Individual-psychological features of patriotism and value orientations of Russian students

Tsveks Mihails Vasil'evich ORCID: 0000-0003-2498-0392 Postgraduate student, Department of Psychology and Pedagogy, Peoples' Friendship University of Russia 17 Miklukho-Maklaya str., Moscow, 117198, Russia mihail001@inbox.lv Other publications by this author

Rushina Marina Aleksandrovna ORCID: 0000-0003-1395-6194 PhD in Psychology Associate professor, Department of psychology and pedagogy, Peoples' Friendship University of Russia 117198, Russia, Moscow, Miklukho-Maklaya str., 10 rushina-ma@rudn.ru

Introduction.

Currently, there is an active restructuring of the political, economic and spiritual spheres in Russian society, transforming the value orientations and behavior of citizens in relation to their country and society. Some studies show a deterioration in the attitude of Russians towards their own state, this fact is especially pronounced among students (Shevchenko, 2017; Nizova, Rybakova, 2016). In the context of the citizen-fatherland relationship, one of the most important phenomena is patriotism, which can be a guideline for individual activity and manifests itself in all spheres of human life: work, communication, academic activity, etc. (Hoptyanaya, 2017; Shurukhina, Zhdanova, 2015, Hamada, 2021). At the same time, it is the student youth that can be considered ".....as a model sample to reflect current trends in the life of modern society" (Nikulova, Bobrova, 2016, p. 646).

Many authors believe that there is a close connection between patriotism and the value components of consciousness (G.V. Zdereva, S.V. Meshcheryakova, V.V. Dulin, A.S. Kalyuzhny, I.F. Kharlamov, etc.), which are most actively formed in adolescence (Naumenkov, 2013). This point of view is also held by foreign researchers (Livi, et. al., 2014). At the same time: "Youthful values can become both the basis of a person's full-fledged self-realization, the embodiment of his meaning of life, and a source of crisis" (Naumenkov, 2013, p. 236). Therefore, at the moment it is important to identify the individual psychological characteristics of the manifestation of patriotism of personality and value orientations of students of modern Russian universities as one of the important factors of the well-being of society.

Today, almost all foreign dictionaries define patriotism as loyalty and emotional attachment to one's country, integrating feelings of pride, devotion and a desire to protect or promote its interests (Britannica, 2017; Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2020; Oxford Dictionary of Sociology, 2014). In Russian dictionaries, patriotism is mainly understood as devotion, affection, love for one's people, Homeland, Fatherland, willingness to protect and defend its interests, as a complex phenomenon of public consciousness (Krysko, 1999; Bim-Bad, 2009; Dahl, 2004).

The main foreign psychological studies of patriotism are conducted in the context of the sociological understanding of this phenomenon as one of the key forms of group attachment (Schatz, 2018; Schatzki, 2017). At the same time, with the help of patriotism, they mainly describe social and national processes.

We consider patriotism as: "a systemic and functional property of a personality, represented by a set of instrumental-stylistic and motivational-semantic characteristics that ensure the constancy of aspirations and the readiness of the subject to realize actual and potential socially significant values, ideals and beliefs" (Potemkin, 2009, p. 5). As noted above, each component of patriotism, as a systemic personality quality, consists of two variables – harmonic and agarmonic.

A.V. Potemkin (2008) identifies 8 components:

- value characteristics: socially significant and personally significant values,

- dynamic characteristics: "energy" (strong, steady and constant striving for the realization of patriotism) and "energy" (weakness and inconstancy of aspirations),

- emotional characteristics: "stenicity" (experiencing positive emotions when showing patriotism) and "asthenicity" (experiencing negative emotions),

- regulatory characteristics: "internality" (internal locus of control in the context of the realization of this personality trait) and "externality (external locus of control),

- motivational characteristics: "sociocentrism" (motives related to the desire to help others, the Motherland) and "egocentrism (motives related to the desire to show their own capabilities and needs),

- cognitive characteristics: "meaningfulness" (understanding the essence of this phenomenon) and "awareness" (general judgments in the understanding of patriotism)

- productive characteristics: "productive-communicative" (patriotism contributes to success in the subject area) and "subjective-personal (the desire to realize one's self through patriotism),

- characteristics of the types of difficulties: "operational" (ignorance and inability to show patriotism specifically) and "personal" (difficulties in showing patriotism associated with personal anxiety, shyness, etc.)

