Issue 3 2019

Works of the modern Russian film director Andrey Zvyagintsev is a vivid example of the contradiction between the not advanced (and sometimes reactionary) political views of cultural figures — on the one hand, and the objectively progressive, positively significant philosophical and aesthetic content of their creative works — on the other, this phenomenon being first noticed by classics of Marxism. In socio-political terms, Zvyagintsev adheres to the liberal market position, while in his works, especially in the last three films on the screen, he concentrates a wealth of material for socio-philosophical understanding, critically assessing the social and anthropological situation that has developed in Russia over the three decades of its capitalist transformation. The results of applying methodology of the typological approach to the theoretically modified system of images specific to Zvyagintsev’s films demonstrate that the basic reason for all destructions experienced by the Russian society is the focus of modern culture on the mass reproduction of a certain human type — the consuming individual. Using the artistic means of cinema, the director reveals the futility and ruinousness of the worldview typical of the consumption-oriented part of the modern Russian population. Elena’s super-idea is criticism of the mass man; Leviathan is a demonstration of the dead-end and market path, and attempts to return to traditional values; and Loveless is a proof of the stillbirth of the Russian middle class. Detailed analytical analysis of the first two of these films gives grounds to assert that in Zvyagintsev’s films we have an outstanding — not only in artistic, but also in theoretical terms — analysis of the state and prospects of the Russian society of the first decades of the XXI century.

The article is devoted to the concept of biopolitics. An attempt to clarify the productive and economic basis of biopolitics is made (for instance the concept of «biopolitical economy» is formulated and analyzed). On the other hand, a conceptual distinction between biopolitics and biopower is shown. Biopower is a relatively new kind of power, spreading to the vital foundations of human and social life. Biopower is a bright representative of so-called «soft power», which does not imply direct control and exploitation, but acts indirectly, for example, through the artificial design and imposition of new needs, the promotion of new types of goods and services. Medicine became in this sense one of the indirect agents of biopower, which through processes of intensive medicalization begins to include more life situations and problems into field of its jurisdiction. Despite its «softness», biopower doesn’t cease to be power, since the asymmetry between its subjects and objects remains. Politeconomical approach is promising in analysis of biopower because the latter has economic roots and, in fact, arises as extension of power capital and consequence of its expansion into new spheres in search of sources for profit making. Several authors write about «biocapital» as a new form of it. At the same time, in modern society a global transformation is noticeable, which is associated with an increasingly large-scale transit to horizontal modes of interaction based on the network principle and involving broad autonomy, communicative and cooperative equality of its subjects. Power asymmetry is gradually «smoothed out». In this context, it is promising to consider biopolitics not as a simple consequence or expression of biopower, but as a potential qualitatively new way of interaction between people, public groups and institutions about the biological aspects of their life, directly up to the possibility of reasonable management of them. This management should be understood not as direct control but as foresight and planning with the aim of optimization of functioning and development of human biology.

The research deals with the effects of subject- and object-directed perceptual focus on the severity of Self-positivity bias in comparison with a «good» and «bad» person in conditions of different level of perceivable similarity with him/her. It has been hypothesized that a Self-positivity bias is stronger in the case of the subject-directed comparison focus, object’s negative behavioral valency and the low level of perceivable similarity with him/her. The study involved 314 students aged 18 to 30 (M = 20,23, SD = 1,59), 79 males (25 %) and 235 females. At the first stage, the participants filled in the Short Dark Triad Questionnaire (SD3). At the second stage, they watched a video interview with the object, during which he/she answered the questions of the same questionnaire. At the third stage, the participants were asked to evaluate the level of general similarity with the object, their general attitude towards him/her, the degree of certain positive and negative features in his/her character, as well as their own and his/her superiority in these features. The characters of the interviews were 2 (male and female) students, educated in dramatic acting. During the interview, they answered the SD3 questions in accordance with the key, playing the role of «good» and «bad» person. Statistical analyses included Student’s t-test and two-way ANOVA (repeated measurement method, mixed design). It was found that comparison focus was a key implicit factor in strengthening and weakening Self-positivity bias. With subject-directed focus bias increased, and with object-directed focus it decreased. The positive behavioral valency of the object (the image of the «good Other») provoked a cognitive conflict of perception, which was manifested in the statement of equal superiority over him/her both in negative and in positive features. The awareness of high similarity with the object did not weaken the Self-positivity bias, which can be considered as evidence in favor of the weak influence of conscious regulation on the process of social perception.

