Nazarbekoba Z.M.
A. Baitursynov Kostanai
State University, Kazakhstan
The political culture
Now in political science there were three main approaches in treatment
of political culture. One group of
scientists identifies it with all subjective maintenance of politics, meaning
by it all set of the spiritual phenomena (G Almond, S.Verba, G.
Devine, Yu. Krasnov, etc.). Other group of scientists sees in political culture
the manifestation of standard requirements (S. Byte) or the set of typical
examples of behavior of the person in politics (J. Pleno). In this case it
appears as a certain matrix of behavior of the person (M. Douglas), focusing it
on the norms most widespread in society and rules of the game and, thus, as
though tightening its actions to the developed standards and interaction forms
with the power.
The third group of scientists understands the
political culture as a way, style of political activity of the person, assuming
an embodiment of its valuable orientations in practical behavior (I. Shapiro,
P. Sharan, V. Rosenbaum). Such understanding opens practical forms of
interaction of the person with the state as expression of the deepest ideas of
the power, political goals and the priorities preferable and individually
mastered norms and rules of practical activities. Characterizing indissoluble
communication of practical actions of the person in the power sphere with
search of the political ideals and values, the political culture is interpreted
as a certain spiritual program constantly reproduced in practice, model of
behavior of the people, reflecting the steadiest individual traits of behavior
and the thinking, not subjected to instant changes under the influence of an
environment or emotional experiences.
In this sense the style of political activity of the
person opens political culture as the set of the steadiest forms,
"spiritual codes" of its political behavior, testifying to extent of
free assimilation by it of the universally recognized norms and traditions of
the state life, a combination in its daily activity of the creative and
standard for concrete society of receptions of realization of the rights and
freedoms, etc. In this sense the political culture represents a form of the
experience of the last, that positive heritage mastered by the person who is
left to it by previous generations. And as in the thinking and the behavior of
the person a certain gap between the norms mastered and undeveloped by it and
the traditions of the game of politics, which have developed in society by
traditions and customs of civil activity, always remains, at it the powerful
source of revaluation and specification of the reference points and the
principles, and consequently, of the development of the political culture
remains also.
Now the concept of political culture is more and more
enriched with the meanings derivative of "culture" as the special
phenomenon, opposed to the nature and expressing integrity of vital
manifestations of society. Owing to this fact and the political culture is more
and more considered as political
measurement of the cultural environment in concrete society, as the
characteristic of behavior of the concrete people, features of its civilization
development. In this sense the political culture expresses movement of
traditions inherent in the people in the government sphere, their embodiment
and development in a modern context, influence on conditions of formation of
politics of the future. Expressing this "a genetic code" of the
people, its spirit in symbols and attributes of statehood (a flag, the coat of
arms, the anthem), the political culture in own way integrates society,
provides stability of the relations of elite and not elite sectors of society
in forms habitual for people.
So understood political cultures of various societies
are not interconnected on the lowest-highest type, and as the independent
spiritual systems tearing away or absorbing (assimilation) one another or
interpenetrating and acquiring language and values of each other
(accommodation). Therefore it is impossible to recognize existence of the high
or low political cultures; to consider that one culture can be a step or the
development purpose of another; that the culture in society can be more or
less. The political culture is the characteristic of its qualitative integrity
which is showing in the sphere of the public power integrally inherent in
society.
Rationally generalizing the described approaches, the
political culture can be defined as the set of the typical for the concrete
country (group of the countries) forms and examples of behavior of people in
the public sphere, embodying their valuable ideas of sense and the purposes of
development of the world of politics and fixing the norms which have settled in
society and tradition of relationship of the state and society.
However, despite the neutrality (impossibility to
apply criteria of one culture to an assessment of another), the political and
cultural phenomena nevertheless possess a certain valuable definiteness.
Differently, if the subject is guided by the ideas neglecting value of the
human life, feelings of hostility and hatred, is guided by violence and
physical destruction of another, the fabric of the political culture breaks up.
In this case in the power sphere the cultural reference points and ways of
political participation give way to different ways of political relationship.
Therefore the fascist, racist, chauvinistic movements, genocide and terrorism,
ochlocraty forms of a protest and totalitarian dictatorship of the authorities
aren't capable to support and to expand cultural space in political life.
Thus, stating impossibility
of creation of all forms of Participation of citizens in politics on examples
of culture, and also recognizing the different degree of conditionality of
institutes of the power as the values accepted in society, it is necessary to
recognize that the political culture is capable to narrow or expand a zone of
the real existence. Thereof it can't be recognized as the universal political
phenomenon penetrating all phases and stages of the political process.
Developing under the own laws, it is capable to have impact on forms of the
organization of the political power, a structure of its institutes, character
of the interstate relations.
At the same time the political culture contains in
itself extremely wide range of humanistically focused values (and the forms of
behavior caused by them) which distinguish a variety of life of concrete
societies, segments of the population, their customs and traditions. In
relation to the separate society it means also that its political culture
contains various subcultures, i.e. the local, rather independent groups of
values, norms, stereotypes and receptions of political communication and the
behavior supported by separate groups of the population.