Social cohesion as an object of psychological research

Abstract

Urgency. The relevance of the publication is determined by the current necessity of specification of the content of the category “social cohesion This specification must take into account the psychological perspective.

The purpose of the study is to reflect on the socio-psychological reality that accompanies the processes of unity and cohesion of society. The definition of the dimensions of social cohesion and the parameters that reveal its psychological content are also presented in the article.

Methodology. Meta-analysis of theoretical and political sources as a systematic review and integration of relevant information was used to specify the theoretical content and characteristics of psychological vision of the category “social cohesion”.

Results. Two dimensions of social cohesion are proposed. The first of them consist of objective and subjective vectors. The objective vector is represented by some phenomena of socio-political life that have a strong manifestation in society. It describes the actual participation (actions) of citizens in public life. It can be considered as real measurable manifestations of cohesion in society (social ties, economic equality, participation in public life etc.). The objective vector demonstrates the actual level of cohesion, but does not always take into account individual emotions or experiences. The subjective vector manifests itself in psychological realities that penetrate all social relations and create the very possibility of co-existence and joint actions. It reflects people’s feelings, attitudes, and perceptions of cohesion. This is how people themselves feel about their unity, belonging to a community, what motivates them to be included in social processes. This vector reflects the level of emotional unity and readiness for interaction. The second dimension is determined by positive or negative consequences for social life. Positive consequences include unity, the formation of alliances, unions and coalitions. Negative consequences include disagreements and conflicts within society.

Conclusions and prospects for further research. Social cohesion is defined as psychological state of closeness, interrelationship and relating oneself to another, which involves identification with an idea (value, goal, ideology, etc.) or a subject (leader), the formation of readiness for action and actions oriented towards a certain subject or object.

Groups of parameters in each of these dimensions present phenomena that can be studied depending on the tasks that the researcher of social cohesion sets. Сlarification of indicators for these parameters and the selection of tools for studying the psychological perspective of social cohesion are seen as a further direction and prospect of research.