The Cultural Identity of Schoolchildren: A Psycholinguistic Perspective
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: The subject of this article is the cultural identity of pupils in a provincial secondary school, with the aim of examining it as a process of identity formation. The school years represent a period when identity reaches its peak, but different societies have different prevailing values, which influence the formation of cultural identity. Identity research is considered a means of analyzing national self-awareness and an individual's understanding of value orientations and dominant principles, which can be identified through experimentation. The free associative experiment method was applied in the study. For this experiment, a total of 551 students from grades 2 through 11 were involved. They evaluated words based on fundamental spiritual and moral values – homeland, patriotism, faith, hero and feat. The axiological and psycholinguistic approaches to the study made it possible to identify the characteristics of the students' national consciousness and to obtain information regarding certain cultural values among schoolchildren. The data obtained during the study are novel and of interest for achieving educational goals in the proper upbringing of the younger generation. A psycholinguistic experiment revealed that the average modern primary school student is, in more than half of cases, unaware of the basic values, with the exception of the concept of "homeland", where a certain connection with their country of residence can be observed. One in four middle school students also has no understanding of the basic values, but understands the homeland as a place of residence. One in ten high school students does not understand the significance of the basic values, with the exception of the concept of "homeland". The axiological concepts of homeland, patriotism, faith, hero and feat form a single value that must become an integral part of the educational process. The integration of these values at all levels of education will contribute to the formation of a personality based on essential spiritual and moral ideals and a strong civic position.
Source: Applied psychology and pedagogy
Author: Galina Ostrikova
Institution: Don State Technical University
Language: English
Topic: Values and Moral Education
Subfield: Education
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
SDG: Quality education
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W7221505944