The article is devoted to the traditionalism as a phenomenon and its role in politics. The essence of the processes of conservation and transformation of political traditionalism in modern society is revealed. It is shown that the emphasis on the archaization of the spiritual and value elementstestifies to the “conservation of traditionalism”. Traditionalism can be primitive, everyday, political and ideological. “Integral traditionalism” is distinguished by a special interpretation of tradition and an understanding of the crisis of modern civilization. Traditionalism is associated with conservatism as a political ideology. As a philosophical and religious doctrine, in contrast to conservatism as an ideology, traditionalism is dogmatic, providing a transcendental justification for power. Traditionalism in politics, approaching conservatism as a political ideology, is used to protect against threats of destruction of the established socio-cultural model, which is idealized by references to the past. The semantic core of the understanding of management based on the traditional approach is the idea of ​​the ability of a state to achieve self-determination and independent development.
Comparison of traditionalism and modernism / reformism as types of mentality is made. The advantages and disadvantages of traditionalism, its role in the interpretation and practice of public administration are shown. The article reveals the characteristics of neo-traditionalism as a transformed form of adherence to a protective approach to the development of society: politicization of traditionalism; adaptation of traditions to modern conditions and the incorporation of innovations during their reproduction; the subordination of the value-irrational meaning of traditions to the constructed technologies of referring to the past; construction of new traditions; maintaining subject and paternalistic elements in moral and political culture.