Fewer than One Russian in Four Prepared to Sacrifice Now for a Better Life for the Next Generation, New Study Finds

 Paul Goble

            Staunton, Oct. 11 – One of the foundation stones of economic development is the willingness of the current generation of people to accept a lower standard of living for themselves so that their children or future generations in general will have a better life, Vladimir Karacharovsky says.

            But a new study he has conducted finds that fewer than one Russian in four is prepared to sacrifice even for the benefit of the next generation and even fewer for generations beyond that and that more than three in four favor government programs that put money in their pockets now rather than help anyone later (iq.hse.ru/news/865294094.html).

            Such attitudes, of course, reflect the economic difficulties Russians today are facing; but they cast a serious shadow on the future by making it unlikely that the government will be able to convince people to tighten their belts now so that future generations and the country will have a better life.