On the difference in the approach to completing the task between Europeans and Russians:
In the seventies, it was customary to organize competitions between friendly armies. I served then in the artillery, and once I happened to be present at the championship, which was held between our unit and the fraternal German unit, which was armed with the same guns and tractors.
In addition to the combined arms running around and shooting, the program included the following exercise: the tractor, having left the starting point and driving 50 meters, must turn around so that the gun looks towards the enemy, the crew jumps off the tractor, unhooks the gun, uncovers it, spreads the support beds, aims at the target, charges, fires a shot, which must hit the target. The standard for everything is 45 seconds. There is only one line to complete this exercise, so they performed it in turn, who was faster - the stopwatch decided. By lot, first the Germans, then ours. Both divisions are present, rooting for their own.
The stopwatch clicked. The Germans have gone. They act clearly, you will fall in love. The tractor worked out jumps into position. The officer stands on the sidelines with binoculars, not interfering in anything. The sergeant gives orders, the soldiers act like automatic weapons, the beds are spaced, the covers are removed, the shell is in the barrel. Shot. The target is hit. 41 seconds. The Germans are jubilant. For 4 seconds the standard was blocked! The result is excellent.
Now ours. The tractor flies into position, the gun almost capsizes when turning, stands on one wheel, thinks for a moment whether to fall on its side or back to working position. Passed - fell as it should. The calculation of the crowd runs to her. The sergeant gives out kicks, the officer grabs the bed, drops the binoculars, which are crushed in the confusion, the mat-remote, loading almost stumbling, miraculously sends the projectile into the breech in the fall, shot! The target is hit. 17 seconds.
Pay attention - the Germans completed the task more accurately. More beautiful. More reliable. Without too much fuss and without crushing the binoculars. But the Russians spit on all these minor details and fired two and a half times faster.
This is precisely our strong point. Russians, if necessary, can muster their strength, clench their teeth into a fist and perform a feat with bestial effort. Moreover, the feat is not in the sense of "heroically die", a la Japanese suicides, but the feat in the sense of "perform the almost impossible." Achieve results. Win the war or launch a rocket into space.
If you need to do something carefully - call the German. If you need to do something beautiful - invite an Italian. If you need to brag about what you have done, contact an American. If a German, an Italian and an American cannot achieve a result in any way, call a Russian. He will solve the problem.
The word "Westernism" I call the social system modern countries Western world. These countries include the USA, France, Germany, England, Italy, Canada, Australia, Austria, Belgium and other Western European countries. I do not call the social system of these countries the words "capitalism" and "democracy" because the word "capitalism" characterizes these countries only from the point of view of the economy, and even then one-sidedly, and the word "democracy" designates only one of the sides. political system these countries. In addition, these words have become ambiguous ideological expressions, and not scientific terms. The real social order of modern Western countries contains elements of capitalism and democracy, but is not reduced to them. He is something more. Over the past fifty years, it has undergone such significant changes that the words "capitalism" and "democracy", with which familiar content, no longer adequately characterize it. The neutral word "Westernism" seems to me more appropriate.
What is Westernism as a certain type of social structure (social organization) of a human being, we will consider in this part of the book. Societies of the Western type have developed and won a leading position in humanity thanks to the efforts of the peoples of Western Europe. At the same time, the French, Germans, British, Italians and other peoples were formed more or less simultaneously. They were formed as part of a single Western European civilization. They have developed similar traits that make it possible to talk about peoples and people of the Western type. Let's call them Westerners.
All authors unanimously note such features Western nations(peoples from the Westerners). Increased tendency to individualism. high intellectual and creative level(compared to other nations, of course). Ingenuity. Practicality. Efficiency. prudence. Competitiveness. Adventurism. Curiosity. Emotional callousness. Cold. Vanity. Increased self-esteem. Feeling of superiority over other nations. High degree self-discipline and self-organization. The desire to manage others and the ability to do so. The ability to hide feelings. Theatricality. Almost all of them, in one way or another, were in the role of conquerors and colonizers.
The reader must remember
what was said above about the ratio of the qualities of the people as a whole and the qualities of its individual representatives. The mentioned qualities of Westernoids are not inherent in each of them individually. They are "dissolved" in their mass. People of the Western type and Western qualities are found in all fairly large and relatively developed peoples. But among Western peoples, the percentage of people with the qualities of Westerners and the concentration of the “solution” of Westernism are higher than among other peoples, and the value of this “higher” turned out to be sufficient to form a qualitative difference. The mentioned properties existed among the ancestors of the Westerners in the form of some kind of natural inclinations. People with such inclinations turned out to be viable. Over time, their number grew. They became an example for others, cultivated these qualities in their children. These properties have proven to be useful and beneficial for individual people and their associations in general.
