Post-socialism research

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The postsocialism research is an ethno-sociological research or direction which after 1989 by the collapse of the socialist systems in East Central and Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union has emerged. She is looking for explanations for the economic decline and political uncertainty in many states in the affected region. Among other things, the role of social and cultural capital, the applicability of Western societal models, the shaping of consumer, economic and political behavior as well as the formation of new elites are examined.

From an ethnological point of view, research on post-socialism is part of the development of science from isolated indigenous peoples to more complex societies such as those of Europe. The method that is used is qualitative field research , which western social scientists in the former Eastern Bloc has only been able to do since 1989.

Questioning the transition

The forcible introduction of the socialist system destroyed the integrity of many social groups as well as individual life fates, but the demise of this system also had a devastating effect on millions of people in the post-socialist states of Eastern Europe and Central Asia . Ethnological studies show that, against the background of current changes, certain earlier values ​​and behavioral patterns still play a significant role today. From the point of view of post-socialism research, the common term of a continuous " transition " from socialism to capitalism must at least be questioned.

Important representatives

literature

  • Christopher Hann (ed.): Post-Socialism. Transformation processes in Europe and Asia from an ethnological perspective. Frankfurt / New York 2002.
  • Dieter Segert : Post-Socialism. Legacies of State Socialism and New Capitalisms in Europe. Vienna 2007, ISBN 978-3-7003-1594-0
review

Web links