International Experience Integration of Openness and Transparency Level Evaluation of Socially Oriented Non-Governmental Organizations into Russian Practice

This article deals with international experience integration of openness and transparency level evaluation of activities by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) into the Russian practice. The object of this study is socially oriented non-governmental organizations — both those that receive financial support from the state and those that do not. The subject of the study is the transparency and openness of the socially oriented non-governmental organizations of the Sverdlovsk region. The article proposes the following hypothesis: the government provides financial support to exceptionally transparent and open socially oriented non-governmental organizations; the most popular socially oriented non-governmental organizations are considered the most transparent, and the state financial support is provided to them. To evaluate the level of openness and transparency of non- governmental organizations the authors use quantitative methodology for websites monitoring of non-governmental organizations. The indicators proposed allow for the evaluation of the current level of openness of socially oriented non-governmental organizations. In addition, the article assesses available statistics to evaluate the popularity indicator of specific socially oriented non-governmental organizations. Keywords: non-governmental organization, openness and transparency of NGOs, financial support, social partnership, government social polic

Crowd voting via online platforms as a way of citizens’ public participation in the development of municipalities (The active citizen case, Moscow)

Based on the theory of S. Arnstein, the paper considers crowd voting as one of the management levels available to citizens. The authors analyzed the Moscow online voting platform Active Citizen. Proceeding from the open data on the platform, the authors composed the socio-demographic profile of users, evaluated the proportion of active participation, the extent of their engagement in the voting processes depending on the themes of the problems brought to the attention of the townspeople

Adaptability and Self-Organization of the Doctoral Training System

Training of highly qualified personnel for science, education and industry is an important factor in the formation of a high-tech economy. The modern system of doctoral training does not always cope with its tasks. Enhancing the efficiency of doctoral training can be associated with an increase in adaptability and self-organization. The adaptation of the pedagogical system to changing conditions should be considered in a broad sense, while its fitting to students’ features is a special manifestation of this property. It is necessary to work out two mechanisms of its adaptation – passive and active. Passive adaptation means adjusting to changing external conditions (including a new law), changing in the systems of an adjacent and higher levels. Active adaptation involves the influence on other subsystems of the university educational environment, such as master’s school, additional education (retraining and advanced training of professors), the scientific and pedagogical personnel attestation system (dissertation councils), research departments. Such adaptation can take place according to the model of expanding influence, simultaneously at two levels – personal (subject-subjective) and organizational and managerial. Self-organization is considered as one of the most important features of the system adaptability and a condition for its successful functioning

ДЕЯТЕЛЬНОСТЬ НКО В СФЕРЕ СОЦИАЛЬНЫХ УСЛУГ: ОБЩЕСТВЕННЫЕ ОЖИДАНИЯ И РЕГИОНАЛЬНЫЕ ПРАКТИКИ

The article deals with the contradictions of socially oriented activities of NGOs as service provides in two Russian regions (St. Petersburg and Sverdlovsk oblast). In the mixed system of social welfare, the importance of the non-profit sector is increasing, but the processes taking place due to the diverse regional practices are ambiguous. We focus on the issues of interaction of the non-profit sector with the state, reasons for strengthening the commercial interests of NGOs, interaction with regional authorities and the risks of the social service system at the regional level. The theoretical framework of the study is the transformation of welfare state into welfare-service state. The study used empirical data obtained by street and telephone surveys of population, interviews with representatives of NGOs, state service institutions and regional government. The analysis demonstrates that the key constraining factors for the development of NGOs as service providers are administrative barriers to access state fonds, inappropriate ways of government’s interaction with private services providers in a changing environment, the continued lack of confidence to NGO’ activities among the majority of the population. NGOs are limitedly represented in the social service provider registries for a number of reasons: high bureaucratic requirements; difficultly implemented requirements for reporting for cost recovery; strong control on NGO’s activities by the authorities; untimely informing concerning grant competitions; non-transparency of competitive procedures. The formal approach of authorities indicates that the institutional advantages of NGOs, their ability to social innovations are not considered. Overcoming the barriers for NGOs as social service providers should be also considered as a resource for increasing the public trust in private sector. © 2020 National Research University Higher School of Economics. All rights reserved

Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms of M. tuberculosis and SARS-CoV-2 Infections-Unexpected Similarities of Pathogenesis and What to Expect from Co-Infection

Tuberculosis is still an important medical and social problem. In recent years, great strides have been made in the fight against M. tuberculosis, especially in the Russian Federation. However, the emergence of a new coronavirus infection (COVID-19) has led to the long-term isolation of the population on the one hand and to the relevance of using personal protective equipment on the other. Our knowledge regarding SARS-CoV-2-induced inflammation and tissue destruction is rapidly expanding, while our understanding of the pathology of human pulmonary tuberculosis gained through more the 100 years of research is still limited. This paper reviews the main molecular and cellular differences and similarities caused by M. tuberculosis and SARS-CoV-2 infections, as well as their critical immunological and pathomorphological features. Immune suppression caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus may result in certain difficulties in the diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis. Furthermore, long-term lymphopenia, hyperinflammation, lung tissue injury and imbalance in CD4+ T cell subsets associated with COVID-19 could propagate M. tuberculosis infection and disease progression

