FEATURES OF THE UKRAINIAN MENTALITY AS A BASIS FOR THE FORMATION OF DIASPORAS

Abstract

The article presents the results of the study of the main archetypes and features of the Ukrainian national character in their translational/restraining influence on the process of diaspora formation. It is proven that the “borderline” existence of the Ukrainian people determined the features of their mental code, which in turn programs the historical reality. Therefore, the mentality, acting as a fundamental condition for the existence of the ethnophore, is considered by us as an important factor in building multilevel social relations, including those outside the maternal ethnos. The article substantiates the urgency of the problem of mental determination in the conditions of temporal challenges of today and emphasizes the direct reflection of the dialectic of existence of the Ukrainian people in their worldview. Historical retrospective testifies to the predisposition of Ukrainians to group life forms and the preservation of national-specific identifiers. On the other hand, the contradictory essence of the main mental features enshrines the “principle of situationality” of the separation process in the conditions of foreign ethnic majority. The diasporal dimension of studying the problem allows to recourse to leveling the negativism of particular mental attitudes. It is argued that axiological priorities as the basis for the differentiation of objects, phenomena and processes of the objective world are a necessary condition for the formation of a social individual within both maternal and foreign ethnic environment. Their extrapolation to social relations makes it possible to outline the basic behavioral mechanisms and to reflect on actions, through which individual experience is projected. It is that very individual experience that becomes an important factor in the re/integration of the diaspora representatives and the process of institutionalization of ethnic minorities.