“Everyone hates everyone”
Why Russia is the most aggressive society in Europe and how to calm him down. Interview with a psychologist
Only messages of the last days in Moscow, the police proved inadequate cruelty in the natural dispersal of a peaceful March in support of Ivan Golunova, in particular, beat the teenager, and in the suburbs broke a rib activist opposing the construction of landfills; in Yakutia pensioner killed neighbors in the cottage, including a pregnant woman and 14-year-old girl, and shot himself; detained 15-year-old son of a famous hockey player, a suspect in the murder of his mother and wounding of his brother; in Saratov, a group of girls beat and stabbed the man who made the remark from-for thrown a pack of cigarettes; in the Caucasus — another conflict over the border between Chechnya and Dagestan, Ramzan Kadyrov, threatened neighbors: “your fingers broken, tongue tear”, in the Penza region — a mass brawl with homicide between local residents and Gypsies. And even the friendly Phil Elena Malysheva came down to the fact that the whole country has announced children with disabilities “morons” and “idiots”. And it is definitely only the “tip of the iceberg” — the most resonant news.
According to the famous psychologist Sergey Enikolopov, increased aggression is characteristic not only of Russia after the collapse of morals in the Second world war, the sexual revolution of the turbulent 60’s, especially in connection with information revolution in the 2000s, humanity is in a state of “moral madness”. If earlier society lived according to strict ethical canons, or religious party, and from infancy people learned ready-made recipes “what is good and what is bad”, now it’s like he’s out in the open: the former spiritual principles impaired, and everyone chooses which way to go. And this is a challenge to which — in the decline of the authority of parents, schools and other institutions for mentoring — trained, not all.
And yet Russia in this global “off road” — to sobinco. According to the Institute of psychology RAS, the level of mutual aggression and even hate the Russians occupy the first place in Europe. For what reasons and what to do about it? On this subject Sergey Enikolopov made in the Yeltsin center in the framework of a series of public interviews of journalist Valery Vyzhutovich. We offer to your attention the main content of the conversation — answers Sergey Enikolopov on questions of the presenter and the audience.
“A lot of people completely went off the rails”
— Sergey Nikolaevich, how much mutual disrespect, aggression, so many conflicts in our society?
— Aggression can be just a habitual behavior. I studied together with repeaters when I was eight — they were 12, not everyone learns the same, some remain at the level of Junior classes. If the ladies are honest, remember how they tended to in Junior high: pulling hair, stepping on the heel, beat out the portfolio to get the attention. Among us many people who did not work on this and believe that he slammed on the shoulder of another person can give insight that you noticed, other way they have. Likewise with the swearing: they have no other language.
— The school is not taught?
— From the Middle ages school was quite sacred building. Freedom — only in the bathroom or behind the school. Only they could fight, smoke, even drink. But the school was descroizilles, the teacher was powerless, his figure has lost any credibility. And everyone can afford whatever they want, how it is raised. A lot of people completely out of control.
We say how wonderful a school in Finland! So there is that teachers have very high status and average wages higher than the wages of many skilled professionals. And when the teacher begins to speak: you won’t find yourself, your place in life… And who is he? A loser, an outsider, and why listen to him? So many parents lose their authority. “We have to be honest.” — “Well, what brought your honesty?” The child may not say it out loud, but thinking. This is the first.
Second, when there are reports about murders, suicides and the like, they are pushing for reps. Recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of the school shooting “Columbine” (April 20, 1999 two students of the American school shootings, which killed 13 people, assailants shot and killed; the gunman had a lot of followers in the United States and around the world, the most famous Russian shooter — Vladislav Roslyakov, in October 2018 in Kerch killed 20 people. — Approx. ed.). The Americans have analyzed and found that every message on this shot increases the risk of subsequent fire. This is called the “Werther effect” (in the late eighteenth century Goethe novel “the sorrows of young Werther” caused in Europe the epidemic of suicides. — Approx. ed.). When Moscow girl jumped from the 16th floor, I felt that the wave was in the country for another two to three weeks, 32 cases.
— Remember the story of how in Barnaul made fun of the teacher, because she was photographed in a swimsuit. Why is this possible?
— The teacher showed that she is a free man: put on a swimsuit, she is like myself — and posted photos to social network]. This is a blow to those who cannot afford the blow to their worldview: how it is possible to allow to walk in a swimsuit and even to be photographed! Hence the jealousy of a free man.
The saddest thing in all this that those who poison, don’t feel like acting ugly. Go burchi to himself that never would wear a swimsuit, well, don’t wear your business, you’re as free as this lady, one in a swimsuit — the other in a fur coat. She’s not naked starred swimsuit — normal form of clothing for summer beach.
