Civil Society Institutions in Russia: Current Status and Future Development

The appearance of the concept, meanings, and types of institutions of civil society is quite common in the scientific literature. However, these works are mostly focused on dogmatic topics; the particular people’s associations that exist in the Russian Federation and their derivative components, as a rule, remain outside the scope of research. The purpose of the conducted research was to highlight and describe the most significant institutions of civil society at the domestic level, as well as to identify possible trends in their development. The objectives of the study were to briefly review the main ideas of civil society from the moment of their origin in Russia to the present days; to determine the content of the concepts of ‘civil society’ and ‘institute of civil society’ in relation to the article presented; to analyze the significance of a number of people’s associations and their derivative components for the development of civil society; and to highlight the prospects of domestic civil society institutions. The methodological basis of this work was represented by dialectical materialism as a universal method of cognition. The following general and specific scientific methods such as analogy, observation, description, modeling, historical and legalistic research methods were also used in the study. Resting on the research of a numerous scientists, investigative journalists reports and personal practical experience, the authors came to the following conclusion: the fundamental institutions of civil society in the Russian Federation are represented by non-profit organizations, the media, scholars associations, as well as by various forms of social activity focused on the implementation of human and civil rights; it is also fair to assume that civil society institutions will partly change and increase their influence on the power structures in the future.

Keywords:

Civil Society , Civil Society Institution , People’s Associations , Non-Profit Organizations , Mass Media , Scholars Associations , Forms Of Social Activity