A process similar to the breeding of cultivated plants and animals took place. Only here the active agents of the process were the deduced beings themselves. Then the means of upbringing, education, training, ideology, propaganda, and culture came into play. They made the spontaneous selection process conscious and purposeful. As a result, the human material was formed, thanks to which Western civilization became the most significant in the history of mankind, gave rise to the most highly developed societies and took a leading position in the modern evolutionary process of mankind. At one time, people stood out from the animal world and rose above it in the evolution of living matter.
In the case considered here, a part of humanity separated from its mass and the elevation of this part above it took place. Such tendencies and attempts have taken place in other parts of humanity and are still taking place - this is a general pattern of evolutionary processes. large scale. Without the “vertical” structuring of matter, no development, no evolutionary progress is generally possible. Societies of the Western type have developed and won a leading position in the evolution of mankind thanks to the material culture that the Westerners created by common efforts. She almost 100% determined the progress material culture mankind in the last few centuries. Now and in the foreseeable future, it has no serious competitors on the planet. Its origin and development is based on scientific knowledge world and technical inventions based on the results of science.
It is believed that scientific and technical progress of our time is wholly and entirely the merit of capitalism. This is an ideological fallacy. Of course, capitalism has participated and is participating in this progress, but as one of its factors along with others. It is also driven by the interests of the state, preparation for wars and defense, the qualities of human material discussed above, the established way of life and the internal laws of the sphere of knowledge itself, which has turned into modern societies one of the most important areas of society. To a large extent, this area itself now sets the tone for social progress generating new needs and new means of satisfying them. And now it is sometimes difficult to say which factor plays more important role entrepreneurship, as such, or a scientific and technical complex.
The emergence of technocratic social concept obviously cannot be considered a coincidence. The emergence and development of Westernism, in turn, contributed to the progress of human material and material culture. The influence was mutual. The evolutionary circle is closed. The determining factor in evolution has been social organization Westernism.
WESTERNIST STATEHOOD
The sphere of statehood in Western countries is enormous in terms of the number of people employed in it (from fifteen to twenty or even more percent of working citizens are hired), in terms of the costs of society for it, and in the place that it occupies in the life of members of society. There is an immense literature about it. Media reports are filled with judgments about her.
Western ideology and propaganda literally run amok, glorifying it. Its descriptions can be found in countless reference books, textbooks and special monographs. And in this ocean of words ninety percent (if not more) is devoted to democracy. If Western economics is defined in one word "capitalism", then Western statehood is defined in one word "democracy". During " cold war"and especially after the defeat Soviet communism this word actually acquired the status of holiness.
(Zinoviev A. On the way to super society. M., 2000. Part four. Westernism)
The same theme in a different version:
The West was created, developed, supported, protected and won a place on the planet not just by human beings, but by people of a certain type. I will call them Westerners. With no other human material the West would be impossible. No other human material is able to reproduce the West and keep it at the level it has reached.
I will name character traits zapadoids or, more precisely, zapadoidnosti. These are the essence of practicality, efficiency, prudence, the ability to compete, ingenuity, the ability to take risks, coldness, emotional callousness, a tendency to individualism, increased self-esteem, the desire for independence and success in business, a tendency to conscientiousness in business, a tendency to publicity and theatricality, a sense of superiority over other peoples, a tendency to control others, a stronger ability for self-discipline and self-organization than other peoples.
It is believed that the Westernoid is an individualist, unlike many other types of people who are collectivists. If we do not give the words "individualist" and "collectivist" any moralizing and evaluative meaning, then we can agree with this. Every normal person one way or another, he is aware of himself as an individual (“I”) and as a member of an association of his own kind (“We”). But the forms of this awareness, the proportions of "I" and "We" in the mentality of a person, their relationship and manifestations in people's behavior are different. They give in aggregate different types of people in this regard.
Westernoids appeared and reached state of the art within the Western European civilization, in which "I" played a dominant role in the pair "I - We" and was more developed than among other peoples and in other civilizations, and "We" was an association of strongly pronounced "I", one might say - in within the I-civilization. Thanks to Westernism, this quality of the Westerners was developed to the highest level, covering all spheres of their existence. From this point of view, Western European civilization and the Westernism that developed on its basis are phenomena unique in the history of mankind. In this sense, Westernoids are individualists, and their society is individualistic.
(Zinoviev A. West. 1995. p. 46-47).
