Journal Press India®

Post-communist Central-east European Political Culture in the Era of Neoliberalism

Vol 14 , Issue 1 , January - June 2013 | Pages: 19-32 | Research Paper  

https://doi.org/10.51768/dbr.v14i1.141201302


Author Details ( * ) denotes Corresponding author

1. * Martin Stefek, Lecturer, Department of Political Science, Faculty of Arts, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic

The paper looks into both aspects of contemporary political culture of Central-East European countries in the period after the breakdown of communist dictatorship and some theoretical assumptions. The author tries to demonstrate historical and today’s influences that determine attitudes of people toward political system.
Design/Methodology/Approach: The analysis is based on the classical Almond and  Verba’s behavioural concept.  Subsequently, the usefulness of this theory and the need  to its reformulation have been discussed.
Findings: Firstly, the author examines the question of how the legacy of non-democratic regimes before 1989 influenced today’s attitude of citizens toward politics. We can, preliminarily, utter a generally accepted surmise according to which a quasi-participation or non-effective participation and relatively closed input-side of the political systems (structural variables) significantly have affected citizens’ behavior in the sphere of public affairs, in the post-communist era (cultural variables). For that matter, some basic facets of political cultures of selected cases in the region (Poland, Hungary, former East-Germany and the Czech Republic) has been demonstrated. Secondly, the effect of today’s dominant neo-liberal discourse on the political cultures has been investigated. In this respect, several questions arise.  Not only should we ask about the impact of neo-liberalism on citizens and on their role in political process, but also ponder over the continuity or discontinuity with the previous (pre- revolutionary) discourse.
Research Limitations/Implications: The research is generally limited by the lack of sociological data from the pre-revolutionary period.
Practical Implications: The findings could problematize the thesis on the so called “cultural lag”, which is the leitmotif of the discussed classic concept.
Originality/Value: Considering the “neoliberal turn” in the studied region (a primacy of the “economical” over the “political”), the author tries to contribute to the debate about the mutual relation of the cultural and structural variables.

Keywords

Political Culture; Post-Communism; Neo-Liberalism; Democracy.

  1. Almond, Gabriel A. (1956), “Comparative Political Systems”, The Journal of Politics, Vol. 18, No. 3, pp.391-409.
  2. Almond, Gabriel A. (1983), “Communism and Political Culture Theory”, Comparative Politics, Vol. 15, No. 2, pp.127-138.
  3. Almond, Gabriel A. and Powell, G. Bingham, Jr. (1978), Comparative Politics: System, Process, and Policy, Second Edition, Boston, Little, Brown and Company.
  4. Almond, Gabriel A. and Verba, Sidney (1989), The Civic Culture. Political Attitudes and Democracy in Five Nations, Newbury Park, Sage Publications.
  5. Almond, Gabriel A. and Verba, Sidney (1980), The Civic Culture Revisited, Boston, Little, Brown and Company. 
  6. Barša, Pavel (2011), Far-East Citizen’s Uprising, Praha, The Institute of International Relations.
  7. Bureš, Jan (2012), “The Concept of the Non-Political Politics of T. G. Masaryk and Vaclav Havel” Politické vedy, Vol. 15, No. 1, pp.52-85.
  8. Campbell, John L. and Pedersen, Ove K. (2001), The Rise of Neoliberalism and Institutional Analysis, Princeton, Princeton University Press.
  9. Císaø, Ondøej (2008), The Political Activism in the Czech Republic, Social Movements and the Civic Society in the Era of the Transformation and the Europeanization, Brno, CDK.
  10. Dahl, Robert A. (2006), On Political Equality, New Haven; London, Yale University Press.
  11. Dalton, Russell J. and Weldon, Steven (2010), “Germans Divided? Political Culture in a United Germany”, German Politics, Vol. 19, No. 1, pp.9-23.
  12. Dvoøáková, Vladimíra (2006), “Czech Transition to Democracy in Comparative Perspective”, Parlamentary Elections 2006 and Czech Politics, ed. by Bøetislav Danèák and Vít Hloušek. Brno, MPÚ MU, pp.13-25. Harvey, David (2005), A Brief History of Neoliberalism, Oxford, Oxford University Press.
  13. Hough, Jerry (1987), “The ‘Dark Forces’, The Totalitarian Model, and Soviet History”, Russian Review, Vol. 46, No. 4 (Oct.) pp.397-403.
  14. Kelly, Donald (ed.) (2003), After Communism: Perspectives on Democracy, Fayettville, University of Arkansas Press. Kopeèek, Michal (2011), “Dissent as a Past, Liberalism as a Project, Civic Movement – Free Democrats in the Czech Post-revolutionary Politics”, Divided by the Past, The Creating of Political Identities in the Czech Republic After 1989, ed.by Gabriela Gjurièová, Praha, Knihovna Václava Havla.
  15. Linek, Lukáš (2010), Betrayed Dream? The Structure and Dynamics of the Attitudes toward Political Regime and its Institutions, and the Consequences, Praha, SLON.
  16. Linz, Juan J. and Stepan, Alfred (1996), Problems of Democratic Transition and Consolidation, Southern Europe, South America, and Post-Communist Europe, Baltimore, The Johns Hophins University Press.
  17. Pateman, Carole (1989), The Disorder of Women: Democracy, Feminism and Political Theory, Cambridge, Polity Press
  18. Plasser, F., Ulram, P.A., and Waldrauch, H. (1998), Democratic Consolidation in East-Central Europe, New York, St. Martin´s Press.
  19. Pullmann, Michal (2011), The Process of Perestroika and the Fall of Communism in Czechoslovakia, Praha, Skriptorium. Skilling, H.G. (1960) “Soviet and Communist Politics: A Comparative Approach” The Journal of Politics, Vol. 22, No. 2 (May), pp.300-313.
  20. Vráblíková, Kateøina (2009), “Political Participation and Its Determinants in Post-Communist Countries”, Sociologický èasopis/Czech Sociological Review,Vol. 45, No. 5, pp.867-897.
Abstract Views: 3
PDF Views: 277

Advanced Search

News/Events

Institute of Managem...

Deccan Education Society Institute of Management Development and Re...

S.B. Patil Institute...

Pimpri Chinchwad Education Trust's S.B. Patil Institute of Mana...

D. Y. Patil IMCAM, A...

D. Y. Patil Institute of Master of Computer Applications & Managem...

Vignana Jyothi Insti...

Vignana Jyothi Institute of Management International Conference on ...

Department of Commer...

Department of Commerce, Faculty of Commerce & Business, University...

Birla Institute of M...

Birla Institute of Management Technology (BIMTECH) 3rd Pritam Singh M...

OP Jindal University...

OP Jindal University, India 4th International Conference on  ...

Department of MBA, N...

Department of MBA, Narayana Engineering College Nellore International...

Vignana Jyothi Insti...

Vignana Jyothi Institute of Management Conference Proceedings,...

Online Proceedings R...

Conference Proceedings, March 2023 ISBN: 978-81-956810-6-8 ...

By continuing to use this website, you consent to the use of cookies in accordance with our Cookie Policy.