Discourse of the Integration of Society in Latvian Sociology

If sociological theory considers social integration as a universal process which involves the whole society and all types of its diversity, the public consciousness in Latvia, as well as the scientific discourse, persistently relate this term to just one dimension – ethnic. The findings presented in the article demonstrate that the scientific research on the integration processes in Latvia has become more critical towards the methodological assumptions which appeared in the 1990s, but in the theory there is a reconsideration of the values of those ideological approaches to the understanding of society integration which first were formulated in T. Parsons’ conception. At the same time, the ideas of J. Habermas who considered it necessary to recognize a collective identity of ethnic minorities in the multicultural society might become a significant ideological resource for the research on society integration in Latvia. The article presents some data from the sociological research carried out in the largest city of Eastern Latvia – Daugavpils, the city with an ethnically diverse population. The data obtained in the run of the research demonstrate the possibility to reconcile the liberal conception of society integration in Latvia with the recognition of the value of a collective identity of ethnic minorities.