Capitalist technology and socialist development

• Main Author: Muchie, Mammo
• Published: University of Sussex 1986
• Subjects: 320; Marxism and division of labour
• Online Access: http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.382455

This thesis is essentially about the theory of the transition to socialism and aims at comprehending the Soviet experience of attempting to re-mould the relations of production and the forces of production mainly at the level of Soviet labour processes. The main finding is that the Soviet Union was rich in debate in the 20s but short in actually pioneering new labour processes in the years of construction and accelerated industrialization. As a by-product of this larger project, the thesis has begun to demarcate the division of labour from technology by constructing models on the basis of their shared characteristics of efficiency, output, cost, control and welfare. It is argued- that an attempt to 'abolish' the fragmentation of tasks arising from the technical . division of labour would require a redirection of the physical organization of technology itself. The thesis emphasizes the importance not only the re-arranging of macro-societal-level social relations but also micro production unit level changes. The socialist project ought to include simultaneous interventions at the micro and macro levels of reality. It is suggested that despotic control at both the society and production-unit levels would hardly expand the emancipatory possibilities for labour. Nor democratization at one or the other level alone whilst keeping despotic control will do. Only simultaneous democratizations at the enterprise and society levels will make the socialist development attractive. The thesis concludes by stressing the need to reinstate democracy in relation to the organization of the labour process pointing out the responsibility of the Gorbachov leadership in relation to the democratization of Soviet society and enterprises.