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The Russian Independent Institute of Social and National Problems
A WOMAN OF NEW RUSSIA: WHAT IS SHE LIKE? WHAT IS HER LIFE LIKE? WHAT ARE THE GOALS SHE IS GAINING?
Part 1
1. Life goals: ideal and reality
Decades of soviet authority which was the first to proclaim equal rights of women as one of the main principals of governmental policy, and which really made a lot to fulfill it, keep influencing life aims of Russian women. According to the research the spectrum of their purposes in life is extremely large.(see t.1)
Table 1
The things that women have or have not managed to do, %
|
The sphere of ambitions |
Have done already |
Not yet, but think it is possible |
Would like to do, but scarcely it is possible |
Have not had in plans |
| To get a good education |
31,8 |
27,8 |
30,4 |
9,2 |
| To get a prestigious job |
11,5 |
35,1 |
43,0 |
9,4 |
| To create a happy family |
40,0 |
39,3 |
16,3 |
3,6 |
| To run business of their own |
4,6 |
14,4 |
27,7 |
52,2 |
| To make a career (professional, political, social) |
5,5 |
25,7 |
23,5 |
44,0 |
| To do work according to the interests |
30,3 |
38,7 |
26,5 |
3,6 |
| To meet a real love |
50,1 |
27,2 |
17,0 |
4,5 |
| To travel all over the world |
4,3 |
20,8 |
56,5 |
17,3 |
| To have a separate apartment |
42,2 |
23,9 |
30,9 |
2,2 |
| To bring-up nice children |
28,9 |
60,6 |
5,8 |
3,6 |
| To lead a live not worse than other people do |
26,2 |
50,4 |
18,4 |
4,0 |
| To have reliable friends |
70,5 |
19,6 |
7,2 |
1,6 |
| To lead an honest life |
48,4 |
38,6 |
7,6 |
3,4 |
| To have an interesting job |
29,6 |
43,3 |
23,2 |
3,0 |
| To join the right stratum of the society |
18,1 |
23,8 |
13,2 |
43,2 |
| To win respect of the people |
57,0 |
30,6 |
4,1 |
6,8 |
According to the data of the Table 1, most of the Russian women connect their life-goals with having reliable friends, respect of the others, with true love, honest life, creating a happy family, having a separate apartment, doing work according to the interests, bringing-up nice children. All these goals were listed as "I have already done it" or "would like to do" according to the 95% of the interviewed women. Among them goals concerning personal aspect of life (friends, own apartment, interesting jog) are a little bit ahead of the goals concerning the women's family roles. On the other hand, career-driven ambitions like having own business, making career, joining the right stratum of the society, appear to be alien to the great part of Russian woman.
So, at least at the level of life-goals, an average Russian woman is characterized today by having large diversity of interests, including family and children which are important but not of extreme urgency.
This conclusion is made according to the women of all ages, without exceptions. Even in the oldest group (41-50 years old) first places took the goals dealing not only with happy family and children's up-bringing, but the goals concerning personal interests like having a separate apartment, leading an honest life, having reliable friends as well.
Table 2
The things that Russian woman have never had in plans, %
| The sphere of ambitions |
Age (years) | |||||
|
17-18 |
19-20 |
21-25 |
26-30 |
31-40 |
41-50 | |
| To get a good education |
6,6 |
5,0 |
4,7 |
6,9 |
11,3 |
16,8 |
| To create a happy family |
1,6 |
4,0 |
6,2 |
8,3 |
11,6 |
16,1 |
| To create a happy family |
6,6 |
5,0 |
3,6 |
2,5 |
3,4 |
3,0 |
| To run business of their own |
42,6 |
39,7 |
44,2 |
52,5 |
59,9 |
61,8 |
| To make a career (professional, political, social) |
31,1 |
25,1 |
37,2 |
44,9 |
52,4 |
55,9 |
| To do work according to the interests |
6,6 |
1,5 |
2,2 |
2,2 |
5,5 |
5,3 |
| To meet a real love |
8,2 |
4,0 |
2,9 |
1,4 |
5,5 |
7,2 |
| To travel all over the world |
13,1 |
15,1 |
9,1 |
14,5 |
21,6 |
25,3 |
| To have a separate apartment |
9,8 |
4,5 |
2,2 |
2,2 |
0,7 |
0,7 |
| To bring-up nice children |
9,8 |
8,5 |
5,5 |
2,2 |
1,4 |
1,0 |
| To lead a live not worse than other people do |
4,9 |
4,0 |
3,6 |
3,6 |
5,1 |
3,3 |
| To have reliable friends |
1,6 |
0,5 |
1,1 |
1,4 |
1,7 |
3,0 |
| To lead an honest life |
11,5 |
4,5 |
3,6 |
4,0 |
2,4 |
1,3 |
| To have an interesting job |
1,6 |
1,0 |
2,2 |
1,8 |
3,8 |
5,6 |
| To join the right stratum of the society |
23,0 |
31,2 |
36,9 |
38,0 |
55,1 |
54,3 |
| To win respect of the people |
4,9 |
5,0 |
8,8 |
8,0 |
4,8 |
7,6 |
At the same time according to the Table 2, age is very important regarding some life goals. Most of the young Russian women would like to make a career, to join the right stratum of the society, to run business of their own, while most of their older countrywomen don't want it. Among women of older age there are far more those who don't aim at good education, at prestigious job, at traveling all over the world.
The life goals of the youngest part( 17-18 y.o.) of the interviewed attract our attention a lot. Every thirteenth representative of this group doesn't aim at creating a happy family, and every tenth - at bringing up nice children. Moreover almost every twelfth girl of this age doesn't look to a true love in life. Although 98,4% in this group want to have reliable friends, to get an interesting and prestigious job.
