Moral aspect of young people's subjective competitiveness

The issues of competitiveness and competitive relationships are usually considered from an economic point of view, bypassing socio-cultural aspects. The paper presents a sociological analysis of young people’s competitive and moral orientations. The consideration of the emphasized problem field allows us to determine the connotation of competitive relationships, from positive (“ethical” competition) to negative (“aggressive”, “predatory” competition). The authors assess the format of competitive relationships set up by the younger generation considering themselves competitive, and those young people who reject their own involvement in competition in any form. A new scientific result, the understanding of competitiveness as a subjective phenomenon is obtained. The author’s system of empirical indicators for evaluating subjective competitiveness is also an element of scientific novelty. The presented material is aimed at achieving a specific goal to determine the relationship between the young people’s subjective competitiveness and their desire to adhere to stable value standards and high moral principles in behavior. The following tasks are solved within the framework of the research: the key characteristics of competition as a socio-cultural phenomenon are identified; young people’s attitude to competitiveness is studied; the relationship between competitive orientations, individual responsibility for their own actions, locus of control, trust and respect for others, readiness to help others is revealed. The empirical basis of the sociological research was the data from a questionnaire survey of young people in the Tyumen Oblast (2017, 3403 people, including 1087 high school students; 1360 students; 956 working young people under 30). It is found that the respondents not considering themselves competitive characterize competitive interaction with more negative ratings than young people who are actually involved in competition. Young people with low competitive orientations demonstrate a lack of active life position, they are not ready to create their own business and take responsibility for their lives. The highest percentage of competitive respondents is found among working youth. The author analyzes the world outlook, the general culture of high school students, students and working youth, the relationship between their competencies and competitiveness. Worldview attitudes, values, and moral guidelines are identified as the key determinants shaping young people’s competitiveness. It is concluded that competitive youth tend to adhere to high moral principles.