How Russians will celebrate the New Year

On the eve of the New Year, sociologists sum up the results of the outgoing year, are interested in the plans of Russians for the next year, and, of course, how the country's residents will celebrate the holidays.

PublicPost collected all the New Year's sociology and came to the conclusion that, in general, Russians are quite optimistic about the future, but do not believe in changes for the better.

How Russians will celebrate the New Year

According to the Levada Center , 70% of Russians will celebrate the holiday at home, every fifth will go to visit friends, and only 4% will go on a New Year's trip abroad.

Among the main holiday traditions of Russians are a Christmas tree (29% of respondents) and a festive table with traditional dishes (30%). The president's speech and the chiming clock are an obligatory part of the holiday for only 5% and 4% of those participating in the survey, respectively, but champagne and gifts are an indispensable attribute of the New Year for 14% of Russians. Fireworks and sparklers are purchased by 45% of families.

Russians prefer an artificial Christmas tree

According to the Public Opinion Foundation , 84% of Russians decorate a Christmas tree, while 46% of respondents prefer an artificial tree, 34% decorate a live Christmas tree, and 4% are happy owners of several types of coniferous beauty. In the Levada Center study, the artificial tree is also in the lead - but with a margin of only 5% from the living spruce. Moreover, more often the Christmas tree is decorated in cities, while every fifth rural resident does not decorate any trees.

Do your children believe in Santa Claus?

Santa Claus exists for 94% of four- to six-year-old children, but only 86% of two- to three-year-olds believe in the existence of a winter storyteller. However, after 7, the proportion of those who believe in the existence of Santa Claus gradually decreases - 76% of children under the age of 9 believe in him, and only half of children under 12 years old.

How much will Russians spend on New Year?

Sociological data regarding Russians' spending on New Year's celebrations differ significantly. Thus, according to a survey by the Levada Center , on average Russians will spend 4.5 thousand rubles, VTsIOM estimates spending at 7.5 thousand rubles (expenses are distributed in approximately equal shares between the New Year's feast, gifts and entertainment). Russians plan to give souvenirs (notebooks, pens, purses) - 35%; every third person will give delicacies, alcohol and candy; about a quarter of Russians plan to buy toys, perfumes, and jewelry as gifts. Traditionally, money is among the most desired gifts. This year 17% of respondents want to receive them, almost twice as many as in 2010, and the same number as those who do not want to receive gifts at all. Every tenth Russian would not refuse cosmetics and jewelry, souvenirs and sweets, as well as a tourist package and a car.

FOM also became concerned with the problem of gifts and found out that the vast majority of Russians (88%) wish their relatives Happy New Year. Close friends of 48% of respondents also receive gifts. 4 and 5% of citizens, respectively, give gifts to business partners and neighbors, but 9% of respondents do not buy gifts for anyone at all.

Rosstat, in turn, calculated the cost of the New Year's set of products and found out that the cheapest place to organize a feast is in Kalmykia, Kaliningrad and Lipetsk (almost 3 thousand rubles), but the most expensive holiday treat is in Chukotka (5,788 rubles). In Moscow, food for the holiday costs approximately the same as in Kamchatka, Yamal and the Nenets Autonomous Okrug - a little more than 4 thousand rubles.

Results of the year

The outgoing year, compared to 2011, was worse for Russia in the opinion of 19% of Russians (15% in 2011) and better in the opinion of 15% of respondents (24% in 2011). 58% of citizens (5% more than a year earlier) did not feel any changes. A third of the population's expectations were not met. Those who did not expect anything and therefore were not disappointed were 40%. Voters of Zyuganov and Prokhorov, residents of cities with a population of over a million, were less optimistic, while Putin's electorate and young people more often saw positive changes.

A similar survey by the Levada Center found that about half of the population hoped for an increase in wages or pensions. About 40% expected a decrease in inflation rates and an increase in housing and communal services tariffs. Almost half of those who had hopes did not come true.

As for politics in the country, citizens most of all hoped for increased stability (40%) and a renewal of Putin’s political course (24%). About half of those who hoped for it were not deceived in their hope for stability; almost ⅔ of the population are satisfied with the update of Putin’s course.

Answering the question from sociologists , “What feelings have emerged and strengthened among the people around you over the past year?” , 37% of respondents named fatigue and indifference, and only 30% - hope. The overall list of feelings is dominated by negative ones: confusion (19%), bitterness and aggressiveness (18%), resentment (13%), envy, despair and fear (12% each) and loneliness (7%). Positive emotions, such as self-esteem, confidence in the future, freedom, pride in one’s people and responsibility for what is happening in the country, were felt by hardly every tenth Russian.

As for 2013 , about 20% are optimistic, there are almost half as many pessimists, and they explain their position by the poor economic situation. Those who do not expect any changes from year to year are the traditional majority - about 40%. According to a similar survey by the Levada Center , life was more difficult for a third of Russians this year and easier for one in five.

The most important events of the year , according to the Levada Center, for Russians were the flood in Krymsk , the presidential elections in Russia , the increase in prices for housing and communal services and medicines - these were noted by about 30% of respondents. Russians remember the Summer Olympic Games in London a little more than the resignation of Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov and the related corruption scandals in the ministry . Almost every sixth Russian remembered the Pussy Riot punk prayer service , and only every twelfth remembered the opposition rallies . For comparison: almost the same number of Russians celebrated the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Borodino.

VTsIOM has slightly different data, which, along with the all-Russian survey, provides data from a study of the Internet audience by Yandex. Thus, the plane crash near Tyumen was included in the top five events according to VTsIOM. The Internet public was most interested inthe trial of Pussy Riot , the celebration of Victory Day , the European Football Championship , the Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip and the Buranovsky Babushki.

The person of the year for a third of the population is Vladimir Putin (ranked first since the start of the survey in 2008). Dmitry Medvedev was pushed into third place for the first time since 2008 by Sergei Shoigu. For the first time since 2009, Barack Obama returned to the rankings, whom 5% of respondents (4th place) recognized as the main hero of the year.

As for the woman of the year, the recently deceased opera singer Galina Vishnevskaya entered the rating for the first time and even topped it. Alla Pugacheva, who is consistently present in the ranking, pushed the 2010-2011 leader Valentina Matvienko to third position. Ksenia Sobchak retained her fourth place, occupied since 2010. The top five women of the year is completed by German Chancellor Angela Merkel.