Deck 8: The Rise and Demise of State Socialism

Question 1

According to Sanderson and Alderson:

A) there has been no socialist world-economy comparable to a capitalist world- economy
B) the Soviet Union has acted like a "socialist core" and exploited its "socialist periphery" in Eastern Europe
C) the socialist nations have reflected patterns of economic specialization similar to those within world capitalism
D) none of these

Answer 1

there has been no socialist world-economy comparable to a capitalist world- economy

Question 2

The so-called socialism of Scandinavia:

A) departs radically from what Marx meant by socialism
B) is, economically speaking, more like capitalism
C) is reformist rather than revolutionary
D) all of these
E) none of these

Answer 2

all of these

Question 3

Chase-Dunn and other world-system theorists argue that the industrialized socialist states:

A) engage in commodity production for a world market and have extensive dealings with capitalist transnational corporations
B) form a separate socialist world-economy
C) are engaged solely in the production of use-values
D) are part of the capitalist periphery

Answer 3

engage in commodity production for a world market and have extensive dealings with capitalist transnational corporations

Question 4

The history of stratification in the Soviet Union suggests that:

A) capitalist and socialist societies have always had very similar levels of stratification
B) stratification levels increased consistently and markedly since 1930
C) stratification levels consistently fell after 1917
D) stratification levels rose and fell in different periods of Soviet history

Question 5

Which of the following statements would Sanderson and Alderson regard as correct?

A) the Soviet Union was a more economically closed but politically open society than the United States
B) the Soviet Union was a more economically open but politically closed society than the United States
C) the Soviet Union was economically open to about the same extent as the United States
D) none of these

Question 6

According to Kornai, one of the major underlying causes of the economic problems faced by the state socialist societies was the:

A) emphasis placed on the quality rather than the quantity of goods
B) practice of allowing prices to be determined by consumer demand
C) emphasis placed upon the production of consumer goods
D) practice of bureaucratic planning in the absence of market principles

Question 7

Sanderson and Alderson suggest that perestroika:

A) involved only minor economic tinkering
B) was rooted largely in a strategy of elite self-preservation
C) failed
D) was a manifestation of a decades-long reintegration of the Soviet Union into the capitalist world-economy

Question 8

In the disagreement between Szymanski and the world-system theorists regarding the nature of state socialism, Sanderson and Alderson:

A) take a largely middle-ground position that inclines somewhat toward the world- system position
B) support the world-system position
C) support Szymanski
D) support neither Szymanski nor the world-system theorists

Question 9

Sanderson and Alderson attribute the transition to postsocialism to:

A) a shift in emphasis in the state socialist societies toward the production of consumer goods and, more generally, toward "market socialism"
B) deteriorating economic conditions within the state socialist societies and the external constraints imposed on them by the capitalist world-economy
C) the production of an increasingly large surplus by the state socialist economies and the desire of lower strata to share in this surplus

Question 10

Frank Parkin sees the major division within state socialism as that between the intelligentsia and the rest of society. Others argue that the real cleavage in such societies was:

A) the same as that in the capitalist societies i.e., the division between workers and capitalists)
B) that between ethnic groups i.e., between Russians at the top and the various non-Russian ethnic groups at the bottom)
C) that between a small proportion of the intelligentsia i.e., the nomenklatura) and everyone else
D) the same as that in agrarian societies i.e., the cleavage between landlords and peasants)

Question 11

When the levels of income inequality in state socialist and industrial capitalist societies are compared, it appears that:

A) state socialist and industrial capitalist societies actually have similar levels of inequality
B) state socialist societies actually have higher levels of inequality than industrial capitalist societies
C) state socialist societies have significantly lower levels of inequality than industrial capitalist societies

Question 12

Christopher Chase-Dunn has argued that socialist states within the capitalist world- system tend either to be by that system or :

A) crushed; pulled back into line as capitalist states
B) co-opted; forced into isolation
C) peripheralized; brought into it as core societies
D) colonized; brought into it as semiperipheral societies

Question 13

Szymanski's position on contemporary state socialism differs from Chase-Dunn's:

