Central and Eastern Europe in a Cultural Perspective

Abstract

Conclusion of this chapter – the Eastern European countries are culturally not homogeneous. They are almost as diverse as the European Union (EU) in total.

Several publications about the three decades since the start of the transition in Central and Eastern Europe in 1989 conclude that the convergence with, what they called, developed Europe was slowing down. This is alarming what was predicted right before the countries' access to the EU, it would take 31–80 years before they would reach average income per person in EU 15 counties.

We show that as a result of privatization without a firm legislation the superficial layers of culture were polluted. The necessary trust between authorities and citizens, between bosses and employees, disappeared. This affected the ‘rules of the game’. Slowly this trust is restored. The EU is helping because of the pressure put on the single member states in staying within the boundaries set by the EU for democracy and the rule of law.

It is interesting to look at the connection between culture and corruption: the saying is ‘power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely’. Analysis of the rule of law shows that human rights as part of the law system is something that is ‘natural’ for individualistic cultures. In collectivist cultures, morality is in first place for the people of the in-group. It can be shown that enforcements of the EU laws have a positive influence in the eyes of the citizens. Recent research by Pew Research Center is confirming this.

Citation

Wursten, H. (2020), "Central and Eastern Europe in a Cultural Perspective", Warter, I. and Warter, L. (Ed.) Understanding National Culture and Ethics in Organizations, Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 47-62. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-83867-022-120201006