Russians favor conservate ideology not because they long for the Soviet Union, but because they are searching for national identity, Nikolay Mironov, the director of the Institute of Priority Regional Projects, told RIA Novosti on Friday.

Denying the country's Soviet past was typical for Russians in the 1990s, Mironov said, before coming to the realization that liberal and neoliberal beliefs are foreign to them in both an economical and ideological sense.

"It was the beginning of a search for a unified timeline of Russian history. More and more people began to prefer conservative ideology, but not in the sense of turning the clock back to Soviet times, rather in the continuity and interconnectivity of history," Mironov said.

"Some people are starting to realize their preferred ideology could be characterized as a conservative one. It's an ideology of a moral majority, one that takes a guarded position toward sexual and ethnic minorities and is respectful of national history and identity," Mikhail Remizov, the President of the Institute of National Strategy in Moscow, said.

Russians favor conservatism unconsciously for now, and the popularity of President Vladimir Putin plays a role in their choice, Remizov noted, adding that it would take some time for this latent choice to become conscious. Conservative ideology has become more popular during last the last 10 years, a poll conducted last month by the All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion (VTsIOM) showed.

According to the poll, 48 percent of Russians have conservative views, which 11 percent more than in 2003. Over 56 percent of Russians think that conservative ideology not only saves traditions, but also helps contribute to the gradual, stable improvement of the county.