Changes in reproductive behavior among young people in Russia, changing patterns of marriage and family formation, and high death rates among males are all affecting Russia's human capital potential, and public policy reforms will need to take this into account. The new Federal Law "On Youth Policy" represents an important stage that…

The increase in the use of narcotics in Russia has been complicated by the spread of new kinds of drugs that are less visible than more traditional kinds. A worsening of the situation must be prevented. This requires studying the accumulation of world experience, searching for up-to-date approaches to prevention, combining the efforts of science…

Survey research on students in Russia shows that the higher their level of knowledgeability, the more likely they are to have better academic progress, more involvement in student government and in public and political life, more positive use of free time, and a more informed moral position.

In the past 10 to 15 years, the wide prevalence of various forms of negative behavior among young people in college has become one of the main causes of their deteriorating health. Traditionally classified among such forms are the excessive consumption of alcohol, smoking, and narcotics abuse. Issues relating to the protection of students' health…

Survey data on the problem of drug abuse in Russia show a high level of awareness of the issue among young people. To reduce the level of drug use in Russia, a comprehensive, focused, and coordinated program involving representatives of official state and social institutions, as well as institutions of civil society, is needed. Combining their…

In this article, the author analyzes processes in the sphere of education over ten years ago, emphasizing the importance in educational policy of moving away from the principle of "compensation for damages" to that of preventing the occurrence of social problems by investing capital in education in a timely manner. Despite reforms and…

During Russia's societal transition extremist behavior by young people shows signs of increasing. An extra effort is required on the part of Russian educators to try to contain this phenomenon. The increasing extremist activity on the part of young people is linked to a particular stage of the development of society. It appears that youth…

The persistence of problems indicates that the moral qualities of many people, in particular young people, constitute the stumbling block. What are the life values of today's youth--the desire to do something useful for the country, or to leave and go where the pay is higher? To have a family and raise children or to spend every hour seeking…

Problems of the family affect every individual. Problems have an impact on a variety of different social groups and strata, work collectives and neighborhood communities, young people, adults, children, the aged, and so on. The family's sense of well-being and the processes that affect its functioning can also hardly fail to be of concern to…

Russian science is in need of serious reforms if it is to provide the research and development needed for economic health. Issues of increasing average age of scientific personnel, poor working conditions, low salaries, and relatively low social prestige need to be addressed. This article reviews a questionnaire survey conducted in 2008 that aimed…

Russian society finds itself in a state of dynamic transformation. It is developing intensively and becoming more complex in its structure against the background of an increasing diversity of cultures and forms of interaction among people, along with economic differentiation, national and religious differences, and so on. These factors give rise…

Social systems, like biological systems, sometimes manifest dysfunctions that could be considered forms of "social disease." The author interprets the term "social diseases" as "persistent dysfunctions of social relations" that disrupt the normal functioning of particular elements of society or the entire social…

New people are being born, children are growing up, and young people are entering adult life; the complexity and contradictions of this process have been described very well in the literature. Leaving aside many essential aspects, people are being socialized--becoming a part of society--in a system of values that is entirely different. This paper…

The process of the formation and functioning of youth associations and organizations in today's Russia (whether on the basis of their formal registration or without it) can be looked at as a manifestation of personally and socially important active involvement. Participation in their activity is based on freedom of choice, value preferences, and…

The characteristics of the Russian intelligentsia, and even its definition, have been debated since the nineteenth century and continue to be a source of disagreement in Putin's Russia. The array of problems relating to the intelligentsia continues to be an inseparable element of ideas about historical experience and its fate that, in conjunction…