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The CPSU and Its Members: Between Communism and Postcommunism

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 January 2009

Stephen White  and
Ian Mcallister
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Extract

Once dominant and unchallenged throughout the USSR, the Communist Party of the Soviet Union rapidly lost authority in the last two years of Soviet rule. Banned by Russian presidential decree after the failure of the attempted coup of August 1991, it was re-established in February 1993 and soon became the largest of the postcommunist parties. A 1992 survey of current and former party members as well as other Russians found that members were characterized by a relatively high degree of activism. They were disproportionately male, more affluent than non-members, and better provided with consumer goods. Younger respondents and religious believers were more likely to have left the party than their older colleagues. Those who still regarded themselves as party members were the most likely to oppose economic reform and support the collectivist principles of the communist era, particularly if they were activists; but the differences between members and non-members were not substantial, and both were found to hold generally pessimistic views on the postcommunist system. These findings suggest that, although former members will continue to be influential, CPSU membership is by itself likely to play a limited part in shaping the political direction of postcommunist Russia.

Type
Articles
Information
British Journal of Political Science , Volume 26 , Issue 1 , January 1996 , pp. 105 - 122
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1996

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References

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55 See, for instance, Mir mnenii i mneniya o mire, 10, No. 76 (09 1993)Google Scholar, a Russia-wide survey of the desired attributes of a future president.

56 Literaturnaya gazeta, 20 02 1991, pp. 1, 3.Google Scholar