European Post-communist Countries Research Articles

Constitutional responsibility of the president in post-communist countries – case study (Lithuania, Romania, the Czech Republic)

The article presents the empirical side of the issues of constitutional responsibility in the countries of “new democracy,” such as, Lithuania, Romania and the Czech Republic. It very often happens that the more power one has, the more temptation there is to abuse one’s office. That is why, the responsibility of the people of the highest government levels as the heads of states, is to guarantee the rule of law in every democratic state. The control is necessary when the law is not being obeyed or somebody is acting in defiance of generally abiding rules. Thereby, the constitutional responsibility is very important. It should be enforced by independent courts or in the impeachment procedure. Such a solution has been adopted in most European post-communist countries, and more importantly, very often applied for practical purposes.

Malignant melanoma incidence trends in a Mediterranean population following socioeconomic transition and war: results of age-period-cohort analysis in Croatia, 1989-2013.

The aim of this study was to analyse trends of malignant melanoma incidence in Croatia for men and women of different age groups by birth cohorts and time periods, and to interpret them in the context of national socioeconomic changes over time and the possible implications for future prevention in South-Eastern European postcommunist countries with high mortality rates. We used the Croatian National Cancer Registry data to analyse incidence trends of malignant melanoma of the skin (ICD-9 code 172 and ICD-10 code C43) in men and women aged 25-79 years by age-period-cohort modelling. Over the 25-year period, the incidence was increasing by 5.0% annually in men and 4.6% in women. The age-period model provided the best fit for data in both sexes, with steeply increasing incidence rates, followed by a stabilization after the 2000s. On the cohort scale, incidence rates increased in successive generations of men, whereas in women, the risk of malignant melanoma attenuated in recent cohorts. Even if some progress has been achieved in recent years, the increasing melanoma incidence without concomitant declines in mortality would indicate a need to rekindle prevention efforts in the country taking the specific socioeconomic context into account.

How to silence the lambs? Constructing authoritarian governance in post-transitional Hungary

This paper examines a range of arguments put forward to explain how financial surveillance of non-governmental organisations empowers authoritarianism in the post-transitional Hungarian context. In doing so, it attempts to shed light on the limitations of existing surveillance theories regarding the historical component of surveillance tolerance and the different modes of governance in post-communist European countries. It argues that post-transitional disappointment in democratic governance is causing Hungarians to become resigned to political decisions and to support new forms of authoritarian rules. Such a stoic attitude and the historically embedded surveillance culture facilitate the use of monitoring mechanisms that not only target terrorists as an external security threat, but also target NGOs defined as ‘the enemies of national values’. Hungarian authoritarian policies are not facilitated by extended surveillance practices, as Anglo-Saxon theories have regularly argued, but by the way they are used as an instrument of a political deterrence strategy against political opponents.

Business Cycles in European Post-Communist Countries

The European post-communist countries that have integrated into the European Union are emerging market economies. However, their short-run economic performance does not correspond to the observed business cycles of other global emerging markets. The business cycles of the studied countries are longer, and their recessions are more pronounced. Moreover, economic activity in the studied countries is relatively low and volatile, and the trade balance and government purchases have a relatively significant countercyclical character. These are the core conclusions from our business cycle study of the chosen European post-communist countries. In the study, we use both traditional and contemporary business cycle definitions. Using traditional definitions, we determine the peaks, troughs, expansions and contractions and quantify the durations and amplitudes of their expansions, recessions and business cycles. Using contemporary definitions, we measure cyclical properties by computing the first and second moments of the chosen macroeconomic cyclical components and growth rates. Differences in the business cycles and characteristics between European post-communist countries and other emerging countries are discussed with reference to the works of other authors.

Basic Values, Ideological Self-Placement, and Voting: A Cross-Cultural Study

The current study examines the contribution of left–right (or liberal–conservative) ideology to voting, as well as the extent to which basic values account for ideological orientation. Analyses were conducted in 16 countries from five continents (Europe, North America, South America, Asia, and Oceania), most of which have been neglected by previous studies. Results showed that left–right (or liberal–conservative) ideology predicted voting in all countries except Ukraine. Basic values exerted a considerable effect in predicting ideology in most countries, especially in established democracies such as Australia, Finland, Italy, United Kingdom, and Germany. Pattern of relations with the whole set of 10 values revealed that the critical trade-off underlying ideology is between values concerned with tolerance and protection for the welfare of all people (universalism) versus values concerned with preserving the social order and status quo (security). A noteworthy exception was found in European postcommunist countries, where relations of values with ideology were small (Poland) or near to zero (Ukraine, Slovakia).

