Images of ideal parliament and political party in the consciousness of Russian citizens: results of political and psychological research

The article presents the results of a study of the ideal images of parliament and a political party. Based on the political and psychological approach, the following results were obtained. In the minds of the respondents, parliament represents itself by the sum of formal symbols; its image demonstrates cognitive simplicity. The author reveals a high degree of emotional coloring of the image, which reflects largely the personal experiences of the respondents, their desire to improve their socio-economic position than to model possible transformations in the political sphere under conditions of uncertainty. Citizens have a vague idea of party activity, distinguish between the images of the ideal and the acting parties, and single out parliamentary parties among the most recognizable ones.