Psychological analysis of political values in contemporary Russian public: generational aspect

Today the problem of the aspects of the political consciousness of the Russian youth is relevant and discussed in the scientific community. The study of political ideas and values of young Russians as the basic components of the political consciousness is a part of the political-psychological approach. In different historical periods the youth appears to be the most politically committed part of the country population. The results of the survey show that nearly three quarters of respondents are interested in politics, although the interest is mainly generalized. Most young people define their political preferences within liberal-democratic spectrum. Young people's representations of power are characterized by clarity, cognitive simplicity of statements with predominantly neutral emotions. Russian young people have consistently shown a willingness to participate in the elections for the last seven years. It appears that for young people elections namely represent democratic development and the ability to influence key decisions. The analysis of the values of democracy in the dynamics has shown that for the last seven years current values in the political consciousness of young people are "freedom", "human rights" and "respect for the law." The data, obtained with the help of R. Inglehart's technique, show that the most actual political values in the minds of youth are materialistic values. In general, it is necessary to conclude that, compared to older generations of Russian citizens, modern young people seem to be more politically committed, show more interest to politics and their own citizenship, which in return can serve as a basis for optimism towards the political future of our country. Features of the political consciousness of modern Russian youth are largely determined by the age specifics and the position that this generation has in the structure of Russian society.

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