Reformism (also called revisionism or revisionist theory) is the belief that gradual changes in a society can change its fundamental structures. It is a key component of the movement known as democratic socialism. It is contrasted to "revolutionary socialism " which believes that there must be a revolution to fundamentally change a society.

Rosa Luxemburg was one of the first to polemicise against the tendency to reformism with her essay Reform or Revolution?, written in 1900 where she assailed the "Evolutionary Socialism" of Eduard Bernstein.

The term is usually applied to the political left. Reformists are seen as centre left. Some Social Democratic parties such as the Canadian NDP are considered reformist.

See also

• Antonio Gramsci
• Fabianism
• Revisionism
• Cultural hegemony
• Evolutionary socialism

External links

• Reform or Revolution? by Rosa Luxemburg (1900)