Structure of the mass strata of the Russian population by level of subjective well-being

The article analyses the peculiarities of differentiation of Russians by the level of their subjective well-being. Based on the data of all-Russian representative surveys obtained by the Institute of Sociology of the FCTAS RAS, the subjective well-being index is calculated and a model is proposed, including five groups that differ significantly from each other in terms of the feeling of well-being of the situation in key aspects of life – from basic needs and microcosm to assessments of the parameters of the place of residence and the relationship between the individual and the state. The first group unites Russians with predominantly negative assessments of the situation in most of the proposed areas of life, but its number is small and such assessments are not typical for Russian society (4.3%). The second group includes 46.7% of Russians with satisfactory assessments in most spheres of life, but in which the share of negative assessments dominates over positive ones. This large group forms a zone of unstable subjective well-being. The next three groups unite Russians with satisfactory and/or positive assessments of the situation in different spheres of life. At the same time, these three groups also differ significantly among themselves. In terms of socio-demographic characteristics of the individual, the income level, professional affiliation and age of the respondent have the greatest differentiating power in the context of assessments of subjective well-being. However, the correlation of the level of subjective well-being with income and occupation has increased over the last two decades, while with age it has significantly decreased. From the point of view of differences in lifestyle, the key factors that can increase or decrease the level of own well-being are both a set of property characteristics and a list of achieved life goals, as well as the specifics of experienced problems, perception of the dynamics of the situation in society as a whole and the ability to plan one's own life.