The study is based on the provision that citizens’ confidence in power determines the stabilityof the political and social system and is a prerequisite for the development of the country. Oneof the objects of sanctions pressure on Russia is the interaction of the state and civil society.The purpose of the study is to identify the effectiveness of the influence of Western sanctionson the level of political confidence of citizens in the Russian power, as well as to establish theincentive role of the media in this process. The direct and indirect, immediate, and thecumulative effect of sanctions causes both emotional and rational attitude of citizens to themand has positive and negative effects. The article concludes that under modern conditions,sanctions are more likely to strengthen than weaken the power; moreover, they strengthen theconfrontational worldview in society. However, the cumulative nature of the impact of sanctions, coupled with a deterioration in the lives of Russians and the accumulation of theiregocentrism, reduces the level of political confidence in the power and increases the risks of asocial explosion directed against the course of the reigning political elite.