National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine
As an separate branch of science the sociology started to develop in Ukraine since 1968 in the Institute of Philosophy of an Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. During the next two decades several sociological departments were created, which formed a base for the establishment of the Institute sociology in November 1990.
Content and character of Institute's scientific research are directed first of all to detection of legitimacies and main tendencies of social development of the Ukrainian society, reconstruction in scientific concepts of the modern Ukrainian society's dynamic image peculiarities, analysis of public conversions, definition of main metrics, forms and consequences of social changes, which are taking place in Ukraine on the junction of millennia. These key factors of activity of the Institute are implemented in following priority directions of research:
The institute implements the long-term program of researching of social consequences of Chernobyl catastrophe and of post-Chernobyl social policy.
The important ways of Institute's activity are monitoring of public opinion, the researches of social-political moods and orientations of different strata of the population, social - psychological factors of stabilization and integration of the Ukrainian society. The theoretical-methodological developments of Institute render a great influence on the development of sociological education in Ukraine. The scientists of Institute publish many textbooks and manuals, quick references for the students, government employees, practicing sociologists.
The operationability and reliability of sociological data is provided with newest techniques of collection, processing and analysis of the sociological information basing on the usage of the modern software and computer equipments. In the Institute there was formed a bank of the sociological information meeting international standards, making possible to overcome a fragmentariness of existing knowledge about social processes taking place in Ukraine, and also to conduct the comparative analysis of already accumulated and expected results of empirical sociological researches.
The Institute has the developed network of the professional interviewers for carrying out a representative national interrogation among representatives of all social strata of the Ukrainian population. Scale monitoring research enable not only to theoretically interpret the process of public transformation, but also to substantially promote clearing up of reasons and ways to overcome social conflicts and exertion, working out of the technology of reaching a social partnership and social health in society.
Since the first years of independence the Institute has collected and accumulated a huge and unique empirical material about a state and trend of socio economical, political and cultural development of Ukraine allowing to uncover to the dynamics and legitimacy of creation of mass consciousness and public psychology of Ukrainian society.
On the basis of the Institute the Sociological Association of Ukraine is functioning, joining domestic scientists, institutions and organizations working in the sphere of sociology. The Institute is the leading Ukrainian centre of preparation of the post-graduate students and candidates for a doctor's degree in miscellaneous sociological disciplines. In the Institute the higher School of sociology is functioning to increase the proficiency of the experts in the sphere of theoretical and applied sociological researches.
Informational support for the development of professional sociology in Ukraine, promotion of it's entering the international sociological space is provided by a scientific - theoretical magazine "Sociology: it's theory, methods, marketing", founded by the Institute in 1997 (since 1999 is also and in Russian).
The scientific links of the Institute are fruitful and they are characterized by an increased exchange of specialists, experience of theoretical and applied research, joint research projects with sociological centers of short-range and long-distance foreign countries. The relations with sociological departments of leading universities of Europe and USA are established as well.