83% of young Russians feel happy - study

UFA, 27 June 2017. /Bashinform News Agency, Alim Faizov/. 29% of Russians aged between 18 and 30 feel undoubtedly happy, 54% are more likely to be happy. 30-40-year-olds feel different levels of happiness, 20% and 56%, respectively. The fewest number of optimists are in the group from 51 to 60 years old: 16% and 58%. And after 60 years only 15% feel happy. At the same time, in megacities people gave more harsh and critical assessments than small towns residents. These are the results of the "Everyday Russia: from Crisis to Post-Crisis Reality" study, which was started by the Institute of Sociology of the Russian Academy of Sciences jointly with the Russian Science Foundation (RNF) several years ago and completed in May this year. Four thousand respondents aged 18 and over were interviewed, Izvestiya reports.

Most of the Russians, regardless of the circumstances, have been assessing their lives as satisfactorily over the past few years. However, against this background, the share of those who rate it as "good" is 28% now compared to 33% a year ago.

But the share of optimists is growing regarding the affairs in the country. According to data for May 2017, almost one third of respondents (31%) consider the situation in Russia to be normal and peaceful (18% a year ago). The number of pessimists remains almost unchanged (7%, their number varies in the range of 7-14% during the last decade).

At the same time, 53% of Russians still note that the situation in the country is "tense, recessionary." But even this figure is less than the indicators of 2000-2010 (in 2010 - 73%), and the indicators of the last year spring (65%). Moreover, even in the most favourable years the situation in Russia was assessed as a complex one by 43-44% of the population, sociologists mark.

42% of respondents of all ages estimate their financial situation as absolutely satisfactory, 19%.