От проблемы к решению: риторика дискурса социальных предпринимателей

This article presents the result of analysis of the discourse of modern social entrepreneurs as actors in the legitimation of social problems of society. Based on the ideas of a constructionist approach, we considered social problems not as an objective reality in society, but as a construct of claimsmaking to change a situation created by people. Recent studies show the low effectiveness of measures used by 'insiders' of social policy. Social entrepreneurs, being new actors in the process of advancing and legitimizing social problems, according to the authors, have high potential not only in constructing a social problem, but also in developing its effective solution. The empirical basis of the study was public speaking, interviews, and descriptions of projects presented on official websites, crowd platforms and social networks of leaders of Russian social entrepreneurship Guzel Sanzhapova (Maly Turysh village, Sverdlovsk region) and Daria Alekseeva (Charity Shop, Moscow). Both entrepreneurs are actively involved in the discourse of social problems, formulate claims-making and promote them in public arenas. In our analysis we use the concept of Peter Ibarra and John Kitsuse, which measures the discourse of social problems in four dimensions of rhetoric: Rhetorical idioms, counter-rhetoric, motifs and claims-making styles. The study showed that social entrepreneurs on the public arena do not use negative and dramatic rhetorical idioms, such as the rhetoric of endangerment, unreason and calamity. There are rhetoric of loss and rhetoric of entitlement. We conclude that social entrepreneurs play the role of 'social constructivists' (according to the Shaker Zahra typology), filling social gaps, solving acute social problems, working in those areas and with those groups that remain beyond the interests of other agents of social policy. © 2021 National Research University Higher School of Economics. All rights reserved.This article was carried out with support of the Russian Science Foundation (RSF) according to scientific project no. 19–18–00246 'Challenges of Transformation of the Welfare State in Russia: Institutional Changes, Social Investment, Digitalization of Social Services,' implemented at Saint Petersburg State University

Nuclease biosynthesis and growth of Serratia marcescens in the presence of 2-(p-aminobenzenesulfonamide)-thiazole

The biosynthesis of nuclease in Serratia marcescens has been studied under the conditions of purine synthesis inhibition with 2-(p-aminobenzenesulfonamide) -thiazole. The addition of this sulfonamide to S. marcescens at different growth stages is found to inhibit both culture growth and nuclease synthesis. © 2005 Pleiades Publishing, Inc

Person's Social Potential as a Method of Everyday Stress Reduction

AbstractThe present paper is focused on problems of social and psychological state of a person as a complicated characteristic of well-being. We implemented our research on the base of the concept of persons’ social potential. A person is abstract characteristics of social activity, which are typical reflections of relationships between dynamical social and psychological systems.The main supposition of the research concludes in a discovery of social way of thinking as a potential of social development of a person and society. In addition, we tried to describe the limits of this way of thinking. Empirical research is realized on the base of a questionnaire with quantitative and qualitative projective questions. Analysis is based on sociological research of the respondents of 16-34 years old, citizens of a big city, Ekaterinburg, Russia. On the base of empirical sociological research, we attempted to describe connection between self-estimations of psychological state and different aspects of person's potential. In this paper, we investigated some explanations of positive or negative emotional indicators on the base of person's social constructive or destructive characteristics, which are important for the development of a person and social systems

Formation model of information competence of bachelors specializing in mathematics & computer sciences

This paper considers the problem organizing the formation of information competence. It's the basis of professional competence of bachelors specializing in "Mathematics and Comput-er Science", who is the future of the industry of information technology. An educational model based on the use of aggregate pedagogical approaches: integrative, differential and personality-centered, profession-oriented and competency is proposed. The mechanisms contributing to the realization of each of the pedagogical approaches applied have been pointed out. The model is based on the use of active and interactive forms and methods of training, e-learning tools. Great importance is given to the development in students of all components of information competence: knowledge, operational-activity and personality. The educational experiment conducted by the authors jointly with the students of the Institute of Mathematics and Mechanics named after N. I. Lobachevsky of Kazan Federal University, studying computer disciplines, has shown the growth in number of students with a high level of development of each of the components of information competence on the average from 3.6% to 32% and reduction in number of students with low and very low levels of development of information competence from 70.1% to 16.2%. The obtained results confirmed by the statistical criteria of hypothesis testing prove the effectiveness of the proposed pedagogical model of forming information competence of bachelors who are preparing to work in the field of information technology, by e-learning tools

Contradictions in the Development of the Welfare Non-Profit Sector in Russia

Received 28 April 2023. Accepted 8 August 2023. Published online 6 October 2023.The article focuses on the core contradictions within the development of the social non-profit sector in Russia. The empirical basis of the study comprises statistical data, legal documents regulating the social services’ sphere, research data from previous studies conducted in Russia, as well as qualitative data collected for this study. The introduction provides background information on the stages of reforming the social service system in Russia. The first part is devoted to the contradictions between international trends and Russian patterns. In line with a neoliberal approach, non-profit NGOs play a significant role as key actors in social work providing social services for different client groups. At the same time, they are not independent and Russian civil society is not yet strong enough to realize social rights of citizens. In the next section, some of the key issues of interaction between the government and NGOs are discussed. An analysis of the current situation demonstrates that while a social partnership between the state and NGOs is affirmed by authorities on official level, in practice, the state still dominates the social sector. The article then focuses on how Russian NGOs have reoriented their efforts toward financial sustainability through government support.This work was supported by the Russian Science Foundation (RSF) under the project No. 19–18–00246-P, titled “Challenges of the transformation of welfare state in Russia: institutional changes, social investment, digitalization of social services”, implemented at St. Petersburg State University