Xenophobia in the Context of Culture of Trust

Abstract

Vladimir Mukomel — Head of the Department of Migratory and Integration Processes, Institute of Sociology (RAS). Address: Bldg. 5, 24/35, Krzhizhanovskogo St., Moscow, 117218, Russian Federation. E-mail: mukomel@isras.ru.

This article considers the growth of xenophobia in the context of social arrangements in contemporary Russia. Although this phenomenon has largely been triggered by a steady increase in the inflow of migrants in the recent years, we argue that it also has been emphasized by deeper internal factors. One of such factors is the low level of interpersonal, intergroup, and institutional trust among Russians, which is accompanied by the anomie, the instability of the social order, the non-transparency of the institutions, etc. We also argue that the erosion of the ‘culture of trust’, which enhances the growth of xenophobia, is strongly associated with the current socio-political arrangements in contemporary Russia: i.e. the ‘verticalization’ of power exploiting the popular appeal towards ‘order’ and ‘stability’ among Russians and attempting to prevent self-organization from below.