Document Information
The Operational Code of the Politburo
Theoretical frameworks that examine a political actor’s personal characteristics and how they affect the foreign policies of their respective states are useful tools for analysts, researchers, and historians. One of the most widely used frameworks has been operational code analysis, introduced by Nathan Leites in this seminal RAND Corporation volume, The Operational Code of the Politburo. Originally published by McGraw-Hill in 1951, it was the inaugural publication in what was then called “The RAND Series” and later became known as RAND’s commercial books series, a collection of monographs which aimed to make RAND’s groundbreaking research available to the public. In that spirit, and to celebrate RAND’s 60th Anniversary, RAND is proud to bring this classic work back into print in paperback and digital formats. The Operational Code of the Politburo was part of a major effort at RAND to provide insight into the political leadership and foreign policy in the Soviet Union and other communist states; the development of Soviet military strategy and doctrine; and the organization and operation of the Soviet economy. This immense body of research has had an influence and impact beyond U.S. national security, as the techniques and methodological tools have been refined and extended to new analytic challenges.
Support RAND Research — Buy This Product!
Paperback Cover Price: $20.00
Discounted Web Price: $18.00
Pages: 118
ISBN/EAN: 978-0-8330-4221-7
Free, downloadable PDF file(s) are available below.
RAND makes an electronic version of this document available for free as a public service. If you find this information valuable, please consider purchasing a paper copy of the full document to help support RAND research.
Use Adobe Acrobat Reader version 7.0 or higher for the best experience.
Contents
Chapter One:
Predictability and Unpredictability
Chapter Two:
Orientation on the Past and Toward the Future
Chapter Three:
Means and Ends
Chapter Four:
The Calculus of the General Line
Chapter Five:
The Control of Feelings
Chapter Six:
Effective Action
Chapter Seven:
Perseverance and Flexibility
Chapter Eight:
Organization
Chapter Nine:
The Danger of Dependency
Chapter Ten:
The Danger of Being “Used”
Chapter Eleven:
Isolation and Contact
Chapter Twelve:
Deception
Chapter Thirteen:
Violence
Chapter Fourteen:
The Danger of Annihilation
Chapter Fifteen:
Conduct in Defeat and Victory
Chapter Sixteen:
Advance
Chapter Seventeen:
Exertion of Pressure
Chapter Eighteen:
Resistance to Attack
Chapter Nineteen:
Retreat
Chapter Twenty:
Deals
Periodically, RAND Corporation researchers publish with commercial presses. These books are not available from RAND but can be requested directly from the publisher, except in cases where the rights have reverted to RAND and we have republished a new edition.
Permission is given to duplicate this electronic document for personal use only, as long as it is unaltered and complete. Copies may not be duplicated for commercial purposes. Unauthorized posting of RAND PDFs to a non-RAND Web site is prohibited. RAND PDFs are protected under copyright law. For information on reprint and linking permissions, please visit the RAND Permissions page.
The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit research organization providing objective analysis and effective solutions that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors around the world. RAND's publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors.
Top
RAND® is a registered trademark. Copyright © 1994-2008 RAND Corporation. 