusion of the information necessary to reflect and regulate the interaction of an organism and a destructive agent at the physiological, mental (direct behavioral regulation), and sociopsychological levels (socially-mediated regulation). In accordance with the levels of ‘pain’ regulation and reflection, we formulate the following: hypothetical scope of the pain concept (the narrow and broad definition); subject areas and their specifics; possible determinants that represent their phenomenology; possible hierarchical relationships of pain reflection levels. The paper also provides an outline of a hypothetical mechanism that connects the process of selecting pain experiences (the content of the subjective picture of pain) to the individual personality characteristics of the subject experiencing pain.

Keywords: pain, pain experience, biopsychosocial approach, psychology of pain, subjective representation of pain.

In this article, emotions are considered as the motives of unintentional suicidal behavior of adolescents. The emotions that «destroy ties» are examined. They are manifested in. The phenomenon of «adolescent suicidal behavior» refers to completed and incomplete suicides, thoughts, attitudes, conversations, as well as preparatory actions for leaving life. The author argues that elementary, or basic, emotions of fear, sadness, and disgust «rise» from neurophysiological processes, i.e. «down up»; they create «tunnel consciousness» at the psychological level and are realized in unintentional suicidal behavior. Leaving life is explained by a specific state of consciousness when a teenager is in a state of tunnel perception and thinking. The emotions that «destroy ties» (fear, sadness, disgust) are reflected in the psyche, forming suicidal plans and suicidal behavior. The hormones serotonin, dopamine and adrenaline are involved in the genesis of suicidal behavior. Emotions «destroying ties» are categorized as «toxic» on the basis that they create a deficiency of hormones — neurotransmitters, which ultimately affects behavior. The mediating function in this motivational scheme is performed by tunnel perception and thinking. At the psychological level, all of this leads to unintentional suicidal behavior. This behavior differs from situational, impulsive and affective in the extended time of performing motor acts — from several hours to weeks and months. In a situation of experiencing toxic emotions, the elements of consciousness - attention, perception and thinking — lead to a state in which a teenager loses many conscious acts of control over the psyche and behavior: there is no adequate assessment of the situation and the ability to predict, and thus the behavior becomes unintentionally destructive.

Keywords: emotional motives, adolescent suicidal behavior, tunnel thinking, toxic emotions, unintentional behavior.

The relevance of the topic is justified by the objective need to modernize domestic enterprises in response to the changing conditions and increasing uncertainty of the external competitive environment. The success of implementing various innovations in an organization largely depends on the support for innovative projects from its employees. Organizational trust is considered as one of the conditions for the formation of such support. Organizational trust is defined as the acceptance of vulnerability based on the confidence in one’s expectations towards others. Standardization of these expectations in the form of values and norms is provided by organizational culture. Based on theoretical arguments and results of empirical research conducted by both Russian and foreign authors, the paper reveals the influence that organizational culture elements and management practices have on the development of organizational trust. The analysis focuses on the interpersonal level of the formation and development of organizational trust in situations of horizontal and vertical interaction. The literature review allowed us to identify the main cultural and managerial factors for the formation of organizational culture of trust. The regularities that reflect the conditionality of organizational trust are formulated: it depends on the degree of consistency of organizational goals, values, and norms; the manifestation in organizational rituals and activities; a supportive management style; an open control system and a fair system of sanctions. It is shown that the literature pays insufficient attention to the specifics of trust formation as a factor of industrial enterprises modernization. A list of research hypotheses about the influence of organizational culture elements on organizational trust is formulated, which can become the basis for the study of the process of forming organizational culture of trust at industrial enterprises.

Keywords: organizational culture, organizational trust, trust management practices, organizational values and norms, management style, optimal trust.

