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Democratic erosion in the EU's Central and Eastern European (CEE) member states has confounded EU policy-makers. In this paper, we investigate the assumptions behind the climate of optimism about CEE democratization that prevailed in EU decision-making before and after the 5th and 6th enlargements, and the extent to which political science participated in this intellectual climate. Based on a qualitative analysis of EU decision-making in the early twenty-first century and a quantitative analysis of 500 randomly sampled papers published between 2000 and 2015, we find that both policy makers and the most influential research in political science shared a bias towards optimism structured by common assumptions: A procedural understanding of democracy, a rational institutionalist belief in the EU's capacity to bring these procedures about with the use of incentives and the related assumption that sociocultural dimensions of democracy would eventually follow institutions. We argue that these common assumptions help to explain both the EU's failure to pre-empt and respond proportionately to democratic erosion, and the failure of our discipline to check that optimism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sea buckthorn is a promising species that, under the conditions of Eastern Europe, has shown high productivity and is also a good and possible source of a wide range of bioactive compounds that have a positive effect on the human body, especially polyphenols and carotenoids. Due to the content of biologically active substances in sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L.), the species is of growing interest to scientists, the food industry, the pharmaceutical industry, the cosmetics industry and consumers. The aim of this study is to investigate the productivity and the correlation between the chemical composition and the antibacterial effect of four cultivars of sea buckthorn (Clara, Dora, Cora, Mara), cultivated in the Republic of Moldova. Sea buckthorn fruits were harvested at the stage of full ripening. Berry samples were frozen at minus 25 °C, stored for 6 months and whole fruits of sea buckthorn were studied. All quantitative characteristics were calculated in terms of absolutely dry raw material (dry weight). The sea buckthorn cultivars tested were found to have a different carotenoid contents (1.79–48.92 mg/100 g), ascorbic acid contents (74.36–373.38 mg/100 g), organic acids (malic acid 5.8–13.4 mg/100 g, citric acid 0.08–0.321 mg/100 g, succinic acid 0.03–1.1 mg/100 g), total dry matter contents (16.71–24.54%), titratable acidities (2.15–8.76%) and pH values (2.73–3.00). The antimicrobial activity of sea buckthorn, evaluated by the diameter of the inhibition zone, constituted for Bacillus pumilus 3.70–15.91 mm/g−1 for whole sea buckthorn fruits and 13.33–26.67 mm/g−1 for sea buckthorn purees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper systematically reviews 314 empirical studies that examine the relationship between board leadership structure and firm performance. The results show that the mixed research findings are due to different firm performance measurements, research designs, sampling practices and approaches of dealing with endogeneity issues. Studies utilizing multiple‐country data, multinational companies, small firms or regions covering Africa, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and South America are under‐represented. It critiques the methodological weaknesses of some empirical studies and proposes that future researchers should use multiple firm performance measurements, a longitudinal research design and an integrative framework to better control the direct and moderating factors. Future researchers may advance the robustness of research by using multiple theoretical lenses to consider how various governance factors moderate the relationship between board leadership structure and firm performance, particularly the different ownership structures, managerial discretion contexts and national institutional factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This study provides research findings about reading habits and attitudes toward reading of Bulgarian primary school students and the formation of reading literacy. The article presents reading research, publications, and frameworks about the reading issue in Bulgaria. The author describes the context of the research--an authoritative research study in Bulgaria about reading and the prevalent educational system. The article also discusses investigations into reading habits in Bulgaria and describes the methodology, the participants, the procedure, and the results of the research. The focus of the current publication is on reading in pre-primary and primary school as a part of understanding the connection between reading and digital literacy. This article may bring new international dimensions to the study of reading. This research study may be useful for people who are interested in the diversity of Eastern Europe and in the reading habits of young people. It may help to understand the intersection of reading, culture, and social environment in a small former socialist country such as Bulgaria, and allow for a meaningful comparison between Bulgarian children's reading practices in the digital era and those of children in other parts of the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Competitively multipolar international