S.I. Kudinov, I.B. Kudinova and S.S. Kudinov (2013) separated the concepts of "patriotism" and "patriotism", designating the first as a socio-psychological education, and the second as a personality trait. Having studied students of Russian universities, the authors identified three clusters in terms of the intensity of personal patriotism. The first is subjectively significant, characterized by a pronounced desire to implement patriotic behavior, but such behavior manifests itself only if it is beneficial to a person. The second one is undifferentiated, in which: "... the target attitudes towards the manifestation of patriotism are poorly expressed" (Kudinov, Kudinova, Kudinov, 2013, p. 46) leading to a deformation of ideological views and a decrease in the value of patriotism. The third is socio-value, which is characterized by a socio-value orientation of the manifestation of patriotism, which is associated with a deep awareness of the moral and ideological component of this phenomenon (Kudinov, Kudinova, Kudinov, 2013; Kudinova, Nurekeeva, Gavrilushkin, 2015).

It should be noted that in the context of the regulation of social behavior, the concept of "value orientations" is important, which encourage action, contribute to the choice of behavioral strategies and are the basis for decision-making. In the classical understanding of M. Rokich, values have a certain content, a difference in intensity, reveal the preference for a particular strategy of social behavior and are associated with self-esteem and a sense of identity (Rokich, 1973). Thus, value orientations help in determining and predicting an individual's behavior, as well as in correcting it (Narbuk, Trotsuk, 2008).

Based on the analysis of the works of E. Spranger, D.G. Holland, M. Rokich, N.A. Berdyaev, A.G. Zdravomyslov, V.P. Tugagirinov and others. and S.S. Bubnova's own experiments described value orientations as a system-forming factor of personality built on the principle of hierarchy, nonlinearity and dynamism. This system is presented as a "multidimensional dynamic space", ".... values are interconnected, are in dynamic equilibrium depending on the personal situation of the subject, and correlate with each other on the basis of personal significance" (Bubnova, 1994, p. 146).

S.S. Bubnova identifies four hierarchical levels of value orientations. The first is abstract values: spiritual, social and material. At the second level, there are components of abstract values, which are values-ideals associated with various ways and forms of behavior. Thus, the spiritual values-ideals are: cognitive, aesthetic, humanistic values and the value of love. Social values include: the value of social respect, social achievements and social status, and social activity. As for material values, they are presented as follows: health, the value of possessing material goods (Bubnova, Sytin, 2006). S.S. Bubnova also separately highlights the value of communication and the value of a pleasant pastime, pleasure and relaxation (Bubnova, 1994, p. 148). At the third level are the value properties of personality – curiosity, sociability, activity, etc. At the fourth level, the most characteristic behavioral strategies are the implementation and consolidation of values-properties (Bubnova, Sytin, 2006).

In one of her works, S.S. Bubnova gives a description of the value system in a generalized form in the context of their implementation in real life conditions: "learning new things in the world, nature, man", "search and enjoyment of beauty", "help and mercy to other people", "love", "recognition and respect for people and influence on others", "high social status and management of people", "social activity to achieve positive changes in society", "health", "high material well-being", "communication", "pleasant pastime, rest" (Bubnova, 1994).

S.S. Bubnova and A.N. Sytin (2006) revealed that for students of Moscow universities, significant ideal values are: communication, cognition, health, love. At the same time, values such as high social status and high social activity entered the cluster of rejected social values (Bubnova, Sytin, 2006). It can be assumed that over the past 17 years there have been shifts in the rejected and significant values of Russian students, therefore, a re-analysis of the significant values of modern students is required.

Sampling and research methods

The purpose of this study is to identify the individual psychological characteristics of the patriotism of the individual and the value orientations of Russian students. The study involved 101 students of the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia and Moscow State University (60 students of RUDN and 41 students of Moscow State University) aged 17 to 24 years.

In the study, a battery of psychodiagnostic techniques was used to collect data: the blank test of the study of patriotism "Patriogram" (S.I. Kudinov and A.V. Potemkin); the five-factor personality questionnaire NEO FFI (Costa, McCray) adapted by M.V. Bodunov and S.D. Biryukov; Diagnostics of the real structure of personality value orientations (S.S. Bubnova).

The methods of mathematical processing are represented by the ^X2 - Friedman criterion, W -Wilcoxon, rs - Spearman correlation coefficient. Computer data processing was carried out using the software packages "Excel", "IBM SPSS Statistics 22" and "Jamovi 2.3.24".

The results of the study

The results of the study on the blank test "Patriogram" show that the respondents have a dominance of individual harmonic or harmonic variables. For the reliability of this statement, the medians within each of the components were compared using the Wilcoxon W-test.

