Factors of Exclusion in Small Groups within the Framework of the Big University of Tomsk

This article is dedicated to the phenomenon of exclusion among small groups of students at the Big University of Tomsk. Researchers classify academic groups of students as small groups whose members are united by common social activities and are in direct personal contact. It is the basis for the emergence of emotional relationships, group norms, etc. This article studied, through a sociological survey, the factors of exclusion in the academic groups of the Big University of Tomsk. In addition, the authors attempted to identify the relationships among the factors underlying this phenomenon. This study was conducted on the basis of a survey elaborated by psychologist Masim Shulmin. The survey consisted of 61 questions with three possible answers: “never”, “sometimes”, and “always”. The authors grouped these questions into nine factors of exclusion: auto aggression, external aggression, group aggression, isolation, conformism, non-conformism, mistrust, low self-esteem, rejection, and restlessness. The authors then calculated the percentage of answers to each question for each factor. Option “sometimes” cannot tell us anything, so the authors looked at two other options: “never” and “always”. The research revealed the following conclusions. Respondents showed low rates of auto aggression, conformism, and nonconformism. The students demonstrate a high level of external aggression, but they are not ready for active violence, only for verbal abuse. The most distressing factors revealed were low self-esteem, misturst of society, and high levels of restlessness. Although we can explain these results by the specialties of the students’ age, they can be the basis of exclusion. Students with low self-esteem, as well as distrustful and restless students cannot integrate themselves into their academic groups, so the risk of exclusion is increasing. The authors believe that it is at these points that social risks can be hidden, which in the future, if not paid attention to, can lead to unpleasant excesses. However, in general, the situation at all universities is relatively favorable.