system demands bilateral and multilateral partnerships. Joint innovation signals close partnerships. Regional proximity of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) to the European Union (EU) defines its research and development objectives. These objectives are additionally subjected to the USA's geopolitical strategy in this geographical area. Hence, CEE's limited resources require limited resources make international innovation cooperation. This paper aims to analyse whether and how CEE countries make international innovation cooperation decisions. Design/methodology/approach: This paper used Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) database of total patent applications filed to the patent cooperation treaty (PCT) with co-applicants from abroad, where co-patents with at least one foreign inventor present a measure of international innovation partnership. A vector autoregression analysis and impulse response function were used to analyse international innovation partnership choices of eight CEE OECD countries for the period 1990–2018. Findings: Innovation with the EU is of collaborative nature, commonly displaying complementary properties with the rest of the examined innovation partners, while co-patenting with the Russia and China act as substitutes or complements. Co-patenting with Russia is the most versatile, displaying both properties of collaboration and competition. Some countries exhibit complementarity in co-patenting activities with multiple partners. The significance levels of these relationships vary, indicating varying degrees of impact. Overall, these findings highlight the complex dynamics of co-patenting activities and the influence of different partners on countries' collaborative innovation strategies. Research limitations/implications: In addition to significant relationships, insignificant relationships as well as those that could bring about greater synergy are flagged in the paper. Those relationships portray possible direction into which national funds could be channelled to incite cooperation between different sectors and countries, especially as innovation partnerships are not always successful and require a long time period to materialise. Originality/value: By examining bilateral innovation partnerships, this study provides an insight into the strategic political and economic spheres of influence in the CEE region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The practical implementation of a circular economy in the European Union poses significant challenges, notably for the EU-11 (Central and Eastern Europe) countries. The aim of this paper is to analyze the transition of the EU-11 countries toward a CE by examining existing circular strategies, national-level policies, as well as bottom-up initiatives, and on the other hand to explore the prevalent circularity discourses within the EU-11 countries. The study employs a discourse analysis method to comprehensively examine documents related to the CE aspects. This methodology integrates both quantitative categorization (codes and categories) and qualitative interpretation (reading and explanation) to support the understanding of circularity discourses. The results of this paper indicate that the countries within the EU-11 are actively advancing their efforts towards a CE. These countries are seen to be proactively developing a circular vision and setting ambitious objectives to facilitate a transition to a circular economic model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This introductory paper, reflecting the Thematic Cluster of four papers, brings together two themes that are important for migration studies: return migration and embedding. Beyond any simplistic assumptions of settlement and permanent integration back into the origin country, following return, or notions of ongoing unfettered mobility back and forth over time, this article knits together data from the cluster papers, focusing on Lithuania and Poland, to explore factors that lead to return, or indeed non-return, and subsequent experiences in the 'home' country for those who do return. Moreover, using mixed methods, including longitudinal research, we advance a theoretical framework facilitating an examination of how returnees negotiate their lives in the origin society and whether they intend to stay, or migrate again, through the conceptual lens of embedding. While emphasising agency and effort, embedding also recognises structural constraints that may impede migrants' expectations and aspirations. Hence, return migration may involve parallel processes of re-embedding but also experiences of dis-embedding as the hoped for return project encounters unexpected obstacles and may result in further migration. In mapping the field of return migration, through the concept of embedding, we focus on the impact of Brexit as 'an unsettling event'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to address the possible role of the Eastern European Orthodox Church as an alternative channel to ensure fruitful negotiations to end the Russo-Ukrainian war that has still ongoing since 2022. As the majority religion in Russia, Ukraine, and Eastern Europe as a whole, the Orthodox branch of Christianity has a transnational influence on its followers, including prominent political figures in the aforementioned territories. Utilizing qualitative research methods, this paper is written to provide arguments about whether the Orthodox