Post-Communist Transformation Revisited

Abstract

Examines the processes of postcommunist transformation in Central & Eastern Europe, claiming that the transformations are creating new social realities that are not mere transfers of the known societal models. It is argued that there is more continuity in the post-1989 development than was originally admitted, & this development has been greatly influenced by the communist & precommunist legacies; therefore, to understand these transformations, it is necessary to understand the communist system itself. Further, these transformations have been increasingly determined by long-term strategic factors & less by the more immediate circumstances of regime change. It is concluded that in terms of strategic factors, the situation of individual postcommunist nations is different, as is their future development; it is inappropriate to make generalizations about development in the whole Central & Eastern European region.