All-Russian happiness

People consider the main signs of high social status to be an apartment, a car and a good education for children

The All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion (VTsIOM), as part of a comprehensive study of the public consciousness of Russians, found out what our compatriots consider a sign of prestige and high social status.

More than half of Russians, 55%, say the presence of good housing is the main sign of prestige. In second place in the ranking of “successful life” is the opportunity to give one’s children a quality education (37%), in third place is owning a car (27%). Slightly less prestigious were the opportunities to spend a vacation abroad (23%), receive quality medical care (21%), purchase real estate abroad (20%) and a country house (12%).

The higher the income of respondents, the more often they attribute the opportunity to purchase real estate abroad as a symbol of prestige (for comparison: 17% in the group with average per capita income up to 1,500 rubles and 27% in the group with income over 5,000 rubles), purchasing a country house, or a dacha. (10 and 20%), spending holidays abroad (17 and 27%) and less significant are the availability of good housing (62 and 49%), a car (38 and 29%), expensive furniture and household appliances (13 and 8% ).

Purchasing real estate abroad for residents of Moscow and St. Petersburg is the second sign of high social status, after owning luxury housing (40 and 47%, respectively). The possibility of purchasing a country house or dacha seems to respondents from the capital to be a significantly more important element of prestige than to respondents from other localities (22% and 9-16%). Which once again testifies not only to the difference in opportunities, but also to the differences between the “metropolitan” consciousness and the provincial one.

Older respondents, as a rule, attach more importance to quality medical care, which is considered a sign of status from 14% of respondents aged 18-24 to 22% in the “60+” group.

Women, more than men, value the opportunity to receive quality medical care (16% of men and 26% of women consider this to be a status characteristic), to give their children a good education (35% and 39%) and, naturally, pay less attention to having a car (30% and 24%).

Respondents consider the opportunity to give their children a good education the more prestigious the higher the level of their own education: this attribute is noted by 27% in the group with less than secondary education, 35-38% with secondary general and special education, and 46% with higher and incomplete higher education.

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The all-Russian poll by VTsIOM was conducted on August 12-13, 2006. 1,600 people were surveyed in 153 settlements in 46 regions, territories and republics of Russia. The statistical error does not exceed 3.4%.

Elena KOFANOVA, VTsIOM, Ivan GORDEEV