We develop a non-perturbative model for valence parton distribution functions (PDFs) based on the quark interactions in the mean field of the nucleonic interior. The main motivation for the model is to obtain a mean field description of the valence quarks as a baseline to study the short range quark-quark interactions that generate high $x$ tail of valence quark distributions. The model is based on the separation of valence three-quark system from the residual nucleon system which is the source of the mean field. The nucleon structure function is calculated within effective light-front diagrammatic approach which allows to introduce light-front valence quark and residual wave functions. The model allows us to obtain a new relation between the position of the peak of $xq_V(x)$ distribution of the valence quark and the effective mass of the residual system, $m_R$: $x_{peak} approx {1over 4} (1-{m_Rover m_N})$ and naturally explains the difference in the peak positions for d- and u- quarks due to expected larger residual mass in the case of valence d- quark distribution. The parameters of the model are fixed by fitting the calculated valence quark distributions to the phenomenological parameterizations. This allowed us to estimate the total contribution due to quark-quark correlations which are expected to dominate at high x. The fit allowed also to obtain the $Q^2$ dependence of the mass of the residual system and its effective size which gives a new insight on the effects of the QCD evolution on strongly interacting mean field of the nucleon. Finally, the evaluated parameters of non-perturbative wave functions of valence 3q- and residual system allow them to be used in calculations of other observables such as nucleon form factors, generalized partonic and transverse momentum distributions.
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