Public Opinion Formation and Group Identity: The Politics of National Identity Salience in Post-Crimea Russia
Journal: Problems of Post-Communism
Year: 2020

The sociological, group-based factors of public opinion formation are often omitted from models of public opinion that rely on survey methodology. This study employs social identity theory and focus group interview technique to demonstrate the value-added from an alternative approach to the issue of opinion formation in authoritarian regimes. The empirical focus is on public opinion in post-Crimea Russia. The focus group interviews conducted in 2016 in two Russian cities reveal the effects of na