Tikhonov A.V. The Divide in Contemporary Rusian Society: Society vs. Authority. Russian Journal of Philosophical Sciences. 2019;62(8):68-83. (In Russ.) https: ...

Abstract

This article is a response to A.S.'s concern. Akhiezer regarding the ability of the new Russian government to learn from his “Critique of Historical Experience”. The article undergoes philosophical reflection on the results of an academic study of the relationship of various sectors of the population to the work of government and administration in the country, conducted by the Institute of Sociology in recent years. The theoretical and methodological basis of our study was the Akhiezer idea of ​​the sociological laws of the oscillatory process of disturbance (split) and the restoration of social harmony (order) in society and its consideration by the authorities and the ruling elite. As a sociological referent of these patterns, we consider the fulfillment of the terms of the “civil contract” between the government and society regarding answers to external and internal challenges. Situationally, it turned out that the study fell on such a stage in the life of Russian society, when the leadership began to prevail, as A.S. Akhiezer, lame decisions, and the people have raised concern about the correctness of the country's civilizational choice. Evidence of this is the growing mistrust of Russians in the work of central and regional authorities and administrations, which was especially evident in connection with a decline in living standards in recent years and the implementation of the unpopular pension reform. The sociological-managerial approach to the study of the problems of harmony and schism in Russian society is based on correlating the actions of the power-management vertical with the expectations of the population of the regions with different levels of sociocultural modernization. This allows not only to explain the existing differences in the pace of the sociocultural modernization carried out by the authorities of the Russian Federation, but also to draw conclusions about the timeliness of reforming the entire power and management vertical as a condition for an adequate response to challenges and threats in order to avoid a new split.