Zhavoronkov A.V., Patrushev S. V., Filippova L.Ye. Political field and zone of power: an attempt at empirical verification. Obshchestvennye nauki i sovremennost, 2019, Issue 5, pp. 60–78.

Abstract

The article presents an analysis of results of a nationwide representative survey, conducted in order to assess the prospects for a political field’s constituting in Russia. The reconstruction of Russian citizens' notions about politics does not allow to claim the existence of modern-type politics in Russia. The attitude to the rules in politics serves as the main differentiating criterion, according to which a relatively small area of normative understanding of politics (“political field”) is defined, along with an opposing area of understanding politics as a sphere where selfish goals are pursued and clique interests are coordinated (“zone of power”); at the same time, up to half of the respondents find themselves in a “gray zone” of uncertainty. Comparison of the average ratings of respondents have confirmed that identification of these groups is statistically significant. The article demonstrates that perceptions forming within the “zone of power” have a negative impact on how politics is perceived by society as a whole, therefore they limit the possibilities for the formation of modern politics in Russia.