Manifestations of e-government usage in post-communist European countries

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the propensity to use e-government services in post-communist countries in the European Union.Design/methodology/approachA survey was conducted among 7,984 respondents from the states of Bulgaria, Romania, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. The analysis focused on the following manifestations of e-administration usage in these countries: viewing websites run by public administration bodies, making contact with public administrations via e-mail, downloading the forms necessary to obtain a public service, sending completed electronic forms to appropriate offices, and contacting politicians, activists, or offices electronically to discuss matters important for a region or the whole state.FindingsThe results of the analysis presented in this paper show that there is a statistically significant relationship between the state of the respondent’s residence and the propensity to use particular forms of e-government.Practical implicationsDecision makers should create incentives to popularize electronic signatures, which are necessary to fully settle a matter in public offices via the internet. They could use financial assistance offered by the European Union to implement this technology. Moreover, they should award bonuses to private persons or entrepreneurs who use Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in their contact with the state administration, for example, by way of charging less for issuing a driving license, building permits, or other documents necessary to apply for a building permit. The use of ICT in the client-administration relationship would reduce corruption levels by limiting direct contact and allow for reconstruction of all of the digital records to apply for a given permit, document, etc.Originality/valueWith the rapid growth of internet (and e-commerce) worldwide, the public administration sector has many opportunities, especially in a developing democracy. The paper is unique because it shows data collected from almost 8,000 respondents and it presents a comparison of the use of e-government among citizens of nine European Union member states.

Geographical characteristics of contemporary international migration in and into Europe

The study offers a short geographical overview of migration studies and theories, doing so in the context of the European migration crisis of 2015–2016. It outlines the history of international migrations affecting Europe (immigration, emigration, migration within Europe and between countries) and the demographic effects of such migration on the present European population. It then analyses and examines the global and regional causes of recent migration to Europe (the European Economic Area, EEA), the countries of origin of the migrants, the main routes of migration, and the destination areas in Europe. As far as intercontinental migration is concerned, Europe was characterised by emigration between the 16th and mid-20th centuries (partly in consequence of colonisation) and mainly by immigration thereafter. Immigration has principally affected Western Europe, the more developed part of the continent. In consequence of post-World War II reconstruction, dynamic economic development, local labour shortages, and the decolonisation process, Western Europe received many migrants, initially from the Mediterranean region and subsequently (i.e. after the collapse of communism in 1989–1990) from the post communist European countries. Meanwhile, the core areas of the EEA became the main destination for migrants coming from predominantly Muslim regions in Asia and Africa (SW Asia, Muslim Africa). This decades-old process has recently accelerated and now constitutes mass migration. The global and regional causes of such intercontinental migration in the sending areas are as follows: the population boom, economic backwardness, unemployment, growing poverty, climate change, desertification, negative ecological changes, global political rivalries and local power changes (e.g. the Arab Spring, 2011), growing political instability, wartime destruction, multiple and cumulative crises, general hopelessness and despair.

Understanding and Nourishing Christian Vocation to Higher Education in a Postcommunist Society

