Methodology for studying the value of law in the structure of behavioral practices: frame analysis and macrosociological conceptualization

The presented paper dwells upon the analysis of the methodological basis of modern approaches to the assessment of legal culture in Russian society, in particular the principles of understanding sociology and frame analysis. According to the author, the theory of social representations, P. Bourdieu’s concept of habitus, as well as the specificity of the theory of frames, allow one to analyze each situation as a specific interactive reality that disappears as soon as a specific interaction is exhausted. Exploring the situation of interaction as a legal frame, the author defined the identification of the characteristics of the agents' real understanding of the interaction situation as the main task. The work notes that the presence of collective ideas about the value of law as a fundamental regulator of social ties, fixed at the subconscious level, can be considered as one of the main factors influencing the effectiveness of legal mechanisms among actors. On the basis of the analysis, the author notes that the main component of legal culture is the level of the subject’s awareness of legal values as a self-sufficient rational system of social regulation. Its functioning is carried out on the basis of formalized criteria and norms, a characteristic feature of which is their significance for all individuals, regardless of their social status.