Social portrait of the self-employed (based on materials from sociological research in the city of Barnaul)

The article is devoted to a comprehensive study of the social portrait of self-employed citizens using the city of Barnaul as an example. The relevance of the topic is determined by the rapid growth of the number of self-employed individuals in Russia and their increasing role in forming a flexible labor market, while regional aspects of this social group remain under-researched. The subject of the study encompasses the socio-demographic characteristics, material conditions, professional trajectories, and motivational factors of self-employed residents of Barnaul. The aim of the work is to create a comprehensive social portrait of this group, identify its specifics, and determine the key factors influencing the success of professional activities within this status. The empirical basis was a sociological study that provided representative data for analysis and verification of theoretical propositions. The main method of data collection was surveying. The sample consisted of 100 respondents – residents of Barnaul with official self-employed status. The survey allowed for the gathering of representative quantitative data for constructing the social portrait. The scientific novelty of the research lies in the empirical construction of a comprehensive social portrait of the self-employed within the specific regional context of Barnaul. Key findings indicate that the typical representative of this group is a person aged 30-40 (51%) with a higher education (55%), in an unregistered relationship (44%), and having a work experience of 1 to 3 years in self-employment (55%). It has been established that the leading motivations for choosing self-employment are not so much economic necessity as the desire for self-realization through a favored activity (63%) and the value of autonomy – the ability to work with a flexible schedule (55%) and remotely (62%). A direct correlation has been identified between the duration of status, income level, and psychological satisfaction. The results of the work have practical significance for regional authorities and employment services in developing targeted programs to support and stimulate self-employment, as well as for educational institutions in terms of developing soft skills that are critically important for success in independent professional activities.