Church, with its immense presence in the belligerents' spiritual beliefs, will be able to be employed as a channel to end the Russo-Ukrainian war. In this paper, analysis is conducted through the usage of J. W. McDonald's "The Institute for Multi-Track Diplomacy" (2012) journal article about multi-track diplomacy and D. Johnston's Faith-Based Diplomacy: Trumping Realpolitik (2003) book about faith-based diplomacy to gauge the Orthodox Church's potential as a channel of diplomacy between Russia and Ukraine. This paper finds that overall, the Orthodox Church fails to fulfil the criteria that Johnston (2003) posits; one of the most fatal is the organization's inability to reconcile the belligerents' deep historical wounds. Due to the Orthodox Church's traditional role that has always been closely tied to the Russian government, its capability to build an acceptable negotiation channel is severely impeded. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The workshop focused on entrepreneurship, innovation, and local-level policy initiatives aimed at stimulating economic development in post-communist countries of Central and Eastern Europe. After the demise of the socialist regimes the countries of Central and Eastern Europe followed quite different policy approaches. The papers contained in this Special Issue are a selection of contributions presented originally at a two-day workshop that took place in November 2019 at the University of Information Technology and Management in Rzeszow, Poland. Over the last decades, Special Economic Zones (SEZ) were popular instruments of government intervention in numerous countries, including Poland. [Extracted from the article]

This paper examines 16 years (2004–2019) of research on energy in eleven Central and Eastern European countries. The findings are based on an analysis of 3534 academic articles indexed in the Web of Knowledge database. The paper presents a systematic overview of the authorship, journal of publication, countries covered, and article content. The main conclusion is that the discussion is fragmented, because most of the journals (800 were identified) published only one paper on energy in the region. About one-fourth of the research was published in a handful of major journals. Male researchers dominated our dataset and there has been a visible increase in the average number of authors per article. The country most often covered by the research was Poland and energy efficiency was the most-discussed issue and renewables the most-frequently researched energy source. Surprisingly, nuclear energy and energy security, considered to be the dominant features of the CEE region energy picture, were studied only minimally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses how research on women's entrepreneurship conducted in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) constructs and positions women entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship was illegal under the socialist regimes that governed this area and only began to develop after independence was obtained in the early 1990s. Consequently, research on entrepreneurship, including women's entrepreneurship, is somewhat new to the region. Our discourse analysis of existing research in this area reveals that, despite different historical pathways towards entrepreneurship, normative premises that exist in Western studies on women's entrepreneurship also prevail in scholarship produced in CEE. These normative premises impose dominant constructs and methodologies on entrepreneurship policy and the scholarly community. The discourse analysis identified five positioning constructs of women entrepreneurs, all of which stem from the assumption that women are (essentially) inadequately equipped for entrepreneurship. We discuss the discursive practices that produce these results and suggest ways forward for research on women's entrepreneurship in CEE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eastern European societies and their economies have experienced specific and/or asymmetrical developments over the last 70 years. The political regime changes at the end of the 80s led these countries on the path of market economy and opened the doors for foreign investors' presence, as privatizations of previously state-owned companies were considered beneficial for economic progress. Starting in the mid-90s and more so after the association of countries in the region to the European Union and NATO, foreign investors found interesting opportunities as greenfield projects or partnerships with local entities. However, the presence of foreign direct investments (FDI) in Eastern Europe was uneven across countries and regions, which may be due to a certain extent to corruption and organized crime groups. This paper aims to conduct a systematic review of the literature that has focused on analyzing the influence of corruption and organized crime in attracting foreign direct investment using quantitative methods, focusing on empirical studies conducted in Europe since 2000. Our main purpose is to summarize the different research approaches, to offer a discussion and suggestions for future research, and to provide some relevant and justified answers to the following question: To what extent are corruption, organized crime, and FDI analyzed in European countries?. