Politinių nuostatų ir politinio elgesio modeliai Lietuvos provincijoje

LTŠiame straipsnyje pateikiama 2003 m. liepą atlikto kokybinio gyventojų nuostatų tyrimo Lietuvos provincijoje duomenų analizė. Straipsnio tikslas - ištirti Lietuvos gyventojų politinių orientacijų ir politinio elgesio struktūros ypatumus nagrinėjant individų nuostatų įvairiuose politinės paramos lygmenyse ir politinio nusistatymo modelius. Straipsnyje pristatoma Lietuvos gyventojų politinio mentaliteto tipų schema, kuri leidžia nagrinėti empiriškai galimas politinės paramos lygmenų struktūras ir sąsajas su politiniu nusistatymu. Straipsnyje teigiama, kad politinė parama demokratijai labiausiai priklauso nuo individo požiūrio į buvusį komunistinį režimą, taip pat nuo amžiaus ir turėto socialinio statuso. Nors šiuo metu valdančiąją daugumą sudaro kairiosios partijos, dešiniųjų pažiūrų gyventojai labiau patenkinti režimo veikimu nei kairieji rinkėjai. Straipsnyje taip pat atskleidžiama, kad pritarimas protesto politikai nėra tiesiogiai susijęs su nepasitenkinimo valdžia ar režimu lygiu. [Iš leidinio]Reikšminiai žodžiai: Politinis elgesys; Provincija; Political attitudes; Countryside.

ENIt is widely assumed that effective functioning of democratic institutions depends on the political support and civic engagement of the public. Public support for authorities is especially important during the reform period in new democracies. Evidence from different Central and Eastern European countries including Lithuania demonstrates critically low level of political support, e.g. satisfaction with regime performance and trust in political institutions as well as comparatively low level of political engagement. However, systematic and comprehensive account of these trends and their implications for political stability and democratic performance in new democracies are lacking. In the article the results of qualitative research of political attitudes and political behavior in Lithuanian countryside are presented. Thirty in-depth interviews with ordinary citizens were made in Alanta and Naujasodis (district of Molėtai) in July 2003. The aim of the research is to explore the dominating patterns of political support and political engagement of Lithuanian citizens.The political support was analyzed by using theoretical framework of David Easton and Pippa Norris. David Easton in his classic model distinguished among different objects of support including support for the community, the regime and the authorities. Moreover, he made a distinction between the specific support, a quid pro quo for the fulfillment of demands, and diffuse support, unconditional attachment to political objects and a reservoir of favorable attitudes or good will. This conceptual framework was recently revisited by Norris who expanded the classification into five-fold framework distinguishing between the political support for the community, regime principles, regime performance, regime institutions, and political actors. Political engagement is defined here to include psychological as well as actual political involvement. In more concrete terms, it comprises the following dimensions: 1) interest in politics; 2) voting and propensity to vote in elections or referenda; 3) engagement in community politics; 4) partisanship, including both the party membership and party identification; 5) participation or propensity to engage in unconventional political activity.The analysis resulted in classification of ten types of political outlook: 'pro-soviet radical', 'soviet system builder', 'moderate critic', 'rural wisdom optimist', 'apathetic youth', 'rational youth', 'disappointed activist', 'civic optimist', 'rightist democrat' and 'rightist radical.' These types can be expected to represent the dominant patterns of political attitudes and political behaviour in rural Lithuania. The investigation reveals that political support for democracy is highly dependent on the attitudes towards the soviet past. Moreover, it is indirectly linked with the age and former social status of the respondent. The data shows that supporters of democratic regime are usually right-oriented or young persons. Surprisingly, the satisfaction with current regime performance is not linked with the support for current authorities. Finally, the results suggest that most disappointed persons are more sceptical toward conventional forms of political engagement and are likely to support unconventional political activities. The actual political behaviour, however, is not dependent on the level of political support. [From the publication]