The right for the city: motivation of social activity of urban youth

The article deals with the motivational structure of urban space transformation practices by the younger generation. The activity of young people is a mechanism of realization of the right for the city, a condition of formation of urban identity, and a tool for a personal development. Based on the results of the empirical and sociological study, the object of which was the youth of the city of Yekaterinburg (n = 800), the article states that the leading positions in the motivational structure of involvement in transformative practices are occupied by such categories as the desire to live in a comfortable city, altruism and confidence in the inability of the city authorities to improve the city in accordance with the needs of its residents. Refusal to participate in the development of urban environment is associated with a lack of faith in positive changes, fear of sanctions, as well as the lack of information about the institutionalized mechanisms of transformative activity.