Latov Yu.V. Concepts and empirics of the forma on of a post-capitalist «creative class» (class of professionals). Problems in Political Economy. 2024. No. 2 (38). P. 75-89.

Abstract

The author proposes a revision of the Marxist concept of an advanced social class, which will lead the formation transition from capitalist (industrial) to post-capitalist (post-industrial) society. Back at the end of the twentieth century. the question of the social actor of inter-formation shifts became extremely controversial: the drift towards “a society on the other side of material production” intensified, but the working class, the supposed main anti-capitalist actor, began to decline in the most economically developed countries. In retrospect, it is clear that previous inter-formation revolutions (in particular, bourgeois ones) were carried out not by the main exploited class of the previous era, but by a qualitatively new class, going beyond the framework of the old class antagonism. In this regard, it is necessary to replace the concept of “proletarian revolution” with the concept of “creative revolution” (“revolution of professionals”). It is proposed to consider professionals as a new advanced class with anti-capitalist potential (in modern Western social science – the “creative class”). These are highly qualified specialists, creative workers who not only play a key role in the production of economic benefits, but also generate new “post-monetary” (primarily focused on self-development and self-realization) cultural and motivational values. This proposal is a development of the ideas of A.V. Buzgalin and A.I. Kolganov about “sociality”. Based on sociological research in recent years, empirical information is provided about Russian professionals as a proto-class. It is indicated that although, due to the socio-economic lag of Russia, Russian professionals “lag behind” their Western colleagues, they still demonstrate certain post-capitalist characteristics. In particular, they have a stronger post-capitalist motivation for self-realization in work than other professional groups, which reduces the income motivation traditional for a capitalist society.