Abstract: The contradictory process of global changes in modern world, associated with the rapid growth of social inequality, has turned it into one of the most relevant problems, the solution of which affects the vector of social development. This necessitates the development of new approaches towards cognition, since the existing liberal ideologeme of knowledge does not fully correspond to its adequate solution. The goal of this research consists in the development of a new conceptual approach towards studying the phenomenon of inequality through the prism of such phenomena as mobility and differentiation. Methodological framework is comprised of the theoretical analysis of special scientific literature and practical materials of foreign and Russian authors. The conducted analysis allowed acquiring the following results: one of the versions of the new approach towards cognition of inequality is the theoretical development of the concepts “mobility” and “differentiation” as the categories of social inequality; the concept of “social mobility” reveals the mechanisms of the emrgence of new forms of inequality; the concept of “social differentiation” determines the essence of inequality through the internal stratification of people in one or another society, which is substantiated by their different social activity.

Keywords: differentiation, social system, metacode, migration, mobility horizontal, mobility vertical, social inequality, stratification, functionality, ideologeme

Abstract: This article provides a theoretical analysis of the phenomenon of trust from the perspective of basic humanities: sociology, economics, law, etc. The subject of this research is the basic components of trust in the context of vast field of knowledge in social sciences and humanities. Research methodology employs multi-paradigm approach towards analyzing modern transformations of trust from preindustrial to postindustrial society. The author applies cross-disciplinary and comprehensive analysis of various forms and types of trust existing in modern world. The article considers the theoretical approaches towards studying trust that are characteristic to the foreign sociological thought, from the theory of social action and the social system to social and human capital. The novelty lies in determination of the common and specific within the basic divisions of knowledge in the context of the analysis of trust as the framework phenomenon of efficient functioning of modern society through the prism of contemporary domestic and foreign authors. Description is give to indicative components of trust; a;; levels of its efficient functioning are summarized. The author reveals the major barriers that cause crisis and a low culture of trust in the modern post-Soviet space. The conclusion is made that at the macro-level, trust encourages an individual to productive social integration and effective activity for the good of society. The macro-level of functionality of trust substantiated the effectiveness of political and social institutions, which serves as the criterion for the level of the development of democracy and civil society. The persistence of trust is determined by the historical dynamics of social development, as well as depends on its cultural and national components.

Keywords: social exchange, risk, social action, interpersonal trust, institutional trust, social trust, economic trust, trust, human capital, social capital

Abstract: Citizens’ content with the quality and availability of the rendered public services is the key criterion for the efficiency of the service state. Satisfaction assessment is conducted through monitoring services using sociological surveys and “Your Control” platform. For revealing the customer’s experience, the article offers to use opinions posted by the citizens on the independent websites for customer reviews. The subjective opinions of the customers about the conditions and nature of rendering services gives additional information on the problems faced by citizens in the process of receiving services in multifunctional centers would broaden the knowledge on the appropriate service from the perspective of customer expectations, as well as use the acquired information for quality control in the public sphere. Research methodology employs analytical and comparative methods, summary of customer reviews posted on the websites. This article is first to introduce the new type of source for assessing citizens’ content with the quality of rendered public services. The problematic areas in rendering public services in multifunctional centers are determined. The need is substantiated for further search of the methods to increase citizens’ satisfaction and efficiency of rendering public and municipal services. The acquired results of can be used in the activity of executive branches, local administrations, and multifunctional centers that provide public and municipal services.

Keywords: reviews, service quality, Feedback, customer satisfaction, MFC, government services, word of mouth, clients, customer experience, customer focus

Abstract: This article is dedicated to the problems and prospects of the expected/commenced social and value shift, which was stimulated and legitimized by the COVID-19 pandemic. For a long time and on different levels (universalism/particularism), the modern world has been seeking the new system of “individual – society – state”, as well as the corresponding value basis. Being simultaneously a global and individual challenge, the COVID-19 pandemic allows launching and testing the available “projects of the Reformation”, as well as laying the foundation for the future projects. This is the sort of “shimmering in the near distance”, version of the “disciplinary revolution”, which allows officially speaking of the “new world”. However, in order the “motivation” for the new social reality is “for conscience, rather than fear”, it requires the value revolution (“revolution in theology”), which would formulate and offer the new normative attitudes. In this regard, the use of the conceptual framework of the “Reformation” and its patterns leads towards the comprehension of importance of the value foundation of the expected / commenced social transformation. Even of greater importance is the understanding who forms this value foundation. The article does not provide specific answers to the questions which new system of “individual – society – state”, new ethos or “new religion” entails the COVID-19 pandemic. The consequences of such “revolutions” manifest later on and are rarely predictable. This article aims to be the “optics” that allows seeing the inner and the outer the context of the COVID-2019.

Keywords: social transformation, state, society, individual, COVID-2019, revolution, Reformation, value transformation, ethos, religions

Abstract: This article examines various aspects of institutional problematic in the research of sociologists. Analysis is conducted on the theses on sociology (for the period from 2016 to 2019), which provide the results of studying social institutions and social practices. The author determines the modern trends in examining the problem of “institutionalization – deinstitutionalization”, and reveals the connection between social institutions and particular practices. The tendency to generalize the material on local manifestations of the institutions and practices in the thesis is noted. At the same time, the questions are raised concerning the development of relatively new institutions, the establishment of which is associated with the peculiarities of modern social reality. Attention is give to cross-disciplinary nature of theses dedicated to studying the institutional problematic. The author assesses the role of the theses of sociologists in formation of the picture of development of the institutions and practices in the Russian Federation, its constituent entities, and foreign countries. Emphasis is placed on the aspect of regionalization of institutions. The article outlines the problems related to the scientific analysis of “basic institutions” in regional development. The significance of theses for the formation of representations on correlation between the “basic institutions” and relevant social issues in the constituent entities of the Russian Federation is indicated. Focus is also made on the prevalence of the tendency to studying the role of the regional traditional values and norms in the development of certain social institutions and practices.

Keywords: preparation of scientific articles, knowledge system, methodology of science, knowledge, institutionalization, social sciences, research culture, knowledge about society, society, dissertation

Abstract: The subject of this research is the position of Belarus in the memory wars of Russia and Eastern European countries of the two recent decades. Based on P. Bourdieu’s theory of symbolic power, as well as comparative analysis of the key stages of the historical politics of Russia and Belarus as the members of the Union State, the author explores the causes and peculiarities of electoral neutrality of Belarus in the memory wars of Russia and Eastern European countries. Analysis is conducted on the theoretical-methodological aspects of the concept of “memory wars”. Content analysis of the relevant research reveals the specificity of the Belarusian case with regards to correlation between domestic and foreign historical politics. The specificity of the forms of post-Communism that have established in Russia and Belarus, the difference in the pace of historical politics of the last three decades, as well as the evolution of the political regime of Alexander Lukashenko contributed to the formation of peculiar position of the Republic of Belarus in the memory confrontation between Russia and its Eastern European neighbors. The internal manifestation of such position was the desire to displace the conflicts between memory communities in the republic, the movement of memory to the periphery of cultural-information space, while the external manifestation was strive for electoral neutrality (memory isolationism) in the memory wars in Eastern Europe. Such position is aimed not so much at supporting Russia’s memory initiatives, but at solving the relevant political and economic challenges, using historical politics as the instrument for promoting the own interests.

Keywords: symbolic politics, memorial isolationism, the politics of time, Union state, Republic of Belarus, historical policy, the politics of memory, memory wars, Lukashenko, Public commemorations