In this article, the authors propose that a comparative analysis of the political values of societies that have a developing democracy and societies that have existed for a considerable length of time under the conditions of a democratic regime will make it possible to discern differences in the correlation of political values that are characteristic of a particular social class. In their study, Russia serves to represent the country with a democratic regime taking shape (this is of priority interest to Russian researchers), while Germany and the United States represent developed democratic states. The choice of the United States is due to the fact that it is a federal republic in which a major portion of the executive branch powers is delegated to the president, and where the role of the individual in the shaping of domestic and foreign policy is hard to overestimate. Germany has been selected as representative of Western continental Europe, since it has a form of government that is different in comparison with the other countries: it is a parliamentary republic, and at the same time it has close cultural and historical ties with Russia. For the purpose of making the comparative analysis the authors have chosen social status as the indicator of social class, on the assumption that it is a functionally equivalent category in the societies in question, since the classification of social and professional statuses properly reflects their structure. A comparison of political values in Russia, Germany, and the United States shows that while there are similarities, Russian respondents are much more in favor of government providing for people's needs than is the case in Germany and the United States. In all three countries, values vary from stratum to stratum. (Contains 1 table, 3 figures, and 10 notes.) [This article was translated by Kim Braithwaite.]