Language consciousness change of Russian-speaking migrants. Analysis of some words-stimuli

The article presents the results of the analysis of words-stimuli “home”, “Motherland”, “Russia”, “Russian”, “language”, undertaken with consideration of the data obtained in a pilot associative experiment with Russian-speaking groups of migrants (ethnic Jewish and Germans), living in Munich (Germany). A comparative analysis of experimental data and the data given in associative dictionaries was performed with the aim to reveal the influence of respondents’ ethnic background on transformation of associative fields, which is connected with changes in cultural environment. The authors draw a conclusion that in the fields with the words-stimuli “Russia”, “Russian language” the respondents’ quantitative reactions demonstrate a low level of change, coinciding with the ones, stipulated in the dictionaries. This type of words-stimuli is labeled as “migratory stable” and is opposed to “migratory unstable” in the contents of associative fields with the words-stimuli “home”, “Motherland”. Some noticeable changes and trends of considerable transformations under the influence of the foreign culture environment are discovered. The respondents’ quantitative reactions deviate from those registered in the dictionaries. The article gives reasons for transformations and/or preserving the contents of associative fields of the words-stimuli under study. The ethnic characteristics of the groups under experiments are stated having little influence on transformation of the associative fields, whereas the cultural background, the worldview was formed at, demonstrates some considerable effect on their consciousness.