Table

Comparative analysis of the severity of patriotism variables in students (N=101)

It is revealed that the value component of students' patriotism is characterized by a focus on protecting their country, the desire to be useful to society and the desire to improve the standard of living of people around them. However, the manifestation of a patriotic attitude towards reality among students is weak and unstable, as indicated by the dynamic component. Students do not see the need for an open manifestation of their patriotism, they believe that not in every situation it is possible to defend the interests of their country and any patriotic appeal is critically evaluated.

In the context of the emotional component of patriotism, stenicity dominates. Respondents tend to experience a sense of joy and a state of emotional uplift when displaying patriotism, as from activity that benefits the country. They feel a sense of gratitude and appreciation to previous generations for their contribution to the development of the Fatherland, a sense of pride and delight for the achievements of their compatriots and their heroic past. Surrounded by patriotic people, students tend to feel a sense of confidence and joy.

The volitional-regulatory component of students' patriotism is characterized by an international locus of control. They tend to believe that everyone should make efforts to improve the quality of life in their country and independently choose how they will do it. The respondents are convinced that if every person were a patriot, many problems would be solved in the country. Despite the fact that students take responsibility for the manifestation of their patriotism, they have a prevailing opinion that it is the state and society that are responsible for the formation of patriotism, as indicated by the dominance of one of the characteristics – externality (p < 0.001).

The motivational component of patriotism is dominated by a social orientation. Students are encouraged to engage in patriotic activity by a sense of solidarity, a desire to help their state and fellow citizens as much as possible, to improve the living conditions of people and the country as a whole. At the same time, they have a deep understanding of this phenomenon and a correct interpretation of its essential features, as indicated by the dominance of "meaningfulness" in the cognitive component. So students believe that patriotism is respect and observance of traditions, studying its legislative framework, it's just a voluntary defense of the Motherland and experiencing pride in its achievements. Patriotism is not just knowledge about the problems of your country, but also actions, namely, attempts to solve these very problems to the best of your abilities.

The comparative analysis revealed that students have more pronounced difficulties of operational content that accompany the realization of patriotism. So students are ready to get involved in activities that can benefit the country and society, but they do not know exactly how to do it and believe that they do not know how to do it. At the same time, they experience a sense of insecurity if they have to participate in patriotic events and believe that fostering patriotic feelings in people is a difficult task.

It should be noted that statistical differences in the reflexive-evaluative component of the studied personality quality have not been revealed.

An analysis of the results of the study using the methodology "Diagnostics of the real structure of personality value orientations" revealed that the dominant values of students are "communication" and "pleasant pastime" (Xr ² = 213.086; p < 0.001). Respondents tend to focus on forming a circle of communication that would satisfy them spiritually and emotionally. At the same time, it is valuable for them to be able to spend their time and money on satisfying their pressing desires, such as pleasure and rest. These values may be the characteristics of adolescence, the prevailing focus on socialization through active communication, combined with a pleasant pastime, while low concern about health and a weakly manifested focus on high material well-being.

A correlation analysis of personality patriotism with personality factors and the structure of value orientations revealed that students with energetic and dynamic characteristics, who have strength, stability and constancy of striving for patriotism, willingness to implement it in various ways and techniques tend to be more closed to new experiences. They tend to adhere to a traditional worldview. They are more conservative, executive, able to more rigidly set boundaries between "right" and "wrong", less attentive to the feelings of others (rs = -0.216; p < 0.05). Such students prioritize the values of having good health (rs = 0.242 ; p < 0.05), love for their loved ones (rs = 0.257 ; p < 0.01), help, mercy and generosity to others (rs = 0.231 ; p < 0.05).

Respondents with an aerergic-dynamic characteristic, whose manifestation of a patriotic attitude to reality is characterized by weakness and inconstancy, who are critical of any patriotic appeal and believe that if patriotism is needed, it is only in small doses (rs = -0.219 ; p < 0.05).

Students with an emotional and behavioral characteristic, for whom the manifestation of patriotism is characterized by experiencing emotions of joy, optimism, emotional uplift and satisfaction from the realization of this personality trait, have characteristics such as high self-control, perseverance, task orientation and accuracy in work, consistency and reliability, they are more conscious (rs = 0.420; p < 0.001), are more extroverted, social and sociable, active, friendly and optimistic, impulsive and prone to leadership (rs = 0.246 ; p < 0.05), less neurotic, they tend to treat life more rationally and calmly, they are stable and confident in the face of obstacles, have good willpower and stable personality organization (rs = -0.246 ; p < 0.05). Such students are characterized by the presence of the value of having good health (rs = 0.207 ; p < 0.05) and love for loved ones (rs = 0.302 ; p < 0.01), i.e. the focus on building warm and deep relationships and actively monitoring their health and the health of those who are dear to them.

