Abstract: The article discusses the distinctive features of the process of formation of value orientations characteristic of modern youth in Russia. For young people of the XXI century, it is the features of behavior that can have a significant impact on the nature of decision-making in different spheres of their life, and therefore require more detailed study. The purpose of the article is to identify the characteristic features of this process in relation to the youth of Russia at the present stage of its development. Based on the analysis of scientific theoretical and empirical sources, it is concluded that the government youth policy carried out in Russia does not achieve its goal and has certain costs in the forms, methods and means used. As a result, young people in Russia do not always respond adequately to changes in social space and in some cases of their behaviorism, conflicts are observed. The methodological basis of the study was a systematic approach, which allowed to reveal the problems of modern youth, from the point of view of their value orientations and to determine the basic values for conducting a sociological study. The application of the activity approach made it possible to identify the structural elements of the process of forming value orientations and the connections between them, as well as to build its model. The main scientific result is the conclusion that the basis of the value-oriented behavior of the youth of Russia is a humanistic orientation based on the desire for self-determination and responsibility to the family, an identical group, society and the state, and the necessary component is a cultural and ideological tradition that has its origins in the family. As characteristic features of the formation of the value orientation of young people, high trust in social networks as the main means of this process, as well as a certain trust in the educational context as an environment for instilling certain traditional values are highlighted. The ranking of subjects, methods and means of forming value orientations of Russian youth identified and carried out in the course of the study will provide practical assistance in further improving the effectiveness of this process.

Keywords: activity, activity approach, educational space, identity, family, social context, Russian society, youth, value orientations, value

Abstract: The article discusses the mindsets among the black population of the United States of America. In particular, the author studies an important aspect of mutual perception of - and relationship between the settled black US citizens (the descendants of the slaves brought to America centuries ago) and the recent immigrants from African countries. The author draws attention to network communities that serve the migrants as means for both, more successful adaptations in the host society, and the support of their own cultural identity, and also focuses on African immigrants’ voluntary associations. The article is based on field research conducted in seven states in 2013-2015. The field research has allowed to conclude that the relationships between African Americans and African immigrants are characterized by simultaneous attraction and repulsion. They understand that, of all ethnoracial communities in the country, they (and also immigrants from the Antilles) are closest to each other (to the degree that non-black Americans don't distinguish them, at times), they recognize common roots and relate to similar problems in societies for which racial division is pronounced. But myriads of social, cultural and linguistic differences immediately surface during attempts at mutual attraction in the process of “translating” images between different cultures, causing mutual repulsion.

Keywords: cultural identity, network communities, cultural difference, race, African immigrants, African Americans, Africa, United States, mentality, cultural images