Features of the formation of value orientations of modern youth in Russia

Zelenkov Mikhail ORCID: 0000-0002-1005-5721 Russian State Social University, Head of the Department of National Security, Countering Extremism and Terrorism 129226, Russia, Moscow, Wilhelm Peak str., 4 mz60@mail.ru Other publications by this author

Introduction

The modern world system is at the stage of global imbalance of civilizational values ^[1]. The radical transformation of traditional civilizational values, which began under the direct leadership of the United States and was actively supported by their vassals by Western countries, led to the creation of two conflicting poles in the world community. On one of them, the liberal social orientation of individualism and consumerism, based on rules, is propagandized and aggressively imposed by the United States and Western countries, on the other – the conservative traditional system of civilizational values of the rest of the world, based primarily on history, customs and traditions of ancestors and religion. This process has led to an increase in socio-political, spiritual and moral tension in national societies. At the same time, A. Toynbee also noted that "spiritual processes occur in the human soul, because only the Soul is able to experience human experience and respond to it with a spiritual manifestation" ^[2]. These processes cannot be touched, but they can be observed. And I.A. Ilyin, justifying the influence of spiritual foundations through the spiritual structure of the personality, emphasized that "we will not believe in any "external reform" that could save us by itself, regardless of the inner, mental and spiritual change of a person" ^[3].

Under these conditions, the subject of research on value orientations, especially among young people, and the process of their formation has its origins in social demand and is essential both for a specific scientific discipline (for example, conflictology) and for society as a whole. Since only conscious adherence to value orientations adequate to the traditional values of society supports social cohesion, ensures understandable behavior, sovereignty and generates a common moral and moral spirit that provides confidence in everyday and future life. It should be noted that theoretically this was pointed out by M. Weber in his results of the analysis of the capitalist system, using the key of Calvinist Puritanism ^[4], and later E. Durkheim drew attention to this, analyzing a specific historical period of the development of society. Empirically, this postulate was proved by a special military operation in Ukraine, as a result of which Russian society, under sanctions and other illegitimate actions of the West, not only did not bend, but, on the contrary, rallied ^[5].

I would especially like to note that the problem of the formation of value orientations in the scientific world is not a request of modern history, but has deep roots and has been discussed since ancient times (Plato, Aristotle, Confucius, etc.). In the age of Enlightenment, Renaissance and Modern Times, N. Machiavelli, T. Hobbes, I. Kant, F. Nietzsche et al. In Russian science, I would like to name such great scientists as V. Yadov, V. Lisovsky, L. Vygotsky, etc. Moreover, each of them focused their attention and developed solutions in relation to both general scientific aspects and a specific scientific discipline (pedagogy, psychology, etc.). In addition, for the most part, scientists investigated this problem not in the vacuum of a particular individual, but in connection with the formation of his social position.

The synthesis of the results of the content analysis of socio-humanitarian studies devoted to the disclosure of the essence and content of the value orientations of society ^[2-11] allowed us to conclude that value orientations mean what makes an individual's behavior such that without which he would lose his humanity or part of it. For example, the orientation that one should tell the truth and be honest, as well as be sincere and not lie. It is not for nothing that, from a socio-pedagogical point of view, value orientations are considered referents, guiding principles or abstractions that direct human behavior towards social transformation and personal realization, and support conflict-free society.

Further reliance on synergetics has shown that value orientations are closely related to each individual, and therefore identify him, give him a name, face and character. Without them, he would be deprived of a meaningful identity. In addition, the results showed that value orientations also affect interpersonal interactions and relationships, therefore they are formed at several levels (individual, family, identical group, society, state) and determine the social success and social integration of a particular individual ^[12].

It should be emphasized that value orientations exist independently of specific situations, therefore they can be characterized as relatively stable, but not permanent, since they can change, develop throughout life and even radically transform in a certain foreseeable period of time. The most striking example of this is the trends in the development of Soviet-Russian society, where traditional conservative values prevailed until the mid-80s, and from the late 80s of the XX century until the early 2000s - liberal, consumer, worshiping values. However, from the 2010s to the present, these are mainly traditional values, with a separate predominance of liberal values in specific social groups ^[12].

