The relevance of the study determines the increasing importance of patriotism in education, primarily that of young people, including students. It is important both practically and theoretically to comprehend the role and the place of patriotism in the conditions of increasing confrontation with Western countries and ideologies. At this, it is important to take into account the multidimensional nature of this phenomenon, including the peculiarities of its gender perception.
 
 The purpose of the work is to analyze the opinions of Chuvashia students about patriotism, to identify the distinguishing characteristics of the responses given by boys and girls.
 
 Materials and methods. The analysis is based on data from a survey involving over 500 university students of Chuvashia, among whom 60% were girls, the remaining 40% were young people. The basis for the analysis seems to be quite representative. The obtained indicators will have not only theoretical, but also applied significance, since they will enable to choose more effective work strands with students, taking into account their gender characteristics. The processing of materials within the framework of the SPSS Statistics program makes it possible to take into account such aspects of the study.
 
 Study results. According to the respondents, the most distinctive feature of patriotism is love for one’s country. Conscious love for the Motherland, devotion to it – act as the basis of this political principle and social feeling. Further, the frequency of choice is followed by such answers as pride for the history of the country and readiness to defend it. In both cases, girls chose these options more often, especially in the first case. The elements of patriotic choice with a certain degree of conditionality can be divided into cognitive, emotional and active. Undoubtedly, they intersect, in each of them all three components are reflected, but the basic characteristics prevail.
 
 Conclusions. It follows from the data obtained that girls perceive to a greater extent such components of patriotism that are cognitive and emotional in nature, and young men – its effective component. At the same time, it is not necessary to draw rigid dividing lines between them, since some phenomena are perceived from different points of view, which we have tried to show in this article.
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