The Professional Culture of Russian Engineering and Technical Specialists

Abstract

This article addresses universal elements in the professional culture of engineers and technical specialists, who demonstrate an ideology of working insistently and tirelessly, masculinity, rationality, an aesthetic appreciation for technical solutions, and a gravitation toward creative work. The theoretical framework is provided by the works of Soviet and Russian sociologists of labor and employment, as well as foreign publications on engineering culture; data used are from semi-formal interviews. The article concludes that there are Russian specifics within the phenomenon being examined: on one hand, elements of the culture of Soviet engineers and technical specialists, and on the other hand, characteristics of behavioral models and professional communication transmitted by global corporate standards.