Investigating Russian views on Ukraine: A silent but powerful dissent
Independent Russian sociologists decided to investigate what Russians think about the war in Ukraine. Public Sociology Laboratory (PS Lab) team members spent a month observing and talking to residents of small towns and villages. The independent portal Meduza publishes the first conclusions from this unique study.
In the fall of 2023, researchers from the PS Lab team went to three regions of Russia – Sverdlovsk Oblast, the Republic of Buryatia, and Krasnodar Krai – and spent a month there.
As a result of their efforts, the researchers collected interviews, based on which they attempted to answer the questions: whether and why citizens of the Russian Federation support the war in Ukraine. The conclusions are surprising. Apparently, the topic of the war hardly exists.
The war is not only almost invisible in the urban landscape, but it is rarely talked about on the streets or in local social media groups. If it weren't for periodic news about deaths and funerals, one could completely forget about the war – according to the Meduza portal.
Death, family, and money - these are the topics related to the war in Russia
Why don't Russians talk about the war in public or on the internet? Because they are afraid. Discussions about the war boil down to death, family, and, most importantly, money. Researchers indicate that in small towns and villages, earnings are a "public domain." And this is a topic people are willing to talk about.
People actively discuss military earnings: the amount of earnings in the war, "coffin" money, and social benefits - reports Meduza.
The average Russian is well aware of propaganda's actions. A car service employee with whom one of the researchers spoke confirmed this.
What they say on TV is nonsense! All the guys who are fighting there now say you shouldn't trust anyone. The fact that our Ministry of Defence says we have minimal losses is stupid. Many people die every day on both their side and ours - a Russian told PS Lab researchers.
Fear and complaints about the war in Ukraine
The war breeds fear, especially among women. Men going to war is associated with the belief in a broken family. "Women perceive the war as a threat to the health and life of their husbands and sons."
The full report from the research is to be published in July. The results will be exciting.