But from the government there is no shout that can’t behave so, you need to remove the Director [of the school] or put her off if she starts [persecution of a teacher]. And when people feel that you can tell about the man stuff and “nothing will happen”, this impunity contributes to the buildup of anger around.
— Does the increase of aggression the division of society into rich and poor?
Usually we think in dichotomies: rich and poor. For me it was almost to the opening when the pollsters ranked the students according to their level of wealth — from high to average and low — in each of these three groups and allocated three. It turned out that everybody hates everybody. I understand why the poor hate the rich, but why not just the rich hate the poor, which seem to them dangerous, but don’t like them — medium rich within their group? This is a common condition, in my opinion, not only our school but also our entire society. Lost what can be called social ties, mutual satisfaction of the strata, the society indiwidualiziruyutza.
Because, indeed, over the past 30 years, there has been a fault: someone got rich and someone poor. But the problem is in the fact that usedonmany of our rich — not the Rothschilds, not DuPont, not the Rockefellers, naturally rich as the descendants and heirs. We have yesterday’s student, postgraduate student, Junior researcher suddenly becomes a billionaire, and few understand what it does. “Achieved their intelligence, labor, made” — we have not yet established. Especially when it is unclear why someone has gained access to “the tube”, and who do not, treat this with skepticism: why should we love that?
— In a country of 22 million poor. Poverty causes aggression?
Partially, Yes, but not always. A large number of poor people does not behave as aggressively as is expected of them. If poverty provoked aggression, we’d always be a revolution, but revolutions, as we know, little.
But the poor may often perceive any comment as an attempt to lower it, not to be taken seriously due to the fact that he is poor, badly dressed. This helps the individual to aggression. Aggression is often a reaction to the threat “I-concept” of the person. The threat may be imaginary and the real, the main thing is that he thinks so. Therefore, even simple comments the man might perceive as “hitting” on your status, on the representation of yourself as a humiliation that needs to immediately fight back.
I’m not talking about the rational option when they head to pick up the money.
It is very important in what state the society lives — optimism or pessimism. In 60 years, despite the fact that life was tough enough, in Soviet society there was a social optimism: if people have not moved into a new apartment themselves, you know those who have already moved. That is characteristic: in Moscow in 1957 was only 9% of self-murder. The high rate of selfish murder very clearly demonstrates that there is no social optimism.
— Society is divided in a political sense. This adds aggression?
— Yes, of course. Any split — political, religious, ethnic, skin color, age, sex and so on — contributes to aggression. I “do not”, threatening me — and, of course, there is a desire aggressive to prove themselves. And if we turn on the TV and see the police disperse the protesters, whether right wing, left wing, there is a feeling that only the strong, arrogant and aggressive good exists in this society.
— The government is interested in the aggressiveness of society?
If people take others for enemies, they will be atomized, never together and not overthrown by any power.
— What is the role in provoking the aggression of media, TV show, TV series?
— The media absolute sense of irresponsibility. On the other hand, there is a lot of work, since the 30-ies, that after the release of the film “On the Western front without changes” (American film, 1930 based on the novel by Erich Maria Remarque. — Approx. ed.) was marked by the growth of pacifism. But there is such a phenomenon: everything bad is absorbed better than good. The words written on the fence, remember the first time, while smart and sophisticated, who teach at the University, should be repeated several times. The behavior is the same. So when it turned out that it is possible with a film forming pacifist installer, immediately got a recommendation: show [such films] more often and consistently. I personally do not believe in change for the better, but if society wants to live in peace, it should demand change in the media.
— Social media is also a factor in the spread of aggression?
We once conducted a study of Internet dwellers. In the mid-90s, and there left alone, not very sociable, defenseless people. Their level of aggressiveness was low. It was the victim who ran away from society where they were not very comfortable. After 20 years, we have seen fury. People enjoy the fact that you can use the Internet with impunity to throw out their high aggression, insult, and this contributes to anonymity: on the street is more dangerous then someone will be stronger. And instead of a person has developed their own control over their behavior, he, on the contrary, disappears.
“If there is not resistance to the rudeness, it will win”
— Is there a link between level of aggression and level of education?
— I was once an assistant examiner in the case of the man who was to become the General designer of the missile, it is very wanted to divorce his wife. As it was in Soviet times, he was afraid that a divorce would be bad for his career along the line of the party organization. And just poisoned his wife. Being absolutely “eggheads”, talented, he did everything in order to submit the poisoning as suicide. But he was not lucky: he was such an outstanding investigator for particularly important cases of the Zoe Kasyanovna sheykina, which was opened by the killing, as in the novels of Agatha Christie, just pictures. She faced it with expertise and have proven his guilt. So don’t save not only education but also the intelligence factor. Saves culture.
