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- For the descriptive terminology as used in anthropology and psychology, see Collectivist and individualist cultures. For the anarchist political philosophy known as "collectivism", see collectivist anarchism. For the magazine, see Collectivism (magazine).
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."Collectivism." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2006. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Collectivists focus on community and society, and seek to give priority to group goals over individual goals. Collectivism is often based on a view of human beings as "social animals", who need the companionship and support of others of their kind in order to survive and thrive. Collectivists oppose individualism and its focus on individual autonomy and will, arguing that it is impossible to free oneself from the influence of society without becoming a hermit. Collectivists believe that society shapes many aspects of an individual's personality, and that individualistic attempts to separate individuals from society and from each other can be psychologically or even physically harmful. From philosophy, collectivism finds it underpinnings on holism (or organicism): a society as a whole, has more meaning or value than that of the individuals that make up that society. It is thus opposed to individualism (atomism).
Collectivism can be further divided into "horizontal collectivism", wherein equality is stressed and individuals are largely interwoven with their in-group, and "vertical collectivism", wherein people submit to authorities and are willing to sacrifice themselves for what they see as the greater good of the collective.
Politics
Some consider an early example of collectivist political philosophy to be Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Social Contract, which maintains that human society is organized along the lines of an implicit contract between members of society, and that the terms of this contract (e.g. the powers of government, the rights and responsibilities of individual citizens, etc.) are rightfully decided by the "general will" - that is, the will of the people. This idea is part of the philosophical foundation of democracy.
However, this interpretation of political collectivism as democracy is not universally agreed upon. For instance, George Orwell defined collectivism as a philosophy that empowered a minority of individuals:
"It cannot be said too often - at any rate, it is not being said nearly often enough - that collectivism is not inherently democratic, but, on the contrary, gives to a tyrannical minority such powers as the Spanish Inquisitors never dreamt of."George Orwell, Collected Essays
Economics
Generally speaking, collectivism in the field of economics holds that things should be owned by the group and used for the benefit of all rather than being owned by individuals. Central to this view is the concept of the commons, as opposed to private property. Some collectivists apply this principle only to the means of production, while others argue that all valued commodities should be regarded as public goods and placed under public ownership.
Collectivism in economics may or may not involve a state as a manager and steward of collective property. For instance, anarcho-communists, who argue for the immediate abolition of government, wish to place all goods under collective ownership. In 1876, at the Florence Conference of the Italian Federation of the International, where the principles of anarcho-communism were first laid out, it was stated:
"The Italian Federation considers the collective property of the products of labour as the necessary complement to the collectivist programme, the aid of all for the satisfaction of the needs of each being the only rule of production and consumption which corresponds to the principle of solidarity."
Collectivist societies
There are many examples of societies around the world which have characterized themselves or have been characterized by outsiders as "collectivist".
On the one hand, there are the Communist states, which have often collectivized most economic sectors (and agriculture in particular). On the other hand, there are Israeli kibbutzim (voluntary communes where people live and farm together without private ownership), and communities such as the Freetown Christiania in Denmark (a small anarchist political experiment centered around an abandoned military installation in Copenhagen; Christiania has laws abolishing private property).
Democracy, with its emphasis on notions of social contract and the collective will of the people, has been characterized by some as a form of (political) collectivism.
Anti-collectivism
The term collectivism tends to be used more by people who oppose collectivist ideas than by those who support them. As such, "collectivism" often carries pejorative connotations.
Opposition to collectivism comes from those political and philosophical circles that are most closely associated with individualism. This includes most schools of liberalism (particularly classical liberalism), together with libertarianism and anarcho-capitalism. Supporters of Objectivism — Ayn Rand and many people influenced by her — claim that collectivism is fallacious in theory and immoral in practice. They further argue that many or most political ideologies (other than Objectivism itself) are forms of collectivism or at least contain significant collectivist elements.
Anti-collectivists often argue that all authoritarian and totalitarian societies are collectivist in nature.
Notes
See also
Kollektivismus | Collectivisme politique | קולקטיביזם | Collectivisme | 集団主義 | Kollektivisme | Коллективизм | Колективизам | Kollektivism
"Collectivism"