  This article addresses the question of the relevant conceptualization of
{\guillemotleft}altruism{\guillemotright} in Russian from the perspective
sociological research operationalization. It investigates the spheres of social
application of the word {\guillemotleft}altruism{\guillemotright}, include
Russian equivalent {\guillemotleft}vzaimopomoshh`{\guillemotright} (mutual
help). The data for the study comes from Russian National Corpus (Russian). The
theoretical framework consists of Paul F. Lazarsfeld`s Theory of Sociological
Research Methodology and the Natural Semantic Metalanguage (NSM). Quantitative
analysis shows features in the representation of altruism in Russian that
sociologists need to know in the preparation of questionnaires, interview
guides and analysis of transcripts.