A) only on certain minor points
B) in that Szymanski regards the state socialist societies as largely embodying the Marxian conception of socialism
C) in that Szymanski is a Marxist
D) in that Szymanski is much more conservative

Question 14

In state socialist societies:

A) all forms of property are owned and controlled by the state
B) the state controls the means of economic production and manages the economy
C) a form of social life very close to Marx's conception of socialism prevails
D) all of these

Question 15

The state socialist societies:

A) are genuinely classless as their leaders have suggested
B) have social classes essentially like those found in capitalist societies
C) have social classes but of a sort rather different from those found in capitalism
D) have been so little studied that the question of their possible classlessness cannot yet be answered

Question 16

According to Chase-Dunn, the existence of the capitalist world-economy has:

A) not influenced the development of socialism in the state socialist societies
B) had a significant positive influence on the development of the state socialist societies
C) constrained the development of socialism in the state socialist societies
D) made the development of socialism impossible

Question 17

Chase-Dunn and other world-system theorists regard the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe as:

A) socialist, but not exactly as predicted by Marx
B) "post-revolutionary societies" that are neither capitalist nor socialist
C) socialist in much the sense envisioned by Marx
D) semiperipheral parts of the capitalist world-economy

Question 18

Which of the following constitutes) important differences between the stratification systems of capitalist and state socialist societies?

A) the state socialist societies have a narrower range of income inequality
B) the dominant class in state socialist society is different in nature and composition from the dominant class under capitalism
C) the state socialist societies have higher rates of social mobility
D) all of these

Question 19

Szymanski supports his view of the industrialized socialist states by arguing that:

A) they trade far more among themselves than with advanced capitalist states
B) they have made only very small investments in capitalist societies
C) the economic arrangements they make with capitalist nations are usually made on terms favorable to themselves
D) all of these
E) two of these

Question 20

The absence of market principles in state socialist societies is evidenced in the:

A) semimonetarized character of the economy
B) totalitarian character of the political system
C) large size of the state sector
D) continued existence of small-scale artisans

Question 21

In their book The Black Book of Communism, Courtois et al. estimate that Communist regimes throughout the world since 1917 led directly to the deaths of about:

A) 10 million people
B) 100 million people
C) 30 million people
D) 2 million people

Question 22

Concerning the future of stratification in postsocialist societies, it is almost certain that:

A) economic disparities will virtually vanish
B) inequalities in income and wealth will grow as these societies become more capitalistic
C) common ownership of the means of production will end class distinctions
D) any economic disparities that exist should level off and become rather trivial

Question 23

According to The Black Book of Communism:

A) approximately 100 million people have died in Communist regimes as a result of state repression
B) the situation created by the Leninist regime in Communist Cambodia was so horrible that people were reduced to cannibalism and eating spiders
C) though the extremes vary, all Communist regimes have engaged in some form of political repression
D) all of these

Question 24

The Communist regime that has been most closed to the rest of the world and the most vigorous in its ideological indoctrination of the masses was/is:

A) Nicaragua
B) Cuba
C) Poland
D) North Korea

Question 25

Sanderson and Alderson suggest that the recent political upheavals in Eastern Europe were:

A) "people's revolutions" begun in order to introduce democracy
B) "revolutions from above," i.e., revolutions initiated by a segment of the political elite
C) possible because the Soviet Union relaxed its political and military domination of Eastern Europe
D) all of these

Question 26

Sanderson and Alderson argue that the Communist states of Eastern Europe should not be referred to as "Marxist." This is because these societies:

A) failed to abolish alienated labor
B) failed to create a classless society
C) failed to produce a highly democratic state
D) two of these
E) all of these

Question 27

The Communist regime that was responsible for the greatest number of deaths in the twentieth century was:

A) China
B) the Soviet Union
C) Cambodia
D) Cuba

Question 28

The highest ranking social class in the old Soviet Union was the:

A) working class
B) proletariat
C) lower-middle class
D) nomenklatura

Question 29

Which of the following were state socialist societies before 1989?

