Blurb:

This chapter explores data gathered among young adults in Russia and Finland in light of the Durkheimian notion of the “sacred individual”. This notion is grounded in the contention that accelerating modern-day processes of individualisation and pluralisation have given rise to a situation where the personal autonomy, rights and self-determination of the individual have accrued non-contingent, “sacred” status. By identifying and exploring Russian and Finnish respondents’ scores on a smaller set of Faith Q-Sort (FQS) statements – referred to as the “sacred individual subset” – the chapter explores the extent to which the FQS data can be used to empirically test and elaborate on broader theoretical perspectives. In so doing, it also aims to demonstrate how the mixed-methods data can usefully be approached and analysed from multiple theoretical perspectives. The FQS analyses are further combined with the Finnish and Russian interview data in order to further illustrate how the notion of the sacred individual provides a particular lens for making sense of respondents’ repeated emphasis on the importance of respecting and tolerating the viewpoints and outlooks of others.