Martsinkovskaya T.D. Integrity of Culture as a Factor of Ethnic Identification (to the Concept of T.G. Stefanenko)

The need to reflect the contribution of T.G. Stefanenko to ethno psychology, the significance of her works, which has not yet been fully realized, seems extremely important, which determined the purpose of this article.

The method of analysis was the hermeneutic reflection of the works of T.G. Stefanenko

Results. A new approach to the study of ethnic identity and awareness of its specificity in comparison with ethnicity make the concept of T.G. Stefanenko a unique contribution to the understanding of the psychological content of these concepts. The most important provision of the concept of T.G. Stefanenko was a new approach to understanding culture as a determinant of the formation of ethnic identity, its arbitrariness and variability. The fundamental novelty was the combination of ethnicity with history and reflection of the life path and the person’s integrity. Ethnic identification, on the contrary, is associated with emotional experience, attitude to cultural standards and language. The cognitive-emotional approach to understanding the mechanism of formation of ethnic identity determines the freedom of its choice, the possibility of transforming it during choosing and constructing emotional relationships with different cultural groups.

Conclusions. The connection of the methodology of G.M. Andreeva’ s psychology of social cognition with the aesthetic paradigm and approach to ethnic experiences in the works of G.G. Shpet became the basis for the concept of T.G. Stefanenko on ethnic and cultural identification and identity. The separation of these concepts (as a process and a result) determined the ideas about the freedom of choice of one's ethnic and social identity and the importance of mutual acceptance of a person and a group. Understanding culture as an holistic system with mobile boundaries becomes the basis for an interdisciplinary approach to understanding ethnic identity and helps the connection between different forms of identity and the integrity of the person in a changing society.

Key words: ethno psychology, ethnic identity, ethnicity, culture, emotional experience

For citation: Martsinkovskaya, T.D. (2025). Integrity of Culture as a Factor of Ethnic Identification (to the Concept of T.G. Stefanenko). New Psychological Research, No. 1, 12–25. DOI: 10.51217/npsyresearch_2025_05_01_01