Thesis for PhD in Speciality 052 – Political Science. – Mariupol State University, Kyiv, 2023.
PhD thesis considers the resource potential of local political identities, their influence on political and socio-economic processes, the strengthening of local self-government and democracy, capacities and sustainable development of territorial communities.
In the introduction of the PhD thesis, relevance, object, subject, goal and task, research methods, scientific novelty and practical significance are defined, as well as PhD approval is presented.
The PhD thesis performed a comprehensive political analysis and defined the role of local political identities in the development of territorial communities, clarifying the capacities and mechanisms of their implementation in the political and socio-economic practices of local communities for the first time in Ukrainian science.
The theoretical provisions, conclusions and findings of the dissertation have practical significance and can be used by local self-government bodies, executive authorities and other stakeholders in the process of forming a single social organism of united territorial communities, and local community cohesion based on a balance of interests to achieve common goals.
Chapter I «Local identities as a subject of political analysis» investigated the evolution of the concept of identity and carried out a political analysis of local identity in foreign and domestic literature.
Subsection 1.1. «Interdisciplinary matrix of identity: academic discourse» considered the genesis of theoretical and methodological approaches to the definition of the category «identity» in various fields of the humanities related to the object and subject of the research: philosophy, psychology, sociology, history and political science.
Subsection 1.2. «Local political identity: issues of conceptualization and research methodology» analyzed the main categories of the research and made a political analysis of «local identity» as well as clarified the concept of «local political identity», its essence, features and functions.
Subsection 1.3. «Comprehensive analysis of local identity in Ukrainian scientific studies» carried out a comprehensive and interdisciplinary analysis of approaches to the definition of local identities and local political identities in the works of Ukrainian scientists, and determined the dominant and current research trends of this phenomenon.
Chapter II «Construction of local political identity» investigated the essence of identity politics at the local level; factors, mechanisms and implementation tools.
Subsection 2.1. «Local identity policy: strategies, mechanisms and tools of formation» described the features of local identity policy.
Subsection 2.2. «Formation of social capital as the basis of political agreement in the local community» substantiated the influence of social capital on the formation of local identity and highlighted the interrelatedness between the level of development for social capital and political agreement within the local community based on public interests, general norms, values and development tasks.
Chapter III «Local political identities as a component of territorial development» considered the resource of local political identities in territorial development is investigated and determined their impact on the development of local self-government and democracy.
Subsection 3.1. «The influence of local political identities on the development of local self-government and democracy» showed the processes of decentralization and the adoption of the new Electoral Code as the main factors of increasing the influence of local political identities on the development of local self-government and democracy in modern Ukraine. The marker of influence is political elections, especially local ones.
Subsection 3.2. «Implementation of local political identities in socio-economic practices: capacities and sustainable development of communities» considered the capacities and issues of converting local political identities into constructive socio-economic practices: capacities and sustainable development of communities.
Keywords: political identity, local political identity, territorial community, identity politics, historical memory, social capital, trust, legitimacy, political communication, political elections, electoral system, local self-government, capacities of territorial communities, sustainable development goals.
