Abstract: The subject of this research is the socio-psychological mechanism of modern terrorism and its potential social consequences. The author examines the socio-psychological regulation of the phenomenology of terrorism. Special attention is given to the risks of public security due to the socio-psychological atmosphere of aggressiveness and escalated social proneness to conflict. Besides the statistical structure of the fear of terrorism, there exists its dynamic structure that includes the sequentially implemented stages of terrorist activity. The dynamic structure of such activity can be presented in form of social mechanism, which contains a sequence of stages or links of the common circuit of terrorist activity. The historical, forecasting, systemic-functional, and comparative-legal approaches comprise the methodological foundation of this study, which allows to comprehensively analyze the problem at hand. The theoretical foundation includes methodological positions and conclusions pertinent to the theory of the problem of terrorism, terror as a legal and political phenomenon, and interaction between the subject of counteraction of terrorist threats, contained in the works of Russian and foreign sociologists, political scientists, legal experts; as well as the materials of scientific discussions and conferences, information websites on the topic of counter-terrorism. The scientific novelty lies in identification of the socio-psychological mechanisms of terrorism as the risks of terrorist acts in society, which determinative essence consists in the socio-psychological atmosphere of aggressiveness and escalated proneness to conflict, intolerance, inhumanity and violence, extremism and fanaticism, mutual mistrust and hatred in people’s relationships, loss of moral compass, disregard to the existing legal and social norms, and fundamental breakage of the stereotypes of consciousness and behavior.

Keywords: terrorist act, terrorist organization, fight against terrorism, information impact, intimidation, terrorist threat, mechanism of terrorist activity, terrorism, state of anxiety, international terrorism

Abstract: This article presents the research results of ethnic, social and personal tolerance in the context of socio-psychological factors of interethnic relations. As a complex multilevel structure of interpersonal relations and multiculturalism, interethnic relations stems from studying the ethnic identity. General tolerance of a person represents a set of interaction and mutual influence of the personal, social and ethnic tolerance. The increasing personal, ethnic and social tolerance naturally leads to increase of the overall tolerance of a person. The qualitative and quantitative analysis of the typology of tolerance is conducted on the basis of psychodiagnostic method “Index of Tolerance” (G. U. Soldatova, O. A. Kravtsova, O. E. Khuhlaev, L. A. Shaygerova). The authors made the following conclusions: increase in the indexes of ethnic tolerance does not influence increase in the level of social tolerance, and vice versa. Tolerant attitude towards the representatives of other ethnic group or confession does not guarantee positive and welcoming relationship with the people belonging to other social group, political party, or age category.

Keywords: typology, interethnic relations, personal tolerance, social tolerance, ethnic tolerance, personality, tolerance, psychology, ethnic groups, tolerant attitude

Abstract: The subject of this article is the structure and functions of the system of social governance with regards to vocational guidance in the general education institutions on the example of Moscow. Social governance of vocational guidance is viewed as the system of interrelated elements, which pointedly influence the process of students’ professional self-identification. It encompasses the targeted and systematic multilevel activity on organization and control of training process of the subjects to professional choice in accordance with the personality, interests and affinities, considering the demands and potential of the society. The scientific novelty lies in development of the structural-functional model of social governance of vocational guidance, consisting of several stages (“personality”, “general education institution”, “socio-professional groups”, “municipal administrative structure”); at each of these stages, the subjects of vocational guidance fulfill the specific interrelated functions. Practical implementation of the formulated from the perspective of systemic approach principles of social governance of vocational guidance, allows to substantially improve the regulatory, methodological, and information support of the governance of vocational guidance in general education institutions.

Keywords: structural and functional model, social management, system approach, career guidance process, career guidance space, career guidance, professional self-determination, pupils, labor market, secondary school

Abstract: The object of this research is the legislation in Russia and Singapore regulating the sphere of reproductive technologies, as well as sociocultural attitude of the population towards the use of such technologies, reflected in social orientations, including those expressed by religious organizations. The subject of this research is the similarities in legislation of Russia and Singapore, as well as social orientations with regards to the sphere of reproductive technologies. The goal of this work lies in comprehension of parallelism in regulating the sphere of reproductive technologies of Russian and Singapore, and proposal of an original explanation to this phenomenon. Methodology contains the approaches, principles and analysis of the regulatory acts, statistical demographic data and content analysis of the rhetoric about the use of reproductive technologies. The scientific novelty consists in determination of the fact that both countries have a remarkable resemblance in legal regulation of the sphere of reproductive technologies and social orientations (opinions) pertinent to implementation of such technologies. The legal regulation of surrogacy In Russia or Singapore cannot be considered objectively effective. In both, Russia and Singapore, there is noticed circumspection and indifference within the sociocultural perception of reproductive technologies, as well as the doubts in cultural legitimacy of their implementation. A hypothesis is put forward, according to which, the similarity between Russian and Singapore with regards to surrogacy is explained by the common legal and cultural Eurasian heritage of the Russian and Singaporean cultures.

Keywords: family legislation, family, gender stereotypes, gender legislation, gender, Singapore, Russia, surrogacy, reproductive technologies, sociocultural attitudes

Abstract: This article examines the fundamental concepts of social perception and social cognition; describes particular scientific approaches of these theories. The author expounds the patterns and vectors of social cognition, as well as the correlation between social cognition, discourse and power. It is asserted that cognition contains the important social aspects, which should be considered in the theory off social cognition. Modern approaches towards social cognition demonstrate the absence of clear cognitive theory of structures and processes of social perceptions alongside the suitable social theory. The author underlines the possibility of uncapping the structures and strategies within the terms of general patterns of cognitive attitude and particular situation models, as well as demonstrated how these structures are substantiated by their social functions. The discourse about society is controlled by such patterns and models, as well as by the models of communicative context that explain the strategic nature of such dialogue.

Keywords: interpretation, social performance, cognitive relationships, social schemes, discourse, power, Social cognition, structured approach, psychological concepts, reasoning

Abstract: This article explores the state of thesis works on sociological sciences. Focus is made on determination of genre specificity of thesis works. Special attention is given to identification of merits and demerits of  thesis research. Based on the analysis of thesis works defended over the period from 2016 to 2017, it is concluded that their number increases in the selected academic fields, but the quality does not always meet the high standards. On the other hand, it is noted that the sociologists remain committed to the traditional sociological topics – the institutions of education and family, problems of studentship, Internet, and communications. Dissertators most often refer to the regional experience of functioning of the selected social institutions or flow of certain social processes. The research conducted at interdisciplinary level are also common. The article demonstrates that the genre specificity of thesis works consists in correspondence of the conducted research to the overall trends of development of sociological knowledge. At the same time, the anti-genre of thesis work on sociology depends on the specific characteristics of the object-subject space of research, and not always in any ways is related to the scientific crisis or certain condition of sociological discipline.  

Keywords: dissertation defense, dissertation advice, sciencе, the genre of the thesis, the dissertation, Sociology as a sciencе, sociocultural process, methodology, epistemology, interdisciplinarity