Varshaver, E. (2026). The Role of Nationalities in Dagestan: A Perspective from the Cognitive Turn in Constructivist Ethnicity Studies. Journal of Frontier Studies, 11(2), 72-108. [in Russian]

This article, situated within the framework of the cognitive turn in the social sciences, presents the findings of a study on the role of nationalities as both a social and cognitive classificatory framework in Dagestan. Conducted between July and August 2024, the study involved 100 biographical interviews across 31 locations throughout the republic. These interviews focused on so-called perceptual-communicative facts—either singular or recurring past events in which nationalities were referenced in communication or used to interpret events. A total of 1,104 perceptual-communicative facts, attributed to the period from the mid-1940s to the present, were extracted from the interviews and subsequently analyzed. The results indicate that nationalities structured perception and interactions in Dagestan and continue to do so today, although their influence has diminished in certain social environments. The study demonstrates how national categories are internalized, tested, and transmitted across generations and identifies the specific domains in which they operate. The persistence and reproduction of these categories are interpreted through a neo-functionalist lens, drawing on the sociology of mechanisms as developed by Jon Elster and Peter Hedström. By identifying the individual-level social and cognitive pragmatics of employing this classificatory framework in various interactions, the study proposes a model of ethnic dynamics at the intersection of sociology, cognitive science, and history. This work contributes to the literature on ethnicity in Dagestan, provides methodological tools for field research within the cognitive turn, and advances a broader theoretical explanation of ethnic processes.