Infantile or responsible: students about new trends in the marriage and family and reproductive spheres

In recent decades, Russian society has observed trends having a negative impact on demographic dynamics: an increase in the age of marriage, postponing the birth of the first child, a focus on a small number of children, and high rates of divorce and abortion. Reproaching modern youth with hedonism and infantilism, preoccupation primarily with their own career and material well-being, but not with starting a family, has become commonplace. However, the latter is in conflict with the value system articulated by young people, in which «family» invariably occupies the first place. The article attempts to answer the question of whether there is a value shift or even a conflict, or whether one is a necessary condition for the implementation of the other. The empirical basis was the results of a sociological study, the purpose of which was to identify the ideas and attitudes of student youth regarding new trends in the field of marriage and family relations and reproductive behavior. The data obtained indicate that young people are indeed inclined to postpone marriage and the birth of their first child to a later date. However, judging by what associations the word «marriage» predominantly evokes; what meanings are invested by respondents to the birth of a child; what they see as the ideal number of children and the number of children they themselves are guided by; what is their attitude towards large families, towards providing assistance to older generations, the reasons for this are not a decrease in the value of family and parenthood. And not in infantilism: on the contrary, in the answers, the theme of «responsibility» is largely associated with the ability to reliably provide for the family. Such attitudes are a reaction of young people to the current socio-economic context; accordingly, changes in the reproductive behavior patterns can be expected with its significant adjustment, transition from a set of situational measures to a full-fledged social policy.