The article reflects the results of a systematic analysis of scientific and technical literature for the purpose of studying the existing classifications of landslides and landslide processes, the reasons for the activation of landslides, as well as normative and traditional methods of calculating the stability of slopes. The constant need to attract new sites for construction leads to the active use of areas with difficult engineering and geological conditions, including landslide and landslide-prone areas. The use of such areas entails certain risks and is a complex engineering task. Solving this problem is impossible without a detailed analysis of the existing state of the slope and a forecast of its behavior under the influence of potential natural and man-made influences. Various classifications of landslides, landslide processes and landslide systems are considered in the article . It is noted that there is still no generally accepted classification of landslides, which is due to the difference in terminological and conceptual bases in different countries. The complexity and heterogeneity of the morphology and genesis of slopes, as well as a large number of natural and man-made factors that can affect it, actually make it impossible to develop a unified classification convenient for use in various cases. An analysis of scientific and technical literature was carried out in order to identify natural and technogenicfactors that have an impact on the development of shear deformations. The work considers normative and traditional methods of calculating slopes. According to normative documents, general requirements and recommendations for the calculation of landslide and landslide-prone slopes are given. The division of analytical methods into certain groups, performed by different authors, and a brief overview of the most common methods are considered. These methods have certain advantages and disadvantages, which determine the rationality of their application in various conditions.

The article deals with the issue of modelling shear processes in plastic soils. The peculiarity and main difficulty of modelling landslide processes is the need to take into account a large number of various natural and technogenic influences on the slope, each of which can significantly affect its overall stability. It is also important to take into account not only the current state of the slope but also the forecasting of factors that may affect it over time. In this case, it may be justified to create complex models that include several interconnected sub-models to describe various physical phenomena. Considering the complexity of calculations to determine the stability of the slope or shear pressure on engineering protection structures, it is not surprising that all calculation methods rely on some assumptions when building calculation models to describe physical phenomena and reduce the complexity of calculations. However, it should be noted that the modelling of the non-linear behaviour of soils and the use of models that more accurately describe physical phenomena and processes occurring on slopes can significantly affect the results of calculations. The article presents the main relationships of the mathematical model of elastic-plastic deformation of soils. The given ratios allow taking into account such phenomena as dilatancy and contraction, which makes it possible to more accurately model the stress-strain state of the soil medium, the distribution of pressure in the soil, taking into account the change in physical and mechanical properties during the deformation process. In the article, the finite element method is chosen as the most effective method of numerical modelling of shear processes. Certain aspects of the implementation of calculations based on a complex model and the justification for determining the coefficient of slope stability within the framework of this method are presented.