Теоретико-методологические основы изучения причин межэтнической напряженности

Abstract

The article presents theoretical reflections on the phenomenon of inter-ethnic tension. Inter-ethnic tension characterizes relations between ethnic groups that are in contact with each other. As a rule, the studies of inter-ethnic tension define it as a state of group consciousness of two or more ethnic groups with manifest aversion or hostility to each other. In his works Durkheim emphasized that inter-ethnic tension is caused by the weakness of common civic values. In his view only the society in which common civic values are shared by the majority of the population has the right to be called “moral”. Mobilization on the basis of ethnic values weakens society by putting one ethnic group against another. The left-wing tradition views inter-ethnic tension as a result of incomplete emancipation of ethnic groups in contemporary society. In the studies of cultural orientation (Gellner, Hobsbaum) inter-ethnic tension is attributed to the process of cultural selection in the course of national state construction. In different situations, inter-ethnic tension has a different array of causes, therefore, following the recommendation of R. Boudon, it should be placed in a concrete context with regard to the economic, social and cultural factors that form it.