Knyazkova Ekaterina A.

On May 19, 2026, within the walls of the Institute of Social Demography of the FCTAS RAS (Moscow, Fotieva Street, 6, building 1, Academic Council Hall), a scientific-practical seminar was held on improving state-legal regulation of the protection of children's rights in the context of the demographic security of the Russian Federation.

The scientific-practical seminar was conducted as part of the implementation of the Strategy for Action on Implementing Family and Demographic Policy and Supporting Large Families in the Russian Federation until 2036, as well as the national project "Family," and was organized by the Institute of Social Demography of the FCTAS RAS, the Coordination Center for the Development of Human Resources in Demography of the FCTAS RAS, and the Scientific Council of the RAS "Demographic Development and Demographic Policy of the Russian Federation," with the support of the Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights in the Russian Federation.

The seminar was attended by representatives of state authorities and administration, the scientific, educational, expert, and civil society communities, as well as law enforcement officials.

Introduction. The introduction discusses the analysis of expert estimates of heads of educational orga- nizations of higher education. This analysis allows identifying the perceptions of heads of universities about the demographic situation in the region and country, the necessity and interrelation of support measures for young families, including those of students, at different levels (federal, regional, university). The expert survey makes it possible to evaluate not only the state and prospects for the support of student families in the system of higher education but also the scale of assistance provided to members of a student family.

Materials and methods. By conducting an expert survey of nine heads of educational organizations, expert assessments were collected on the significance of supporting student families for the university’s social policy, the structure of implemented measures, the place of universities’ social policies to support student families in regional social policy, and their prospects. The survey was conducted anonymously, which allowed informants to express their own opinions without fear of negative consequences from the professional community. The informants' answers were analyzed and systematized exclusively in a generalized form, which, on the one hand, did not allow us to study the state of support for student families in a particular university, but, on the other hand, made it possible to form a generalized idea of the situation in Russian universities related to support and assistance to student families.  Families based not on the de jure principle (as it should be), but based on its real manifestations de facto.

Results. The results of the study are aimed at solving the priority demographic problem associated with the popularization of the institution of a prosperous young (student) family. At the national level, the idea that the student family is not a new phenomenon for Russian society, but relevant and in demand by the state, society, educational organizations, and parent families, should be consolidated and promoted in the mass consciousness.

The expert survey allowed to estimate the scale of assistance in higher education organizations and to determine possible prospects for the implementation of policies in the interests of student families.

Discussion. It is extremely important to study the real and projected contribution of student families to the demographic and socio-economic development of Russia, to identify ways to increase the well-being of student families, and the value of a family lifestyle among the younger generation. Consideration of the specifics of the functioning of young families in which spouses continue their education has made it possible to obtain a reasonable understanding of the methods and measures of targeted family and demographic policies in their interests. The results of the study will serve as the basis for developing a set of measures at the national level aimed at supporting the Russian student family.

Today it has become especially relevant to study motivation of reproductive, matrimonial, self-preserving and migration behaviors from two perspectives: as independent types of behavior and as elements of the system of demographic behavior. It is caused by the demand from the Russian government to reach the targets of the national project “Demography” and to cope with the demographic consequences of COVID-19 pandemic, as a result of which 51 thousand people died in Russia (as of December 2020). The final impact of the pandemic on the birth rate and reproductive behavior transformation can be assessed later after the birth of the so-called “pandemic” children.

The trends in reproductive, matrimonial, self-preserving and migration behaviors of Russians discussed in the article are revealed on the basis of data obtained in the all Russian sociological study “Demographic well-being of Russia”, which made the basis for the national demographic report of 2020.

This article provides an overview of different approaches to in-depth interview and the results of in- depth interview design used to analyze intrinsic motivation of reproductive, matrimonial, self-preserving and migration behaviors.

The materials for the study include general provisions of research methodology and an interview guide, that is a manual for interviewers containing a number of questions aimed at revealing intrinsic motivation of reproductive, matrimonial, self-preserving and migration behaviors of parents having many children, childless couples, women who gave birth to children without registration of marriage, newly married couples who are planning to have children and supporters of childfree lifestyle (people who choose not to have children).

Application of the method of in-depth interview to assess reproductive, matrimonial, self-preserving and migration behaviors of Russians significantly expands the methodology of all-Russian sociological study “Demographic well-being of Russia”, it identifies and analyzes unique cases and complicated situations having their impact on a person’s behavior, as well as their intrinsic motives and incentives that cannot be revealed with the help of other methods.

The paper might be of interest to demographic experts and practical sociologists who are involved in development of qualitative research methods and other specialists responsible for making managerial decisions in the field of demography on the regional and municipal levels.

This study has an analytical nature. It focuses on the relevance of mentoring among young people in the functioning of local communities through coordination with municipal youth policy authorities. Purpose. To analyze potential of mentoring as one of the most effective mechanisms of youth community management on the local level. Methods. Research methods include a set of general scientific methods, such as analysis, comparison, systematization and generalization of research data obtained by different authors. Scientific novelty. The scientific novelty lies in the fact that possibilities of mentoring among young people in the functioning of local communities through coordination with the actors of municipal youth policy were identified.