The Ethics of Civic Participation under Conditions of Digital Control: Volunteer Networks of Navalny’s Headquarters as a Space for the Formation of Political Subjectivity (2017–2023)

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Abstract

This article analyzes the internal motivations and ethical orientations of volunteers in Navalny’s headquarters during the period 2017–2023. The study examines volunteer networks as a space for the formation of civic subjectivity under conditions of increasing legal and digital control.

Based on the analysis of public materials, interviews, and observational data, the research demonstrates that participation in the headquarters’ activities was perceived by many participants not primarily as political activity in the narrow sense, but rather as a moral choice and a form of personal responsibility.

Special attention is devoted to the transformation of motivations after 2021, when the designation of the organizations as extremist significantly changed the legal status of participation and increased the risks faced by volunteers.

The study shows that even under conditions of heightened pressure, mechanisms of solidarity, mutual support, and the reinterpretation of civic identity continue to persist.

Keywords:

volunteerism; civic subjectivity; political motivation; digital control; ethics of participation; Russia; 2017–2023

Author: Veronika Golovatenko
ORCID: 0009-0005-0112-6873

International Journal of Interdisciplinary Research
Volume 5, Issue 1 (2024)

Reviewers:
Nikolai Fedenev
ORCID: 0009-0004-5073-195X

Suren Manukyan
ORCID: 0009-0003-5460-1848

DOI: pending

Full Text (PDF)

The_Ethics_of_Civic_Participation_under_Conditions_of_Digital_Control

Full Text (PDF) Russian

Этика_гражданского_участия_в_условиях_цифрового_контроля

References

Academic Studies and Theoretical Sources

  1. Bagramyants, N. L. (2023). Features of the Russian volunteer movement: historical retrospective and contemporary practices. RUDN Journal of Sociology.
    https://journals.rudn.ru/sociology/article/view/35228
  2. Erpyleva, S. (2024). Protest event, political culture, and biography. Palgrave Communications.
  3. Pavenkov, O. V., Pavenkov, V. G., & Rubtcova, M. V. (2015). The concept of “altruism” in sociological research: conceptualization and operationalization. arXiv.

Studies and Reports on Volunteerism and Civic Participation

  1. Wikipedia contributors. (2023). Navalny Headquarters. Wikipedia.
    https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Штабы_Навального
  2. NPR. (2018, March 9). Russia’s opposition leader is organizing volunteers to act as election observers.
    https://www.npr.org/2018/03/09/russias-opposition-leader-is-organizing-volunteers-to-act-as-election-observers
  3. openDemocracy. (2021, April 23). “People’s solidarity brings you to tears”: volunteers talk about their work.
    https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/odr/protest-volunteers-in-russia-talk-about-their-work/

Historical and Social Context of Participation

  1. The Moscow Times. (2013). Navalny’s campaign relies on innovation.
    https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2013/08/21/navalnys-campaign-relies-on-innovation-a26992
  2. Wikipedia contributors. (2023). Navalny Headquarters.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navalny_Headquarters
  3. Navalny’s Campaign 2018. (2018). Campaign history.
    https://2018.navalny.com/en/
  4. Bagramyants, N. L. (2023). Russian volunteer models and the political-social context — discussion of the relationship between volunteerism and political structures.

Additional Sources for Context

  1. Anti-Corruption Foundation (ACF). (n.d.). History of the Anti-Corruption Foundation.
    https://fbk.info/en/history
  2. Wikipedia contributors. (2023). OVD-Info.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OVD-Info