Functions of the political system and their role for society

Aristotle also called politics a special art of governing peoples and states. Since that time, practically no one denied the significance of this component of society's life, literally piercing all its spheres, down to the everyday one. The functions of the political system have their own patterns, but they can only be understood in interaction with other aspects of social activity of people. Being an aggregate, that is, uniting related elements that have stable integrity, this system is very complex, its activity is purposeful, and it has structurally subordinate parts.

The functions of the political system are inherent in one of the subspecies of the aggregate, which we call society (other such units are economics, spiritual life, and so on). They have certain peculiarities, such as participation in solving general social problems, integrating and distributing material and other values. In addition, political activities include a monopoly on power and state coercion on a national scale, as well as the use of a special apparatus for this purpose.

Functions of the political system are also connected with its complex internal structure. After all, it consists of different parties, organizations, norms and standards, principles and ideals, diverse communication mechanisms, through which social groups and individuals can communicate with the authorities. The latter affects the interests of both the huge masses of society and certain clans (strata, families, etc.) involved in the leadership of the state, or those who dominate the economy and affect the main resources. This management imposes duties on everyone without exception. It can be carried out directly, thanks to the actions of the social forces that dominate the country, and indirectly through various movements and their leaders.

Signs of political power are determined precisely because of the existence and work of a special group, a specific stratum of people professionally engaged in government-wide management. Modern philosophy and political science have, by and large, two approaches to the definition and analysis of the management of society and the people.

The first of them (instrumental) represents such a structure as a theoretical and ideal construct, which makes it possible to define and describe the properties of different phenomena in the field of politics, regarding it as a kind of analysis. Thus, any integral relationship between people with specific interests (whether state, party or movement) is an independent entity. The second one tries to analyze the relationship of power and subordination in a specific society between groups and individuals, and also describe such complex accompanying phenomena as political consciousness, culture, and so on.

Based on these methods, when analyzing different models of states, it is necessary to take into account both the systemic political functions of various phenomena and the stable ties that have developed between them. They cover many spheres: the relationship between society and the environment; Organizational features of various elements (the actual power group and various movements and associations taking part in social life); Normative bases of life of various institutions, coherence or conflicts arising between them; Processes that occur due to the activities of a particular regime; Cultural, creative and ideological components; The role of the entire system in the life of the country or in the international arena, as well as its individual elements.

The functions of the political system tell us that this is a complex and diverse phenomenon, without which the life of society would be impossible. It has many internally organized connections, and is divided into structures and parts with different properties. Scientists argue among themselves about what their essence is, but this once again gives us the opportunity to make sure that there is a common opinion about the main purpose of this system. First of all, it is setting goals of society - with a distant and close sight, as well as its power and political integration. Then the mobilization of resources, regulation of the social activity regime, and, finally, legitimization - that is, the desire to achieve a level of real life that would conform to accepted norms and standards. Fulfilling them effectively, the system will generally have a positive impact on the life of the country in which it operates.