Russian Society in the Search of a New Vision of Itself and Others: from the „National Inferiority Complex” to a New Identity
The paper is based on the results of a study of Russian citizens’ images of their own and foreign countries. Methodology included a survey with a number of open-ended questions, in-depth interviews, methods of cartography, semantic differentials and a projective test. The study has shown that such factors as an event context, cultural traditions, psychological conditions of Russian society and communication strongly influence country’s perception. Our results have proved that Russians in general do not share territorial expansionism. Recognition of the Russian culture and the value system by others is more important for them. Though at the current moment national „inferiority complex”, widely spread in 1980–2000s, still manifests itself, a new tendency, based on the growth of a national pride that started in 2014, strongly influences social moods. Our analysis of Russians’ perception of other countries enabled us to distinguish categorization mechanisms used by our citizens. So the images of other countries include „neighbors” (post-Soviet countries), „strategic partners” (India and China), „forgotten allies” (Latin America and Africa), „significant «other»” (individual European countries and a less significant EU), „enemy image” (USA) and the „tourist Mecca” (Turkey and Thailand).
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