Democratization and Gender in Contemporary Russia (BASEES/Routledge Series on Russian and East European Studies) - Softcover

Salmenniemi, Suvi

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0415674980 ISBN 13: 9780415674980

Publisher: Routledge, 2011

Synopsis

This book examines civic activism, democratization and gender in contemporary Russian society. It describes the character and central organizing principles of Russian democratic civic life, considering how it has developed since the Soviet period, and analyzing the goals and identities of important civic groups - including trade unions - and the meanings they have acquired in the context of wider Russian society. In particular, Suvi Salmenniemi investigates the gender dimensions, both masculine and feminine, of socio-political participation in Russia, considering what kinds of gendered meanings are given to civic organizations and formal politics, and how femininity and masculinity are represented in this context. Exploring the role of state institutions in the development of democratic civic life, the volume shows how, under the increasingly authoritarian Putin regime and its policy of 'managed democracy', independent civic activism is both thriving yet at the same constrained. Based on extensive fieldwork research, it provides much needed information on how Russians themselves view these developments, both from the perspective of civic activists and the local authorities.

About this title

Review:

"The strong and consistent focus of the essays in New Directions in Interest Group Politics on core theoretical questions-and their willingness to bring data to bear on those questions-will almost certainly enliven and deepen classroom discussions about the politics of interest representation."-David Lowery, Pennsylvania State University"This book provides wide ranging perspectives on interest groups that are grounded in the contributors' own research. I wish more textbooks did this so well."-Beth Leech, Rutgers University"This book enlarges our understanding of the American policymaking process by illuminating how organized interests advance their agendas in an age of hyper-partisanship, rising economic inequality, and instant communication. Together the chapters represent an important contribution to the study of American pluralism."ã -Kristin A. Goss, Duke University"New Directions in Interest Group Politics provides readers with an impressive range of cutting-edge research from top scholars on the most relevant topics on interest group politics. Each chapter covers foundational literature and exciting new work in a way that is, at once, both accessible and thought-provoking."-Daniel C. Lewis, University of New Orleans "Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above. -- J. Heyrman, Berea College, CHOICE 2014

About the Author:

Suvi Salmenniemi is a postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Sociology, University of Helsinki, specializing in gender, cultural and Russian studies. She is currently engaged in a comparative research project that studies self-help and conceptions of a ‘good life’ in Finland and Russia.

About this edition

• Publisher: Routledge
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 0415674980
• ISBN 13: 9780415674980
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 280