The empirical study of peculiarities of youth civic and national self-identification: basic concepts and indicators

Following the constructivist and discourse approach self-identification is defined as a flexible discourse construct that constantly transforms in the process of social interaction and changes of psychological and social experiences of individual. With view to the role of communication in the development of identification processes, the author proposes self-identification classification on the basis of the method of sign and symbol interaction of an individual with others and the world. Certain method of using a sign as a means corresponds to one of the four identified levels of self-identification, which are a) identity marking; b) its symbolic comprehension; c) construction of categories and ideals which individuals identify them with; d) construction of conditions and rules of transforming the reality. The basic concepts are operationalized: national self-identification is defined as individual awareness of belonging to a political nation, which is social and cultural community with its experience of statehood, traditions, myths and symbols, common values and expectations of the future. Civic self-identification is defined as individual self-determination in the continuum of subjectity manifestations and identification with the community whose members are prepared and willing to defend their interests in the course of constructive social interaction. In this way the concepts are separated, the indicators of civic and national self-identification are identified and assumption about peculiarities of their manifestations on different levels is made as well