capitalism   an economic system based on a market economy in which capital is individually owned, and production and employment decisions are decentralized.
collectivized farm   a farm in a planned economy that is in theory collectively owned by peasants, but is controlled by the government.
communism  an economic system in which all capital is collectively owned.
five-year plan  a document that stated production goals for the entire Soviet economy for the succeeding five years.
Gosplan  the planning agency of the Soviet Union.
gradualism  the slow phasing-in of free market reforms.
nationalization  the taking over of private firms by the government.
perestroika  the restructuring of the Soviet economy by reforming the central planning process.
privatization  the process of converting a government enterprise into a privately owned enterprise.
production target  a goal set for the production of a good or service in a planned economy.
shock therapy  the abrupt introduction of free markets in a formerly centrally planned economy.
socialism  an economic system in which the government owns and controls all the capital and makes decisions about prices and quantities as part of a central plan.
state enterprise  an organization, analogous to a firm in a market economy, that is owned and controlled by the government.