SAFETY AND SECURITY IN THE EU: PERCEPTION OF LATVIAN RESIDENTS

Abstract

The implementation of external and internal politics of the state cannot be considered without taking into account socially psychological challenges, which constantly are taking place in the social reality of all its residents. A transformation of cognitive, attitude-related, motivational components of psychological space of every person living in the country, in accordance with the cardinal changes of geographical and political determinants, has not been studied well enough. This fact does not allow, from the scientific point of view, reforming the educational, political and emigrational strategies of the state. The individual concepts often derive from the social representations prevailed in the society. Very often it is the only way to receive the information on the required subject. Social representations based on information from mass media, knowledge received from the other people’s experience, including rumours, gossips, beliefs, etc., provide a good ground for the individual concept of the phenomena. Joining the European Union in May 2004 caused an important transformation of social reality and ‘life-space’ of residents of the Baltic States through their reflection of life in the new European Community. It caused a cardinal reconstruction of social representations of a new environment of its residents. The increased mobility of population of the Baltic States, the war in Ukraine, acts of terrorism in some European countries, recently have taken place in this part of the world. All these events have made a big impact on social representations about EU countries. The study on social representations of personal security of EU states among Latvian residents is a part of research-project on Social Representations about EU countries among Latvian residents. The objective of the given research is to shape the content and follow the transformation of social representations of European Union countries in modern Latvian society. One hundred Latvian residents 18-65 years old (Mean = 33.82; SD = 10.70) have participated in the study held in 2015 in addition to 2329 Latvian residents who participated in the study in 2005. The results received in both studies are compared are discussed.