Analysis of the usual significance of the public value – the concept of “professionalism” in the conceptual comparative aspect in Russian and English languages

The article provides a linguistic and cultural analysis of the “professionalism” concept in the comparative aspect of Russian and English. This concept belongs to the field of intellectual and educational activities of a person and is part of the universal values of subjective and personal qualities. To identify the conceptual aspect of the “professionalism” concept, an analysis is carried out on the material of articles in a series of dictionaries of Russian and English languages. A review of the dictionary interpretations of the key representative lexeme made it possible to identify the most important distinctive features of the “professionalism” concept in two languages: proficiency in a profession and professional skill. Comparative analysis of the internal form of the name of the “professionalism” concept in English and Russian showed that the usual meaning is still skill and specialization that determine this quality. At the same time, significant differences are revealed, which indicate the dissimilarity of the cultures of the studied languages and are explained by extralinguistic conditions. Based on obtained the data, the most recurrent representatives of the concept under consideration are identified. The analysis of the factual material made it possible not only to confirm the obtained data, but also to supplement them with a number of lexical representatives capable of participating at the functional level in the nomination of the concept of cognitive interest. Thus, the study of the semantic field of the “professionalism” concept in English and Russian confirms the assumption that there are differences in the structure of this concept in two linguocultures.

Introduction

The study of concepts helps to understand the conceptual and linguistic world images and to define national specificity. In the texts of linguistic and cultural studies, the concept of “professionalism” is related to a variety of names: “existential meanings”, “limiting concepts”, or “cultural concepts”. According to V.I. Karasik and G.G. Slyshkin, the linguocultural concept is a conventional mental unit aimed at a comprehensive study of language, consciousness and culture. V.A. Maslova correlates cultural concepts with the names of abstract concepts, in which the cultural information is attached to the conceptual core. According to S.G. Vorkachev, the linguocultural concept is a semantic formation of a high degree of abstractness and is a product of abstraction of semantic features belonging to a certain set of significant linguistic units [1; 175].

Consequently, the linguocultural concepts are the basic units of the picture of the world, in which the values of both an individual linguistic personality and the linguocultural society as a whole are fixed. Among the key concepts of culture, such concepts as conscience, fate, will, share, sin, law, freedom V.A. Maslova highlights the concept of “professionalism”.

The subject of this article is the linguocultural analysis of the concept of “professionalism”, which belongs to the field of intellectual and educational human activity. A review of modern linguistic literature showed that the range of the studied concepts is wide; however, there hardly can be found any studies of the concept of “professionalism” in the material of the Russian and English languages. Therefore, the analysis of the concept of “professionalism” seems new and highly relevant.

This concept is a part of the universal human values among subjective and personal qualities. In this regard, to determine the research corpus of lexemes representing the concept of “professionalism”, the dictionary entries of the most authoritative explanatory dictionaries, thesauri of modern English and Russian languages were studied in detail. The result was the limitation of the scope of the research object, the identification of the most recurrent representatives of the concept under consideration. The analysis of the factual material made it possible not only to confirm the obtained data, but also to supplement them with a number of

Corresponding author’s e-mail: assima.omarova@mail.ru lexical representatives capable of participating at the functional level in the nomination of the concept of cognitive interest [2; 130].

However, it should be considered that the concept has a partial implementation in the dictionary, since “the meaning of a word is just an attempt to give a general idea of the content of the expressed concept, outline its known boundaries, present its individual characteristics with this word” [3; 132]. The characteristics of the object of reality, actualized in dictionary meanings, constitute the conceptual content of the concept. The word “professionalism” in modern English is polysemic, while in Russian it is monosemic [4; 18].

Methods and materials

To identify the conceptual aspect of “professionalism”, the number of articles was examined with the help of a series of explanatory dictionaries of the Russian language [5], as well as in the dictionary of linguistic terms, sociological, and philosophical dictionaries, in the psychological encyclopedia, in the explanatory translation dictionary (2003), in the dictionary of Russian idioms. For the sake of clarity, the dictionary entries of some of the most authoritative lexicographic sources will be citied.

In the dictionaries of Ozhegov and Shvedova the studied lexeme is interpreted as follows:

• having a good command of their profession (mastery);
• in linguistics: a word or expression characteristic of professional speech and used in the general literary language [5].

The explanatory dictionary gives following definitions:

• to be engaged in something as a profession;
• professional skills/ professionalization;
• a word or a figure of speech typical for people of any profession.

The studied lexeme in the comprehensive explanatory dictionary of the Russian language, edited by Kuznetsov, is determined as:

• having a good command of their profession;
• in linguistics: a word or expression characteristic of professional speech and used in general literary language.

