Ideas of Russian youth about economic morality

The article is devoted to the analysis of the formed ideas of the Russian young generation about the actions of the state and the elite, their influence on the state of of the country’s economic system, as well as their own assessment of the economic decisions taken, the legitimacy and moral characteristics of these actions. The empirical basis of this work were the results obtained from two research projects. Youth, as the most creative and active part of society, is a driving force in the development of all spheres of society, and its attitude toward the surrounding reality, in particular, to the socio-economic structure of our country, the Russian elite and the authorities, sets the vector of transformational impact both on the state and on society as a whole. The data obtained as a result of the research reflect the negative assessments and views of youth on the actions of the state and the elite and, as a consequence, clear projections of their own decisions, including economic ones, through the prism of these perceptions. This is reflected in the acceptability and admissibility/ inadmissibility of certain economic decisions, consonant with the norms of law and morality. The obtained results cause concern in assessing Russian society’s level of culture, as well as the moral component of its large group - the youth; the level at which, according to the respondents, it is acceptable to transgress moral norms, and in some cases the law, in order to achieve their own goals. First of all, this fact characterizes the level of development of economic culture and consciousness in the society, reflecting its general state, the consequence of the processes occurring in it, as well as the basis of what this society expects in the future.