Networks in Opposition: Linking Organizations through Activists in the Polish People's Republic

Abstract

Explores changes in the informal networks of overlapping memberships between opposition organizations in Poland between the 1960s and the 1980s. When civic organizations are subject to severe constraints, as in Communist regimes, informal networks are particularly important as alternative sources of resources. There, networks not only operate as micro‐mobilization contexts but also provide the basic infrastructure for civil society. The chapter explicitly takes the time dimension into account, using individual affiliations to chart the evolution of networks over time, and offering an accurate reconstruction of changes in the Polish political system and the emergence of a strong democratization movement.

The Impact of Social Ties on Coalition Strength and Effectiveness: The Case of the Battered Women's Movement in St Louis

“…In order to assess the cohesiveness of members' relationships, social movement scholars have often followed the practice common in network theory of using quantitative measures, such as the number of overlapping organizational memberships or the frequency of contacts between members (see, e.g. Rosenthal et al, 1997;Ansell, 2003;Osa, 2003;Park, 2008). What the present study shows, however, is that the quality of relationships among coalition membersincluding the degree of trust, the type of information that is shared, and the presence of conflict-solving mechanisms -is a crucial factor in determining whether or not a coalition can endure in the face of conflict and achieve its goals.…”

Catholic Versus Communist: An Ongoing Issue—The Role of Organizational Affiliation in Accessing the Policy Arena

“…Overall, there is a prevailing position of the Catholic group both in Kielce and in Turin, although the Italian case recalls a bipolar system, while the Polish recalls a hegemonic one. As is evident in Kielce, being of Catholic stock is an asset for an organization, which includes both social capital (social networks and contacts even from the times of Solidarność) (Osa 2003) and symbolic capital (Linz and Stepan 1996); indeed, the group average centrality is definitively higher (Preposition 1b). The same is true also in Turin but for a different reason.…”

“…While Poland suffered a Communist regime and a change in its territorial configuration after the end of WWII, the same does not apply to Italy. Nonetheless, in both countries, the Catholic Church acted as a catalyst for the formation of groups in the first stage of civil society formation (late nineteenth century for Italy and early twentieth century in Poland) and anchorage during the Cold War (Moro and Vannini 2006;Osa 2003). In addition, the Communist legacy is radically different in the two countries: while Polish post-Communist rhetoric still persists, the situation in Italy is more nuanced.…”

“…As Osa (2003) points out, this period was a time when the ideological, political and above all social background for Solidarność was created 4 thanks to the establishment of the first oppositional organizations (KOR-Workers' Defence Committee, Human and Citizen Rights Defence Committee). The subsequent period was characterized by a more open clash around the Marshall Laws (1982)(1983)(1984)(1985)(1986)(1987)(1988)(1989).…”

Structural Approaches in the Sociology of Social Movements

“…As Wuthnow (1998) (e.g., Burstein et al 1995;della Porta and Rucht 1995;Kriesi 2004;Rucht 1996) also argue for greater attention to the interplay between movements' "alliance" and "conflict" systems. Indeed, for most movements, cultivating allies that can help counteract the power of adversaries constitute the bulk of social change efforts ( e.g., Diani 1995Diani , 2004Maney 2001;Osa 2003;Polletta 2002;Rochon 1998;J. Smith forthcoming;Winston 2004;Wood 2004).…”