Power Legitimacy: Towards the Creation of an Operational Model

Abstract

The legitimacy of power is difficult to assess and predict, so the author of the article sets himself the task of formulating an operational model for describing the legitimacy of power and suggests using a discursive approach to the analysis of political processes. The use of discursive methods allows using not only sociological surveys but also to find cheaper and more effective methods of analysing opinions and ideas. The development of such a model will open the way to the formation of a tool for assessing the level of legitimacy of power and forecasting crises of legitimacy in a particular state. Turning to the discursive dimension of the description of legitimacy allows us to designate specific variables and to describe and evaluate them. As the main methodological concept, the author suggests using idealised cognitive models in the terminology of J. Lakoff (frames, figurative-schematic structures, metaphors and metonyms). Further, based on the traditions of studying the legitimacy of power in political and social science, as well as applying a discursive approach, the author formulates an operational model of legitimation consisting of three main elements: institutional order, leaders and elites, historical and cultural traditions. The formulation of the primary hypothesis is based on the assumption that the coincidence of the models of legitimation of power formulated by political leaders and perceived by the population will contribute to increased support for the authorities. The ability to approach the formation of tools for assessing and predicting crises of legitimacy can be useful both for describing and forecasting domestic policy and for evaluating the political risks of investments and cooperation with other countries.