IN Lately discussions about the Russian mentality and especially the difference between the mentalities of Europeans and Russians are extremely politicized. Therefore, it is difficult for our compatriots traveling to Europe to form an objective opinion about how much the mentality of a Russian person actually differs from the European one and in which countries it is easiest to get used to local life. We set out to answer this question without prejudice and without political overtones. And for this we turned to our customers, who are already enough for a long time live in the European Union.
Common Mistake
Of course, Russians and Ukrainians are sure that they know everything about the Western mentality. However, in practice it often turns out that this is not the case, and our own self-confidence plays with us. bad joke. Moreover, many people do not even know their own mentality well enough.
Once abroad, we hardly get along with others, spend nerve cells and even fall into depression from the fact that there is nothing around that would warm the soul. What is wrong?
You need to learn more about your own mentality in advance, analyze the peculiarities of the mentality and the cultural and social situation in the country where we are going, make a comparison and understand the mental differences. The analysis will help us assess how harmoniously we will "fit" into the new environment.
Russian mentality: its features
What is the Russian mentality? Wikipedia gives the following definition: “Mentality is a set of mental, emotional, cultural characteristics, value orientations and attitudes inherent in social or ethnic group, nation, people, nationality.
In many sociological studies, such signs of the Russian mentality appear
- desire to put the public interest ahead of the private
- sensory perception of reality
- openness, sincerity and kindness
- acts of mercy
- negative attitude towards formalities
- prejudice towards others
- dislike for those who "stick out" and who "need it the most"
- controversy
- commitment to gift products
- the desire to solve problems amicably and in an informal setting
- dismissive attitude to health
The difference between Western and Eastern mentality
Psychologists note the following differences between the Russian mentality and the Western
| Russian mentality | European mentality |
|---|---|
| We often rely more on emotions than on a rational approach. | The peoples of northern Europe do the opposite, trusting logic and reason. |
| A measured way of life is alien to us, and we do not deny ourselves a spontaneous holiday. | In the North and Central Europe in this sense, strictly adhere to the dates of the calendar. |
| We rarely plan our expenses and life in general, which is associated with frequent crises and economic instability. | In Austria, Switzerland, Great Britain, residents are sometimes too pedantic about this issue and scrupulously paint their diary for a month in advance. |
| The Russian mentality is characterized by sentimentality. We are easily imbued with the feelings of other people, we know how to empathize. | In Italy and France, it is not customary to tell an unfamiliar person about family problems and listen to such revelations. |
| We love to talk heart to heart, easily share our personal problems. | In Europe, they know how to keep their distance even with close friends and do not talk about personal topics. |
| We are extremely flexible. Even a major quarrel can be forgotten after a quick reconciliation. | Europeans are not vindictive, however, after a quarrel with a person, they can completely break off relations without the possibility of their restoration. |
| We are characterized by the so-called social conformism - the desire that everything be "like people", and no one could think badly of us - even to the detriment of ourselves. | Europeans are accustomed to using a developed system of services that puts social life individual with all his needs. |
| Natives of Russia, Ukraine, Belarus in Europe are often called conservatives, who have a hard time mastering new technologies and, in general, a change in lifestyle is alien. | In Europe, any novelty, latest technology is of great interest even to the elderly, as they perceive its appearance as a step towards improving the quality of their own lives. |
The mentality of the Russian people on European soil
When everything is on the shelves
Is there really an abyss between us and the Europeans that cannot be bridged? Not at all! It is worth noting that there are quite a lot of people in the CIS countries who have a character and traits similar to European ones. For them, social adaptation is as quick and easy as possible.
“Austria turned out to be a very comfortable country for me,” says Dmitry Shashkov, a client of our company from Salzburg. - I moved here under the investment program, lived with the status of a residence permit for a little over a year, and now it has been 7 months since I received an Austrian passport. I’ll note right away that most of my acquaintances from Moscow would have had a hard time here. The Austrians are a people of business and living according to a schedule. They even have fun and relax during strictly allotted hours, which is wild for a Russian person. However, this way of life suits me 100%. I profess pragmatism and love when everything is laid out on the shelves. You clearly plan your future and know that there are no surprises around the corner.”
Useful Traits
And many immigrants find traits that are extremely useful for themselves in the mentality, culture, and traditions of a foreign people and borrow them with pleasure. It would seem that what is common between the Russians and the British ...
