ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author presents a process model of revolutions. The model has both forecasting and policy implications; although in some respects, the policy implications are that certain processes, once begun, are unlikely to be altered or deflected. For analytical purposes, the author describes the process of revolution into temporal stages, even though in reality these stages overlap and interpenetrate. He discusses the origins of state breakdown, then examines features of the ensuing struggle for power, and considers the factors that affect state reconstruction. The class and economic structures of the prerevolutionary society set certain constraints on postrevolutionary state building. The author shows that certain features of the prerevolutionary society—the class structure and the concentration and ownership of industrial assets—can constrain the directions of postrevolutionary change. The nature of the revolutionary struggle also influences the shape of postrevolutionary states.
