Brezhnev

Question 1

Kosygin

Answer 1

Aimed to set sales targets and encourage innovation and responsibility by giving incentive, take account of profit and loss BUT

Consumer wishes stayed low on priority list, light industry ran at a loss, prices decided centrally with no regard to need/profit

Question 2

Agriculture

Answer 2

Attempt made to integrate farms with rural industries and to link income to results

1976-1980 agriculture received 26% of state investment comp to 20% 1961-65

Question 3

Heavy

Answer 3

Didn’t feel the need to make industrial reform - limited to “developed socialism”

Official refusal to accept market based economy

By early 1980s, gross national product was at its lowest after continued decline

25% increase on military spending after the arms race

Question 4

Light

Answer 4

Black market provided goods the state didn’t - value estimated 20% of gross national product

Estimates run to over 100 billion roubles annually

Brezhnev allowed and even encouraged it

Question 5

Foreign policy -

Answer 5

Favoured peaceful coexistence- detente

But still took opp to expand global influence - by 1970 military spending was at USA level

Question 6

Politics

Answer 6

1981 - 4 members of the Politburo members of the Dnieper Mafia

Average age rose to 68

Central committee met only 12 times - little influence

Nomenklatura - maintained stability at all levels - less than 2% of pop on list

Party - once promotion within was gained, loyalty was further rewarded by dachas etc
Most reassured by B’s conservative attitude but some (Gorb/Yeltsin) wanted a more dynamic approach

Nationalities - Russification

Question 7

Social reforms

Answer 7

Sig educational advancements - those with higher education growing BUT hard to find jobs - blue collar worker often paid more

Life expectancy decreased as alcoholism increases

Real wages up 50%

Rise in infant mortality

Divorce rates high due to alcoholism

20% of workforce to hungover to work Monday

Women in lowest paid positions despite making up 45% of industrial workforce

Question 8

Dissidence

Answer 8

B approaches with careful conservatism - tolerated as it was not huge rebellious action

Sakharov - particularly sensitive case due to his international profile - opposed nuclear weapons

Arrested but not killed etc

Czechoslovakia grants reforms giving freedom of press - B worried they’d leave the Warsaw Pact - troops crush Prague springs - fuels dissidence

Helsinki records-35 countries - dissidence used to demand more freedom leading to increase of KGB severity

Question 9

“A refuge

Answer 9

For nostalgia” Keep

Question 10

“Encouraged

Answer 10

Corruption to a fabulous extent” Kenez