Journal of Siberian Federal University. Humanities & Social Sciences 8 (2013 6) 1187-1194 ~ ~ ~ УДК 316.4 Region as a Field of Social Security for Russians Maria A. Lastochkina* Institute of Socio-Economic Development of Territories of Russian Academy of Sciences 56A Gorkogo Str., Vologda, 160014 Russia Received 26.07.2013, received in revised form 31.07.2013, accepted 02.08.2013 The paper compares opinions of the inhabitants of Russian regions concerning the degree of their social security. Social security shows not just the effectiveness of social policy measures, but also the level of social safety, achieved by the society. Being a comprehensive, multi-faceted, economic, legal and socio-psychological category, social safety contains not only the objective component, but also the subjective one. The subjective component is based on the internal subjective sense, experienced by people who evaluate safety as a field of social security. The research revealed that people in all the studied regions are mostly concerned about their vulnerability to crime, poverty and tyranny of the officials. Citizens are less concerned about discrimination by gender, age, ethnicity and religious beliefs. At the same time, each of the Russian regions differs from the others in the level of protection against a variety of risks; each region of the country has its own specific socio-cultural and psychological features. Keywords: social security, risks, regional distinctions, subjective assessments, social tension. Introduction formed, as evidenced by the analysis of the Last two decades have been the most active legislative acts and subjective assessments of time of the formation and development of the the population regarding their social security. social protection system in Russia. The lever Sources of social security are divided into two and engine of this process in many ways was groups: absolute and relative. The first group of a transition to a market economy. The reforms these sources contains those who in any direction demanded radical changes in social policy of their dynamics have an unambiguous impact on sphere. Beginning of the 1990s in Russia was the population security – unemployment, inflation, characterized by the lack of a comprehensive militarization of the economy, military conflicts, system of social protection of the population, the and environmental problems. The second group gradual formation of the first steps to develop includes those that following the deterioration of this sphere led to its fragmentary character and their dynamics become sources of insecurity – lack of system interconnections. Moreover, even inequitable distribution of income, decline in after twenty years, this process is still not fully private consumption, reduction in the volume or © Siberian Federal University. All rights reserved * Corresponding author E-mail address: [email protected] – 1187 – Maria A. Lastochkina. Region as a Field of Social Security for Russians range of 0.56-0.67 (Fig. 1). The maximum value was observed in the Chuvash Re- qualitypublic of health (2006), services, and the degradation minimum of- insocial Smolensk of the Oblast method (2007). developed by N.I. Lapin and services and social assistance, aggravation of the L.A. Belyaeva (Lapin, Belyaeva). A detailed analysis of the problems - risks found that in Smolensk Oblast the housing problem (Serebrennikov). mostSocial acute security is a showsproblem the witheffectiveness crime: 62% of of the populationResults consider of the themselvesstudy to socialbe protection unprotected measures, (rather the unprotected)level of the society from crime,An and indicator only 6% of the - fully level protectedof self-assessment or in termsrather of securingprotected. social To rights complete for its the members, list, two ofmore security indicators is a response of social to the insecurity question: “Toare what and the feeling of guaranteed obtaining social extent do you feel today personally protected from poverty (59% experience a sense of insecurity) and environmental threat (55%). services (Morozova). In the analysis of social any dangers?” The question, listed 10 dangerous securityThe there least must Smolensk be taken inhabitants into account are that conc it ernedproblems, about wasdiscrimination asked during based the onall-Russian na- is a comprehensive,tionality and religious multilateral, beliefs economic, (11% legal and 13%,monitoring respectively). (Lapin, The Belyaeva. Chuvash The people, program and associo-psychological well as Smolensk category, inhabitants and containsexpresse d andmaximum standard concern research about features). crime, The but calculated the not only the objective component, but also the coefficient of social security (Csecurity) shows