Parents' Status Determines Children's Future
Parental social and occupational status plays a significant role in children's career success. This is mainly due to the help that children get from their parents in pursuing opportunities to become highly paid professionals in Russia, argues Alexey Bessudnov, Research Fellow at the HSE's Centre for Advanced Studies.
Countries Coming Together and Standing against the Dictates of Investors
States are forming alliances to stand against the dictates of international capital and also to successfully attract this capital to their markets, argues the head of HSE’s Department of International Affairs, Maxim Bratersky, in his report 'Political Functions of Regional Trade Agreements'.
Orphans Need Professional Mums and Dads
Russia faces a situation where orphans, rather than potential adoptive parents, have to go through a selection process. To change this, adoptive families should become professional, while orphanages need to be downsized and open to the community, says Svetlana Biryukova, Research Fellow of the Centre for Studies of Income and Living Standards.
No 'Culture of Poverty' in Russia Yet
Despite the wide income gap between the rich and poor in Russia, their basic values and attitudes are not dissimilar. However, there are indications of an impending rift, says Svetlana Mareeva, Associate Professor of the HSE's Sub-department of Socio-Economic Systems and Social Policy, based on her findings from a survey of poor Russians.
Russians Use Various Strategies Online
Russians are increasingly using online communication for professional and business reasons in addition to personal ones. They are exploring advanced solutions and strategies to access, process, and share information on the web, according to a study by the HSE's Laboratory for Studies in Business Communications.
Research Finds Little Difference between Top-ranking and Casual Bloggers
Top-ranking LiveJournal (LJ) bloggers in Russia differ from casual contributors by how much they blog, but offer largely the same content, according to a study by Sergey and Elena Koltsov of the HSE's Internet Research Laboratory (St. Petersburg).
Teenagers Rarely Exchange Confidences in Social Networks
The excessive openness, naivety and careless behaviour of children and teenagers in social networks is no more than a myth, Olga Gurkina and Elena Novikova have concluded in their study which was presented at the 15th April International Academic Conference on Economic and Social Development. Teenagers communicate online mostly with friends, not strangers, and rarely openly express their opinions. They prefer indirect expression, such as likes and reposts rather than comments, changes of status and photos.
Traditions of Helping inside Families are Changing in Russia
Relationships within Russian families are being transformed. While most people in the country still think that mutual support between the different generations within a family are necessary, these traditions of ‘family service’ are receding into the past. Russia is becoming more oriented to Western cultural values, including the priority of individual interests, reported Cecile Lefevre, Irina Korchagina and Lidya Prokofieva at the HSE XV April International Academic Conference on Economic and Social Development.
Rural Residents Don’t Need Truth from TV
Rural residents are not concerned if televised news or its interpretation misrepresents information. Television plays an entertaining role in rural areas, and the internet is more and more often the primary source of news, researchers from the HSE Laboratory of Media Studies revealed in a study of media consumption in rural areas. The results were presented at the HSE’s XV April International Academic Conference on Economic and Social Development.
Laws Affect Attitudes towards Homosexuality
If laws exist at the state level that prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation, then the impact of individual values creating a negative attitude towards homosexuality falls. People are inclined to adapt their behavior to conventional norms. A group of European researchers came to this conclusion over the course of an international study, the results of which Peter Schmidt presented at the XV April International Academic Conference on Economic and Social Development of the Higher School of Economics.