What is collectiveization?

Answer 1

• Collectivism is a term used to describe any moral, political, or social outlook, that stresses human interdependence and the importance of a collective, rather than the importance of separate individuals. Collectivists focus on community and society, and seek to give priority to group goals over individual goals.

• The philosophical underpinnings of collectivism are for some related toholism or organicism - the view that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Specifically, a society as a whole can be seen as having more meaning or value than the separate individuals that make up that society.

• Collectivism is widely seen as the antipole of individualism.

• Collectivism demands that the group be more important than the individual. It requires the individual to sacrifice himself for the alleged good of the group. Although different from altruism, collectivism complements it well. Altruism demands sacrifice for others, collectivism demands sacrifice for the group. Collectivism leads to altruism.

There is a problem, however. 'Collectivism' has very negative connotations and is widely used as a synonym of socialism - by opponents of socialism. I've never heard anyone describe himself or herself as a 'collectivist'.

The term "collectivism" means to give a group priority over the individuals in the group. This means that even though not everyone agree with what is being said, the majority will carry the vote.

Answer 2

Collectivization in the Soviet Union was a policy pursued under Joseph Stalin, between 1928 and 1940, in replacement of the failing New Economic Policy.

The goal of this policy was to consolidate individual land and labour into huge, more modern, Collective farms (in Russian these large, collective farms were called: колхо́з, better known as Kolkhoz, plural kolkhozy).

The Soviet leadership was confident that the replacement of individual peasant farms by kolkhozy would immediately increase the food supply for urban populations, the supply of raw materials for processing industry, and agricultural exports. Collectivization was thus regarded as the solution to the crisis of agricultural distribution (mainly in grain deliveries) that had developed since 1927. This problem became more acute as the Soviet Union pressed ahead with its ambitious industrialization program.

Answer 3

When Stalin made the privately owned farms in Russia publicly owned causing revolt from the wealthy land owning class. This was a step towards communism but a step backward for the economy of Russia causing widespread famine and poverty.