The article deals with the concept of the social entrepreneurship ecosystem and analyzes existing practices of social entrepreneurship in the northwestern region of Russia. Social entrepreneurship is designed to solve social problems through the use of sustainable economic instruments; social business results in social transformations associated with improving the quality of life of individual social groups and citizens. The state, the social capital, the market for social services and the infrastructure support were identified as the main elements and subjects of the ecosystem. The research is based on federal and regional statistics on the development of the non-governmental sector and social entrepreneurship, data from registers of social service providers, as well as regulatory legal acts on social entrepreneurship. Data analysis was carried out for all the main subjects of the northwestern region (St. Petersburg, Leningrad region, Kaliningrad region, etc.). The study results show that the legal foundations for the development of social entrepreneurship have been developed. There are various measures of state support, including state subsidies, loans, with a fairly wide regional diversity observed. At the same time, at present the non-governmental sector of social services does not fully meet the existing needs. This is reflected in the insufficient number of socially oriented nonprofit organizations and social entrepreneurs, and in the relatively small proportion of the population involved in the non-governmental sector of social services. However, we should note the active development of the infrastructure for training social entrepreneurs, which includes accelerators, a business incubator, information and consulting support for social entrepreneurs.

Keywords: ecosystem, social entrepreneurship, non-governmental organizations, social services, northwestern region.

Conflicts in educational organizations are imminent. They are specific because of the age of participants of conflicts. They are in a special social group with special management tools. These conflicts are complex and multidimensional. Mediation technologies are being introduced in educational organizations to manage conflicts. There is no single definition of this phenomenon in regulatory legal acts. There are many models and forms of implementation of mediation technologies in educational organizations. In the Sverdlovsk region, the most common school reconciliation service, which exists in three models. Mediation technologies in educational organizations of the Sverdlovsk region are necessary and demand. The problem is the lack of understanding of mediation technologies by the administration of an educational institution and teaching staff. The regulations in this area are complex and confusing. There are not enough qualified personnel. It's connected with the lack of available training programs. Some specialists are not motivated. The key problem is the lack of targeted financing. There are no conditions for large-scale implementation of mediation technologies in educational organizations. The real implementation of mediation technologies in educational organizations is based on the enthusiasm of teachers and the administration of educational organizations.

Keywords: conflicts, mediation, mediation technologies, educational organizations, school reconciliation service.

The article is part of a project aimed at researching the subjective policy space in a network society. It is dedicated to the mythology of RuNet online communities («MAMA™», «Real Football»). The myth is characterized as a discursive construct that conveys ideology. The study was carried out using content analysis, which made it possible to identify the thematic discourse structure of online communities, and the discourse-mythological approach, developed by D. Kelsey based on the integration of critical discourse analysis and the theory of myths. The research is based on C. Flood, R. Barthes’s concepts of the myth, M. Mauss’s explication of magic as a technique for changing the reality. The network community «MAMA™» broadcasts mythical narratives about natural motherhood, maternal instinct and altruism, universal maternal experience, the archetypes of «yummy mummy» and «pregnant beauty». Myths legitimize the ideology of intensive motherhood; there is discursive framing of consumption as a material expression of maternal love and care. On the page of the online community «Real Football», the football club is presented as a dream factory; the status of heroes and wizards is attributed to players and coaches; the creators of community unite supporters through a family myth. Myths spread and support the ideologies of «football-centrism», «football as a man's game»; mythology hides the «microphysics of power» of football life from the view of the «other».

Keywords: myth, mythologization, social media, discourse-mythological approach, online community, motherhood, football.

The effectiveness of national projects in solving socially significant problems is largely determined by the approval of the population of Russia. Consequently, public policy measures to overcome the demographic crisis should be subject to public evaluation. A sociological survey in Altai Krai was conducted to find out how women subjectively assess the effectiveness of federal and regional measures aimed at stimulating the birth rate and supporting families with children. The survey involved women of reproductive age. The results showed that further childbearing depends not only on economic factors but also on a number of other socio-demographic and psychological conditions: age, health status, personal motivation for birth and the opinion of the spouse in this matter. The possibility of receiving state support is an incentive to give birth to a child for a small percentage of women. The state measures of financial support are gradually reaching their limit of effectiveness with regard to the impact they have on women’s reproductive behavior. This can lead to negative consequences of financial support for families at the birth of a child. Such measures resonate among low-income groups but do not have a stimulating effect on more affluent families. According to respondents, measures that can overcome the birth rate crisis in Altai Krai include: improving the standard of living and economic independence of families; developing forms of employment that allow combining work and family; state financial support for the birth and upbringing of children; state support for families in need of better housing conditions; development of social infrastructure; promoting family values, supporting and strengthening the prestige of the family; preventative measures aimed at reproductive health; increasing the availability of modern reproductive technologies and improving the pedagogical culture of parents and supporting responsible parenting.