“Even before I applied for a residence permit in the UK and started doing business here, it seemed to me that we are quite different,” Grigory Lozovoy from Cambridge shares his impressions. – In practice, everything turned out differently. The British soul is no less mysterious than the Russian one. They also like to criticize themselves and immediately admire themselves. Moreover, their self-criticism is to be envied. They are very scrupulous about their successes, especially in business, they carefully plan things. And failures are experienced, probably no less tragically than our compatriots. What I took with pleasure from the British was their determination and self-confidence.
southern temperament
If you think that mentality Western civilization is pragmatism, detachment and coldness, then southern peoples(Greeks, Spaniards, Portuguese) do not fall under these definitions at all.
“It seems that the Spaniards are obsessed with their own pleasures,” says Andrei Kartush from Barcelona. - For them, wild entertainment is a common activity that they can indulge in around the clock. This lifestyle often affects their work, which makes them very close to us. They can easily oversleep, be late. At the same time, they are energetic. Compared to the Spaniards, even the most expressive Russians fade into the background. Why do you think there are so many of our compatriots in Spain? Spaniards have a lot in common with Russians: lack of organization, unpredictability. If it were not for their overly "bulging" individualism, I would say that these are the same Russians, but much more expressive. Bribes that the Spaniards are extremely simple, sociable, sincere, hospitable. That is why Russians are comfortable in Spain. I bought a property here, applied for a residence permit and have been living for the third year without any problems with adaptation.”
If friendship, then for a long time
There are countries that are preferred by residents of certain countries or even regions. In particular, residents of Ukraine, especially its western regions, choose Hungary for immigration. Here more high level life, affordable prices and profitable terms to obtain a residence permit and citizenship.
“It's been a year and a half since we moved to Budapest from Kyiv under the Permanent Residence for Investment program,” says our client Irina Kolganova. - Hungary is close to us in terms of mentality, if only because for a long time it was also socialist country, and this left an imprint on its inhabitants. Hungarians are contradictory: they combine the features of East and West. In the same person you can see Turkish hospitality and German stinginess. But most often we meet positive, friendly people, especially among young people. Hungarians are much calmer and more reasonable than Russians. Probably, our emotionality and unpredictability scares them away. Nevertheless, they are loyal to migrants, it is not so easy to get along with them, but if friendship has developed, you will not regret it.”
Unfortunately, politics has spoiled a lot in Russian relations with European peoples. Also, the memory of the activities of the Soviet government, the Second World War, is still alive. This must be taken into account when choosing a country for immigration.
If we talk about countries in which foreigners respond positively to the Russian mentality, then these are Greece, Spain, Portugal, Serbia, Slovenia, Malta. With the peoples of these countries, we practically did not have any historical conflicts so you will be welcomed there.
The Russian mentality is quite tolerant in Hungary, Great Britain, Austria, the Netherlands, and France. No wonder it is in these countries that the largest number immigrants from the CIS countries.
When choosing a country for obtaining a residence permit or citizenship, be sure to analyze the features of your own mentality and compare with the local mentality. Only in this way will you protect yourself from unnecessary conflicts and negative experiences.
In turn, in our blog we will continue to inform you about the most profitable immigration programs in Europe and answer your questions and comments. Subscribe to our updates and stay up to date!
For the May holidays, friends from Kharkov came to us - a couple with a child. The head of the family was in Europe for the first time, and did not stop noticing the differences. We are already used to many things, and I tried to look at these differences in a new way. After all, I'm already used to good roads, the lack of rudeness, automation and assistance in the reception rooms of various departments, the presence of open sports grounds with equipment, a non-corrupt policeman (the list is huge) ......But do I think that Poles are better than Ukrainians? No. Everything that I just listed in the previous paragraph - after all, all Ukrainians want this too (it's stupid not to want). The only problem is that not everyone knows how to come to this. But everything is simple, Of course, it's not easy, but you can start small - with yourself. Do not be rude, do not litter, do not violate traffic rules - this is the minimum from which everyone can start ... And just do not talk about the environment - they have already passed (see Part I).
P.S
This distinction has not been included in any chapter, but has recently been recalled and discussed.Do you know what is the main difference in the culture of alcohol consumption between Russians and Europeans? For "Russians" the process consists of drinking and snacking. Europeans do the opposite. They drink alcohol with their food.
By Russian standards, Poles can't drink. They almost never drink pure vodka, diluted or washed down with juice. But sometimes, by the way, they can drink without food at all. This happens during a lively conversation. Then alcohol is consumed for a very long time, and either these are all sorts of gins and tonics, or beer, in extreme cases - vodka (again, washed down with juice). Not without exceptions, but I'm talking about my circle of friends.
