Methodological Approaches to Determine the Correlation between National, Political and Legal Ideologies

The key methodological approaches to determine the correlation mechanisms of national, political and legal ideologies are analyzed. The alternative ways of their influences on society are defined. On the basis of existing examples, the ideological correlations are presented. The key mechanisms determining the process of ideologies’ formation, especially the national one, are charac-terized. The stages of lawmaking which are crucial for the process of the correlation between legal and political ideologies are distinguished.
Keywords: national ideology, political ideology, legal ideology, ideological types, mechanisms and structure of ideology, ideological correlation

Whereas the ideological component is inherent to different spheres of public life, the phenomenon of legal ideology can be considered as a system of ideas, theories and concepts which represent and estimate people’s attitude towards the law. However, this system does not exist in an ideological vacuum but has close inter-relations with politics and national context, i.e. with political and national ideologies.

Correspondingly, whilst making a complex analysis of legal ideology as a theoretical basis reflecting the legal processes in the country, one should pay special attention to the determination of the level of correlation and mutual influences between national, political and legal ideologies.

The philosophical and legal essence of the concept ‘ideology‘, the principles of its division into national, political and legal ones have been considered in the works of I. Bondarevych, V. Burdiak, M. Weber, M. Nediukha, V. Panchenko, A. Pakharev, L. Yushchenko, etc. 

According to the definitions given by many researchers, political ideology is connected with the reflection of reality in macro-dimension by a citizen and society as a whole, that is through the prism of the political views which exist in a particular country and are supported by its authority and its internal and external political relations [Burdiak, 2011: 87]. The system of political ideas is based on politics. The latter can be determined to be a relatively independent sphere of social activity, constantly transforming under the influence of historical processes and the individual’s requirements on the scale of large groups (the population of a certain  territory)  [Yushchenko, 2011: 207]. In most cases, these requirements are connected with the permanent necessity to extend
and modernize manufacturing and to alter the life of society itself.

The cultural changes of an individuals’ self-perception also encourage the formation of certain ways (directions) of human development. The total amount of their increasing needs establishes the blocks of interests to be distributed among social groups which include individual society members or people wishing to become components of the society concerned. The satisfaction of these needs and hopes of social groups is a basic task which should be carried out by the authorities (for further details, see the monograph by
M. Nediukha [Nediukha, 2012]). In fact, according to M. Nediukha, our state (which is the representation of power) is still failing to fulfill this mission. Moreover, Ukrainian society, which is actively demonstrating the potential for development, has outgrown the mechanism of power to impede the processes of social change [Nediukha, 2009: 27].

Providing that it is impossible to offer an immediate solution to these problems, the plans and ideas of their settlement are gradually being formed. Taking into account the scale of countries and state communities, these plans and ideas establish ‘a system of dreams‘ supported by many citizens of a certain society (societies) wishing to improve their lives. In our opinion, this is the way the original political ideology forms as a system of ideas-answers to some global issues.

It retains the characteristics of the initial social movement up to the beginning of confrontations with competitive political ideologies because each of them has its own peculiar interests which are revealed through public consciousness. After such contradictions appear, the initial ideological forms obtain characteristics that are necessary to overcome and settle conflicts, and to satisfy the interests of other social sects’ supporters.

In general, the question “Which ideology, political or legal, is the primary one?” is still topical. Therefore, it is relevant to state that the development of these ideologies is parallel since they exist in close interrelation and supplement each other. The legal ideology is integrated into the system of political ideology executing the function of its base or foundation.

The national ideology, resembling the legal and political, is also a form of social consciousness but it is directly reflected through the prism of a subject’s belonging to a certain nation [Dontsov, 2011: 115]. It is based on the processes of self-knowledge and
development of national and cultural unity, and patriotism [Panchenko, 2012: 23].

The national ideology is not grounded on the aspirations to implement the rights and liberties of a certain social group or society as a whole. It rather promotes the adaptation of legal and political ideologies in the territory of a certain country, as the national ideology itself defends the priorities of political, economic, cultural, and mental characteristics of the indigenous nation, its language, culture, and traditions. And this is an important factor for making progress in any state's development.  

The existence of negative attitudes of the local population to representatives of other nations can be considered as the drawbacks or undesirable consequences which follow the implementation of a national ideology. Therefore, mutual assistance and cooperation between ethnic or national macro- and micro-groups are amongst the desired effects of inter-social interactions. In turn, the disdainful attitude toward the interests of representatives of other nations and ethnic minorities, the superciliousness and striving to their social subordination (which is a direct precondition for nationalism and extremism), belong to the undesired effects of inter-social interactions.

In this context, one can also trace the correlation between national, political and legal ideology because the latter prevents the undesirable effects of the first one, and the second one provides an official support and popularization of the optimum versions of the both.

So, the author states that, using political and legal mechanisms, the national ideology supports the prestige and promotion of the social and spiritual significance of the ethnos, people or nation realizing their interests within the process of development of a state and its population.

The table contains the comparative analysis of similar specialities the studied ideological types have.