The process of forming an individual's value orientations occurs under the influence of his specific subjects and the context of all the main spheres of life of an individual, an identical group, society and the state, being realized through the use of a wide range of forms, methods and means, as well as on the basis of personal experience. The analysis of scientific research shows the existence of a fairly wide range of empirical studies in which scientists have tried to structure value orientations and determine their measurement indicators. One such example is the process of forming a value base by verbalizing numerous meanings with adjectives and/or nouns and ranking them by respondents. In our opinion, they are presented in the most systematic and structured way in the works of M. Rokich ^[13] and Sh. Schwartz ^[14].

An analysis of the results of scientific papers ^[2-15], materials of public authorities ^[16] and sociological research of the XXI century ^[17-19] (VTsIOM, FOM, ROMIR, university centers, etc.) allows us to conclude that today there is still a certain level of erosion of value orientations in Russian society, especially among young people. In particular, the results of research conducted in 2019 by the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs Rosmolodezh show that the main value for Russian youth is family and children. Moreover, this value is a priority both in the representative survey and in the survey of activists. The top 3 values of youth in general include: family, children (55.2%), financially secure life (absence of financial difficulties, 38.8%), career, interesting work (31.7%) ^[18]. In the 2022 study conducted by RAO, for the majority of young people (69%), family is also the key to success, and success is determined by work for the soul (57%), career building (32%) and the opportunity for entertainment (25%) ^[19]. It would seem that family comes first, this is fine, but only such values as a patriot – defender of his country and a patriot - a person working for the benefit of his country do not find popularity among young people (41% and 39%, respectively) ^[19].

At the same time, we must not forget that youth is a special stratum of society, which plays an important role in the process of its development. It is not for nothing that politicians and policy makers in the public and national sectors tend to view young people in terms of social and political risk and/or potential economic benefits or potential dividends that they represent for their society. In addition, history teaches that it is young people who are associated with values, norms and identities that are considered deviant or contrary to basic or more traditional cultural values and moral norms. For example, in 2011, it was the youth who became the driving force of the "color revolutions" in the countries of North Africa (Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, etc.), in 2011-2013 in Russia (the "Swamp Revolution"), and in 2022-2023 – volunteering and volunteering during a Special military operation in Ukraine.

Against this background, unfortunately, it has to be stated that in Russia, young people are largely perceived by adults as vulnerable to the pervasive influence of Western cultures, and more recently, radicalization by extremist groups. Under the influence of global and national external factors in the modern youth environment, despite the state youth policy pursued in Russia, there are value orientations that are not traditional for Russian society, but correlate with Western models ^[5,16]. At the same time, an analysis of materials prepared for the meeting of the State Council of Russia (December 2022) shows that for young people over the age of 18, the most significant values are: human life (96%), mutual assistance and mutual respect (95%), human dignity (95%), a strong family (94%), justice (94%), human rights and freedoms (90%), charity (90%), historical memory and continuity of generations (87%), awareness of oneself as a citizen of one's country (86%), creative work (84%) ^[17].

For comparison, we present data on young people in Germany, where in the first place there is such a value as having good friends, close relationships with other people (90.6%), followed by values such as: have fun, enjoy life (81.5%), work for the family (68.9%), independence, autonomy (68.7%). But such values as helping those in need (48.1%), working with the meaning of life (17.3%), religious values and firm faith (15.6%) complete the list ^[20]. The youth of Poland also has coherent results ^[21].

As you can see, despite the rather visible difference in polarity, a certain correlation is still observed. Such fundamental values as patriotism, work for the benefit of society and the state, and collectivism are in a state of expectation of their funeral rites. Young people also do not believe in the good old words, because they no longer believe in the good old values and do not take them as their reference points. For the most part, she refuses to rely on the experience of previous generations, continues to adhere to liberal values, individualism, consumerism, which ultimately leads to generational conflict and loss of orientation in the Russian world, and is also expressed in a decrease in the influence of traditional and social institutions on the formation of values among modern youth. At the same time, the writer V. Rasputin once noticed: "Russian cannot be preserved in any average value... If we are organized into a European or American lifestyle, we will not become either Europeans or Americans, but we will cease to be Russians, which is what is happening now" ^[22].