The article discusses the possibilities of influencing the psychological defense of a person, its formation and correction. The determined factors of the complexity of the psychological defense correction are the depth of education and the stability of the adaptive process, lack of awareness and criticality to one’s own unconscious component, the danger of the destruction of psychological defense in the absence of a worthy alternative and an objectively existing provocation of the outside world, which is constantly traumatic for the person. Criteria for the development of psychological defense are defined, which are an increase in the use of mechanisms from the highly adaptive group and a decrease in the use of low-adaptation mechanisms; expanding the range of defense mechanisms used; more flexible use of defense mechanisms. The factors influencing the formation of psychological defense were revealed such as the sense of frustration of the person and the experience of the person. Likewise, the corresponding directions of therapy were revealed, i.e. the study of the frustration situations of the person and the training of constructive defense mechanisms. Four methods of psychological defense correction are analyzed, which are personal-oriented psychotherapy, suggestive psychotherapy, psycho training and art therapy. It is concluded that all four of the considered methods have good reasons for using them in order to correct psychological protection, but each has its own principles and mechanisms of action, and, accordingly, its own nuances in the direction and strength of the individual’s psyche effects, which should be considered in the process of therapy. For example, the training method has a primary focus on learning and relies on the conscious structures of the psyche, suggestive psychotherapy, in contrast, is more associated with the unconscious components of the psyche and is mainly aimed at working out the individual's deepest frustrations. Personality-oriented therapy and art therapy can equally act both in the direction of teaching constructive defense mechanisms and in working out individual frustration situations.

The Dark Triad (DT) traits of narcissism, Machiavellianism and psychopathy have weak relations with general mental ability and describe malfunctioning interpersonal relationship. The interpersonal relationships based on socio-emotional intelligence include communication competence, social intelligence and emotional intelligence (EI). DT traits have unclear links with features of emotional intelligence: low affect and cognitive empathy, inadequacy of recognizing emotional conditions and responding to them correctly. Recent studies provide data on stable sex differences only in the degree of variance of self-report EI and DT. Thus, our study was aimed at testing the hypotheses about correlation between DT and self-report EI by gender. A sample of 244 students aged 18–30 from different universities of Perm (54 % female) completed Russian translation of the Short-Dark Triad and Questionnaire of Emotional Intelligence. The hypothesis was tested using bivariate zero-order Pearson correlation, t-test and Cohen’s d. We have found statistically significant differences for Machiavellianism (d = 0,30), psychopathy (d = 0,73) and control of emotional expression (d = 0,70) in the male group. Significant relations between self-report EI and DT were observed for narcissism and psychopathy. In the male sample, correlations of narcissism were in the range of 0,20 to 0,27, where it was related to managing emotions. In the female group, we found many correlations in the range of 0.18 to 0,39 with all components of self-report EI (except for control of emotional expression). Psychopathy of men showed significantly negative relationship with intrapersonal EI in both groups (for male from -0,22 to -0,29; for female from -0,19 to -0,22). In general, narcissism is the «brightest» feature of personality for socio-emotional efficiency while psychopathy is the «darkest» trait. Sex differences were observed in male narcissism which was associated with the pragmatic side of EI: managing emotions of other people and emotional self-regulation. However, all received relations were weak. «Dark» personality can be considered as a factor of social and emotional efficiency in interpersonal relationships.

The article analyzes three lines of scientific research, suggesting the specificity of interrelations of quality of life parameters and color preferences of men and women. The first line of data analysis concerns the emotional aspects of the quality of life as a psychological phenomenon. The second line concerns the discussion of empirical evidence of the relationship of emotional states and color preferences. The third line of scientific data analysis is related to the study of gender differences in emotional characteristics. The aim of this work is to analyze and compare the relationships of the quality of life parameters and color choices for men and women. The results of the correlation analysis indicated that for men, satisfaction with the general state of health, their own activity, social contacts and functioning, as well as, in a trend, the absence of depressive mood was characterized by an increase in the choice of purple color. In addition, for men, satisfaction with their own health was accompanied by a decrease in the probability of choosing a gray color. According to our data, women who are characterized by a critical attitude to their social activity, as well as a tendency to depressive tendencies in their mood, rarely chose a red color. In addition, in the trend, depressed trends in mood did not contribute to the choice of green. These results support the perception of the existence of differences in the psychological characteristics of men and women in relation to the interrelationships of the characteristics of quality of life and color preferences. In addition, these data partly allow us to expand our understanding of the interrelationships between color preferences and states of the subject and on his or her assessment of some parameters of the quality of life. In practice, the results obtained can be used for diagnostic purposes in the work of a psychotherapist.