Students with an emotionally asthenic characteristic, who have negative feelings when implementing patriotism: anxiety, fear, pessimism, premonition of failure and disappointment, are characterized by lower consciousness, disorganization, a weak sense of duty, a low level of purposeful behavior, weak impulse control, a certain hedonism (rs = -0.277 ; p < 0.01), they are less they get along with their environment, are more egocentric, skeptical of other people and prefer rivalry (rs = -0.272 ; p < 0.01), they are characterized by neuroticism, increased emotional sensitivity and reactivity to external stimuli, emotional lability, pessimism, they are less sociable, they are harder given volitional efforts, have a weaker character (rs = 0.223 ; p < 0.05).

Students with a regulatory and external characteristic, whose manifestation of patriotism is associated with an external locus of control, i.e. shifting responsibility for the formation and manifestation of patriotism to others, confident that the power of the state does not depend on the efforts of individual citizens, preferring to let everything take its course in the context of the realization of this personality trait is characterized by lower consciousness, weak sense of duty, disorganization, low level of commitment and reliability (rs = -0.196 ; p < 0.05). They are less accommodating, more egocentric and conformist, prone to rivalry (rs = -0.312 ; p < 0.001), they are also characterized by closeness to new experiences, conservatism and a preference to follow a traditional worldview and traditional values (rs = -0.270 ; p < 0.01), while they tend to reject the value of help and mercy to other people (rs = -0.208 ; p < 0.05).

Students with a motivational and sociocentric characteristic, for whom the motivating motive in the realization of patriotism is the desire to help people around them, society, the state, the team, are characterized by higher consciousness, a sense of duty, scrupulousness, punctuality, purposefulness, organization and reliability (rs = 0.364 ; p < 0.001). Such students are more extroverted, strive for vivid impressions, are more impulsive and optimistic, sociable, need people (rs = 0.396 ; p < 0.001), their value structure shows the value in gaining such a position in society that will ensure them respect and recognition of people and influence on others (rs = 0.252 ; p < 0.05).

Students with a motivational-egocentric characteristic, for whom the motivating motive in the realization of patriotism is the manifestation of themselves and their capabilities, obtaining personal benefits, showing independence and independence, are characterized by closeness to new experiences, conservatism, a weak level of attentiveness to the feelings of others, they are less interested in striving for new knowledge, ideas, impressions (rs = -0.216 ; p < 0.05).

Students with a cognitively meaningful characteristic who have deep ideas about patriotism, understand its functional purpose, correctly interpret the essential signs of this personality trait and are able to differentiate it from others are characterized by higher consciousness, perseverance, organization and consistency in achieving their goals (rs = 0.246 ; p < 0.05). Their value system is characterized by the presence of the value of love (rs = 0.277 ; p < 0.01), the value of recognizing and respecting people and the ability to influence others (rs = 0.216 ; p < 0.05).

Students with a cognitively aware characteristic, whose character of judgment about patriotism is common, indicating non-essential signs of this personality trait, are characterized by higher consciousness, perseverance, organization and consistency in achieving goals (rs = 0.218 ; p < 0.05), they are more closed to new experiences, conservative, less attentive to feelings others (rs = -0.312 ; p < 0.001), they tend to have the value of love (rs = 0.205 ; p < 0.05).

Students with an operational type of difficulties accompanying the process of displaying patriotism, associated with a lack of knowledge and experience, a lack of understanding of the essence of this property and the impossibility for a person to specifically manifest it, are characterized by lower consciousness, lack of perseverance, scrupulousness and consistency in achieving goals, disorganization (rs = -0.457 ; p < 0.001). Such students are closed to new experiences, conservative, less eager to learn new experiences, to experience new impressions, less attentive to the feelings of others (rs = -0.224 ; p < 0.05). They are more introverted, strive for a calm and orderly life, independence, attach more importance to moral and ethical norms, individualists (rs = -0.247 ; p < 0.05). They are also more neurotic, emotionally less stable, uncommunicative and it is more difficult for them to show strong-willed efforts (rs = 0.327 ; p < 0.001), they tend to reject values such as help, mercy and generosity to other people (rs = -0.265 ; p < 0.01), the value in achieving high social status and management people (rs = -0.212 ; p < 0.05) and the value in good health (rs = -0.220 ; p < 0.05).

