Generations in Russian Society in the First Quarter of the 21st Century: an Analysis of Empirical Research

Introduction. Social, cultural, and historical changes can be effectively studied through the lens of a generational approach, which allows analyzing the structure of society, the dynamics of its development, and the transformation of values, norms, and behavior.

The purpose of the work is to analyze methodological and methodological approaches in empirical generational research in Russian socio–humanitarian science from 2000 to 2025. To achieve this goal, a secondary analysis of 120 domestic scientific publications from the electronic abstract database E-Library devoted to the empirical study of generations published in the first quarter of the 21st century was carried out.

Results and scientific novelty. The analysis showed that the generational approach is actively used in the socio-humanitarian field, especially in sociology, psychology and philosophy. In terms of content, the focus is on studying the characteristics of individual generations (especially young people) — their values and behavior, mental characteristics and psychological profile. The problems of intergenerational interactions are insufficiently studied. This leads to a fragmented understanding of intergenerational relations, leaving unexplored key aspects of their interaction. The dominant method of collecting information about generations is a mass survey. The scientific novelty consists in a systematic analysis of the practices of conducting empirical generational research in Russian science of the 21st century and the possibilities for constructing author’s theoretical and empirical generational research based on it.

1. Ablazhej A. M. Pokoleniya v nauke: opyt empiricheskogo analiza [Generations in science: the experience of empirical analysis] // Sociologiya nauki i tekhnologij. 2010. T.1, № 2. S. 47–56. (In Russian).

2. Beglova E. I. Bezrabotica molodogo pokoleniya kak podavlyayushchij faktor chelovecheskogo razvitiya [Unemployment of the younger generation as an overwhelming factor of human development] // Ekonomika i upravlenie: nauchno-prakticheskij zhurnal. 2016. № 6(134). S. 67–71. (In Russian).

3. Bogomolova A. V. Formirovanie grazhdanskoj identichnosti molodogo pokoleniya: rezul’taty analiza fokus-grupp s pedagogicheskim soobshchestvom [Formation of the civic identity of the younger generation: results of the analysis of focus groups with the pedagogical community] // Obshchestvo: sociologiya, psihologiya, pedagogika. 2024. № 1(117). S. 16–22. (In Russian).

4. Vasil’eva O.O. Kar’ernye ozhidaniya studentov gumanitarnyh special’nostej na rynke Truda [Career expectations of humanities students in the labor market] // Vestnik Altajskoj akademii ekonomiki i prava. 2024. № 1. S. 17–23. (In Russian).

5. Vdovina M.V. Konfliktnye vzaimootnosheniya pokolenij v sem’e i ih regulirovanie [Conflict relations between generations in the family and their regulation] // Vestnik Nizhegorodskogo universiteta im. N.I. Lobachevskogo. 2008. № 3. S. 315–321. (In Russian).

6. Galkin K.A. Individual’nye predstavleniya o svoem vozraste cherez prizmu medikalizacii u pozhilyh lyudej [Individual perceptions of their age through the prism of medicalization in the elderly] // Izvestiya Yugo-Zapadnogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Seriya: Ekonomika. Sociologiya. Menedzhment. 2025. T.15, № 1. S. 222–231. (In Russian).

7. Drobysheva T.V., Vojtenko M.Yu., Drobysheva M.M. Obraz svoego pokoleniya v predstavleniyah raznyh grupp rossiyan (na primere pokolenij “Bebi-bumerov”, “H” i “Millenium”) [Drobysheva M.M. The image of her generation in the representations of different groups of Russians (using the example of the “Baby Boomer”, “X” and “Millennium” generations)] // Uchenye zapiski. Elektronnyj nauchnyj zhurnal Kurskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. 2019. № 3(51). S. 220–230. (In Russian).

8. Dumnaya N.N. Problema smeny pokolenij v rossijskoj nauke [The problem of generational change in Russian science] // Mir novoj ekonomiki. 2011. № 1. S. 11–17. (In Russian).

