sentences:  Between 1980 and 1990, culturology received official recognition in Russia and was legalized as a form of science and a subject of study for institutions of higher learning.After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, it was introduced into the Higher Attestation Commission's list of specialties for which scientific degrees may be awarded in Russia and is now a subject of study during the first year at institutions of higher education and in secondary schools.Defined as the study of human cultures, their integral systems, and their influence on human behavior, it may be formally compared to the Western discipline of cultural studies, although it has a number of important distinctions.