A Transforming Paternalism and Its Limits: Some Regularities in Changing the Structure of Expectations of the Rural Population of Modern Russia

The article shows the features of the transformation of a paternalistic mindset in the modern Russian rural society, and characterizes the place that paternalism occupies in the structure of expectations of the rural population. The article is based on the data (mass and expert surveys) of a sociological research carried out in rural communities of Novosibirsk Oblast from 2005 to 2014. The conducted research allowed to put forward a number of hypotheses regarding the features of the sociocultural transformation of the Russian rural society. In particular, the studies have shown that among the rural population the attitude to paternalism is extremely pronounced. Bright manifestations of paternalism in the rural regions of Russia are fixed by researches of the recent decade. There appears a specific phenomenon, "rural" paternalism, which the author understands as a block of expectations of rural residents associated with the support from the authorities and economic structures. Rural paternalism is represented in rural residents' daily interactions aimed at improving their well-being by receiving support from various political and economic institutions; rural residents realize that it is impossible to survive without this support. The paternalistic attitude has a structure-forming effect on the entire system of expectations that the rural population associates with various power and economic institutions. It determines the hierarchy of expectations, as well as the features of their transformation. Studies show that the expectation of state support continues to occupy a central place in the structure of rural residents' expectations: the state still remains the major and primary recipient of paternalistic expectations. At the same time, a bright feature of the Russian everyday consciousness is an ambiguous attitude to the state (disappointment and hope at the same time). However, studies record changes in the structure of expectations of the rural population. These changes are caused by a permanent socio-economic crisis and a decline in the role of economic entities in the life of rural communities. As a result, there is a shift in public expectations in two directions at once. Firstly, there is a shift in expectations from the state to local authorities. Secondly, there is a shift in expectations from economic actors to political actors. The paternalistic mindset is clearly manifested both among the expert community and among the ordinary rural population. Factors of actualization of paternalistic sentiments are the incorrect formation of modern democratic and market values (unformed attitude to private ownership of land, the feeling of loss from reforms), low social well-being and a general decline in confidence ratings to all levels of government with a simultaneous disruption of horizontal ties.

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