Deviationism

In political ideology, a deviationist is a person who expresses a deviation: an abnormality or departure. In Stalinist ideology and practice, deviationism is an expressed belief which does not accord with official party doctrine for the time and area. Accusations of deviationism often led to purges. Forms of deviationism included revisionism, dogmatism, and bourgeois nationalism.

In a 1953 speech, Mao Zedong referred to both left and right deviationists. Years later, in 1976, the Gang of Four would strike out against "rightist deviationism" in China.