Abstract
The paper deals with the peculiarities of the transformation of ideas and social attitudes of the residents of the post-Soviet countries concerning close relationships. We examine the impact of the current great challenges on changing perceptions of various aspects of such relationships. The research is based on the results of waves 3 and 6 of the international longitudinal study World Values Survey. Also, we conclude that traditional value orientations in post-Soviet countries are widely used as an adaptation strategy of the government and society in response to major challenges. At the same time, the paper draws a conclusion about the ambivalence and asymmetry of transformations in close relationships. We identified four models of such relationships in the post-Soviet countries. The first and second models are conservative; they are based on religious or Soviet discourse. The third model is a phenomenon of modern and postmodern society with a wide range of everyday experiments on the body, gender, and social relationships. The fourth is a fluid intimate relationship without a clear structure. We believe that public policy plays a particular role in the transformation of close relationships. This policy does not consider the peculiarities of various forms of relationships; it is pronatalist in nature and primarily aims to increase the birth rate. These features undoubtedly reduce the potential of the policy as a mechanism for the adaptation of the country to the demographic transition.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Biggart A, Walther A (2006) Coping with yo-yo-transitions. Young adult’s struggle for support, between family and state in comparative perspective. In: Leccardi C, Ruspini E (eds) A new youth? Young people, generations and family life, London, UK, Routledge, pp 41–62
Blanchard JM, Anthony B (2013) Aging in community. Second Journey Publications, Chapel Hill, NC
Bogenschneider K, Corbett TJ (2010) Family policy: becoming a field of inquiry and subfield of social policy. J Marriage Fam 72(3):783–803
Boltanski L, Thévenot L (2013) On justification: economies of worth. Moscow, Russia, New Literary Observer
Carlback H, Gradskova Yu, Kravchenko Z (2012) And they lived happily ever after. Norms and everyday practices of family and parenthood in Russia and Eastern Europe. Budapest, Hungary, Central European University Press
Giddens A (1992) The transformation of intimacy: sexuality, love and eroticism in modern societies. Polity Press, London, UK
Giddens A (2005) The constitution of society: outline of the theory of structuration, 2nd edn. Academic Project, Moscow, Russia
Mitręga A (2010) Modern polish family: challenges and threats of post-modernity. The J Soc Policy Stud 8(3):373–392
Molodikova I, Watt A (2014) Growing up in the North Caucasus. Society, family, religion, and education. London, UK, Routledge
Muravyeva M (2013) “A king in his own household”: domestic discipline and family violence in early modern Europe reconsidered. Hist Fam 18(3):227–237
Presidential Executive Office (2016) Decree “On the strategy of scientific and technological development of the Russian Federation” (December 1, 2016 No. 642). Moscow, Russia
Revillard A (2007) Work/family policy in France: from state familialism to state feminism? In: Crespi I (ed) Gender Mainstreaming and family policy in Europe: perspectives, researches and debates. Universita di Macerata, Macerata, Italy, pp 137–167
Schwartz S (2012) Towards refining theory of basic human values. In: Salzborn S, Davidov E, Reinecke J (eds) Methods, theories, and empirical applications in the social sciences. Springer, Heidelberg, Germany, pp 39–46
Sherstneva N (2014) Why are children’s rights so dangerous: interpreting juvenile justice in the light of conservative mobilization in contemporary Russia. In: Muravyeva M, Novikova N (eds) Women’s history in Russia: (Re) visiting the field. Cambridge Scholars Publishing, Cambridge, UK, pp 197–220
Starodubrovskaya I (2019) The crisis of the traditional North Caucasian family in the post-Soviet period and its consequences. The J Soc Policy Stud 17(1):39–56
Strelnik OO (2014) State neotraditionalism and family policy in Ukraine. Sociol Stud 9:97–102
Temkina A, Zdravomyslova E (2014) Gender’s crooked path: feminism confronts Russian patriarchy. Curr Sociol 62(2):253–270
Van de Kaa DJ (2003) The idea of a second demographic transition in industrialized countries. Birth 35:45. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/253714045_The_Idea_of_a_Second_Demographic_Transition_in_Industrialized_Countries
Wendt C, Mischke M, Pfeifer M (2011) Welfare states and public opinion: perceptions of healthcare systems, family policy and benefits for the unemployed and poor in Europe. Edward Elgur Publishing Limited, Cheltenham, UK
World Values Survey (2014) Official Website. Retrieved from http://www.worldvaluessurvey.org/wvs.jsp
Acknowledgements
The research was carried out with the financial support of the State task FZEW-2020-0005.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Smirnov, V.A., Gruzdev, V.V., Ershov, V.N. (2023). Transformation of Close Relations in the Post-Soviet States. In: Maximova, S.G., Raikin, R.I., Chibilev, A.A., Silantyeva, M.M. (eds) Advances in Natural, Human-Made, and Coupled Human-Natural Systems Research. Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems, vol 250. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-78083-8_18
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-78083-8_18
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-78082-1
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-78083-8
eBook Packages: Intelligent Technologies and RoboticsIntelligent Technologies and Robotics (R0)