Download This PaperSocial Aspects of Transformation
Cerami, Alfio (2015) ‘Social Aspects of Transformation’ in Wolchik, S. L. and Curry, J. L., eds., Central and East European Politics From Communism to Democracy – Third Edition, Washington DC: Rowman & Littlefield, pp. 99-120.
22 Pages Posted: 11 Dec 2018
Date Written: March 1, 2015
Abstract
The fall of the Berlin Wall marked not the end of the transition to democracy but its beginning, with still uncertain outcomes in terms of electoral continuity and change.1 In order to provide a more comprehensive picture of the regime vulnerabilities and instabilities that stem from the difficult transition from a centrally planned, authoritarian economy to a free market–oriented democracy, this chapter discusses the most important aspects of the transformation that has occurred in Central and Eastern Europe since the end of communism. These aspects include key patterns of social change, social welfare, social problems, and associated social pathologies. Understanding what worked and what went wrong in the social policy domain will improve our understanding of the prospects for future and more successful reforms in this region, as well as in other transitional and developing countries currently on the road to democracy.
Keywords: Central and Eastern Europe, Democracy, Social Aspects, Transformation, Lessons to be Learnt
JEL Classification: P51, I3, J1, D6
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