"METAMORPHOSES" OF PERCEPTION: FROM MILITIA TO POLICE
The aim of this article is to analyze the perception by the civil society of the categories «militia» and «police». The main research methods are: dialectic, comparative and statistical analysis. The empirical base includes the data of statistical surveys, works of fiction of the 19th - 20th centuries, as well as modern scientific research in the field. The scientific novelty of the article is manifested in the results that show the changes in the assessment and the level of citizens' confidence in the law-enforcement agency in connection with its renaming from «militia» to «police». The author also notes an increase in the prestige of service in the internal affairs bodies, an improvement in the public perception of the term «police», as well as an increase in the level of citizens' support for the activities of law enforcement officers.