Taking Stock of Shock: Social Consequences of the 1989 Revolutions

Description

Kristen Ghodsee and Mitchell A. Orenstein blend empirical data with lived experiences to produce a robust picture of who won and who lost in post-communist transition, contextualizing the rise of populism in Eastern Europe. After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, more than 400 million people suddenly found themselves in a new reality, a dramatic transition from state socialist and centrally planned workers' states to liberal democracy (in most cases) and free markets. Thirty years later, postsocialist citizens remain sharply divided on the legacies of transition. Was it a success that produced great progress after a short recession, or a socio-economic catastrophe foisted on the East by Western capitalists? Taking Stock of Shock aims to uncover the truth using a unique, interdisciplinary investigation into the social consequences of transition―including the rise of authoritarian populism and xenophobia. Showing that economic, demographic, sociological, political scientific, and ethnographic research produce contradictory results based on different disciplinary methods and data, Kristen Ghodsee and Mitchell Orenstein triangulate the results. They find that both the J-curve model, which anticipates sustained growth after a sharp downturn, and the "disaster capitalism" perspective, which posits that neoliberalism led to devastating outcomes, have significant basis in fact. While substantial percentages of the populations across a variety of postsocialist countries enjoyed remarkable success, prosperity, and progress, many others suffered an unprecedented socio-economic catastrophe. Ghodsee and Orenstein conclude that the promise of transition still remains elusive for many and offer policy ideas for overcoming negative social and political consequences. cover Taking Stock of Shock Copyright Contents Dedication List of Figures List of Tables Acknowledgments Authors’ Note on Terminology Introduction: Transition from Communism—​Qualified Success or Utter Catastrophe? Part I The Economic Evidence 1. The Plan for a J-​Curve Transition 2. Plan Meets Reality 3. Modifying the Framework 4. Counternarratives of Catastrophe Part II The Demographic Evidence 5. Where Have All the People Gone? 6. The Mortality Crisis 7. Collapse in Fertility 8. The Out-​Migration Crisis Part III The Public Opinion Evidence 9. Disappointment with Transition 10. Public Opinion of Winners and Losers 11. Attitudes Shift over Time 12. Toward a New Social Contract? Part IV The Ethnographic Evidence 13. Portraits of Desperation 14. Resistance Is Futile 15. Return to the Past 16. The Patriotism of Despair Conclusion: Toward an Inclusive Prosperity Appendix: Data Sources Notes Selected Bibliography Index