The article considers the problems of interpreting the concept of "extremism." Due to the fact that there are no legislative provisions of this term in the Russian Federation, there is a problem of defining extremism as a phenomenon both in the legal and scientific field, which demonstrates relevance of the research. Historical formation of the term, its first references in scientific and political discourse have been considered in detail. The article gives a detailed analysis of the definition of extremism in a legal aspect of domestic and foreign legislation, much attention being given to the advantages and disadvantages of incorporating the concept into the legislation. The author discussed the issue that manifestation of extremism and punitive measures be subject to different legal and regulatory instruments. A detailed review of scientific interpretations of the term by domestic and foreign researchers has been given. The author highlighted and compared different approaches to understanding it. As a result of the analysis, the author’s own definition of the concept has been provided, which takes into account all the aspects, advantages, and disadvantages of the previously described interpretations according to the results of the study. This original definition can provide a deeper and more comprehensive study of the phenomenon of extremism itself and will provide an opportunity of more careful approach to developing methods and technologies to overcome extremism.

Ruzavina Anastasia Konstantinovna, Postgraduate, Department of Political Science and Technologies, Siberian Institute of Management – Branch of Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, 6, Nizhegorodskaya st., Novosibirsk, 630102, Russian Federation, e-mail: ak_ruzavina@mail.ru

Ruzavina A.K. Definition of Extremism in Contemporary Scientific Discourse. The Bulletin of Irkutsk State University. Series Political Science and Religion Studies, 2021, vol. 35, pp. 9-15.https://doi.org/10.26516/2073-3380.2021.35.9 (in Russian)

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