N.I. Fokina. Social Responsibility: Some Aspects of the Philosophic Analysis

Abstract: The article proves that the particular topicality of the social responsibility in the contemporary world needs not only the study of the social life’s reality, but also the clarification of some theoretical and logical and conception problems. From the author’s point of view, the responsibility can be regarded as a whole social phenomenon presenting itself as a social responsibility. It is marked with subject and object relations including the requirements to the subject of the responsibility stipulated by actual society’s conditions (economic, political, spiritual etc.) and his or her reaction to them. The article underlines that the responsibility is a complicated system formation. The responsibility’s analysis from its carrier’s point of view permits to address to the subject of the responsibility. The activity’s character is a ground for the extraction of the professional, social, family responsibility etc. In axiological plan the subject and object relations acquire the forms of the moral and legal responsibility. The author assumes that the positive and negative significance of the responsibility acquires the apparent theoretical importance. The article underlines that the most important thing in the philosophic exploration of the social responsibility are its positive components, which determine the conscious, active subject’s attitude to the reality, skills in the present’s projection to the future (rather than its negative significance, responsibility for the ‘guilt’). The author supports the opinion of those jurisprudents who believe that the positive legal responsibility is the most important element of the legal status of the subject of responsibility. The article touches upon the problem of the perception of the moral and legal responsibility by subject. According to the author, the requirements to the person from the law and social morale can be accepted by him or her either as internally necessary or externally imposed (alien). The ‘measure of the responsibility’ is a balance between the internal and external, positive and negative attitude to these requirements. The author believes that the personal responsibility is stipulated by influence of the macrocosm and microcosm’s values subjectively perceived by a person in accordance with his or her cultural level, moral maturity, psychological organization etc. The personal responsibility includes not only the ‘feeling of the responsibility’ (personal emotions and feelings encompassed by ‘soulfulness’ conception): it assumes the conscious attitude to the consequences of the person’s actions, i.e. presence of the ‘spirituality’ in the person. The article brings the circumstances for analysis, which are the source of the low level responsibility of the member of the society and puts emphasis thereon that the degree and nature of the external circumstances’ influence depends on the individual’s personal properties. Finally, the author comes to conclusion that the wholly responsible person is a person originally aware of the consequences of his or her behaviour and activity and capable to act aiming at the future results. In connection therewith the society (and the state, on his behalf) are obliged to create such an economic, social, spiritual, political and legal situation, which would not eliminate the responsible behaviour and contribute to its growth.