Cognitive regulation of emotions and attitude towards health are investigated as internal psychological mechanisms of teenagers’ adaptation to changes in their own personality and new demands of the social environment. We assume that the peculiarities of emotional regulation are a subjective factor in psychological health, because they determine adaptive abilities and resistance to stressful situations and contribute to the fulfillment of age tasks by the adolescent. The emotional development of adolescents is compared to indicators of somatic health and a subjective attitude towards it, as the most important quality of life indicators. The results of the study’s first stage, where a sample of 30 participants 15–16 years old shows the specifics of using strategies for the regulation of emotions and certain aspects of attitude towards health are presented. In general, adolescents are dominated by effective regulation strategies though among the destructive ones the most prominent are the strategies of accusing oneself for what has happened and an obsessive return to thoughts about an event. Effective strategies of emotional regulation correlate with somatic health: participants who are inclined to plan and search for a positive meaning in the occurred event have higher health indicators and agree that health does not limit them in different areas of life (study, communication with friends, hobby and so forth). Adolescents with a prominent emotional relationship to health are more likely to reduce the significance of the event by comparing it with other situations, and participants with a prominent interest in health issues more often demonstrate the ability to find a positive meaning in the event. These relationships have demonstrated the importance of adaptive abilities in the development of a teenager’s healthy personality. In general, the results meet the public demand for identifying the indicators of the psychological health of the adolescent population in the country. Moreover, the results provide arguments in favor of the fact that the cognitive regulation of emotions individual style can serve as an indicator of psychological well-being and the basis for psychological help to children.

In modern Russian society, interest to problems of reproductive choice psychology is becoming up-to-date. This is largely due to the increase of abortions, the transformation of women’s attitudes towards childbirth and motherhood, the increase in deliberate childlessness in favor of self-realization in other areas of life, especially, career. This situation entails not only socio-demographic difficulties, but also serious somatic and psychological problems for women themselves. The study is aimed at studying the psychological characteristics of women with crisis pregnancy in a situation of reproductive choice. The author considers that women in a situation of unplanned and crisis pregnancy, unlike women with a positive attitude towards pregnancy, are more likely to show destructive motives for maintaining pregnancy. They have more pronounced psychological difficulties in self-acceptance and positive attitude towards themselves, a greater sense of guilt as a condition and as traits, less respect for social norms and ethical requirements, and differences in coping strategies take place. The results show that the first group of respondents have strongly pronounced destructive motives for the continuation of pregnancy, i.e. increased concern about the material situation of their family, low level of readiness for motherhood, lack of motivation to devote themselves to parenthood because of study or career, reluctance to impose restrictions on their lives. Women with crisis pregnancies more often use confrontational behavior and escape-avoidance as coping strategies. Self-control, acceptance of responsibility, positive reassessment of the situation as a way of controlling behavior are observed more often in the control group. Women with crisis pregnancies show little faith in their forces and capabilities, low energy and poor understanding of themselves. They are characterized by the expectation of negative attitude towards themselves from others and the denial of both their external and internal qualities. However, they feel less guilty than women with a positive attitude towards pregnancy. At the same time, the experience of guilt as a generalized Self-concept (features) and the level of conscience as a personal characteristic are common to respondents of both groups in equal measure.

The paper considers the dilemma faced by modern enterprises competing in the global market. Modern competitive environment provides for the participation of business in social programs. However, this requires enterprises to incur significant additional costs, yielding profits only in the long term. The author asks the question whether modern companies are ready to create systems of corporate social investments to ensure social justice or they can only imitate corporate social responsibility. The author analizes the results of empirical sociological researchs that has been carried out in Russian State Social University in 2011–2016. Base upon these studies the author concludes that corporate social investments give enterprises significant competitive advantages and increase their social reputation. However, if these investments are chaotic and unsystematic it lacks a financial efficiency of the company. So, the purposeful choice of the object of social investment in accordance with the economic interests of the company in the long term are essential. The article will be of interest to company executives, specialists of ministries and departments involved in the development of policies in the field of social entrepreneurship, entrepreneurs, researchers, graduate students and students of higher education institutions, as well as a wide range of readers.