9. Eruslankina P.V. Ozhidanie i real’nost’ pokoleniya Z: specifika motivacii molodyh specialistov kompanii [Expectation and reality of generation Z: specifics of motivation of young specialists of the company] // Social’nye i ekonomicheskie sistemy. 2025. № 1(63). S. 158–174. (In Russian).

10. Zhumakova A.O. Starshee pokolenie i molodezh’: osobennosti social’nogo vzaimodejstviya [Older generation and youth: features of social interaction] // Ratio et Natura. 2022. № 2(6). Stat’ya 33. (In Russian).

11. Zborovskij G.E., Ambarova P.A. Funkcii pokolenij obrazovatel’nyh obshchnostej v vuze [The Functions of Generations of Educational Communities at the University] // Vysshee obrazovanie v Rossii. 2025. № 7(34). S. 9–26. (In Russian).

12. Zimovina E.P. Prostranstvennaya mobil’nost’ i migracionnye ustanovki reformennogo pokoleniya i pokoleniya millenialov Kaliningradskoj oblasti [Spatial mobility and migration attitudes of the reform generation and the millennial generation of the Kaliningrad Region] // Vestnik Baltijskogo federal’nogo universiteta im. I. Kanta. Seriya: Gumanitarnye i obshchestvennye nauki. 2020. № 2. S. 86–105. (In Russian).

13. Istomina O.B. Starshee pokolenie: regional’nye osobennosti social’nogo polozheniya [The older generation: regional peculiarities of social status] // Upravlenie ekonomicheskimi sistemami: elektronnyj nauchnyj zhurnal. 2016. № 11(93). S. 12. (In Russian).

14. Kamenec N.V., Imanova R.D. Osobennosti i cennosti pokolenij XX–XXI vv. [Features and values of the generations of the XX–XXI centuries] // Perspektivy nauki. 2022. № 4(151). S. 170–172. (In Russian).

15. Kostina N.B., Chizhov A.A. Rol’ molodezhi v preodolenii cifrovogo neravenstva pokolencheskih grupp [The role of youth in overcoming the digital inequality of generational groups] // Social’nye i gumanitarnye znaniya. 2024. T.10, № 1. S. 64–79. (In Russian).

16. Malikov N.S. Pokoleniya, ih rol’ v social’no-ekonomicheskom i social’no-demograficheskom razvitii [Generations, their role in socio-economic and socio-demographic development] // Uroven’ zhizni naseleniya regionov Rossii. 2011. № 8(162). S. 63–74. (In Russian).

17. Malenova A.Yu., Druzhinina Yu.A. Osobennosti motivacii brachno-semejnyh otnoshenij predstavitelej raznyh pokolenij [Peculiarities of motivation of marriage and family relations of representatives of different generations] // Vestnik Omskogo universiteta. Seriya: Psihologiya. 2010. № 2. S. 39–51. (In Russian).

18. Matvejchuk V., Voronov V.V., Samul’ I. Determinanty udovletvoryonnosti trudom rabotnikov H i U pokolenij: regional’noe issledovanie [Determinants of job satisfaction for workers of X and Y generations: a regional study] // Ekonomicheskie i social’nye peremeny: fakty, tendencii, prognoz. 2019. T.12, № 2. S. 225–237. (In Russian).

19. Pavlova I.A., Nedospasova O.P., Barysheva G.A. Kompleksnaya ocenka social’no-ekonomicheskoj vovlechennosti grazhdan starshego pokoleniya v regional’nyj socium na primere trudovoj aktivnosti [Comprehensive assessment of the socio-economic involvement of older citizens in regional society using the example of labor activity] // Vektory blagopoluchiya: ekonomika i socium. 2020. № 4(39). S. 48–84. (In Russian).

20. Pishchik V.I. Pokoleniya: social’no-psihologicheskij analiz mental’nosti [Generations: socio-psychological analysis of mentality] // Social’naya psihologiya i obshchestvo. 2011. № 2. S. 80–88. (In Russian).