As a matter of fact, all the given parameters are specific but represented within the ideologies to be studied. Afterwards, the interrelation of these sects is based on the philosophy of improvement and optimization of social and national relations within a
definite nation whilst forging contacts between different countries.

The common ground which exists regarding the ideological directions shows the completeness of social relations, defines the economic and political factors of social life activities, and promotes the all-round development of their exponent, i.e. definite people or country. The interrelation between ideologies ensures the support of national and state progress: stimulates national self-determination; helps to connect national and international interests; promotes the establishment of a nations’ equality of rights, the creation of conditions for the free development of national languages and cultures, the representation of national personnel in the authoritative structures, etc.

The interrelation between national, political and legal ideologies is determined by some specific peculia-rities which draw them together: they are components of  social consciousness; they are nourished through the economic, cultural and spiritual development of a society; they are included in the historical process. Such ideological interaction is universal as it is able to involve various branches of activity, aspects of thought and behaviour, identifying their direction, aims and means (the way of thinking, special interests and so on). It is closely connected with the process of the collation of ideals, specific tasks and possibilities having the central place in social life. Correspondingly, it is possible to determine the lea-ding system of ideals and values the definite country aspires to introduce into practice. I mean the process of idealization as the choice of aims and the determination of its orientation.

The national, political and legal ideologies have the same activity and are closely connected with the struggle of diverse thoughts, opinions, decisions, and programmes. They can polarize on the basis of positive and negative assessments according to ‘yes – no‘ principles, be divided into ‘right-wing‘ and ‘left-wing‘, progressive and reactionary ones, at the same time having the ability to make compromises and mutually acceptable decisions [Bondarevych, 2013: 94]. Taking into account the abovementioned ideas, the direct unification of these social sects within the sole political and ideological complex seems natural.

It is also considerably important that the correlation between national, political and legal ideologies has a large-scale influence on citizens and society as a whole. Concerning not only their intellect but also their feelings, it distinguishes definite nuances of social being (valuable attitudes). Such concern is revealed through M. Weber’s typology of social action [Weber, 1998: 243] to be interpreted as purposeful and rational, valuable and rational, traditional or affective. The adequateness of people’s perception of the mentioned actions represents the efficiency of actual ideological impact.

The national, political and legal sectors of ideolo-gical impact can be considered at the following levels:

1) conceptual and theoretical, or at the level of social philosophy, super-ideology. The concepts of state development, new systems of values which are able to regulate a man’s behaviour at all the other le-vels are elaborated in the present one;

2) programme and political, or, in the narrow sense, ideological. At this level, the system of ideas, values and ideals acquires the form of aims, “is translated into the language” of party and political programmes, demands, statutes, standards, slogans, and foresees the development of strategy and tactics of action. In other words, whilst determining the ideological aims, one simultaneously elaborates the methods and means of their achievement with the help of the formation of corresponding normative rules;

3) actualized, or the level of mass consciousness, ideology. It defines the degree to which the mass consciousness adopts the ideas, aims, ideals and values of proper ideologies.

The next speciality of interrelation between national, political and legal ideologies is the fact that the weakening of public support of ideological principles of a state has a destructive influence on some socially important processes, in particular, resulting in the loss of contact between a person and the state, and the suspension of national and state self-identification.

The indicated ideologies have an essential impact on the functioning effectiveness of the mechanisms of lawmaking, nationalization, consolidation of people’s sovereignty and civil society. Furthermore, at the modern stage, they allow understanding and comprehension of the political and legal trends in the development of a state and a society as a whole.

In our minds, the interrelation between national, political and legal ideologies can be defined as a complex approach to optimization of the ideological atmosphere within a definite country. However, the ideological factor exists not only inside the state as a separate subject, but also in its relations with the external world.

The inner side of interaction between the three ideological sects is characterized by their belonging to legal consciousness and are included into the system of law functioning mechanisms. A social subject of law functioning (the so-ciety and its members) transforms in its consciousness economic, social, political and other needs, and forms its own ideas and views on the progressive development of thecountry.

The outer ideological aspect of the mechanism of interaction between national, political and legal ideologies can be considered in two planes, when:

1) ideologies (totally) are a part of a social environment. Interacting with other social conditions (cultural, economic, etc.) they become a motive power
for the country’s and society’s development;

2) ideological means belong to the non-legal (social) means of regulative processes. In particular, they influence moral and legal education, scientific substantiation of law, predicting the social consequences of lawmaking and the application of law, etc.

In principle, all types of ideologies (not only these three studied) are directly influenced by the law. However, due to its specificity, the legal ideology has the closest connection with the law because, as a part of legal consciousness, it is not only a source of law but also the object of its impact.

So, the analysis of the correlation between national, political and legal ideologies proves that:

1) all types of ideologies are the product of consciousness, that is why they are interdependent, and altogether are a component of the social and political life of a state, i.e. its ideological complex;

2) each of these ideologies is represented through a relevant system of ideas, values and programmes for its realization: the legal one represents the legal consciousness, the national one introduces patriotic self-realization, and the political ideology reflects the realities and prospects of state system formation;

3) all three ideologies have the same structure, levels and mechanisms of impact on a society.

Andrii LUTSKYI