The Image of Islam and Muslims in the Perception of Modern Students

Introduction. Today, the need for peaceful interfaith dialogue in the Russian Federation is publicly emphasized. However, its provision is hampered by a complex of problems related to attempts to form a negative image of Islam and Muslims among citizens. Monitoring of this image among students of Russian universities is of particular importance. Despite the existence of several surveys conducted on similar topics in universities in the regions of Russia, monitoring requires updating with a focus on current political trends. The purpose of the study is to analyze the image of Islam and Muslims in the minds of students of the Financial University, taking into account the current political conditions. Methods. The study was conducted in the fall of 2024 at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation (Moscow). The students were proposed to fill out an online questionnaire. The final sample consisted of 215 respondents. To determine the results, qualitative, correlation, and comparative analysis, as well as k-means cluster analysis, were performed. Results. The key sources of information influencing the formation of the image of Islam and Muslims among students have been identified. The lack of awareness of some students about Islam and its representatives was confirmed, including their lack of understanding of the difference between the terms “Islam” and “Islamism”, as well as the stereotypical perception of Muslims as more aggressive than representatives of other religions. It is shown that, in general, the situation of the prevailing neutral attitude of students towards Islam and Muslims and the desire to overcome prejudice against them remains. At the same time, the majority of respondents have not changed their opinion about Muslims in recent years. Communication with friends and colleagues has a significant impact on improving students’ opinion of Islam and Muslims. Conclusion. It seems important to conduct empirical sociological research with similar issues in other universities as well, which would allow us to form a more complete picture of student religious sentiments in modern Russia.