Rumors in international sociology and social psychology: basic theoretical approaches

The paper discusses main stages of evolution and contemporary state of rumor problematic in international academic tradition. Particularly, attention is paid to classification, current approaches to factors of rumors spread and trends in changing contents of information in social environment. Some prospects for further studies of rumor phenomenon are defined. Thus, it appears feasible to look into specifics of dialogical interaction of persons spreading unconfirmed information in order to better understand its nature.