Peculiarities of perception of nationalism at the regional level (based on the materials of empirical research in the Saratov region)

The article is devoted to the analysis of the data obtained through the mass questionnaire survey of residents of the Saratov region in 2015. The authors found the perception of nationalism by citizens, the link between political views of the respondents, and their political engagement, and political participation, as well as the influence of political parties on the expression of nationalist feelings in society. Special attention is paid to the spread of nationalist attitudes among different population groups in connection with: the negative attitude of some foreign countries to the actions of Russia in Ukraine and the reunification of the Crimea with Russia; with the aggravation of the economic crisis, the sanctions imposed by the European Union and the United States that led to such consequence as a decrease in the standard of living of the majority of Russian citizens; with the continuing influx of migrants, which increases the likelihood of xenophobia and radicalism. The authors conclude that in the minds of Russian citizens the ambiguous interpretation of nationalism dominates. On the one hand, nationalism is interpreted as a negative and dangerous phenomenon associated with the superiority of one ethnic group over the others. On the other hand, it is understood as the strengthening of state nationalism, largely defined by the patriotic feelings of love for their country in a globalized world, the desire to reduce the sovereignty, Russia’s active position in the fight against ISIL. There is a trend of decrease of ethnic nationalist and xenophobic attitudes in the face of external challenges and threats. However, this does not mean conscious establishment of the values of tolerance in the political culture of those groups of Russians who tend to manifest xenophobia. In this case there is a situational transferring of one’s rejection of the “other” to the external environment.