Value preferences of modern Russian youth: results of the generalization of expert opinions

   The article examines the value preferences of today's Russian youth basing on the generalization of expert interviews. The empirical basis for the survey is based on 15 expert interviews. The sample of respondents included university teachers, specialists in youth management, journalists of youth media, entrepreneurs targeting their business to young people, PR-specialists, employees of military history museums, etc. The sample was formed using a combination of the "snowball" method and the use of databases with the personalities of the most cited specialists. Expert interviews were conducted in the period from September 15 to October 30, 2022. Basing on the generalization of the data obtained, the author concludes that young people deny the intrinsic value of labor being oriented towards quick success (understood as a combination of material well-being, financial independence and freedom in terms of leisure activities). Experts also note the high importance of freedom and interactivity of communication for young people in the discussion of the socio-political agenda, and the lack of unity in the perception of symbols and values traditionally associated with the images of heroes. The latter is most clearly manifested in the case of patriotism, which is strongly associated with military discourse only among the traditionalist part of young Russians. In general, experts interpret the value preferences of young people based on an idealistic paradigm. A logical consequence of this is the recognition of the fundamental possibility of transforming the value preferences of young people without carrying out large-scale reforms in the field of the economy, spatial development policy, and social and educational policy strategies. In accordance with the assessments expressed by experts, the value preferences of young people can be optimized by reforming the structure, nomenclature, and semantic content of the symbols broadcasted by mass culture that define ideas of approved and condemned models of thinking and behavior. At the same time, several expert assessments regarding the orientation towards prestigious consumption and quick success attributed to young people can be called into question based on the data of mass surveys. Experts also note the presence of excessive authoritarianism and defects in feedback mechanisms functioning in the framework of the state's attempts to form the values of the younger generation.

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