ABSTRACTTo understand the concept of Christian vocation within the context of higher education in a postcommunist society, reflection on its communist and postcommunist history is necessary. Thus, the authors first present an analysis of Eastern Europe's Marxist past, specifically focusing on the external and internal impact of that past on attitudes toward higher education of people living in a postcommunist society. Marxist statism, or the total dominance of the state over an individual, remains an external influence more than a quarter of a century since Eastern Europe's 1989 democratic revolution that reshaped much of the continent. In considering the topic of vocation within the context of Eastern Europe, the ethos that works inwardly on members of postcommunist societies must be noted: suspicion leading to self-doubt, passivity kept alive by bureaucratization, and strict compartmentalization of knowledge into science versus religion. In the second part of the article, the authors describe the concept of Christian vocation in a postcommunist society, as understood by contemporary younger and older generations based on data from two recent qualitative investigations. These studies allowed for comparison between the generational views and documented important attitudinal changes. The third section concludes by providing examples of good practices for nurturing an understanding of Christian vocation in higher education in a postcommunist context. Although the effectiveness of some of these practices has been documented over time, most are still in their infancy. Despite the new democratic political system, Christians need to reconsider the former dichotomies (i.e., state–church, public–private, scientific–religious) and become more actively involved in previously inaccessible and challenging areas of influential work such as teaching and managerial positions in higher education institutions. It should be noted that the term vocation, as used in languages of postcommunist European countries has several meanings such as invitation, calling, occupation, or profession; accordingly, the authors use the terms vocation and calling interchangeably in this article.

Union Solidarity in Eastern and Central Europe from the Example of Poland

This study examines the extent of union solidarity in post-communist European countries using the example of Poland. It shows the process of the transition of trade unions from being mass organisations with a mandate from the state to voluntary organisations defending employees’ rights and interests within the social dialogue with the state and employers. It argues that the current legal regulations of decentralised institutions in Polish and other Eastern and Central European countries impede union solidarity. The reasons behind the crisis of trade unions are numerous and complex. They have been seen especially in the changes of the structures of enterprises, from large state-owned entities to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). It can also be seen in the use of collective bargaining policies and the role of the state in industrial relations. It examines the role of non-union representations on the labour market and their chances of replacing trade unions or cooperating with them. The paper concludes that instead of searching for unlikely solutions to change the model of bargaining or replacing trade unions with other forms of employee representations, solutions in favour of strengthening the social position of trade unions through improving the existing trade unions' legal framework should be sought. Key words: trade union, union solidarity, multi-enterprises, globalisation, post-communist countries .

Religious References in the Constitutions of European Post-Communist Countries and Ethno-symbolism

The downfall of communism in Europe took place around 1989-1991, within a brief historical period. All the post-communist countries did away with their previous constitutions (which had sometimes been decorative in nature) and adopted new, post-communist constitutions. According to a Council of Europe membership count, there are twenty-three such countries: Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Russian Federation, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ukraine, and Serbia. The adoption of new constitutions in these countries occurred under the guidance of western European models, particularly as they were advanced by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).1 The 1990 document of the Copenhagen meeting of the OSCE on the “human dimension” was of particular relevance in guiding emerging post-communist constitutionalism, focusing on the idea of human rights guarantees and, more generally, on the rule of law. The participating states committed themselves to the idea “…that full respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms and the development of societies based on pluralistic democracy and the rule of law are prerequisites for progress in setting up the lasting order of peace, security, justice and co-operation that they seek to establish in Europe.”2

A three-fold framework for understanding HRM practices in South-Eastern European SMEs

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to study particular structural and organisational factors affecting the formality of human resource management (HRM) practices in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in South-Eastern European (SEE) post-communist countries, in particular Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in order to understand the antecedents of formalization in such settings.Design/methodology/approach– Adopting a quantitative approach, this study analyses data gathered through a survey of 168 managers of SMEs from throughout the region.Findings– The results show that HRM in SMEs in the SEE region can be understood through a threefold framework which includes: degree of internationalisation of SMEs, sector of SMEs and organisational size of SMEs. These three factors positively affect the level of HRM formalisation in SEE SMEs. These findings are further attributed to the particular political and economic context of the post-communist SEE region.Research limitations/implications– Although specific criteria were set for SME selection, the authors do not suggest that the study reflects a representative picture of the SEE region because the authors used a purposive sampling methodology.Practical implications– This paper provides useful insights into the factors which influence HRM in SMEs in a particular context. The findings can help business owners and managers understand how HRM can be applied in smaller organisations, particularly in post-communist SEE business contexts.Originality/value– HRM in SMEs in this region has hardly been studied at all despite their importance. Therefore, this exploratory research seeks to expand knowledge relating to the application of HRM in SMEs in SEE countries which have their business environments dominated by different dynamics in comparison to Western European ones.

