Dynamics of the Cultural Benefits Provision to the Russian Population (2000—2019)

The article studies the dynamics of the cultural benefits provision to the Russian population from the point of view of the main functional types in the period of 2000—2019, and develops proposals to overcome the existing imbalances. The study is aimed at determining the composition of indicators that characterize the population’s provision with conditions and services in the field of culture; forming a database of five functional types for the period of 2000—2019; selecting the methods of analysis, as well as analyzing the dynamics of the cultural benefits provision to the Russian population; assessing the positive effects and negative consequences of the cultural institutions network optimization. To this end, the article analyzes the statistical data of the Main Information and Computing Center of the Ministry of Culture of Russia, examines the legislative acts regulating the state guarantees of providing the population with cultural benefits. For each functional type (theaters, concert organizations and independent groups, museums, libraries, cultural and leisure institutions), the authors select the indicators that characterize conditions and services in the field of culture and compare them with the indicators of attendance and demand for the services by the population. The article applies an indicative model using the methods of horizontal (temporal), vertical (structural) comparative analysis. There is revealed that, firstly, the dynamics of the cultural benefits provision to the Russian population during the specified period was uneven in terms of functional types; secondly, the measures to improve the efficiency of cultural budget expenditures led to some positive changes in the conditions of provision. At the same time, there were certain imbalances in the form of a decrease in the provision of cultural benefits to the population and reduced opportunities for participation in cultural life due to some unreasonable optimization of the network of libraries and cultural and leisure institutions. The study concludes that the identified negative trends can be neutralized by creation of new cultural development centers, active introduction of mobile forms of cultural services and inclusive forms of working with people with special needs, modern digital technologies, development of cultural and educational tourism, volunteerism.