Dynamics of ideals in contemporary Russia: а system analysis

The article considers the changes in Russian society and its ideals as a feedback system. Two strata of these changes are separated, a more dynamic and superficial formed by mass-media, and a more fundamental and inert one determined by specificity of civilization. Parallels are drawn between fascination of some western intellectuals with the Soviet reality of the 1930s and fascination in Russia of the 1990s with imaginary West, which are rooted in the bankruptcy of the former ideals. The concept of pendulum of ideals is introduced to analyze the changes in hierarchy of economic and non-economic ideals. This pendulum moved to its economic pole in Russia of the 1990th, but nowadays started, as polls show, to move towards its non-economic pole. This conclusion is confirmed by surveys conducted by the Public Opinion Foundation (FOM), which show that the share of respondents who consider themselves patriots increased from 57 per cent in 2006 to 84 per cent in 2023. In addition, as surveys show, volunteering is gaining in popularity, and importance of non-economic component of ideal family image is on the increase.