LESSONS FROM THE ‘WILD EAST’ 287in ‘ brown fi elds ’ (existing organizations) than in ‘ green fi elds ’ (new
start - ups). Time after time, senior management told stories of violent
eruptions in the workforce. Strikes, destruction of equipment, and
violent behavior vis - à - vis senior management were listed as some of
the manifestations. Closer analysis showed that these eruptions were
often the result of a systematic pattern of injustice within the organi-
zations fi nally coming to a head. Those employees who resorted to
verbal or physical violence often expressed the feeling of victimiza-
tion, frequently noting specifi c wrongs that had been done them. In
some instances, alcohol abuse played a major role in initiating emo-
tional explosiveness, rendering the brakes of propriety ineffective. To
cope with such incidents, a number of senior executives I spoke with
had instituted a policy of instant dismissal for consumption of alcohol
on the job.
Internal Confl ict
While great discipline was stressed at school and in other public organi-
zations (for example, in communist youth organizations such as the
Young Pioneers and later the Komsomol), in the communist era, permis-
siveness ruled the home. Family life revolved around the children, as it
does now. Always the centre of attention, children were pampered,
spoiled, and protected. To be sure, the cramped living conditions of
communal apartments (with the expected intrusions into private space)
sometimes sparked emotional and explosive disciplining. Yet children
had a counterweight to such explosions: the conviction that they were
loved by their parents. And because many parents had experienced
serious hardships during their lives, they made a strong effort to create
a better life for their children.
Integrating two such different worlds — one of harsh discipline, the
other of warmth and carefree abandon — was a great challenge to young
Russian people, as it would be to any individual. A certain amount of
confusion is inevitable in such circumstances, however. The ‘ true self ’
evolves through the kind of care that supports the child ’ s continuity of
being — of spontaneity or self - expression. But when people ’ s develop-
mental processes are governed by compliance — especially when they
are subjected to unempathic authority fi gures — they are in danger of
being seduced into a ‘ false life ’ (Winnicott, 1975 ), of presenting a ‘ false
self ’ to the outside world. Such a state of affairs contributes to a sense
of futility, makes for pseudo - maturity, and does not foster anybody ’ s
creative sides.