The collapse of the Soviet Union: A study of demokratizatsiia

This thesis proposes a framework for understanding the mechanism used by the ruling elites of the Soviet Union for nearly seventy years to control social involvement in politics and assure the leading role of the Communist Party in the system. The questions to which the model addresses itself are: what was the structure of interaction between state and society in the Soviet Union, how did the state seek to harmonize spontaneous social activity with state goals to attempt to ensure a stable social order, and under what conditions was this not possible. The argument of the thesis is that the mechanism for elite control broke down during the latter years of perestroika, culminating with the August 1991 coup and following which a fundamentally new type of regime was introduced in several of the successor states of the former Soviet Union. The underlying cause for the collapse of the regime was loss of legitimacy coupled with elite fragmentation, making it impossible for forceful reimposition of the old order. The final chapter briefly considers topics for future research with an emphasis on the Slavic and Baltic states.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

History, European

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2011

Author dc:creator

• Clark, Terry Dee

Contributors dc:contributor

• Kanet, Roger E.

• History, European
• Political Science, General

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 1992 Clark, Terry Dee

Language dc:language

eng

Identifier

AAI9236433
(UMI)AAI9236433

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/23563