Zhelanij -1992- Ok.ru- — Identifikatsiya

In the context of early 1990s Russian psychology, "identification" did not merely mean "naming" a desire. It meant a deep, archetypal process of distinguishing your true, authentic needs from the imposed ideologies of the Soviet past and the sudden, overwhelming avalanche of Western consumerism.

In the vast, sprawling digital archives of the Russian social network (Odnoklassniki), there exists a niche yet fervently sought-after piece of content known only by the cryptic keyword: "Identifikatsiya Zhelanij -1992-" (Идентификация Желаний), which translates from Russian as "Identification of Desires." Identifikatsiya Zhelanij -1992- Ok.ru-

By Dmitri Volkov | Cultural Archivist

We search for this grainy recording because we hope that a psychologist in a smoky 1992 room answered a question we are still asking today: "How do I know what is truly mine to want?" In the context of early 1990s Russian psychology,

For the uninitiated, this string of text looks like a random assortment of technical terms. However, for collectors of post-Soviet esoterica, psychologists tracing the roots of Eastern European neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), and nostalgic millennials, this keyword is a gateway to a transformative audio or video recording from the chaotic, hopeful year of 1992. for collectors of post-Soviet esoterica