Security sector reform – theory and practice

Security Sector Reform (SSR) is a concept and activity of the democratic transformation of defence, justice and rule of law systems. In accordance with the United Nations approach, SSR is critical to the consolidation of peace and stability, promoting poverty reduction, rule of law and good governance, extending legitimate state authority and preventing countries from relapsing into conflict. Over the last few decades, with many countries evolving and developing democratic processes, the concept has gained interest and popularity in international organisations and states heading towards a positive change. In the past, full SSR activities had been successfully conducted in central and east European post-communist countries. Nowadays, the process is carried out among African and Middle East countries, in some of them this being extremely challenging. A considerable degree of complexity characterizes the SSR processes. For this reason, a great deal of effort has been exerted with the aim of normalising rules and conditions for conducting SSR. The purpose of these activities is to ensure the widest possible effect of the use of scarce expert resources. SSR is a relatively new area of expertise suffering from a scarcity of literature presenting theory in conjunction with practice. During the research conducted it was assumed that, in spite of a wide array of actions to be executed within SSR in different states, they should be interconnected by a general model which would ensure the greatest effect. The aim of this essay is to present selected theoretical aspects of SSR, essential for increasing the effectiveness of the reforms conducted, illustrated with a practical example of the SSR process in Egypt.

Political Change as Political Culture Change. A Simulation Modeling Approach (Slides Presentation, 4th Edition of the European Conference on Political Attitudes and Mentalities, ECPAM'2015, December 2-3, 2015, University of Bucharest, Romania)

Political culture simulation modeling of political change aims at explaining the democratization phenomena in the Eastern European post-communist countries by introducing a political culture modeling paradigm.

Diversity in the standard of living among populations in European post-comunist countries

Abstract The aim of this study was to present the general situation of populations of European post-communist countries 25 years after the collapse of communism in Europe. The study consists of two parts. The first one briefly discusses the processes that led to a significant diversification in the social, economic and political situations of the populations of the studied countries. In the second part the diversity of this situation is shown (using: the Legatum Prosperity Index, the Social Progress Index, and the Human Development Index). It was found that the best situations exist in the countries which quickly and effectively implemented reforms, and whether they were independent states, or parts of larger states, under communism is of secondary importance. It is symptomatic that these are countries situated in the north-western part of the area under consideration, which corresponds to the current situation in the EU-15, where the countries located in the south (the so-called PIGS) have poor economic and partly social situations than those in the north. Furthermore, it was found that the situation with the population of Russia is worse than in many countries which were previously under the occupation of the USSR or were dependent on the authorities in Moscow.

The New Economy-asking for New Education Approaches. Evidence for Romania and other Post-communist European Countries

Abstract This paper aims to highlight the implications of the new economy in the process of educating the population so it properly responds to the labor market's needs that are continuously growing and diversifying and here we particularly refer to former communist countries and namely Romania. The paper reflects the evolution of the educational system in Romania compared to other former communist countries, regarding the education funding, participation of the population in education or degree of assimilation the foreign languages, desiderate concerning the new economy that at present only a small part of the labor market adapts to.

Social Science Teachers on Citizenship Education: A Comparative Study of Two Post-Communist Countries

This paper presents some of the results of a comparative study of high school social science teachers in two post-communist European countries: Bulgaria and Croatia. In both countries, citizenship education was implemented as a part of the EU accession efforts. I discuss the ways teachers deal with the everyday dilemmas of teaching in a field which is by definition controversial and loaded with diverse political meanings. The study involved teachers in the two countries using Q-methodology, a combination of quantitative and qualitative techniques. Five distinct ways of dealing with these questions, five types of views were found in Bulgaria: Pragmatic Conservatives, Deliberative Liberals, Local Social Guardians, Personal Growth Facilitators, and Global Future Debaters. In Croatia, the types of views were: Patriotic Conservatives, Liberal Democracy Mentors, Reflective Humanists, and Personal Growth Coaches. The differences and similarities between the teachers’ views in both countries are compared. The study highlights the crucial role of teachers, of their beliefs and experiences in shaping national and European citizenship education policies. The implications of the study findings for citizenship education policy, curriculum development, and teacher training are briefly discussed

Complaint management on the polish financial market – the dimensions of customer evaluation

