QUALITY OF LIFE OF A YOUNG FAMILY: A SOCIOLOGICAL ANALYSIS (BY THE EXAMPLE OF THE CITY OF GUBKIN)

ABSTRACT

The article is devoted to the quality of life of a young family. The main directions of assessing the quality of life of a young family are considered. An analysis of the quality of life of a young family in the city of Gubkin was carried out. Some data from a study of the satisfaction of young families with their quality of life are presented.

Keywords: objective indicators of quality of life, subjective indicators of quality of life, quality of life of a young family.

Introduction

The study of the quality of family life is currently of particular interest in sociology. This phenomenon can be explained by the processes of transformation of the institution of the family. Researchers use two directions to assess the quality of life of a young family. Objective indicators include: socio-economic, geographic (urban and rural young families), social status, the level of employment of young spouses, the level of education, the level of social security.

Main part

Indicators for assessing the subjective quality of life are:

• self-assessment of the quality of life as an integral phenomenon;

• self-assessment of happiness;

• self-assessment of life satisfaction;

• balance of positive and negative emotions [1].

The quality of life of a young family is largely characterized by its way of life, the arrangement and level of comfort of the place of residence, as well as the distribution of responsibilities between family members [2].

So, the quality of life of a young family is a complex characteristic, including the study of the objective and subjective conditions of life of a young family.

An exploratory sociological study was conducted to analyze the quality of life of young families in the city of Gubkin. The object was members of young families living in this city. A total of 60 respondents were interviewed, among them 53% of women and 47% of men, 69% were married from 1 to 3 years, 26% from 3 to 5 years, and the remaining 7% for less than a year.

An important indicator studied by us is the material security of young families. The quality of life to the greatest extent depends on material satisfaction, and less than half (41%) of respondents are satisfied with this indicator, the rest are either not satisfied at all (39%) or found it difficult to answer (20%).

The most pressing issue for young families is housing. Only a small part of young families has the opportunity to purchase their own living space without burdening themselves with debt obligations. During the survey, 9% of young families answered that they have their own housing, 23% have housing purchased on a mortgage. And 43% rent a dwelling, the rest of the young families are forced to live with close relatives.

It is interesting how young people themselves assess their quality of life. Rated eight points out of ten by more than half of the respondents. 37% of respondents rated five points, 8% of representatives of young families were not satisfied with the quality of their lives, and only 3% were completely satisfied.

A very similar situation is observed with the subjective assessment of one's own happiness. It is difficult for them to express an unambiguous opinion. Most of the respondents believe that they are more likely to be happy than not (60%), the rest found it difficult to answer.

Conclusion

The results of the analysis allow us to draw some conclusions - the housing issue remains the most relevant for young families. Many young families do not have enough personal funds to buy a living space, so they have to either take out a mortgage or look for other ways to live. Of course, such conditions have a negative impact on the satisfaction of young families with the quality of life. As for the subjective assessment of the quality of life, the psychological component is the basic criterion in its study, so young people need to be assisted in improving this indicator.

References:

1. Animitsa, E.G. The quality of life of the population of the largest city [Text] / E.G. Animitsa. - Yekaterinburg: USUE, 2013. - 408 p.
2. Matskovsky, M.S. A young family in a big city [Text] / M.S. Matskovsky. – M.: Knowledge, 2014. – 352 p.