The state youth policy in contemporary Russia: concept and realities

The article considers the document ‘Foundations of the State Youth Policy’ and its implementation in the Russian regions. This analysis allowed the authors to show that the document provides neither a political strategy nor effective management measures. The authors present the results of the analysis of the youth policy implemented by government agencies online - on the websites of regional administrations and in the social network VKontakte. The websites do not provide any current information, while the social network, on the contrary, is quite effective. The article describes the perception of the state youth policy by regions and local communities based on the empirical research conducted in 2018-2019 in 7 regions of the Russian Federation - the Tver, Kursk, Pskov, Astrakhan, Rostov, Moscow Regions and the Republic of Karelia. The main methods of data collection were in-depth interviews and focus groups (43 interviews and 26 focus groups). Respondents represented regional and municipal administrations, including departments of the youth policy, local enterprises - industrial, commercial, hotels, etc., health and education organizations, cultural institutions and youth groups. There were also focus groups with the youth: 3 groups with university students and 3 groups with students of special secondary institutions. The article shows inefficiency of the ‘two poles’ approach - when the state aims at supporting the talented youth and the most vulnerable groups (orphans, children from dysfunctional families, etc.). Such an approach excludes from the policy and public discourse the ‘middle’ youth that needs but lacks rather participation in the life of the country than financial support. Today only the ‘forum campaign’ is implemented, in which the youth are happy to participate, but this campaign cannot strengthen the youth’s social role. Thus, there is still no system youth policy in Russia.