MOSCOW, October 16. /TASS/. Almost three-quarters of Russian citizens (74%) believe that the trend of chidren identifying as animals, or quadrobics, should have parents worried, according to a survey published by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM).

The survey results indicate that "Russians are largely unanimous in believing that if a child shows an interest in quadrobics, parents should be concerned, with 74% sharing this view. This opinion is consistent across all socio-demographic groups, including 72-77% of parents with young children, rising to 85-87% among older generations."

The report indicates that one in two Russians (51%) do not want to see children acting like animals in public, with older people being more averse to this (62-68%). By contrast, zoomers and younger millennials view the new subculture more neutrally, with opinions ranging from 44% to 51%. Younger millennials are much more tolerant towards quadrobics, with only 19% of respondents saying they had a problem with these animal antics. Among parents of minors, 52-53% have a negative perception of the trend, while 30-33% are neutral, and 11% hold a positive view. Additionally, aversion towards this animal identification seems to depend on city size, with 61% in rural areas expressing negativity compared to 41% in Moscow and St. Petersburg.

According to the study, "Russians believe that children and teenagers' fascination with quadrobics stems from a number of sociocultural influences, with 35% attributing it primarily to social media and the Internet (15%), trends (7%), Western culture (6%), and mass media or the social environment (2% each), along with general susceptibility to copy what one sees (3%). The second factor identified is poor upbringing and education, cited by 32% of respondents. This refers to social institutions such as the family (16%), school (2%), and issues like lack of attention to young people (8%), permissiveness (3%), and a lack of culture or spirituality (3%)."

Many respondents (38%) support imposing restrictions on quadrobics, while 35% advocate for a complete ban. Zoomers tend to favor controlling the subculture, with 48% supporting this option, while younger millennials are more inclined to have a hands-off approach, with 37% expressing this view.

Quadrobics is an activity in which children and young people move on all fours to imitate the movements of animals, often using masks and fake tails to mimic creatures like foxes and wolves. This behavior has been met with confusion and sometimes animosity from those around them, leading to public debates about the movement.

The all-Russian telephone survey VCIOM-Sputnik was conducted on October 5, 2024 among 1,600 Russians over the age of 18. The maximum margin of error, with a probability of 95%, doesn’t exceed 2.5%.