21. Pishchik V.I., Koroleva N.V. Situacionnyj analiz konfliktnogo vzaimodejstviya sotrudnikov kompanii, prinadlezhashchih k pokoleniyam X i Y [Situational analysis of the conflict interaction of the company’s employees belonging to generations X and Y] // Social’naya psihologiya i obshchestvo. 2018. T.9, № 1. S. 78–89. (In Russian).

22. Prokudin D.E. Informacionnye kanaly populyarizacii nauchno-tekhnicheskoj informacii v srede pokoleniya Z [Information channels for the popularization of scientific and technical information in the generation Z environment] // Informaciya–Kommunikaciya–Obshchestvo. 2024. T.1. S. 363–370. (In Russian).

23. Smolina E.G. Transformaciya zanyatosti v cifrovuyu epohu (po materialam granta № 24–28–20066 «Sostoyanie rynka truda Volgogradskoj oblasti: povedencheskie traektorii s uchetom distancionnoj i platformennoj zanyatosti») [Transformation of employment in the digital Age (based on grant No. 24–28– 20066 “The State of the Volgograd Region Labor market: behavioral trajectories taking into account remote and platform employment”)] // Obshchestvo: sociologiya, psihologiya, pedagogika. 2025. № 1(129). S. 21–26. (In Russian).

24. Terent’eva V.I. Semejnoe schast’e, materinstvo v refleksii pokolenij Y, Z, X; osoznannaya identichnost’ pokolenij k sem’e, Otechestvu [Family happiness, motherhood in the reflection of generations Y, Z, X; conscious identity of generations towards family, Fatherland] // Vestnik Vostochno-Sibirskoj Otkrytoj Akademii. 2024. № 53(53). (In Russian).

25. Titov V.V. Strategii social’nogo protesta molodezhi v runete: sravnitel’nyj analiz pokolenij Y i Z [Strategies of youth social protest in Runet: a comparative analysis of generations Y and Z] // Monitoring obshchestvennogo mneniya: ekonomicheskie i social’nye peremeny. 2020. № 3(157). S. 139–158. (In Russian).

26. Uryvaev V.A, Baranov A.A., Politov Ya.V. i dr. Sopostavlenie psihologicheskih uyazvimostej pokoleniya “otcov” (predperestrochnoe pokolenie) i pokoleniya “detej” (postperestroechnoe pokolenie) [Comparison of psychological vulnerabilities of the “fathers” generation (pre-perestroika generation) and the “children” generation (post-perestroika generation)] // Sibirskij vestnik psihiatrii i narkologii. 2019. № 3(104). S. 80–87. (In Russian).

27. Harlamov V.S. Starshee pokolenie i vnutrisemejnoe nasilie v megapolise (na primere Sankt-Peterburga) [The older generation and domestic violence in a megalopolis (using the example of St. Petersburg)] // Kriminologiya: vchera, segodnya, zavtra. 2012. № 4(27). S. 60–63. (In Russian).

28. Shvecova M.N., Sobchenko M.R. Obraz sem’i v predstavleniyah pokoleniya detej i roditelej (pokoleniya Y i Z) [The image of the family in the representations of the generation of children and parents (generations Y and Z)] // Vestnik Rossijskogo novogo universiteta. Seriya: Chelovek v sovremennom mire. 2018. № 2. S. 36–41. (In Russian).

29. Yusupova A.S. Trudovye cennosti i navyki budushchego: vzglyad sovremennoj molodezhi na kar’eru i professional’nuyu deyatel’nost’ [Labor values and skills of the future: the view of modern youth on career and professional activity] // Ekonomika i upravlenie: problemy, resheniya. 2025. T.12, № 2(155). S. 85–93. (In Russian).

30. Yakovleva L.A. Ocenka udovletvorennosti studentov pedagogicheskih napravlenij podgotovki kachestvom razvitiya cifrovyh kompetencij s elementami elektronnogo obucheniya [Assessment of students’ satisfaction with the quality of the development of digital competencies with elements of e-learning in pedagogical areas of training] // Perspektivy nauki i obrazovaniya. 2025. № 1(73). S. 92–104. (In Russian).