The concept of civil society and public administration

Abstract

The category of «civil society» is at the intersection of several scientific fields and is explored by philosophy, political, legal, and other sciences. Today, both among Western and domestic researchers, there is a rather large variety of opinions and assessments regarding the interpretation of the complex, multidimensional issues of civil society. And the achievements of various scientific fields should be involved in the reform of the system of public administration and local self-government, as well as to find an effective model of public administration with effective mechanisms of interaction between government and society. To this end, a brief theoretical analysis of the concept of civil society has been made since the ancient times, when in the history of civil society and state relations two tendencies, called liberal and conservative, have emerged and began to emerge.The first is the division of civil society and state, in opposition to man and political power; is based on recognition of the indivisibility of the individual as a subject of law, guaranteeing his freedom of life and the limited political power. The second (conservative trend) - in the merger of man and power, politics and law, within a single statehood. With the consistent development of this trend, state policy rests on the notion that private interests are insignificant, irrelevant. Activation of state policy and recognition of the right of state dominance over society are put forward.The author draws attention to the fact that civil society in the West (where liberalism prevails) has evolved over a long historical period, and therefore differs from those in the countries that have become independent after the collapse of the USSR. Therefore, one should not be attracted to the borrowing experience of other countries. In the author’s opinion, one must find his own, possibly unique, model that is relevant to our national traditions, which should be oriented towards the principle of individualism, and not collectivism. At the present stage of development, the role of the state and the authorities is to improve the system of public administration, to develop effective mechanisms that should promote the development of civil society in Ukraine.