Such a multipolar state of affairs inevitably pushes scientists to look for new ways, forms, methods and means of forming value orientations characteristic of the youth of Russia in the 21st century, and practitioners to build this process taking into account the results identified and substantiated by science. The above allows us to formulate the hypothesis of our research, which consists in the fact that the current stage of the formation of value orientations of Russian youth has its own characteristic features, significantly different from the previous stages of the development of society. Based on this, the purpose of our research is to identify these features and determine the most appropriate to the current state of Russian society, subjects, forms, methods and means of forming traditional value content in its youth environment.

Methodological foundations of the formation process

value orientations of youth

The social world is the world of people, the world of "mind" or "consciousness", which is rooted in "understanding" and "human experience". It consists of many active individuals, each of whom defines it based on their value orientations, and is associated with it in an individualized way. The formation of value orientations is the process of merging an individual's personal experience and the special culture in which he is involved. Value orientations begin to form from the moment a child is born and are consolidated as he grows up through the culture of the social environment and life experience. For example, such a value as kindness is imposed on a child from early childhood. Having absorbed it "with mother's milk", he can apply it in the school environment and establish stronger social ties with his classmates. As they grow up, accumulating personal experience in the practical implementation of this value orientation, the individual will experience adaptive effects of kindness and inadequate effects if he prefers malice to kindness.

Since the formation of value orientations is an activity aimed at instilling certain values in an individual and their conscious acceptance, our further research will be based on an activity-based approach. Based on them, we will consider an individual interacting with the environment as an actor performing conscious actions based on their value orientations. According to the principle of unity of consciousness and activity, developed by S. Rubinstein, activity mediates consciousness: "there is a real opportunity to illuminate a person's consciousness through his activity, in which consciousness is formed and revealed" ^[9]. His famous quote "external acts through internal ones" emphasizes the dependence of activity on the individual's individual value characteristics. At the same time, we note that the social aspect of his behavior depends on him in the same way as an individual depends on the social environment. I.e., in the same social environment (context), different individuals act differently and affect the social environment in different ways. At the same time, this difference is based on those value orientations that determine the vector of an individual's behavior.

According to the system-structural theory of activity, the activity of an individual is a purposeful self-regulating system. In this case, the process of forming an individual's value orientations is nothing more than a systemic process in which an individual, through trial, error and adjustments with feedback, forms a behavior strategy derived from the values he has accepted and realized. Since activity consists of actions that can be cognitive/or internal and behavioral/ or external, in this case all actions of both the subject and the object of the process of forming value orientations are organized and aimed at obtaining and conscious acceptance by the individual of the values being imposed. Thus, the process of forming value orientations can be represented as a conscious, deliberate, purposeful and socially formed action aimed at the individual's cognition of the value instilled in him, having certain features formed by both the external and internal environment.

A. Leontiev's theory of mental activity plays an important role in highlighting the features of the formation of an individual's value orientations in a particular environment. According to which, mental life can be understood as the result of the inclusion of an individual's individual activity in a collective activity. At the same time, the activity is aimed at the realization of motives, which are understood as objectified needs, and its components are actions aimed at updating goals, while the components of actions are operations that are ways to solve problems. In this case, specifically human mental formations can be understood as the result of the internalization of external objective actions - their transfer to the "inner plane" ^[10].

The study of the peculiarities of the process of forming value orientations, through the application of an activity approach, showed that from the very beginning of this process, an individual sees in one or another value the possibility of realizing his goal and that this value will help him realize it, i.e. satisfy his needs and interests. This allows him to perceive a particular value at the initial stage of the process only as a means of achieving the goal. And only then, as the value orientation is embodied in his behavior, he will begin to notice the properties and patterns of value. In this case, the value orientation acts as an objective component of his activity.