I remember during the second trip to Poland, a German boy rode with us in the carriage. Very sociable, and with a large supply of beer, which he asked for help to destroy to the border. I then asked him if sausages are really the most popular snack for beer in Germany. Then he could not understand for a long time what I was talking about, and said yes - they love sausages ... and in general they like different foods ... washed down with beer.
PPP: I look forward to feedback and comments. The only incentive that makes you continue to write a blog is at least some kind of interactive.
According to a sociological study conducted by the company 72 points commissioned by the satellite TV channel Gold_ to identify the “angriest nation in Europe”, the leaders here were the inhabitants of the United Kingdom. And the most calm and peaceful are the inhabitants of another kingdom - Denmark.
As it turned out, the Danes get angry on average three to four times a month. So, having met a Dane, you have every chance to find peace and tranquility in the house.
Comparable to other European nations
- So, temperamental Italians get angry four times a day.
- The French showed almost the same results - three times a day, at least, they are unhappy.
- Germans Bad mood happens a little less often - up to two times a day.
What annoys them the most?
- Italians are bad drivers on the road.
- The French - the poor quality of food and bad service in hotels and restaurants.
- Scandinavians cannot stand criticism and jokes about their mentalities and countries.
- And the leaders of the survey - the British are able to unbalance all the above factors together.
Galina Bitner-Schroeder
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If you ask any family psychologist or read a real book about the secrets of building relationships between a man and a woman, and with an analysis of the reasons why these relationships do not always end in a wedding, you will always stumble upon the same thought, the same observation, which will immediately and forever explain WHY men and women are looking for, looking for their soul mate and they still can't find it.
This is especially wrong lovely ladies, already because it is this topic (search for love and marriage with an object of love) that excites them much more than the representatives of the stronger sex (they have a slightly different approach to this topic).
What is this reason? Actually, I already answered. And if you carefully read the previous paragraph, then you yourself have already understood everything: men and women have completely different, absolutely different views on HOW RELATIONSHIPS SHOULD BE BUILT AND HOW SHOULD DEVELOP.
This difference is so great that sometimes the fact that men and women manage, nevertheless, to build these relationships cannot be called a miracle at all.
What is the biggest mistake of both women and men? And in the fact that each of them thinks (and thinks quite seriously) that her / his beloved / ny perceives everything, treats everything SO as HE / SHE himself (a).
For example, a woman meets a man, wants to build a relationship with him, to marry, and thinks that the man also has a desire to conclude this marriage in the future. And don't tell me I'm wrong.
RIGHTS.
There is no such single woman who would not look at any potential gentleman and would not calculate his chances of being able to live together in a future marriage. If such thoughts do not arise, then not everything is normal with the lady herself. Or even if everything is normal in currently, those were huge problems in past relationships with men.
radio station Deutsche Welle noted that both Germans and Russians live in captivity of stereotypes.
A country oil rigs and eternally drunken peasants - such is Russia in the eyes of the Germans, and not only them. Beer, sausages and punctuality - such is Germany in the eyes of many Russians. Both that and another - not absolutely, to put it mildly, is true. But stereotypes live on.
What do the Germans think about the Russians?
A. Tsipris, a journalist, conducted street interviews and surveys of native Germans for several months:
1. How do you feel about foreigners?
2. Do you distinguish between the nationalities of people who came from Russia?
3. What are the main differences between the German mentality and the Russian one?
HELMA T (financial consultant, aged 42)
By occupation, I come across Russians. I treat all my clients the same way.
In the subway, I sometimes observe the behavior of Russian young people, especially when they travel in groups. Throwing candy wrappers on the floor, packaging, talking too loudly. Of course, this is also characteristic of other foreigners and German youth, but sometimes Russians are very distinguished by their lack of culture. But this is a nation that has a rich culture!
I would note such traits of Russians that reflect their mentality: constant doubts, incredulity, lack of patience. They are not accustomed to waiting for a result, including in business.
RUPERT(student, 21 years old)
I'm fine with foreigners. Everyone who came from Russia is Russian for me. How could it be otherwise if they native language Russian!? In my country, they write about Russia mostly negatively. And I was very surprised when I found out that in the Russian media, on the contrary, they do not write bad things about Germany.
I like Russian girls. They are very beautiful. They dress cool. Only I do not understand how they can walk around the city on such high heels? They also abuse cosmetics. Our students, on the other hand, dress practical, so that they feel comfortable. And, of course, no cosmetics during the day.
Russian guys are always ready to help, for example, to give advice on an exam. The German thinks only of himself and will never do such a thing. In my opinion, this is a different mentality.
