Development of National Character and importance in present day political situation.

“Development of National Character and importance in present day political situation.”

National character is an expression which describes forms of collective self-perception, sensibility, and conduct which are shared by the individuals who inhabit a modern nation-state. It presupposes the existence of psychological and cultural homogeneity among the citizens of each country, as well as the idea that each nation can be considered a collective individual, with characteristics analogous to the empirical individuals who are its inhabitants. This behavior is sometimes considered on an abstract level, that is, as cultural behavior without actual reference to necessarily different personality modalities. It may also be considered as motivated by underlying psychological mechanisms characteristic of a given people.

National character as institutional pattern: In this approach, most common among political scientists, the national character is epitomized by the dominant, or typical and representative, institutions, particularly those concerned with politics and economics. The basic objectives of national-character studies are to examine the tensions underlying the political and social structures of modern states. Social tensions are particularly apparent in societies that are rapidly changing. For example, one type of social tension that is frequently observed results from the systematic attempts of an elite to establish particular patterns of directed social change, in spite of the unavailability of sufficient individuals whose training and social experience equip them for achieving the goals set by the elite. In one such study, Bauer attempted to demonstrate the social tension existing between the political elite in Russian society and a large number of individuals who are not motivationally involved in the same ways as the members of the Communist party hierarchy (1948).

If necessary personality traits are not forthcoming from a proportionate number of individuals within the society, the society will not function well in terms of newer values, whatever the elite controlling the society attempts to do. Even though institutional legal structures are consciously changed in accord with social planning, if characteristic changes in socialization experiences do not accompany these changes in such a manner as to facilitate the appearance of adequate motivational behavior, the sought-after change will not become stabilized and self-perpetuating.

In another study indirectly concerned with the psychological processes underlying dynamics of social change. Hagen (1962), in a comprehensive study of economic and social change in a number of discrete societies, cogently discussed the relationship of personality variables to different economic traditions, such as colonialism or feudalism, and the manner in which they either facilitate or hamper economic development. This study is illustrative of the fact that considerations of national character are having considerable influence in augmenting theoretical approaches in economics and political science.