Transformation of Historical Consciousness in the Post-Soviet Space: Comparison of Historical Assessments of the Russian-Speaking Population of the Baltic States and Residents of the Russian Federation

The subject of study in the article is the determination of changes in the historical assessments of the Russianspeaking inhabitants of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Russia in comparison for the period of the 1990s - 2010s. The purpose of the study is to analyze the essence of the historical paradigm of the Baltic countries, the degree of its perception by the local titular and Russian-speaking population, as well as comparison with the historical views of the inhabitants of the Russian Federation itself. The research methodology is based on the principles of historicism, objectivity and consistency. In the course of the work, special historical methods were also used - chronological, periodization, retrospection and actualization, as well as individual applied methods of social sciences (sociological survey, sociological observation, content analysis). As a source base for the topic under consideration, of particular interest to us is the sociological study "Historical awareness of the most important events of the last century in Eastern Europe", conducted in April - May 2009 and covered, among others, with identical issues of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Russia (with a sample of interviewees ranging from 1000 to 1600 people in each of the states). As for Latvia, it is worth mentioning the monitoring of social memory in Latvia, carried out in 2010-2013 by the scientists of the University of Latvia Martins Kaprans and Olga Prochevskaya, as well as practically the same monitoring in 2017 made by the same Martins Kaprans and Andris Saulitis. In addition, this work uses sociological polls and research conducted at different times by order of government agencies, private news agencies and the media. As a result of the analysis of the complex of components of the state historical policy of the Baltic states and the Russian Federation, as well as the involvement of a wide range of sources for measuring public opinion (sociological research, population polls), it was possible to identify differences in the assessments of the past by the Russian-speaking population of Estonia and Latvia, Lithuania and the inhabitants of the Russian Federation in relation to specific historical periods and personalities. The smallest discrepancies are caused by the events of early, medieval history, the period of the Russian Empire and the Great Patriotic War. The biggest differences are associated with the assessment of the Soviet period of development. The views of the Russian-speaking youth of the Baltic countries, who were educated after the collapse of the Soviet Union and experienced the measures of local memory politics, are gradually converging with the historical views of Estonians, Latvians, and Lithuanians. In light of the ongoing educational reforms in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania (aimed at eliminating Russian-language education), we can assume that in the medium term, this trend will continue, and the differences in the interpretation of past events between the inhabitants of the Russian Federation and the Baltic states will deepen The authors declare no conflicts of interests.

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