Keywords: state policy to stimulate the birth rate and support families with children, birth rate crisis, public opinion of women.

Migration of rural youth is a topical problem in Kalmykia. The purpose of the article is to analyze the reasons for the migration of rural youth, to identify the factors influencing the return of young people to the countryside, their desire to stay and work there. The main research methods are quantitative survey and in-depth interview. The analysis of the study results showed that more than half of the respondents want to leave their village or settlement. The main push factors for migration from rural areas are low wages, lack of jobs, underdeveloped infrastructure, lack of good quality medical care, etc. In most cases, educational migration is irrevocable. For some of the respondents, ‘educational migration’ begins earlier, because there are no senior grades at schools in their settlement or village, or they want to get a high-quality secondary education and to have the possibility to prepare for entering a university or specialized secondary school. The main factor influencing the return of young people to the countryside is the availability of jobs with decent wages, the possibility to have their own housing, as well as the developed of social sphere and sphere of leisure. The obtained results can be used in regional programs for the development of rural areas. Analysis of measures aimed at attracting youth to rural areas in other regions showed it is necessaryly to develop programs aimed at establishing interaction with school graduates and elaborating financial mechanisms to support students. It is also critical to resolve the issue of guaranteed financing of sectoral programs to attract young people to rural areas.

Keywords: migration, educational migration, migration outflow, rural youth, regional employment regulation programs, Republic of Kalmykia.

The article provides a brief description of the religious space of the Perm region and analyzes social and liturgical practices and possible options for their transformation as a result of self-isolation of residents of the Perm region from April to December 2020. There is a General trend towards the virtualization of religious space, the use of which ceases to be specific only for new religious teachings. Traditional religious denominations are beginning to actively use the Internet space, offering believers a virtual religious product, however, an important assumption is made that traditional organizations are not ready to completely replace traditional social and liturgical practices, which are an important part of the religious process, with their virtual counterparts. The article clarifies the concept of «religious practices» and suggests that the speed of transformation processes depends on the size of urban agglomeration and the complexity of building a religious space in a particular area. In particular, the analysis of Protestant religious space, high organizational complexity and low vertical structure that allows Protestant religious groups, organizations or associations as quickly as possible to implement its social and liturgical practice traditional religious archetype innovations. The article deals with the peculiarities of transformation of social and liturgical practices in the majority of religious organizations and associations registered in the territory of the city of Perm. The analysis of the processes taking place in the religious environment in a large urban agglomeration with a complex structure of religious space shows the presence of transformational changes in the implementation of social and liturgical practices of religious organizations and associations under the influence of self-isolation and a pandemic, despite the conservative conditions of the internal religious environment.

Keywords: social practices, religious organizations, virtualization of religion.

Modern Russian Universities face a new type of educational, educational and psychological problems related to inclusive education, multiculturalism of the student population, and a high level of heterogeneity in the cognitive and social development of the younger generation. All this forms a powerful social demand for the development of the psychological service of education. The new socio-cultural situation of development of the young generation poses a new problems of psychological support of the educational system, which are reflected in the deliberations and discussions held in the framework of all-Russian scientific-practical conference with international participation «Actual problems of psychological service of the University in the new reality», which took place on 25–26 September 2020 in an online format. During the conference, the following issues were discussed: socio-psychological aspects of modern education, health protection of students, the specifics of the work of psychological services of universities and psychosocial aspects of distance learning at a university in a pandemic. As a result of the conference, it was proposed: to disseminate and implement the positive results of the activities of psychological services in the field of mental health protection among domestic universities; promote the creation of a common Internet space for the exchange of experience between psychological services of educational organizations; to develop a number of methodological recommendations on the specifics of teaching in conditions of distance learning for the teaching staff.

Keywords: psychological service of the university, mental health, distance learning, psychological support, psychological support.