DOUKHOBORISM AND REVITALIZATION

The past few years have witnessed a surge of interest — both theoretical and descriptive — in those elements of cultural dynamics which have been variously designated as "nativistic,"1 "revitaliza tion,"2 or "social"3 movements. Most of the movements considered for inclusion under one of the numerous rubrics employed to classify such phenomena have been characterized by the dramatic manner in which they ostensibly deviated from the status quo. The common denomina tor of all such movements, however defined, is that each has sought, usually consciously, to effect a modification or reorganization of the existing social-cultural order. The etiology of such movements have invariably been attributed to a psychological sense of alienation from the existing order.4 This psychological stress is alleged to elicit reactions which seek to reduce the tension by a reorganization of the social order to one more psychologically compatible. The ascription of psychological stress immediately raises several salient questions which must be more adequately dealt with before a general theory of movements can be derived. First is the problem that a movement is recognized and defined as such only in retrospect; situations in which stress is present and a movement does not emerge are not considered. The relationship between a movement and alleged stress therefore becomes tautological: stress was present, so therefore a movement was generated, and the movement is cited as evidence that stress did exist. Therefore some empirical means must be achieved for testing the assumptions of "stress" and determining the necessary and sufficient conditions for the emergence of a movement. The recent interest in such phenomena was sparked by Ralph Linton's seminal paper on "nativistic movements."5 His work inspired a number of articles which sought to further elaborate upon the taxonomic scheme which he had constructed to explain the ideology of a movement.6 However, a more fruitful approach has sought to illumine the common processural elements informing these movements. Interest in the processural development of specific movements, exem