SOCIAL ACTIVITY OF THE SUBJECTIVE MIDDLE CLASS OF THE RUSSIAN REGION: RESULTS OF QUALITATIVE SOCIOLOGICAL RESEARCH
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61841/rpvp9p11Keywords:
self-identification, social activity,, sociological research, qualitative methods.Abstract
The article presents the results of a study of the middle class of the Russian region in terms of the manifestation of various types of social activity by actors. The emphasis on the analysis of social activity is motivated by the consideration of this attribute as a criterion for the allocation of the middle class in the post-industrial period. The research method – an in-depth focused interview through which two tasks are solved: identifying the degree of significance for informants of social activity and examples of its manifestation; determination of the degree of readiness to participate in the implementation of the innovation development strategy of the Tomsk Region and thereby act as a “driver” of social changes. Representatives of the middle class are included in the sample based on self-identification. It was revealed that the middle class of the Russian region is active in realising personal, but not social goals. Such a characteristic of the post-industrial middle class as the willingness to act as a driver of social development is not observed. Based on the results of the study, options are proposed for solving this problem related to the mechanisms of involving the middle class in regional planning and decision-making regarding generally significant issues.
Downloads
References
1. Alekseenok A.A. Identification criteria of the middle class in modern Russian society. Theory and Practice of Social Development, 2014, 4, 61-63.
2. Barbehön M., Geugjes M. Caught in the Middle? Welfare State Legitimisation and Problematisation in German and Swedish Middle-class Discourse. International Journal of Politics, Culture, and Society, 2019, 32(1), 1–20.
3. Bucholtz M. Variation in transcription. Discourse Studies, 2007, 9(6), 784-808.
4. Gerke S. Global Lifestyles under Local Conditions: The New Indonesian Middle Class, 2015. Retrieved from: http://ewclass.lecture.ub.ac.id/files/2015/02/Beng-Huat-Chua-Consumption-in-Asia_-Lifestyle-and-Identities-The-New-Rich-in-Asia-Routledge-2000.pdf#page=152.
5. Ilyin V.I. Dramaturgy of high-quality field research. St. Petersburg: Intersocis, 2006.
6. Ilyinykh S.A. Gender aspects of the lifestyle of the middle class of Russia. Living Standards of the Population of the Regions of Russia, 2017, 3(205), 85-92.
7. Inglehart R. Culture shift. Chicago: Chicago University Press, 1990.
8. Kharas H., Gertz G. The New Global Middle Class: A Cross-Over from West to East, 2016. Wolfensohn Center for Development at Brookings. https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/03_china_middle_class_kharas.pdf.
9. Khayrullina Yu.R. The urban middle class in modern Russia: allocation criteria, structure, labor and consumer behavior (based on the materials of the Republic of Tatarstan). Electronic Economic Bulletin of Tatarstan, 2012, 2, 282-293.
10. Lipasova A. Fatherhood Models in the Middle Class of Contemporary Russia. Russian Sociological Review, 2016, 15(4), 202-214.
11. Martynova S., Sazonova P. Women as Innovative Entrepreneurs in Russia: A sociological Research. European Research Studies Journal, 2018, 21(4), 843-858.
12. Minichiello V., Aroni R., Hays T.N. In-depth interviewing: Principles, techniques, analysis. Melbourne: Pearson Education Australia, 2008.
13. Pishnyak A.I. The dynamics of the middle class in Russia: from 2000 to 2015. Materials of the XVIII April International Scientific Conference on the Problems of Economic and Social Development. NRU Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russian Federation, 2017.
14. Potekhin V.A. The development of interaction between the state and civil society as a condition for the modernization of managerial activities. Power, 2010, 8, 59–64.
15. Safiullin M.R., Eflova M.Yu., Nagimova A.M. Social well-being and self-identification of the middle class in Tatarstan. Sociological Studies, 2012, 10, 28-33.
16. Semenova V.V. Qualitative methods: an introduction to humanistic sociology. Moscow: Dobrosvet, 1998.
17. Shatkin G. Middle class or propertied class? Class politics and urban redevelopment in contemporary Asia. In: J. Go (Ed.), Political Power and Social Theory (pp.269-279). Bingley: Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2010.
18. Steinberg I.Ye. Logical schemes for substantiating a sample for high-quality interviews: an “eight-window” model. Sociology: Methodology, Methods, Mathematical Modeling, 2014, 38, 38-71.
19. Unger J. China’s Conservative Middle Class. Far Eastern Economic Review, 2006, April, 27-31.
20. Villegas Celso M. Revolution “from the middle”: historical events, narrative, and the making of the middle class in the contemporary developing world. In: J. Go (Ed.), Political Power and Social Theory (pp.269-279). Bingley: Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2010.
21. Vlasova E.M. The state and development trends of the middle class in the regions of the Middle Volga region.
Regionology, 2010, 4(73), 167-176.
22. Volkov Yu.G. Creative class in Russian society: trends and prospects of humanistic ideology. Power, 2012, 1, 61–64.
23. What has changed in the country recently? Retrieved from: https://www.levada.ru/.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
You are free to:
- Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format for any purpose, even commercially.
- Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.
- The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.
Under the following terms:
- Attribution — You must give appropriate credit , provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made . You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
- No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
Notices:
You do not have to comply with the license for elements of the material in the public domain or where your use is permitted by an applicable exception or limitation .
No warranties are given. The license may not give you all of the permissions necessary for your intended use. For example, other rights such as publicity, privacy, or moral rights may limit how you use the material.