the extent of their anxiety is significantly less - 51% of respondents consider them- subjective one. The last is based on the internal degree of community resilience (measuring subjectiveselves feelings unprotected. of people Similarly, living in adiscriminato particular ryrange harassment from 0 to worries 1), values only greater 4-6% than of 0.51the can area,population who assess ofsecurity the Chuvash as a personal Repub spacelic. As of it canbe considered be seen, in as Smolensk sufficient Oblastlevel of thesecurity, sit- and security, often having nothing to do with statistics, less than 0.5 – insufficient. Over the analyzed uation observed is more acute than the average for Russia, which is not connected government reports or data of international period from 2006 to 2012, coefficients of social organizationswith the (Poliushkevich).sharp contrast ofThus, exposure our method to certai securityn risks, inbut different happens regions due to of the the fact country that were of measurementthe people inof the social region protection have expressed is based greatersufficiently anxiety distantconcerning from entireeach other spectrum and lied in on theof thedata analyzed of sociological problems. surveys conducted the range of 0.56-0.67 (Fig. 1). The maximum by the author in Vologda Oblast. And also it is value was observed in the Chuvash Republic based on the survey data obtained by researchers (2006), and the minimum – in Smolensk Oblast from other regions of Russia with the application (2007). 0,70 0,67 0,66 0,66 0,65 0,63 0,62 0,63 0,62 0,61 0,61 0,60 0,60 0,60 0,60 0,60 0,59 0,60 0,58 0,56 0,55 0,50 Altai Krai Altai Tula Oblast Tula Perm Oblast Perm Kursk Oblast Kursk Omsk Oblast Omsk Khakassia Tyumen Oblast Tyumen Tyumen Oblast Tyumen Vologda Oblast Vologda Oblast Vologda Vologda Oblast Vologda The Republic of Republic The Smolensk Oblast Smolensk Ulyanovsk Oblast Ulyanovsk Navosibirsk Oblast Navosibirsk The Chuvash Republic Chuvash The The Krasnoyarsk Territory Krasnoyarsk The The Krasnoyarsk Territory Krasnoyarsk The Fig. 1. Csecurity (Coefficients of security) in different regions of Russia Source: Results of the fifth wave of the all-Russian monitoring “Values and interests of the population of Russia”, received by CNNIC IF RAS (Center for the Study of Social and Cultural Changes of the Institute of Philosophy of RAS in Moscow) in 2006. The results of regional studies “Socio-cultural portrait of a region” (Lapin, Belyaeva, Mosin et al., Nemirovsky, Nemirovskaya, Shabunova, Lastochkina). – 1188 – Maria A. Lastochkina. Region as a Field of Social Security for Russians A detailed analysis of the problems – risks extent of their anxiety is significantly less – 51 % found that in Smolensk Oblast the most acute is of respondents consider themselves unprotected. a problem with crime: 62 % of the population Similarly, discriminatory harassment worries consider themselves to be unprotected (rather only 4-6 % of the population of the Chuvash unprotected) from crime, and only 6 % – fully Republic. As it can be seen, in Smolensk Oblast protected or rather protected. To complete the the situation observed is more acute than the list, two more indicators of social insecurity are average for Russia, which is not connected with poverty (59 % experience a sense of insecurity) the sharp contrast of exposure to certain risks, and environmental threat (55 %). The least but happens due to the fact that the people in the Smolensk inhabitants are concerned about region have expressed greater anxiety concerning discrimination based on nationality and religious entire spectrum of the analyzed problems. beliefs (11 % and 13 %, respectively). The As it can be seen from Table 1 in 13 analyzed Chuvash people, as well as Smolensk inhabitants regions there were observed lower levels of expressed maximum concern about crime, but the protection from crime, only the Chuvash Republic Table 1. Level of protection from the risks of the population in 9 regions of Russia Insufficient Sufficient High Kinds of risks (0.5 and less) (0.51–0.7) (0.71 and higher) 1 2 3 4 The most acute social risks Crime Smolensk Oblast The Chuvash Republic – Kursk Oblast Omsk Oblast Perm Oblast Tula Oblast Novosibirsk Oblast Ulyanovsk Oblast The Republic of Khakassia Altai Krai The Krasnoyarsk Territory Tyumen Oblast Vologda Oblast Poverty The Republic of Khakassia The Chuvash Republic – Altai Krai Novosibirsk Oblast Omsk Oblast The Krasnoyarsk Territory Ulyanovsk Oblast Smolensk Oblast Tyumen Oblast (2009) Tula Oblast Vologda Oblast (2008) Kursk Oblast Perm Oblast Tyumen Oblast (2006) Vologda Oblast (2010, 2012) Arbitrariness of The Republic of Khakassia The Chuvash Republic – officials Kursk Oblast Omsk Oblast Smolensk Oblast Ulyanovsk Oblast Perm Oblast