Self-regulation of students’ public activity during the digitalization of the social space

Abstract

This article studies the problem of social activity of the students of the Sverdlovsk Region in the context of intensified digitalization of the social space caused by the forced self-isolation. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the self-regulation of students’ social activity in the conditions of digitalization of the social space. Following the traditions of the Ural scientific sociological school and the concepts of multidimensionality and self-organization of youth, as well as using community, activity, and other sociological approaches, the authors use a terminological series of concepts of the student educational community and its social activity. They distinguish the terms “classical (traditional) community”, acting in a real socio-cultural space, “virtual community”, the social action of which is transferred to cyberspace, and “digital community”, occupying an intermediate position and acting in a multidimensional real-virtual sociocultural space. The social activity of students is considered as one of the types (along with educational and professional) social activity and a form of actual general cultural socialization. Employing the materials of empirical research in 2020 and with the involvement of data from the secondary analysis of regional monitoring, the authors study the factors, intensity, and dynamics of social activity of students. The results reveal the ideas of students about people serving as role models and multidirectional tendencies in value attitudes — to help society and specific people and to material success and comfort. New data were obtained on the social problems of concern to students, the preferred type of public activity, attitude towards the citizenship of the Russian Federation, the dynamics of participation in electoral processes, collective actions, participation in the work of public organizations and charitable events. The attitude of students to youth public organizations and conditions for active participation of young people in social and political activities is revealed. The authors conclude on the reorientation of a significant part of the student body towards the priority of the personal over the public and about the further stratification and atomization of the student community.