Abstract:

The global nature of transformations taking place today in various spheres of life presents new requirements for the generation, which in the near future will become not only an active participant in the society, but also a leading force for its further development.

Generalized attitude to a certain generation influences the content and emotional-evaluative background of ideas regarding this generation, determines the content and direction of social activity of young people. Identification of ideas about modern youth among people of various ages is a necessary condition for organization of social processes that ensure the development of young people’s social activity.

Three groups of people participated in our study. Among them were young people (adolescents, aged 17-20) - 80 people, people at the stage of adulting (aged 22-30) - 77 people, people of mature age (aged 36-50) - 80 people.

Evaluation of young people’s social activity and their attitudes toward it in representatives of adulting and mature generations was determined using the scaling method. The content of the scales was determined in the process of content analysis of free written statements about young people. The following scales were singled out: understanding, emotional acceptance, desire to help, real help, desire to receive help, critical attitude, desire to teach something, desire to learn something from young people, insistence, good general attitude.

Comparative analysis of evaluations of young people’s social activity and attitudes towards it in adulting and mature people and among young people themselves (using Fisher j*) made it possible to identify the following.

The group of adulting and mature respondents expresses the desire to help young people, but adulting respondents are willing to help young people, mainly in their personal and professional development, while mature respondents mainly want to organize the external living conditions and activities of young people, among which they single out their children.

Both senior groups participating in this study strongly revealed good attitude towards young people, which can serve as the basis for the formation of positive relationships between generations of the young and the adulting, the young and the mature.

The intergroup processes of mutual assistance and social activity in the representations of young people are more intense than the processes of mutual assistance within a group of young people.

Ackowledgements:
The study was funded by the grant of the Russian Scientific Fund (project № 18-18-00298).

Keywords:

Social activity, youth, generation.