Overview

Reexamining Economic and Political Reforms in Russia, 1985–2000: Generations, Ideas, and Changes analyzes the impact of generational changes and ideational changes on major political and economic reforms conducted in Russia during the late twentieth century.   This book examines how the policy agenda was shaped by the ideas of the generations’ representatives for the “sixtiers” and “seventiers.” Representatives of the generation of “sixtiers” conducted reforms from 1985 to 1991 and invested major efforts in political liberalization but did not pay enough attention to economic reforms. On the other hand, the reformers from the generation of “seventiers,” who were in charge of policy making from 1991 to 1998, were genuinely oriented toward market building but rather insensitive to the democratization of the political regime. This book explores how these differences in ideational agendas produced inconsistent and controversial outcomes from both stages of reforms.

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9780739183618

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Reviews

Reexamining Economic and Political Reforms in Russia, 1985-2000 takes a pioneering step away from long-running debates over whether the 1980s and 1990s reforms were good or bad for Russia, and blazes new trail on the very important question of how we can explain these reforms as major historical phenomena. The authors' account is fascinating and novel, tracing different phases of reforms to ideas specific to particular generations dubbed the 'sixtiers' and 'seventiers.' This approach provides a useful framework for thinking about how Russia will change once a new generation reaches the pinnacle of power, one whose formative experiences postdate the Soviet period. -- Henry E. Hale, George Washington University This is a splendid read, a great intellectual analysis of Russia's post-communist transformation by some of St. Petersburg's foremost scholars. This book focuses on ideology, generations, and sociology rather than politics and economics. In an accessible language with all relevant Russian and Western academic references, the authors bring out the complexity of the Russian transition. Their writing is original and open-minded, more like brain-storming than a set theory, helping us to understand the confusing Russian transformation. -- Anders Aslund, Peter G. Peterson Institute

Reexamining Economic and Political Reforms in Russia, 1985-2000 takes a pioneering step away from long-running debates over whether the 1980s and 1990s reforms were good or bad for Russia, and blazes new trail on the very important question of how we can explain these reforms as major historical phenomena. The authors' account is fascinating and novel, tracing different phases of reforms to ideas specific to particular generations dubbed the 'sixtiers' and 'seventiers.' This approach provides a useful framework for thinking about how Russia will change once a new generation reaches the pinnacle of power, one whose formative experiences postdate the Soviet period. -- Henry E. Hale, George Washington University [This book] provides an excellent overview of the political and economic reforms during a crucial fifteen-year period in Russian history ... Readers will ... recognize the book's great value in contextualizing the beliefs of the late Soviet and post-Soviet reformers within a broader historical evolution of ideas and experiences. Both experts and students of Russian political economy will learn from this clearly written, empirically rich book. The Russian Review This is a splendid read, a great intellectual analysis of Russia's post-communist transformation by some of St. Petersburg's foremost scholars. This book focuses on ideology, generations, and sociology rather than politics and economics. In an accessible language with all relevant Russian and Western academic references, the authors bring out the complexity of the Russian transition. Their writing is original and open-minded, more like brain-storming than a set theory, helping us to understand the confusing Russian transformation. -- Anders Aslund, Peter G. Peterson Institute

Author Information

Vladimir Gel’man is a professor of political science and sociology at the European University at St.Petersburg and Finland distinguished professor at the Aleksanteri Institute, University of Helsinki. Otar Marganiya is the dean of faculty of economics at St. Petersburg State University and the president of the Center for Modernization Studies at the European University at St. Petersburg. Dmitry Travin is the academic director of the Center for Modernization Studies and a professor at the European University at St. Petersburg.

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