Opinion: Ratings, corruption, and the president When asked, most Russians say they support Putin because of how they understand the question
In a recent editorial for the newspaper Vedomosti, sociologist Alexey Levinson confronts skepticism about national surveys in Russia that regularly show Vladimir Putin's high approval ratings. According to Levinson, a leading researcher at the Levada Center, interpreting polls requires understanding how Russians perceive the questions asked in surveys. Critics tend to misunderstand, he argues. Meduza translates Vedomosti's text here.
The most discussed and criticized result of the Levada Center's regular sociological studies is Vladimir Putin's so-called “rating.” What you're actually seeing is the percentage of respondents who chose a positive answer to the question: “Do you generally approve or disapprove of Vladimir Putin's actions as president of the Russian Federation?” In Russia, it's considered good form to express doubts about this measure (and all the other studies conducted by the Levada Center).
Those who don't accuse us of direct falsification say that people are obviously afraid to express disapproval of Putin, and they argue that the center's sociologists don't take this into account. So let's assume that the majority of Russians—80 percent or so—really do rate Putin positively out of fear. But there's still that 17 percent of the country that answers, “I disapprove.” If they're acting out of bravery, why do the Russians who grew up under Soviet power risk expressing their disapproval of Putin twice as often as the younger generation that was spared the USSR's whip? Why is disapproval higher in small towns, than in big cities? And why do the poor disapprove more than the wealthy? You can't explain it with fear. (There isn't any fear.)
In one of the last such surveys, Levada asked the public: “Do you think Vladimir Putin bears responsibility for the levels of corruption and financial mismanagement in the highest echelons of power in Russia?” For those who believe that Russians' attitude about the commander in chief are such that they're incapable of thinking, let alone saying, anything critical about him, here's a newsflash: 26 percent said that Putin bears “complete” responsibility, and another 33 percent added that he carried “significant” responsibility. All told, a majority of Russians—59 percent—hold Vladimir Putin responsible for corruption.
And it's important to clarify that this isn't the product of the “Panama Papers.” Only 40 percent of Russians have even heard of the Panama Papers, and two-thirds of those who do know about them say they “aren't interested.” And most respondents (56 percent) say they haven't heard anything about them. Regardless, this isn't the first time we've measured these attitudes about the president's responsibility for corruption in the government. We learned then what we confirm today: the majority of Russians generally approve of Vladimir Putin's performance as president, despite the fact that they hold him responsible for corruption (and for other domestic policy problems). This is one of the main features of the disputed indicator we know as Putin's “rating.”
It seems the word “generally” is key in the formulation of both the survey question and the respondent's answer. It transfers the subject's expressed approval from the tangible actions of the president as a state official to his function with respect to the whole, which of course is Russia itself. And then the answer comes to mean something much more—something like, “I support Russia!” And that's why the popularity of this response doesn't drop because of domestic troubles in Russians' daily lives. But more people will give this answer, if the masses believe that Russia is increasingly feared—and therefore respected—around the world.
And the 17 percent of Russians who “generally disapprove” of Putin's job performance are not the “opposition” or the “fifth column”; these are the people who understand the question literally and not in an abstract sense. These are the people who think it's more important to ensure the wellbeing of your fellow citizens than to strike fear into others' hearts. But these people are the minority.
This text was translated from Russian by Kevin Rothrock.