Alcoholism, threat to identity, and migration moods (based on materials of an expedition to the Pskov region)

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Abstract

The Pskov region is characterized by an unfavorable alcohol situation and an outflow of young people from the region. The purpose of the article is to demonstrate how young people’s ideas about alcoholism correlate with their area of residence, their sense of belonging to it, and their migration intentions. Based on the results of an analysis of 88 interviews collected during an expedition to the Pskov region, it was revealed that alcoholism of local residents is perceived by young people as threatening their identity. Response ways to maintain a positive identity are produced in several ways: 1) through the justification of the current situation in which young people are forced to exist; 2) through problematization, accompanied by increased categorization of people and places based on the presence or absence of alcoholism and planning to change the alcohol situation in the local territory; 3) by contrasting “those who left” with “those who stayed” according to the principle “either stayed and drink, or left”. The main conclusion is that people, on the one hand, form migration intentions associated with physical and social distancing from “drinkers”, and on the other hand, they seek to transform the area of residence, offering sobriety practices as an alternative to drunkenness practices.

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About the authors

Yulia Y. Belova

HSE University

Author for correspondence.
Email: ybelova@hse.ru

Cand. Sci. (Soc.), Leading Research Fellow

Russian Federation, Moscow

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