Governance as a means of democratization of the social environment: theoretical and methodological aspect of terminological uncertainty

The article highlights the issue of clear terminology and inconsistent interpretation of the essence of governance as a phenomenon and a mean of democratization of the social environment. The results of the critical analysis of the works dedicated to the problem are highlighted. A logical and semantic analysis of the types of governance that appear in the modern domestic theoretical discourse. As a result of the analysis, a terminological contradiction was revealed, therefore, uncertainty in the subject field of the study of governance issues. It is emphasized that such terminological uncertainty is a significant methodological obstacle in providing adequate research on governance and carrying out recommendations for its successful solution, which is extremely important for modern Ukrainian society, which needs democratization. Governance is noted to be an unalterable means of democratizing the social environment. An interpretation of the essence of the basic principles of governance is done. It is recommended to abandon the pluralism of adjectives, which create a semantic contradiction and generate terminological uncertainty of governance and to stand with the term "governance" without any additional determinants. It is proposed to define governance as a democratic form of social governance based on the principles of openness, participation, accountability, efficiency, coherence, responsibility, partnership, accountability, integrity, fairness and distributed leadership. It is recommended to develop a broad public discourse around the problems that hinder the effective implementation of the principles of governance at various levels of the social hierarchy in Ukraine, including domestic universities.