A) the Soviet Union, Poland, and Czechoslovakia
B) Sweden, Norway, and Denmark
C) West Germany, the Netherlands, and France
D) Ethiopia, South Africa, and Nigeria

Question 30

The difference between state socialist and postsocialist societies is that:

A) postsocialist societies are those that developed after 1989
B) state socialist societies are found only in the Third World
C) postsocialist societies are "beyond communism," that is, they are developing toward a higher form of socialism

Question 31

Perhaps the biggest problem facing a potential future socialist society is:

A) the errorless nature of capitalism
B) the basic tendencies of human nature
C) the rise of a highly authoritarian socialist world state

Question 32

Randall Collins and David Waller attribute the collapse of Communism to:

A) a "state breakdown" rooted in the overextension of the Soviet "empire"
B) the delegitimation of the Communist state
C) the moral decadence and decay of the Communist system
D) the will of the masses for a different kind of social and economic system

Question 33

According to Sanderson and Alderson, our best hope for a future society is likely to be:

A) capitalism based on completely free markets
B) a global socialist system
C) a return to agrarian societies but with more emphasis on economic equality
D) "capitalism with a human face," as in northern European countries

Question 34

Which of the following do Sanderson and Alderson identify as important causes of the collapse of socialism in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe?

A) overcentralization of production
B) no economic planning
C) the economic, political, and military constraints on socialism exerted by a hostile capitalist world-economy
D) two of these

Question 35

Sanderson and Alderson suggest that perestroika:

A) has involved only minor economic tinkering
B) has been rooted largely in a strategy of elite self-preservation
C) is the latest manifestation of a decades-long reintegration of the Soviet Union into the capitalist world-economy

Question 36

Sanderson suggests that the collapse of Communism can best be characterized as the result of a:

A) "peoples revolution," or uprising or rebellion on the part of the masses
B) "revolution from below" initiated by a small segment of the disenfranchised
C) "revolution from above" initiated by one segment of the elite against another
D) "revolution from outside" initiated by the leading core capitalist powers

Question 37

The deterioration of the postsocialist economy of Russia in the 1990s has been largely the result of:

A) the rise of an economic oligarchy that did nothing to create economic development
B) poorly planned privatization attempts by Western neoliberals
C) corrupt Soviet state structures that stifled new market growth
D) all of these

Question 38

Perestroika was the economic reform program established by Mikhail Gorbachev in the mid-1980s. It was devoted to:

A) moving the Soviet Union in a more capitalistic or market-oriented direction
B) making the Soviet Union more democratic
C) enhancing the power of the Communist Party

Question 39

According to Chase-Dunn, the existence of the capitalist world-economy has:

A) not influenced the development of socialism in the state socialist societies
B) had a very positive influence on the development of the state socialist societies
C) constrained the development of socialism in the state socialist societies

Question 40

When the levels of income inequality in state socialist and industrial capitalist societies are compared:

A) state socialist and industrial capitalist societies actually have similar levels of inequality
B) state socialist societies have higher levels of inequality than industrial capitalist societies
C) state socialist societies have lower levels of inequality than industrial capitalist societies

Question 41

According to Sanderson and Alderson, glasnost should be seen as a political strategy geared toward facilitating the success of perestroika.

Question 42

Marx thought that the antagonism between capitalists and workers so common in capitalist societies could be overcome by simple economic and political reforms.

Question 43

Sanderson and Alderson refer to the old Soviet Union and its former Eastern European satellite countries as postsocialist societies.

Question 44

Until the 1970s, state socialist societies had higher mobility rates than capitalist societies.

Question 45

Inequalities of income and wealth have become more pronounced as the former state socialist societies have moved toward capitalism.

Question 46

According to Janos Kornai, one of the most important distinguishing features of state socialist economies is the absence of a market principle for determining wages and prices.

Question 47

The state socialist societies have undergone a gradual process of reincorporation into the capitalist world-economy over the past two or three decades.

Question 48

Janos Kornai has viewed the state socialist economies as permanent shortage economies.

Question 49

The political and military domination of weaker socialist countries by stronger ones is often mistaken for exploitation.

Question 50

Sanderson and Alderson believe that the Soviet Union and most of the Eastern European countries developed genuine Marxist states.

