Principles and Forms of Sociocultural Organization: Historical Contexts of Interaction

L. , NY : Anthem Press, 2026.

Gleb V. Aleksandrov, Bondarenko D. M., Anna K. Aleksandrova, Bovykin D., Valentina N. Burkova, Marina L. Butovskaya, Fedonnikov N., Sergey V. Kostelyanets, Ivan A. Ladynin, Marey A. V., Aleksei S. Shchavelev, Andrey V. Tutorski, Vdovchenkov E.

Leading author: Bondarenko D. M.

Editor-in-chief: Bondarenko D. M., Gleb V. Aleksandrov

Edited research collection

One paragraph description of the project’s scope and content

Societies are systems composed of a great number of various social institutions. Societies change as a result of emergence, transformation, and interaction of institutions. As systems of social institutions, societies have a fundamental characteristic that can be called a “basic principle of societal organization.” The principle of organization a society embodies depends on the way its institutions are arranged with respect to one another. Two basic principles can be distinguished: heterarchical, at which institutions interact being unranked with respect to one another or can be ranked in different ways, and the opposite principle, homoarchical, at which institutions interact being rigidly ranked in the only way and have no or very limited potential for being unranked or ranked in other ways. Societies of the same level of overall cultural complexity and with the same basic principle of organization can take different specific forms, as alternativeness exists not only between but also within the heterarchical and homoarchical macrogroups of societies. The division of societies into predominantly heterarchical and homoarchical is a constant fact of human sociocultural history. The dichotomy of heterarchy and homoarchy has considerably determined the non-linear and alternative nature of the global sociocultural process. This book examines the varied modes of interaction between societies shaped by different organizational principles, in a variety of historical and regional contexts.

Chapters

Principles and Forms of Organization of Societies as Systems of Institutions (The “Conceptual Frame” of This Book)

Bondarenko D. M., , in: Principles and Forms of Sociocultural Organization: Historical Contexts of Interaction.: L., NY: Anthem Press, 2026. Ch. 1 P. 1–29.

Societies are systems composed of a great number of various social institutions. Societies are changing as a result of institutions appearance, transformation, and interaction. As systems of social institutions, societies have a fundamental characteristic that can be called a “basic principle of societal organization.” The principle of organization a society embodies depends on the way ...

Added: January 22, 2026

Conclusion

Gleb V. Aleksandrov, Bondarenko D. M., , in: Principles and Forms of Sociocultural Organization: Historical Contexts of Interaction.: L., NY: Anthem Press, 2026. Ch. 13 P. 251–259.

The brief concluding chapter reiterates the theoretical framework of the book and presents a brief overview of every chapter, highlighting the way chronologically and geographically diverse research subjects tie into the general approach the work utilizes. The author stresses the importance of the overarching goal of this collective work, to showcase the applicability of the ...

Added: January 22, 2026

A Homoarchical Institution within a Heterarchical System: Church and State in Contemporary Greece

Anna K. Aleksandrova, , in: Principles and Forms of Sociocultural Organization: Historical Contexts of Interaction.: L., NY: Anthem Press, 2026. Ch. 9 P. 177–198.

The example of the interactions between the Church of Greece and the state, both historically and in recent years, shows the dichotomy of homoarchy and heterarchy. The contemporary Greek state, established two centuries ago, has steadily shifted towards heterarchy throughout this period, especially in recent decades once the European integration began, the EU being a ...

Added: February 10, 2026

Ancient Greek Polis: From Homoarchy to Heterarchy and Back Again

Ivan A. Ladynin, , in: Principles and Forms of Sociocultural Organization: Historical Contexts of Interaction.: L., NY: Anthem Press, 2026. Ch. 2 P. 33–52.

The chapter considers the historical development of the Ancient Greek city-state (polis) viewed through the categories of homoarchy and heterarchy basic for the present monography. The author traces its formation on the base of the homoarchical society of the Dark Ages, the peculiarities of its heterarchical structure, the background of its crise in the 4th ...

Added: May 5, 2026

The Rus’ People of the Ninth to Eleventh Centuries: Ethnicity and Social Differentiation

Shchavelev Aleksei S., , in: Principles and Forms of Sociocultural Organization: Historical Contexts of Interaction.: L., NY: Anthem Press, 2026.

The chapter “The Rus’ people of the IXth–Xth centuries: ethnic identity and social differentiation” reveals the mechanisms of ethno- cultural and ethno-political solidarity of the Rus’ people and economic and social differentiation within the Rus’ communities. Firstly, for almost the first time in historiography, the problem of ethnic identity of Rus’ is considered, primarily the ...

Added: September 21, 2026

THE ROLE OF ETHNO-SOCIAL STRATIFICATION AND ETHNIC MOBILITY IN THE CONTEXT OF THE CONFLICT IN SUDAN’S DARFUR REGION

Sergey V. Kostelyanets, , in: Principles and Forms of Sociocultural Organization: Historical Contexts of Interaction.: L., NY: Anthem Press, 2026. Ch. 10 P. 199–218.

Ethno-social stratification and, to a lesser extent, ethnic mobility are inherent to all African societies without exception. While the former has become a proverbial hallmark of the continent, the latter remains less pronounced, often discernible only through rigorous study and requiring detailed explication. Nonetheless, it is indisputable that both phenomena—contingent on context—exhibit varying degrees of ...

Added: September 23, 2026

The Cultural Dimension of Collectivism–Individualism and Empathy in Different Countries During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Burkova V., Butovskaya M., , in: Principles and Forms of Sociocultural Organization: Historical Contexts of Interaction.: L., NY: Anthem Press, 2026. Ch. 12 P. 237–250.

Cross-cultural psychology and anthropology have many ways of studying human cultures in all their diversity. There are multiple theories of cultural dimensions which provide a foundation for understanding how a culture of a given society influences individual values within it and how these values shape individual behavior. The chapter  presents several examples of such classifications ...

Added: September 24, 2026

King Philip's War (1675-1676): Interactions and Transformations of Typologically Different Societies in the Colonial Context

Aleksandrov G., , in: Principles and Forms of Sociocultural Organization: Historical Contexts of Interaction.: L., NY: Anthem Press, 2026. Ch. 7 P. 137–157.

This chapter examines the interaction between homoarchical and heterarchical societies on the example of colonial New England in the XVIIth century. The key event of the period, in which the cultural transformations of the previous decades culminated, was King Philip’s War, a largescale conflict between English colonists and their allies and the alliance of several Native groups led ...

Added: September 29, 2026

Keywords: социальные институты, heterarchy, гетерархия, social institutions, homoarchy, гомоархия, социокультурная организация, sociocultural organization

Publication based on the results of: From Antiquity to Modernity: Epistemology of the Development of Spiritual and Material Cultures in Non-Western Societies (2025)