Social aspects of the formation of new layers and groups in the modernizing Russian society

The author uses the data of sociological researches conducted at the Institute of sociological research of the Russian Academy of Sciences for two decades, one of the tasks of which was to study and analyze the attitude of individuals, groups and sectors of the population to the ongoing socio-structural changes in society. The research materials made it possible to analyze the features of the formation of new layers and groups in the modernizing Russian society and trace the change vector in their relationships. Secondary analysis of the obtained data allowed the author to identify several conditional periods of development of the Russian social system. The basis for highlighting these periods was the respondents' opinions on the criteria of social group membership in the modernizing Russian society, on the relationship of new social groups, as well as the nature of the respondents' behavior strategies in the changed conditions of life. The author considers social and structural transformations as a consequence of the general modernization of the Russian social system.