The “explanatory or translation dictionary” offers the following interpretations:

• professional skills;
• a word or figure of speech typical for people of any profession.

In the “New explanatory dictionary of synonyms of the Russian language” this lexeme receives the following definitions:

• a word or expression characteristic of the speech of a particular professional group and which is usually the vernacular equivalent of the terms corresponding in meaning.

Great Soviet Encyclopedia provides the following definition:

• a word characteristic of a particular profession often retains the dialectal features of the area of existence.

Encyclopedia of the Foundation for Socio-Economic and Intellectual Programs determines professionalism as being the owner of great skills, mastery of the profession, and producing high-quality and professional performance.

The Psychological Encyclopedia characterizes “professionalism” as:

• a special word or expression characteristic of a certain professional group.

Sociological Dictionary presents the following definition:

• the degree of individual mastery of professional skills.

The legal dictionary means by “professionalism”:

• mastery, complete mastery of the profession, high-quality and professional performance.

The explanatory dictionary by Yefremova offers the following interpretations:

• doing something as a profession; professionalization;
• professional skills;
• a word or figure of speech typical for people of any profession (in linguistics).

In the “Dictionary of literary terms” the studied lexeme is interpreted as follows:

• the characteristic of the speech of a given social group, united by a common specialty, belonging to such kind of a group.

The studied lexeme in the philosophical dictionary is determined as:

• systematic by a certain subculture corresponding to the form of activity including qualifications, ethics, personal, etc., to maintain a certain level of activity. Professionalism is the result of an awareness of specialization, the separation of the need for a person's compliance, his/her personal culture, his/her abilities, values, etc., to the functions s/he performs and both the corresponding personal culture and the corresponding qualifications.

Therefore, the summarizing the above studied explanatory dictionary entries the following features constitute the conceptual core of the concept of “professionalism”:

1. professional skills;
2. having a good command of their profession;
3. word or figure of speech typical for people of any profession;
4. to be engaged in something as a profession;
5. professionalization, a word or expression characteristic of professional speech and used in the general literary language;
6. systematic by a certain subculture corresponding to the form of activity;
7. a word characteristic of a particular profession often retains the dialectal features of the area of existence;
8. a word or an expression characteristic of professional speech and used in general literary language.

The analogue of the Russian word “профессионализм” in the English dictionary is the word “professionalism”. To identify the conceptual aspect of “professionalism” in English, lexicographic sources have been examined. In total 18 vocabulary definitions of the word professionalism in English were considered with the help of explanatory dictionaries, including: Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (LDCE), Meriam-Webster Dictionary (MWD), Oxford Dictionary (OD), New Collegiate Dictionary (NCD), Wiktionary, English dictionary (ED), Dictionary of contemporary English (DCE), Useful English dictionary (UED), The Collaborative International Dictionary of English (CIDE), Macmillan Dictionary (MD), Collins Dictionary (CD).

In the CD, the studied lexeme is interpreted as follows:

• methods, nature, status, pursuit of an activity for profit or livelihood, etc. of a professional or professional organization, such as reliability, discretion, impartiality and fair play;
• a combination of all the qualities that unite qualified people.

The MWD gives the following definitions:

• behavior, goals or qualities that characterize or mark the profession or professional person [6].

The studied lexeme in the OD is determined as follows:

• competence or skills expected from a professional;
• carrying out activities, especially in sports, by professionals and not by amateur players [6].

The MBD offers the following interpretation of the word:

• qualities and skills, abilities and high standards of behavior expected from a professional person.

In the electronic dictionary “Wiktionary”, the lexeme receives the following definitions:

• the methods, character, status, etc. of the professional or professional organization, such as reliability, discretion, impartiality and fair play;
• the use of professionals more often than amateurs in sports.

The RHD provides the following definitions:

• professional character, spirit or methods;
• the methods or practice of the professional distinguishing him from the amateur.

In the AHD, the studied concept is interpreted as follows:

• professional status, methods, character.
• the use of professionals as athletes or in the arts.

The NWD performs the following definitions:

• professional qualities, status, etc .;
• the use of professional players in sports.

Encarta Dictionary characterizes “professionalism” as:

• the skills, competence or character expected of a highly qualified person.

After studying the definitions of the word “professionalism” offered by the English-language explanatory dictionaries, it is necessary to highlight the following meanings:

1. mastery and high standards of behavior expected from a professional person;
2. the practice of using professional players in sports competitions;
3. competence or skills expected from a professional;
4. activities, especially in sports, performed by professionals and not by amateur players;
5. methods, character, status, etc., of a professional or professional organization, such as reliability, discretion, impartiality and fair play;
6. pursuits of activities for profit or livelihood;
7. behavior, goals or qualities that characterize or mark the profession or professional person;
8. a combination of all the qualities associated with trainees and qualified people.