Students with a personal type of difficulties accompanying the process of displaying patriotism associated with personal anxiety, shyness and modesty are characterized by lower consciousness, lack of perseverance, punctuality, scrupulousness and consistency in achieving goals (rs = -0.407 ; p < 0.001), they are less accommodating, more egocentric and skeptical of other people, they prefer to compete with people (rs = -0.275 ; p < 0.01), are more closed to new experiences, conservative, able to set the boundaries between "right" and "wrong" more rigidly, less attentive to the feelings of others, the level of desire for new knowledge and experience is lower (rs = -0.298 ; p < 0.01). Such students are introverts, strive for a calm, orderly life, are able to control their emotions well enough, are somewhat pessimistic, attach great importance to moral and ethical norms (rs = -0,300 ; p < 0.01), are neurotic, react quite strongly and sharply emotionally to external stimuli, are more active and emotionally labile (rs = 0.234 ; p < 0.05). In the value system, they tend to reject the value of helping and being merciful to other people (rs = -0.243 ; p < 0.05).

Conclusion

Based on the data obtained, it can be concluded that the patriotism of the personality of students of modern Russian universities is characterized by a social orientation. They strive to realize this personality trait by protecting the interests of their Homeland, improving life in the country and helping people around them. They are motivated by a sense of solidarity, a desire to help their Fatherland and people as much as possible. They are independent and responsible in the context of the manifestation of their patriotism, however, they believe that it is the state and the environment that are responsible for the formation of patriotism in society. Students experience emotional uplift and joy at showing their patriotism. They are characterized by a sense of gratitude and appreciation for previous generations, as well as pride and delight for their achievements. They are able to correctly interpret the essential content of this phenomenon and differentiate the characterized property from others.

Despite the willingness of students to engage in patriotic activities that can benefit the country and society, they do not know exactly how to do this and believe that they do not know how to do it. In addition, they do not see the need for an open display of patriotism, which leads to the volatility of their patriotic behavior. Participation in patriotic events makes them feel insecure. This uncertainty may be the result of inability and ignorance of how specifically one can show one's patriotism and contribute to instability and weak activity in the realization of this property. In addition, it is possible that in the society of young people today it is "not fashionable" to actively express their patriotism and it is difficult for students to find a correct and "fashionable" strategy for the realization of patriotism.

In the course of our research, we have identified the interrelationships of patriotism and value orientations. Students, for whom the main thing is love: for their loved ones, wife, child, as well as good health, are characterized by a constant and steady willingness to show their patriotism, while experiencing emotional uplift, a sense of joy, optimism and satisfaction. Values are important regulators of behavior. These values may indicate the desire of a person to build deep and warm relationships, to be attentive both to others and to himself. At the same time, the realization of values contributes to positive experiences. We can observe that such a focus is also manifested in the context of the realization of one's patriotism.

Students, for whom the main thing is to gain a position in life that provides them with respect and recognition of people, as well as the opportunity to influence others, are characterized by a socially oriented motivation to help people and the Motherland in realizing their patriotism, as well as a cognitively meaningful, essential understanding of this property.

It should also be noted that the individual psychological characteristics of the manifestation of patriotism of the individual were revealed. The lower the student's degree of personal integration, willpower, sociability, and the higher his emotional instability, the more he experiences negative emotions when showing his patriotism. Such a student is characterized by difficulties in implementing patriotic behavior because he is hampered by increased personal anxiety, shyness, and he does not know how and does not know how specifically to show patriotism.

Extroverted students tend to experience emotional uplift, positive emotions and satisfaction from showing their patriotism. They are characterized by socially oriented motivation, a desire to help others in the realization of this personality trait and it is not difficult for them to engage in such behavior.

The more conservative a student is and is closed to new experiences, knowledge and experiences, the more stable, constant and stronger his willingness to show his patriotism. However, the implementation of patriotic behavior in such students is motivated by personal gain and has an external locus of control. The ideas of patriotism among conservative students are of a general nature and despite their willingness to show this property, they do not know how and do not know how to do it, as well as they are hampered by personal anxiety, modesty and shyness in the implementation of patriotism.

Students who are prone to rivalry, skeptical of others and more egocentric tend to experience negative emotions when showing patriotism, their personal anxiety and shyness interfere with the realization of this personality trait, and patriotic behavior has an external locus of control.

A conscious person approaches the realization of patriotism with a sense of duty, consistently and scrupulously. Such students are characterized by the presence of socially oriented motivation in the manifestation of their patriotism, the desire to help other people and the Motherland. It is not difficult for them to realize their patriotism, while, in the process, they experience positive emotions and a sense of satisfaction.

It can be concluded that personality factors such as extraversion, conscientiousness and openness to experience facilitate the student's realization of his patriotism. While neuroticism, on the contrary, contributes to the formation of difficulties.

The identified individual psychological characteristics of patriotism and value orientations of students of Russian universities can contribute to the further development of individual and group correctional, developmental and educational programs for the formation of constructive and harmonious manifestations of patriotism.