Justice theory appears to be dominant theoretical framework applied to complaint handling. A three-dimensional view of the concept of justice has evolved over time to include distributive justice (dealing with decision outcomes), procedural justice (dealing with decision-making procedures), and interactional justice (dealing with interpersonal behavior in the enactment of procedures and delivery of outcomes). However, a few recent studies analyze the impact of perceived justice which include informational justice (adequacy and truthfulness of information delivered to a customer) as an independent variable. Also, a lack of consistency, among some of the categories falling within particular justice, can be observed. Perceived justice concept has not been tested yet with regard to concentrated service sectors and business reality of post-communist European countries. As a result this paper aims at verifying the extent to which perceived justice is multidimensional from a perspective of financial institutes? clients in Poland. The research was conducted on the sample of 400 customers. There is a support to use a four-dimension model. There were some new constructs found, which enrich measures of justice, e.g.: providing the client with the possibility of choosing compensation, a single-person complaint handling, the competence of the personnel. The results are interpreted in relation to other research related to this issue and prior own qualitative study.

Development of stock market pricing in Central and Eastern Europe through two decades after the transition

In this paper we investigate the development of capital market pricing in six Central and Eastern European (CEE) post-communist countries (the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia) in the two decades after the change of regime. To make the results for these markets directly comparable with those for other developed markets we incorporate four developed countries as well: Austria (also representing the geographic, but not the socio-economic CEE region), Germany, United Kingdom, and the USA. We find that the Central and Eastern European stock market indexes investigated have shown continuous development in terms of a weak form of market efficiency during the past two decades. The results of the runs tests show that the null hypothesis of randomness can be rejected typically prior to 2000; however, since then, the daily returns of the indexes follow a random walk process. We find that, in the case of the largest CEE stock exchange, the Warsaw Stock Exchange in Poland, this development was quicker. The results of the variance ratio analyses coincide with these findings: comparing the test results for 1991–2003 and 2004–2011, the non-unit variance ratios disappear or at least their significance levels decrease. It is an interesting fact that both runs tests and variance ratios indicate higher efficiency for the indexes calculated in USD instead of local currencies.

The “dilemma of simultaneity” as a conceptual predictor of post-communist countries of Europe modernization’s logistics: theoretical and methodological cut

The article is devoted to theoretical and methodological analysis of the “dilemma of simultaneity” as the conceptual predictor of post-communist Europe modernization’s logistics. It was determined that the initial premise to overcome the “dilemma of simultaneity” was political modernization or democratization of post-communist countries of Europe and that in some countries modernization was realized in three areas, and in some other countries in four areas (i.e. in the form of a “triple” or “quadruple” transition). The author argued that the “dilemma of simultaneity” as a proper and on time logistics model of post-communist transformation and modernization in various European countries is not fully methodologically unified. It was also revealed that initially the “dilemma of simultaneity” was a dichotomy (in political and economic areas), but later became a trichotomy (including issues of territorial and national restructuring). In addition, initially the “dilemma of simultaneity” had negative direction, but nowadays is a positivist value. At the same time, it was argued that overcoming the “dilemma of simultaneity” is an overcome and turning such results of institutional development of post-communist European countries as modernity, statehood and prospects of the EU membership.

Anti-immigrant far-right parties in the Visegrad countries: representation, political success and ideological positioning

The article is devoted to theoretical and methodological analysis of the “dilemma of simultaneity” as the conceptual predictor of post-communist Europe modernization’s logistics. It was determined that the initial premise to overcome the “dilemma of simultaneity” was political modernization or democratization of post-communist countries of Europe and that in some countries modernization was realized in three areas, and in some other countries in four areas (i.e. in the form of a “triple” or “quadruple” transition). The author argued that the “dilemma of simultaneity” as a proper and on time logistics model of post-communist transformation and modernization in various European countries is not fully methodologically unified. It was also revealed that initially the “dilemma of simultaneity” was a dichotomy (in political and economic areas), but later became a trichotomy (including issues of territorial and national restructuring). In addition, initially the “dilemma of simultaneity” had negative direction, but nowadays is a positivist value. At the same time, it was argued that overcoming the “dilemma of simultaneity” is an overcome and turning such results of institutional development of post-communist European countries as modernity, statehood and prospects of the EU membership.