Research as a way to develop commitment to the city: Evidence from Omsk students

Abstract

Educational activities can be used as a tool to develop a positive connection with the place of residence. The reported study aimed at forming a positive identity of a city dweller. In particular, it aimed to facilitate the dynamics in the commitment to the city and to assess the predictive features of migration attitudes of study participant. The hypothesis was that students in the experimental group will show a stronger commitment to the city, while the prediction of migration attitudes will be associated with commitment and urban identity. The sample included 111 students of Dostoevsky Omsk State University (18 and 93 people in the experimental and control groups, respectively). A formative experiment (March–June 2023) was used as a research method. As part of the study, participants completed projects on urban identity, commitment, citizen well-being, and migration attitudes and presented the results at scientific conferences. The applied aspect of the study is the development and implementation by students of educational practices related to the development of urban identity at city and regional events. At the diagnostic stage, the intensity of commitment to the city did not have significant differences between the experimental and control groups; at the final stage, the project participants showed higher indicators of a future associated with the city. Their level of commitment through involvement in the life of the city remained the same, while it decreased in the control group. For project participants, the coefficient of determination of migration attitudes in terms of loyalty and involvement is higher than that of the control group, confirming the strengthening of the emotional connection with the city and the effectiveness of psychological influences.