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The chapter is devoted to analysis of the structure of regional identity. Topicality of this issue is caused by the processes of social differentiation of regions. The purpose of the research is to describe the factors of regional identity. Regional identity is predetermined by natural, geographical, socio-cultural, ethnic, and socio-political factors. Regional identity is viewed as a complex dynamic structure. It is analyzed on the basis of application of concepts of constructivism and symbolic capital. The authors come to the conclusion that dynamics of regional identity are determined by individuals’ evaluation of the conditions of the territory for satisfying the needs and implementation of life plans. This aspect is analyzed from the positions of the concept of constructivism. It is also concluded that dynamics of regional identity depends on attractive image of the territory and realization of its uniqueness. This aspect of regional identity is viewed as a symbolic capital, which stimulates the development of territory.

The chapter explores the image of the Soviet female spy in a variety of Bond films. Representations of Soviet women in these films are as intense as they are stereotypical. Tatiana Romanova (From Russia With Love, 1963), Anya ­Amasova (The Spy Who Loved Me, 1977), Pola Ivanova (A View to a Kill, 1985), the murderous dominatrix Xenia Onatopp (GoldenEye, 1995) and ­Natalya ­Simonova (GoldenEye) embody a combination of contradictory qualities. They are tough, strong, intellectual, successful and dangerous yet also feminine, ­sexual, beautiful and exotic. The presence of the dangerous communist seductress in Bond films petered out after the end of the Soviet Union.

This chapter also examines the origins of each of the stereotypes which seem to be a curious mixture of fantasy and reality of the fear and desire of the Western male gaze yet combined with elements of the Soviet ideology (for instance, the war on gender stereotypes in the Soviet Union and the heavy ideological emphasis on gender equality).

Purpose – This chapter examines how the kollektiv, a form of workplace organization established in the Soviet Union, continues to shape cultural expectations of work in post-Soviet Russia.

Methodology/Approach – This chapter describes a workplace ethnography conducted in a college department in Novosibirsk, Russia in 1999–2000 and 2002, with follow-up trips in 2005–2006. Participant observation is combined with interviews of teachers and students in the department.

Findings – The kollektiv established in the Soviet Union has persisted in modified form in post-Soviet Russia. Instead of a means of Party control, the kollektiv became popularly associated with the group cohesion that arises from frequent social interaction. This sense of cohesion, accompanied by attendant habits of sharing holidays with work colleagues, has persisted to varying degrees among adults in Russia today. Furthermore, the structure of the kollektiv has been maintained for students in schools and colleges, so that new generations of Russian youth are raised to expect to work in cohesive small groups. Their behaviors and expectations contribute to the persistence of the kollektiv in Russian society in the present and near future.

Originality/Value of the paper – This chapter makes two unique contributions: (1) it adds a focus on white-collar work to the predominantly blue-collar and service occupations studied in Russia to date and (2) it presents workplace ethnography of academics, a group rarely studied ethnographically.