In this regard, a review of the dictionary interpretations of the key representative lexeme made it possible to identify the concept of “professionalism” in two languages, which is a set of its main, most important distinctive features: proficiency in a profession, professional skill.

Results and discussion

From the above definitions and the analysis carried out, it is obvious that the core of the field in the analyzed languages is represented by the nominations of the basic concepts of professionalism as a concept, which constitute the basic features and at the same time separate concepts of the concept sphere “professionalism”. For instance:

English: professional skills, competence, activities for profit, professional character, methods, sports professionals.

Russian: mastery, possession, occupation, a word characteristic of professional speech.

Consequently, the ideas of different peoples about the professionalism of a person have a common feature, and when comparing the conceptual aspect of the concept of “professionalism” in the three compared languages, the following similarities in the form of meanings were revealed:

1. possession of the profession “specialization”;
2. “professional mastery” [7].

The distinctive feature of the field on the material in English compared to Russian is the following sectors:

• the implementation of activities, especially in sports, by professionals, and not by amateur players;
• methods, character, status, etc., of a professional or professional organization, such as reliability, discretion, impartiality, and fair play.

The data obtained in the course of the study of the “professionalism” lexeme in two languages are reflected in a comparative analysis (see Table 1).

Table 1

The meaning of the concept of “professionalism” in explanatory English dictionaries

In other words, it should be noted that, based on these dictionaries, there is the presence or absence of any meanings characteristic of a particular culture. With regard to Russian dictionary entries, it can be concluded that the conceptual definition of the concept of “professionalism” is to one degree or another universal, namely, in 8 studied dictionaries the conventional meaning of the concept of “professionalism” is considered either as:

- high skilled, or

- a word or expression characteristic of the speech of a particular professional group, profession.

This indicates the versatility and narrow conceptual scope of this concept.

Whereas the study of English dictionary entries showed a more specific and diverse conceptual picture of the concept of “professionalism”. For example, there is the presence of such a meaning in English dictionaries as the implementation of activities, especially in sports, by professionals, and not by amateur players. This definition is noted in five dictionaries (NWD, AHD, RHD, WD, AW, and OD); however, in the series of Russian dictionaries, this definition is absent. Also, it is revealed that there is a specific definition for this concept in English dictionaries: “methods, nature, and status, pursuit of activities for profit or livelihood”.

Conclusion

A comparative analysis of the internal form of the “professionalism” concept in English and Russian showed that the usual meaning is still mastery and specialization that determine this quality. At the same time, significant differences were revealed, which indicate the dissimilarity of the cultures of the studied languages and are explained by extralinguistic conditions.

Therefore, the study of the semantic field of the “professionalism” concept in English and Russian languages confirms the assumption of the existence of differences in the structure of this concept in two linguistic cultures.

References

1. Maslova, V.A. (2001). Lingvokulturologiia [Linguoculturology]. Moscow: Progress [in Russian].
2. Avakova, R.A. (2002). Frazeologicheskaia semantika [Phraseological semantics]. Almaty: Qazaq universiteti [in Russian].
3. Karasik, V.I. (2001). Modelnaia lichnost kak lingvokulturnyi kontsept [Model personality as a linguocultural concept]. Materials from Philology and Culture: III Mezhdunarodnaia konferentsiia (2001 goda) –– 3^rd International Conference. (pp. 98–101). Chast 2 – Part 2. Tambov: Izdatelstvo Tambovskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta [in Russian].
4. Akhmetova, K.A. (2018). Kontsept kak yazykovaia struktura, opredeliaiushchaia osobennosti yavlenii natsionalnogo kulturnogo yazyka [Concept as a linguistic structure that determines the features of the phenomena of the national cultural language]. Vestnik «Nauka i zhizn Kazakhstana». Seriia Filologiia — Bulletin of Science and Life of Kazakhstan, Philology series, 2/2(56), 17–21 [in Russian].
5. Ozhegov, S.I., & Shvedova, N.Yu. (2005). Tolkovyi slovar russkogo yazyka [Explanatory Dictionary of the Russian language]. Retrieved from https://www.slovari.ru/default.aspx? p=244 [in Russian].
6. Cambridge Dictionary (2018). https://dictionary.cambridge.org/
7. Fasmer, M. (2008). Etimologicheskii slovar russkogo yazyka [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian language]. Retrieved from https://lexicography.online/etymology/vasmer/ [in Russian].