Well, the Church may reduce aggression in society?
— Ought but cannot. It is not that she doesn’t do something [specifically in Russia] is the same in all countries of the world: she becomes an outsider, many don’t care about religion. This is the first. Second, some believers are “wet,” others. Catholics with Protestants “soaked” each other by the thousands. Now the same thing is with Muslims. Once you start a conversation with a specialist in Islam, he immediately emphasizes that it is a peaceful religion. But we see that it is not so.
Freud there is a saying: in order to love someone you have to hate someone. He quotes Heine: for a complete happiness I need very little — a small garden the opportunity to do every morning to drink a Cup of coffee and see five or six of the hanged enemies. There is this item: to love its, it is necessary to be sure were strangers. The explanation why religion can guide us in a peaceful direction.
— Dmitry Bykov said that the youth he works with, makes him a delight, respect. Do you share his opinion that the youth can change the society? Or, as Daniil Granin, Russian — the three “h”: slave, ham, and lackey?
— I hope that young people can make a change. Unlike bulls, I have this wonderful young people don’t see. Maybe to him and stretch “two and a half” people who love his poetry. I teach at some universities two months ago was shocked when a senior student of MSU pigface insolently said to me: I don’t know who Shakespeare. I’m not talking about “Othello” and “Romeo and Juliet”. Her roommate, seeing the surprise on my face, said, “You know, Shakespeare’s not in the program.” Who reads a little more, he can be found with Bykov.
By the way, to say that the Bulls are good, I can’t. When I listen to some of his texts, you realize that it is no worse and no better than those who create an atmosphere of hatred, he, too, divides into “us” and “our”. “Our” — those who love to chat with Bykov.
In my opinion, the situation is even worse, because the total wave of individualization, atomization, when social relationships do not hold and no one not regulated by anyone, superimposed training violence and aggression. In 70-e years, we wanted to gather in colonies of thieves legends and stories, and brought me above the meter stack of notebooks, half of these notebooks were covered with poems by Yesenin and Vysotsky. And when I began to resent: but a culture, legends, tales, songs! one old thief said to me, “come on, we sculpt the new man, the clay is kneaded. The fact that 20 years from now you will be singing on the megaphone (i.e. radio), they will sing with us.” And now I see what the people are singing they sing along with us. The competition Bykov radio “the Chanson” I would not put on Bykov.
— There is different regions in terms of aggression?
— In small cities of less bullying than in larger ones. An important factor in bullying — anonymity, but in a small town everyone knows each other, there will not clear. In addition, some regions have their cultural phenomena: for example, there always were camps for prisoners, many for the exit [of the zones] settled around, so in the Komi Republic, the Siberian regions of more aggression. As in Moscow there is anger, too, more than in the province. This, incidentally, is a very serious problem: it is impossible to create prevention programs, not taking into account regional cultural peculiarities.
On the other hand, the television in the first place, and migration level differences. I can say on the same example of Moscow in the bus or subway, young guys from the Caucasus immediately jump up and give place to your elders, but after a few months, and they cease to give in. They understand that in this city everything is what they’ve been taught to respect my elders, to give way, — down the drain.
— That each of us can do to balance aggression, manifested in the present-day struggle for survival?
— But why did you decide that there is a struggle for survival? As soon as a man says to himself: all around the reptiles, I live in the struggle and will behave aggressively — he allows himself a pre-emptive strike. Very fashionable now in the West, evolutionary psychology justifies the aggression that our ancestors fought for food, for “place under the sun” and so on. The same concept explains why preemptively beat women — not to modify. But if it’s not the science of the ancients, and the rules of life, it is understandable why we often grow family violence. The study, which was conducted 10 years ago (after that no such large studies have been conducted) showed that only 44% of couples, not necessarily painted, but leading a joint household, do not hit each other, more than a half — beat, while 24% were beaten regularly. This does not mean that always hit women, men are also caught. American studies show that 2.5 million battered wives have 2.7 million battered husbands, a few more, just beat them weaker and the police they do not run.
What to do? Comes to mind has already forgotten song nobody will give us deliverance… If we are not to do something, not necessarily with guns and stones, if you do not have resistance to the rudeness, it will win. I’m glad the example of Yekaterinburg: people are ready to unite, I see the neighbor is not an enemy, and the protector of common interests. From activists, I do not see aggression. Which is not true of the opposite side: what a rude and offensive it was necessary to behave to such a large number of people have realized the need to resist.
In preparing the material participated Yuri Grebenshchikov.
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