Applying a systematic approach, we will present the process of forming value orientations in the form of a closed system comprising two subsystems: firstly, the effects of the context of traditions and customs that have developed in the social environment (formal value orientation); secondly, the effects of new norms, orientations, sociocultural paradigms - changing existing programs of activity, their "reprogramming", transcending the existing ways of including an individual in the world around him (activity-based value orientation). The latter form of activity demonstrates its open, creative nature and shows individual freedom, expanding the horizon of the individual's relationship to the surrounding reality and himself. On a historical scale, the tradition that defines the closeness of activity acts as a derivative of the openness of activity and its ability to form new value orientations.

Exploring the features of the process of forming the value orientations of youth through an activity-based approach, one cannot ignore the theory of the social constructivist paradigm of P. Berger and T. Lukmann ^[23]. Scientists propose a series of iterative (repetitive and interconnected) processes and concepts to describe how the "intersubjective" (interpersonal) gap between people's personal consciousnesses is overcome and how socially constructed realities that contain knowledge of any social group are shared and achieve everyday objectivity. They show how language, artifacts, and symbolic behavior embody a group's collective, permanent solutions to its current problems. In addition, we also take into account that any activity in the process of forming an individual's value orientations is subordinated to habituation. I.e., a value realized and accepted by an individual can become his value orientation only if this process consists of frequently repeated actions leading to the fact that the value orientation becomes the standard of an individual's behavior.

From the point of view of the relational approach, repetitive actions take place in a certain space, which is created by the subject of the value orientation formation process and the individual object to whom it is instilled. Outside of these relationships, this space does not exist. Consequently, the space at each moment of time is determined by the configuration of the subject of value orientation formation and the object located in it, in our case, youth, and its properties depend on the nature of their relationship. Based on this, the social space for the formation of value orientations is a part of the social space created by the subject and the object of the formation of value orientations, in which, under the conditions of the interdependent influence of social fields, they interact in the interests of the formation of certain value orientations in the object. For example, the educational space of a school or university.

Based on the theory of social space, which believes that it is constituted by subspaces and fields: political, economic, religious, etc., it is possible to identify the features of the process of forming value orientations of young people, based on the effectiveness of the functioning of the context (social fields), which functions in the formed social space, each in its own sphere. This context, as practice shows, has a direct and effective impact on an individual's acceptance of a particular value orientation. For example, the degree of trust of young people in the Internet space and social networks today is in the range of 20-35%. More than 60% of modern youth constantly arrive in this virtual space and are influenced by it, changing their value orientations.

Descriptive model of formation

value orientations of youth

To determine the features of the formation of value orientations in social space, the author constructed a descriptive model presented in Figure 1. The process of functioning of this model can be described using a socio-constructivist paradigm that characterizes knowledge as a set of beliefs or mental models that an individual uses to interpret actions and events in the surrounding space. Knowledge allows him to evaluate his behavior as value-based or non-value-oriented. Consequently, an individual cannot perceive or relate to the environment without subjective experience, because he also, like subjects, modifies and creates his environment in order to give them a sense of reality. At the same time, the category of meaning is central to the adoption of a particular value orientation.

Figure 1 - A model for the formation of value orientations of a young individual

in the social space

The practical testing of this model was carried out among young people studying in higher educational institutions and among young people of grades 9 and 11 who attend the "Open Doors" Days and the "Admission Navigator" fair (applicants) in 2021-2023. The model made it possible to identify the subjects, forms, methods, means and context of the formation of youth value orientations in the modern social space of Russian society, where youth make up more than 38.3% of its total population ^[17]. Representatives of two age groups of young people acted as objects of the process of forming value orientations. The first group (I group) – students of higher educational institutions aged 18-24 years (sample of 450 people). The second group (II gr.) – students of grades 9 and 11 of secondary schools (applicants) aged 15-17 years (sample of 250 people). The research method was a mass survey using a questionnaire. The values from the Schwartz questionnaire on the study of personality values were taken as the values underlying the characteristic value orientations of Russian youth (Table 1).

Table 1 - Results of the sociological survey "Features of the formation of value orientations of youth in modern Russian society"

The analysis of the results showed that the features of the formation of value orientations of group I and group II do not have significant differences, therefore, highlighting these features, we present them in the median according to the ranks of both groups:

Firstly, the main value orientations of Russian youth are formed in secondary school and are consolidated in the process of studying at a higher educational institution. At the same time, since the content of the social space practically does not change, it can be concluded that one of the features of the formation of value orientations of modern Russian youth is the content of the educational space created in Russia, based on the traditional culture of Russian society and undergoing significant transformation during 2022-2023.

