The majority of Russians say they have a negative view of the end of the Soviet Union, regretting its collapse, according to a sociological survey conducted late last year by the Levada Center polling agency. The leader who dissolved the USSR and birthed the Russian Federation, Boris Yeltsin, also has few fans today. Just 14 percent of the country evaluated his presidency positively, while 56 percent said his term in office did more harm than good to the country.

Support for Yeltsin diminishes as his presidency progressed, according to Levada's survey. For example, 25 percent of Russians say they have a positive attitude about Yeltsin's first election in 1991, though only 20 percent say they welcomed his reelection in 1996.

Levada has been polling Russians about their attitudes on Yeltsin for over a decade. Since immediately after Yeltsin's resignation, roughly the same number of Russians (between 15 and 20 percent, with one spike to 26 percent in May 2007) have expressed a positive attitude about his presidency's impact on the country. Perceptions that Yeltsin's tenure hurt Russia more than it helped it have ranged from 47 to 75 percent. Over the past 16 years, Russians have become slightly less likely to say Yeltsin hurt Russia and slightly more inclined to refuse to answer the survey question.

Since 1992, the Levada Center has asked Russians if they regret the dissolution of the Soviet Union. In March 1992, 66 percent of Russians said yes, they did regret it. After spiking in December 2000 to 75 percent, that figure dropped to 49 percent in December 2012. In November 2015, it stood at 54 percent. In that same survey, 37 percent of Russians said they do not regret the collapse of the USSR—the highest this figure has ever been.