Background. Thestudy explores the potential predictors of the collective action in the context of contemporary social and civil movements. Classical socio-psychological models of social movements focus on the concept of social identity, i.e. collective identity and have difficulty explaining a sudden upsurge of popular demonstrations in the world (from mass demonstrations in Russia till “Yellow vests” movement in France). 

Objective. The research aims to identify a latent criterion of the identification with the protest movement which can be situated within the social space only at the moment of people assemblies. 

Design. According to the literature review, the authors suggest that the collective experience of precariousness, representing the people’s vulnerability in existing social and political order can be a latent identification criterion of social and civil movements. In the research, we subjected the data of semi-structured interviews with the activists of Russian civil movements to the Jonathan A. Smith's method of interpretative phenomenological analysis. 

Findings. As a result of the qualitative analysis of the interviews, the main features that manifest the collective experience of precariousness were identified. The collective experience is performed through the views of the civil movements activists in Russia in the 2010s: 1) Participation in demonstrations s identified with the particular state; 2) Experience of injustice as stepping out the comfort zone; 3) Intention to change social order; 4) Handling the fear of punishment; 5) Deception and lost illusions. 

Conclusion. Precarity becomes a predictor of collective action only in the case if it becomes a collective experience of a community, a formal assigning to the precariat class is not enough for collective mobilization. The understanding of how the collective experience of precariousness is identified with new social movements uncovers perspectives for further research.

The first part of the paper describes an approach to understanding social maturity and operational criteria for its estimation. In general, social maturity is defined as the willingness of an individual to take responsibility for developing his/her community. Social identification with broad social communities is an integral component of social maturity. The paper presents the results of the age analysis (intra-subject factor) and the analysis of psycho-pedagogical conditions (inter-subject factor) which facilitate the appearance of «I - person» social identity in the mental representation of a person. Inter-individual trajectory of social maturity development passes through a number of «points». At the age of 7 a person has a typical position of «I» identity; during adolescence the teenager reaches the point of the «Person» identity, whose qualities may differ from those of a child. By the age of 25 more than third of young people has acquired the «I-person» identity. Recreation of psycho-pedagogical conditions in primary schools, development of children’s cooperation, development of children’s ability to communicate with different participants of the educational process, actualization of different levels of social identity are the factors that allow to found the basis of the «I - person» identity in two thirds of the participants of the experiment. The results are stable over a long period of time (18-year).

The second part represents the analysis of the specific features of mental self-representation effect on the subsequent social and psychological development of a person. Correlation analysis between the indices of the categorical structure of texts written on the same issue by the same authors at the age of 7 and then 25 years has revealed the types of empirical ways to form social maturity. These types include: «I - for the Company», «I – for others», «I - for the family,» «I –for an activity» and «I - for myself.» The ways to form social maturity are widely shown in the paper according to these types.

Longitudinal study is focused on inter- and intra-subject factors that define the dynamics of social formation during maturity, i.e. the period from the primary school age to the age of early adulthood. Inter-subject factors are considered to be the conditions of educational environment created in the course of the pedagogical experiment. Features of human mental representation of him/herself and the world are defined in the study as intra-subject factors. The longitudinal study, which continued for 18 years, has been conducted in several directions: the comparison of the two phases of the study; intra-individual analysis of the dynamics of participants’ social development; defining the stability a person’s self-representation in a long-term perspective.

The first part of the study represents the typical age group «points» of social development, the development of one’s identification with humanity («I - person») in particular. It is typical for a 7-9 year old to experience the lack of “I-person” identity; during adolescence there are two coexisting images in the mental self-representation: «I» and «Person»; by the age of 25 the «I - person» identity is formed by approximately 40% young people. It has been discovered that specially organized pedagogical conditions contribute to the actualization of identification with the human community; moreover, under certain conditions the «I - person» identity of can be actualized at the primary school age. The age of 7-8 years is considered to be the sensitive period for the formation of social identity. Once formed the identity appears to be stable, and retains for the coming decades.

The second part represents the analysis of the specificity of mental self-representation’s effect on the subsequent social and psychological development of a person. This approach allows to distinguish the directions of social maturity development and to describe empirical intra-subject ways to form social maturity between 7-25 years.

The results have theoretical significance for the developmental psychology and educational psychology. They aim is to create the periodization of person’s social development; define sensitive periods of social identity in the mental representation that contributes to social and personal maturity, and also psychological health. Identified patterns can be used in social development of elementary school, which should be based on inter-subject factors of social maturity.

The role of education as a social institution in society is shown. The tasks of national education system at the present stage of rapid change in social consciousness are analyzed. The ways of modernization of national education with the aim of turning it into a resource to reduce social risks and social conflicts motivated by xenophobia, migrant-phobia, social aggression and intolerance are discussed. The necessity of introducing a system of education programs to ensure the development of tolerance, religious tolerance, civic patriotism and social identity among younger generation is shown.

The principles of building tolerant attitudes in the Russian society which are developed on the basis of the social constructionism methods, evolutionary and cultural and historical approaches to the study of complex systems, concepts of social action and social risk are outlined. The theoretical and practical requirements of modern society are thoroughly and comprehensively analysed.

The basic domains of qualitative social psychological research, namely social representations, social identity, attitudes, values and ideology, collective memory, the psychology of the environment are considered. Based on the fact that the range of problems of modern social psychology is largely determined by the so-called “social cognition paradigm” the author puts forward an idea about the psychology of social cognition, i.e. everyday consciousness, its functions, values, specific features of studying. The relation between theory and method in psychological research in the context of cognitive, linguistic and historical “turn” in the history of social psychology is discussed. The definition of qualitative research in the paradigm of social cognition is given.The theory of social representations by S. Moscovici is analysed. The cases of qualitative research carried out in the paradigm of this theory, as well as studies of social identity, attitudes, values and ideology, are reviewed. A theory of discourse is outlined and the author’s own method of discourse analysis is worked out. The author also dwells on the subject of innovation in social psychology. New directions of qualitative research development related to spatial and temporal aspects of social cognition are set, that is the way of “vital” environment and the collective (social) memory.

To sum up, the conducted theoretical and methodological analysis of the subject areas of qualitative research in psychology allows us to consider the relationship of subject and method. Thus, the definition of the subject of qualitative research is the starting point of the discussion of methodological problems.