Menshina, N. N., Antropova, Yu. Yu., Korobeinikova, A. P. Corruption in Modern Russia: Public Opinion Surveys at Megapolises (The Case of Ekaterinburg and Vladivostok)

Abstract: The subject matter of the author’s research is the definition and the main forms of corruption in the Russian Federation. The target of the research is to study public opinion on corruption and their correlation with the particular urban environment. The authors of the article have conducted a comparative analysis of a number of opinion surveys including the surveys carried out in Vladivostok and Yekaterinburg from 2004 to 2013. Special attention is paid to the problem of trust and mistrust of citizens towards the government when they deal with corruption, gender attitudes to corruption, thelevel of tolerance towards corruption demonstrated by future experts in the sphere of state and municipal administration. The authors use the following methods to study the aforesaid problem: sociological method (including surveys and interviews), standard and comparative methods. By using such system methodology, the authors have managed to define and describe forms of corruption represented in public opinions of Russian citizens living in Vladivostok and Yekaterinburg. The following causes of weakened social order in terms of corruption have been defined by respondents in all aforesaid public surveys: 1. Weakmachineryofgovernmentanditsgradualdestruction. 2. Legal ‘romanticism’ of modern law-makers and state officials fighting with corruption. 3. Demolition of personal retrains related to the level of public consciousness and destruction of traditions and morals. 4. Disintegration of the system of state control as a result of corruption. 5. HiddenlevelofcorruptioninYekaterinburgcompared to Vladivostok due to professionalization of urban area in a highly developed industrial region of Russia.

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