The Perceptions of Students in Russia and Belarus About the Two Countries: an Ethno-Sociological Study

In 2018-2020, a sociological and ethnopsychological study of the image of Russia and Belarus from the point of view of students from the two countries was conducted in a number of universities in Moscow and Minsk. Given the current climate and sanctions pressure on Russia and Belarus, it was important to study how Russian and Belarusian youth react to the current conditions, how they perceive the image of Russia and Belarus, and what are the ethnic characteristics that the youth of the two countries ascribe to each other. In some cases, young people had a sense of pride and patriotism for their country. The features of the youth's ethnic identities in the two countries were also studied. The results showed that despite the difficult ethno-political situation in the world, the youth of Russia and Belarus demonstrated a positive attitude to their own nation and to their neighbor. Keywords: the image of Russia and Belarus, ethnic stereotypes of Russians and Belarusians, pride and patriotism, ethnic identity of Russians and Belarusian