Secondly, the dominant feature of the process of forming the value orientations of Russian youth is its socially oriented orientation, based on traditional family traditions. The identification of the subjects of the individual's family and Russian society as dominants (as a rule, rank 1-2) allows us to assert that the state's policy in this area is insufficiently adequate to the needs and interests of young people. Moreover, this aspect has long been in the field of view of scientists ^[11].

Thirdly, the displacement of such value orientations as hedonism, individualism and their own achievements into the background allows us to assert that the worldview of Russian youth has passed the peak of the values of liberalism and consumerism in it, and most of the youth do not associate their behavior with the possibility of achieving only material values and high status in society.

Fourth, high trust in social networks prevails among Russian youth as the main means of forming their value orientations. This causes some concern and suggests that young people do not particularly trust the public and political space, have become more individual in decision-making and prefer virtual dialogical interaction, thereby still destroying the stereotypes of behavior and values of Russian society that can lead to the decline of its culture.

Fifthly, indicators on the subject of formation scale show that Russian youth are adequately oriented between family, society and the state (borders within 70%-90%). It is especially characteristic that she considers it appropriate to form values such as traditions, nobility, respect and kindness in the family (more than 80%). Attention is also drawn to the fact that young people consider it necessary to form value orientations related to the safety of themselves and others in the society (in the median 80%). Despite the fact that the state occupies a less demanded rank in the rank of subjects, young people still have a certain reverence for the state. We believe that this is based on the fact that, in the opinion of young people, value orientations related to legality are the prerogative of the state.

In the course of the study, such subjects of the formation of value orientations as close friends, distant relatives, public organizations, classmates were also noted, however, their percentage was not significant. To a large extent, young people also rely on their individual experience, as we are told by the fact that in many cases practice acts as a means of formation. Moreover, it should be noted that, for the most part, it is participation in volunteerism and volunteerism, in the opinion of young people, that allows them to gain some training and professional experience.

Sixth, Russian youth prefer active methods (dialogue, training, discussion, debate) of forming value orientations more. Today, young people no longer recognize passive forms and methods, such as lectures, considering them a relic of the past. At the same time, trust has not been lost in the educational (boundaries within 60%-80%) and socio-cultural context (more than 80%), as a context for instilling certain value orientations. This shows that history, culture, religion, as well as trust in teachers and educators play an essential role in the formation of value orientations of Russian youth.

Seventh, three properties are distinguished as characteristic of the process of forming the value orientation of Russian youth: value collective references, value structures and the ability to moral judgment. The author has reduced these three characteristics to three forms of value orientation of Russian youth: centrist, conventional and emancipated value orientations - the latter demonstrate the highest moral assessment.

Conclusion

Thus, value orientations represent a central aspect of an individual's mentality and worldview and an integral element of his or her living environment. These are subjective concepts or ideas about desired goals for one's own life, family, society and the state, as well as desired behavior for oneself or others. I.e., they are the answer to the question: What is important for an individual and what is not important?

Without setting ourselves the task of figuring out what is really decisive in the process of forming value orientations among modern Russian youth, we note that the research results presented by us are, first of all, characteristic features inherent in Russian youth. Their systematization shows that the basis of value-oriented behavior of Russian youth is a humanitarian orientation based on the desire for self-determination and responsibility to the family, society and the state, and a necessary component is the cultural and ideological tradition.

The study also showed that among modern Russian youth, the authority of the family as the main subject of the process of value orientation formation has not lost its relevance. Most Russian youth have a sense of responsibility, they are ready to take responsibility not only for themselves, but also for an identical group, society and the state. A practical confirmation of this is the active participation of representatives of Russian youth in volunteering and volunteering in the new territories of Russia and in the zone of a Special military operation for denazification and demilitarization Ukraine.

For further work on this issue, it is advisable to focus on the specifics of the formation of not general, but specific value orientations, which will allow us to develop and formulate specific proposals for improving this process in the Russian Federation.