Tyranny, deprivation, and societal conflict have left their imprint on modern Russia. Particularly on Russian men. Russian men have had to endure many humiliations and hardships which have resulted in their loss of confidence and hope. Therefore, through necessity, Russian marriages have emerged as matriarchal units, organized and lead by Russian brides. Kazan brides have to do it all: work, raise children, shop, keep the house and make all decisions related to family welfare. Work in Russia is scarce and the possibilities for economic self sufficiency are few and far between. Over the years the value of Russian currency has eroded to almost nothing. The amount of stress and worry that this engenders certainly contributes to the wide spread alcoholism among Russian men and to the despair of Kazan brides.

  Consequently with the blossoming of the Internet the Russian brides phenomenon has exploded on the International dating scene. Kazan mail order brides have long had the powerful motivation to meet foreign men, and now have the perfect platform, the internet. The challenge of living in Russia forces women to be industrious. The economic situation is very marginal even for Russian men, and for Kazan brides who are second class citizens it is oppressive. Therefore women tend to learn to participate in the free market economy more readily than their men.