Strategic Imperatives for Economic Development of Small Cities Based on the Spiral Dynamics of Residents’ Values

Abstract

The article examines the influence of the population’s value orientations on the choice of economic development strategies for small cities. Many researchers emphasize the interconnection between the social field (P. Bourdieu), cultural codes (A.A. Auzan), trust factors (F. Fukuyama), and the results of entrepreneurial activity in a territory, as well as its level of economic development. The research hypothesis posits the possibility of measuring the population’s value orientations as one of the key factors in selecting economic development measures for a territory. The study is based on the theoretical and methodological framework of Spiral Dynamics, which distinguishes eight levels of citizens’ value orientations that can transform from lower to higher levels throughout the life. The aim of the study is to identify the value levels of the population in six small cities of the Ivanovo region (Palekh, Gavrilov Posad, Yuryevets, Rodniki, Teikovo, Shuya), their common and distinctive features, which should form the basis for developing economic development measures aligned with the prevailing value orientations. Data collection was conducted via an electronic questionnaire on the Anketolog platform, with a total of 1663 valid responses from six cities. The findings contribute to the theory of endogenous territorial development based on residents’ values and to theories of social development by proposing mechanisms for incorporating public opinion into targeted state interventions for regional socio-economic development. The practical significance of the work lies in substantiating approaches and scenarios of accounting the differences in population value orientations, which is critical for designing effective social and economic development strategies, as managerial decisions that ignore the dominant values of the population are highly likely to be met with resistance or misunderstanding.