Modern Concepts of Coercion in the Theory of Law

Abstract

Introduction. This article analyzes the modern concepts of coercion in the theory of law. The impact on the understanding of coercion was provided through political and legal views on the essence of the state and law. In the libertarian understanding, law is an institution within which coercion ensures freedom, and is also able to protect freedom from violations of it. In the libertarian concept, law is understood as the formal equality of free individuals and is presented as a universal form of people's freedom. And, from a psychological point of view, Hale's concept of coercion is defined as a mechanism for artifi- cially restricting choice options in order to force the chooser to make certain and undesirable choices.
Materials and methods. The methodological basis of the study was the following general scientific and special methods of cognition of legal phenomena and processes in the theory of law and comparative law.
Research results. As a result, state coercion is defined as a mechanism that puts a person in front of the need to choose, where each of the alternatives is not favourable from the point of view of the goals and interests of the person making the choice.
Discussion and conclusion. It has been established that the phenomenon of state coercion in modern discourse is considered in comparison with freedom. Attention is paid to the concepts of coercion by V.A. Chetvernin, as well as by A.S. Puchnin. In addition, the article attempts to apply the views of R. Hale to the analysis of state coercion.