Question 51

There is no disagreement among social scientists about the economic character of modern state socialism.

Question 52

Sanderson and Alderson hold that the recent political changes in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe are tied to the economic changes these regions have experienced as a result of their gradual reincorporation into the capitalist world-economy.

Question 53

Private property in the Soviet Union was, at least up to 1991, eliminated in the face of extensive nationalization of the means of production.

Question 54

The dominant class in state socialist societies has a character that is distinct from that of capitalist ruling classes and thus should not be strictly compared to it.

Question 55

There are few important differences between the stratification systems of socialist and capitalist societies.

Question 56

The Soviet economy was never successful in any way at any stage of its development.

Question 57

Although important differences do exist, privileged classes in both capitalist and state socialist societies have considerable success in transmitting advantages to their children.

Question 58

Chase-Dunn argues that there is little difference between the state socialist nations and the Western capitalist nations in terms of their internal economic organization.

Question 59

Sanderson and Alderson claims that perestroika was not designed to move the Soviet economy in a capitalistic direction; rather, it was designed to democratize that economy.

Question 60

Sanderson and Alderson attribute the major difficulties that state socialist economies experienced in the 1980s entirely to the internal economic limitations of socialism.

Question 61

Despite privatization and the serious moves toward capitalism that the postsocialist societies of Eastern Europe have taken in recent years, the organization of the
economy in most of these societies remains a complex mixture of the old state socialism and the new capitalism.

Question 62

Krishan Kumar argues that the "revolutions of 1989" that delegitimized Communism and removed the Communist Party's monopoly of power were fundamentally
"people's revolutions."

Question 63

What is the nature of Leninist regimes? Why have such regimes characterized all state socialist societies?

Question 64

Discuss carefully Szymanski's and Chase-Dunn's contrasting positions on the relationship of the state socialist societies to the capitalist world-economy. Who do you think has the better argument here, and why?

Question 65

Were the contemporary state socialist societies, prior to 1989, really socialist? Discuss in detail.

Question 66

Was there a ruling class in the old Soviet Union? Is there a ruling class in postsocialist Russia? Discuss.

Question 67

According to Kenneth Jowitt and Daniel Chirot, modern Leninist regimes have been characterized by such features as monopolization of political power by the Communist Party and a close regulation of the daily lives of citizens.

Question 68

Most countries that have adopted a state socialist economic system have been located in the less-developed world.

Question 69

Sanderson and Alderson explain the collapse of Communism in economic terms.
The internal economic difficulties of socialism combined with the external
pressures of the capitalist world-economy to create massive economic stagnation.

Question 70

The Soviet Union and other state socialist societies have generally fulfilled Marx's prediction of a classless society.

Question 71

Discuss the distinctive features of state socialist economies as these are portrayed by Janos Kornai.

Question 72

Privileged classes in both capitalist and state socialist societies have considerable success in transmitting advantages to their children.

Question 73

Sanderson and Alderson argue that, with the destruction of Communism in the old Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, the prospects for stable democracy in this region of the world are excellent.

Question 74

The transition to so-called postsocialist societies began in 1989 in Eastern Europe and in 1991 in the Soviet Union.

Question 75

There is a great deal of optimism among scholars that a formal democracy will emerge in postsocialist societies in the near future.

Question 76

Discuss the nature of stratification in state socialism and the extent to which it validated the official socialist position of "nonegalitarian classlessness." What has been happening to state socialist stratification systems with the shift to postsocialism?

Question 77

Immanuel Wallerstein suggests that capitalism will collapse in approximately fifty years and be replaced by a global socialist system.

Question 78

According to Kenneth Jowitt and Daniel Chirot, modern Leninist regimes have been characterized by such features as monopolization of political power by the Communist Party, close regulation of the daily lives of citizens, and a formal commitment to the development of a highly industrialized society.

Question 79

What was perestroika, and why did it emerge when and where it did?

Question 80

Randall Collins and David Waller explain the collapse of Communism in terms of geopolitical principles. The Soviet Union overextended its empire and after a certain point could no longer afford to sustain it.