This paper purposes to generalize, systematize and clarify the basic concepts of sociology of the organization management representing an image of the person of work on the basis of the comparative analysis of two most famous scientists of the classical period of the theory of management — Frederik Winslow Taylor and George Elton Mayo. The axiological and methodological base of distinction of their theories are analyzed in the paper. Taylor describes the person of work as the one-dimensional object induced only by material benefit or fear of losing a job. It leads to the constant conflicts between workers and administration for settlement of which efforts of specially trained experts designed to develop and introduce rational methods of the scientific organization of work are necessary. Choosing priorities of production process Taylor gives strong preference to the technical equipment and technology, trying to adapt abilities and possibilities of the specific worker for them. It allows interpreting his theory as a technocratic utopia. Mayo represents the person of work as full partner of administration in achievement of common goals of the organization as the multidimensional personality induced to work by various motives of mainly social and psychological character. The main priority of administration in the theory of Mayo is the comprehensive development of social skills cooperation, as achievement of this purpose promotes not only success and prosperity of the organization, but also decrease in social tension in society in general. The comparative analysis, presented in the article, allows drawing a conclusion that both administrative doctrines are developed in the contemporary theory and practice of management in parallel. The sociology of the organization management is aimed at making and proving the choice of priorities between a technocratic utopia of Taylor and the humanistic doctrine of Mayo.

The paper considers the basic approaches to the determination of territorial socio-economic behavior within the framework of sociology of the region and sociology of space. In the framework of this article, the term «region» means an area, region, or part of a country that differs from others in terms of natural or historical economic, geographical or other features, often combined with features of the ethnic composition of the population. Space is defined as a unity of the physical, spiritual and social; special attention is paid to the problem of the relationship between the quality of social and territorial space, which is becoming increasingly important due to the expansion of global space as a place of global processes. The complexity of the problem is revealed when studying the features of territorial socio-economic behavior associated with the undoubted dominance of formal (technological) rationality in the structure of the economic actors’ behavior. The formation of socio-economic behavior of economic entities and the features of this process are considered taking into account the characteristics of the territorial space. It is argued that the phenomenon of territorial socio-economic behavior of various socio-territorial (regional) communities evolves in the framework of the «conservative, adaptative, innovative», «culturally-rooted and culturally-mobile (changing)», «rational choice and collective interest», thus ensuring sustainable reproduction of social and territorial inequality in society. The study of changing and reproducible patterns of territorial socio-economic behavior will give priority when choosing the principles of regional governance and development, and in the long run it will not only provide a more accurate insight into the causes of the current socio-economic status of a particular regional community but also make it possible to develop forecast scenarios of its possible evolution.

The audiovisual environment of the modern city is understood as a socio-cultural space in which the norms, values, social and stratification differences system largely determines what citizens notice in the surrounding space. The actual status forms a socially defined perspective and point of view, setting the common reading and interpretation of space, the allocation of «places of memory» and leisure, the priorities of improvement. The components of the status, directing the assessment of urban space, include the level of education of citizens. The purpose of this article is to present the data of empirical research on the estimates of southern Russian cities audiovisual space by citizens with different levels of education. The methodological framework of the research is based on the principles of socio-stratification approach, social constructivism, sociology of space, methodology of spatial syntax. In the course of the study, the features of the attitude to urban spaces of respondents with higher, secondary special, general secondary and incomplete education are highlighted, which can be used in the practice of urban planning. Education can be considered as one of the social frameworks that define the directions and methods of construction, evaluation and interpretation of urban space by social actors, but its impact is ambiguous, mediated by other variables, it acts as a social and cultural resource of the citizen. High level of education is associated with satisfaction with space, higher social and territorial identity; low level of education narrows opportunities for realization, development, career and life prospects. The theoretical and empirical search for other social frameworks for the construction of audiovisual urban spaces by citizens, further study of the issue, including the materials of research in other regions, is considered promising.