LESSONS FROM THE ‘WILD EAST’ 293Because of this outlook — especially in conjunction with what we
know about Russian child - rearing — Russians have always sustained a
deep ambivalence toward authority. Anarchists have always found a place
among them. Even under the tsars there was an enormous amount of
revolutionary activity, with very bloody results (Figes, 1998 ). The central
role of informers in Russian life has contributed to this deep ambivalence
toward authority. The various governments of Russia, from the tsars ’
repressive regimes through communism, have used informers to control
the population, backing their authority with terrifying institutions — the
Oprichnina under Ivan the Terrible, the Cheka under Lenin, the KGB
under Stalin, and now the Federal Security System under Vladimir
Putin.
This paranoid Weltanschauung has been reinforced by the collectivist
nature of Russian society. Collectivist cultures tend to be more dis-
trustful than others of outsiders (Triandis, 1972 ; Triandis et al ., 1988 ),
distinguishing clearly between in - groups and out - groups (and regard-
ing the latter with suspicion). The sense of being besieged by external
forces has been a recurring theme throughout Russian history and
has, indeed, a basis in reality. Russia has always been surrounded by
adversaries; in addition, it has been infi ltrated by informers and other
native opponents. For much of its history, Russia has been simultane-
ously waging war externally and struggling to maintain order
internally.
This mistrust of foreigners has been reinforced by institutions such
as the Russian Orthodox Church and the Communist Party, both deeply
suspicious of the outside world, and sometimes hostile to it. Under the
banner of communist internationalism, the world was kept at bay until
the coming of glasnost and perestroika in the late 1980s.
Unfortunately, given the nature of the business environment in
Russia, someone with a paranoid outlook can always fi nd a reality that
meets expectations (and certainly the pervasiveness of the Russian
mafi a and the Federal Security Service keeps this climate of conspiracy
alive).
Culture and Organization
Avoidance of Reality
Russians have diffi culty facing facts that are perceived as unpleasant.
When the truth is evaded too often, however, reality and fantasy become
blurred.