Role of civil society in creation of merit needs: economic-theoretical aspect

The article substantiates the position that one of the most important functions of civil society is the translation of public needs into state and economic subsystems. At the same time, civil society is understood as an analytically independent sphere and to a certain extent empirically separated from the state and from the market. Relying on the provisions of Richard Musgrave's concept of meritorious goods, the authors prove that the public interest is formed as a result of individual preferences learned and accepted by individuals acting in accordance with group norms and attitudes. In this regard, one of the main functions of non–governmental non–profit organizations - actors of civil society – is to establish trust relations with the public  administration sphere, on the one hand, and the economic sphere, on the other. The application of the research approach of the meritorious concept to the analysis of civil society, according to the authors, opens up a wide range for economic research that does not belong to the classical school. The article deals mainly with theoretical aspects of the formation of social needs with the participation of civil society. At the same time, the opinion is expressed that the mechanism of partnership interaction of civil institutions with the state contributes to  the effective implementation of the function of translating public needs into other subsystems of society.

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