New Factors of Social Differentiation in Local Rural Communities

The paper addresses the social consequences of proliferation of innovation practices in local rural communities. Particular attention is paid to the susceptibility of different rural social groups to mastering innovations in the fields of production, consumption and leisure and to the impact of proliferation of information and computer technologies on social differentiation processes.  

  The paper is based on the results of the sociological surveys of the processes of proliferation of and familiarization with innovation practices in local rural communities conducted by the Institute of Agrarian Problems of the Russian Academy of Sciences in one of the Russian regions (Saratov’s oblast) in 2010-2011with personal involvement of the author.

Despite the remaining differences between the city and the countryside in terms of availability of modern opportunities and technology, rural residents are increasingly active in mastering innovation goods and practices. The advancement of modern technology per se does not cause the existing differences to blur, but, on the contrary, gives rise to new forms of differentiation, notably to “digital inequality” not only between the city and the countryside, but inside local rural communities as well.   

  The analysis of the empirical data allowed:

- identify the features of propagation of individual innovative practices, high-tech goods and services in local rural communities;

- identify the principal social groups, differentiated by frequency of use of innovative practices in the fields of production, consumption and leisure;

- make a comparative analysis of the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of these groups, their life and work strategies;

- propose ways to provide equal access to the new knowledge and skills required for mastering new technologies to different social strata and groups of rural population.