printMutual Perception of Russia and China by Public Opinion of the Two Countries in the Long-Term Perspective
Li Qin
Cand. Sci. (Phil.), Assoc. Prof., Institute of Foreign Languages, Center for Regional and Area Studies, Southeast University, Nanjing, PRC chineseli@mail.ru
Babich N.S.
Cand. Sci. (Soc.), Senior Researcher Institute of Sociology of FCTAS RAS, Moscow, Russia; Assoc. Prof. RUDN University, Moscow, Russia sociolog@mail.ru
The work of N.S. Babich was carried out within the framework of the State Assignment: EGISU 125032004271-7; the work of Li Qin carried out with the assistance of the fund for supporting the best young scientists of the Southeastern University of PRC (project No. 2242024RCB0045).
Li Qin, Babich N.S. Mutual Perception of Russia and China by Public Opinion of the Two Countries in the Long-Term Perspective. Sotsiologicheskie issledovaniya [Sociological Studies]. 2026. No 7. P. 76-88
The article is devoted to a comprehensive study of the processes of forming mutual moods and perceptions of Russia and China over the past 25 years. The main problem is the need to understand the achieved level of stability of the positive image of each country among the population of the other country, as well as the analysis of the influence of media sources on the dynamics of the internal perception of interstate interaction. The purpose of the study is an empirical justification for the choice between hypotheses about the systemic nature of factors that contribute to the formation of positive relations between peoples, or about the nature of this relationship. The work uses interdisciplinary research methods: a systematic review of sociological survey data, content analysis, correlation analysis. Particular attention is paid to the systematic formation of positive sentiments, checking their stability and causal autonomy from political propaganda. The novelty of the study lies in proving the relative sustainability of the positive attitude of public opinion, as well as in demonstrating the significant autonomy of this attitude from media sentiment. The relevance of the work is due to modern international politics, the need to build trust between countries and the development of effective communication strategies. It was concluded that positive attitudes between countries are the result of long-term changes in sentiment. However, it is likely that the perception of Russia in China is developing independently of media coverage and requires more targeted efforts to form a positive image.
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