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most research on post-socialist civil society has focused on analysing the characteristics that explain (the lack of) civic strength. Although recent research has highlighted the rise of urban activism, it has failed to look more closely at the agency of actors. By focusing on informal groups and their engagement in public affairs in the aftermath of the 2019 local elections in Hungary, this paper seeks to unravel the civic strategies and narratives that underpin informal civic resistance to political and institutional pressures at a time when both local municipalities and civil society are experiencing a gradual loss of autonomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the notions of urban sprawl and suburbanisation are introduced and discussed in the context of American and European cases. The drivers of urban sprawl are discussed along with the main typologies analysed in the literature about the issue. The debate regarding urban sprawl is discussed in the particular context of Eastern Europe, and a timeline of suburbanisation is presented from the socialist years until today. Then, the specific case of Bucharest is examined through the case of Popesti Leordeni, where the particularities of the city development and the stages of urban sprawl are compared with the typologies observed in the Romanian context. The paper concludes with the need for further research to identify different or diverging planning practices within the metropolitan area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The public policy classification developed by Theodore Lowi is one of the most frequently referenced, utilized, and debated frameworks in political science. This paper delves into the question of whether the concepts of distributive, redistributive, regulatory, and constitutive policies can be applied to the context of Eastern Europe. To explore this issue, a subnational comparative research design was developed to examine six Croatian public policies (economic policy, social policy, education, gender equality, media, and culture). The primary method of data collection involved expert reports, akin to Lowi's original research approach. The characteristics of sampled sectors were summarized through open coding conducted at three levels, allowing for a comparison with Lowi's policy types. The findings indicate that the fundamental idea of this seminal taxonomy, which highlights the variation in links between policy and politics within a single country, remains relevant. Additionally, the analysis revealed that policy goals, policy instruments, non-state actors, and their relationships with state actors are fundamental features upon which classification should be based. Future research endeavors should aim to construct a robust methodological framework with clear indicators for selected features corresponding to each policy type. This would enhance the sophistication and empirical applicability of the theory, allowing for a more nuanced understanding of policymaking dynamics in diverse contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following on from a previous paper advocating changes in the editorial processes of peer-reviewed journals, the present paper espouses the conduct of multiple local victimisation surveys as an affordable route to a pan-European crime science. Local surveys have a local impact which national surveys lack, and meta-analysis of survey results enable more general conclusions. The Latvian local survey reported in the chapter revealed wide inequality of victimisation at the individual level, an association between high rating of the seriousness of offences suffered, multiple victimisation at the individual level, and alienation from the police of some ethnic groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bioeconomy as a new promissory discourse neither challenges the paradigm of economic growth, nor questions its embeddedness in capitalist (neo-)colonial patriarchal power relations. However, the calls for a 'genuine' socio-ecological transformation and for alternative bioeconomy visions imply exactly a destabilization of these power relations. Drawing on the Bielefeld subsistence approach and on its colonialism–capitalism–patriarchy nexus, I argue that the latest bioeconomy strategy and policy papers of both the EU and Estonia each disregard certain spheres of the bioeconomy due to the three-dimensional power relations. As a seemingly neutral political discourse, the bioeconomy is shaped by cultural assumptions and narratives that determine and perpetuate what is deemed worthy of protection and what is pushed aside as merely 'natural'. As such, the current bioeconomy papers promote a 'biomass-based model of capital accumulation' that is essentially built on the prerequisite of the subordination, devaluation, appropriation and/or exploitation of (1) different geographical regions, (2) ecological foundations, and (3) prevalent bioeconomy practices. As a widespread agricultural practice in Eastern Europe, Food Self-Provisioning (FSP) serves as a good example of how predominant bioeconomy models (1) simply operate as new forms of postcolonial development discourse, instead of embracing the plurality of decolonial 'alternatives to development'; (2) deepen the human–nature dichotomy by regarding nature as a mere resource to be extracted more efficiently instead of cultivating mutually nourishing partnership-like relation(ship)s with nature; and (3) maintain the separation between monetized and maintenance economies, rather than fostering ethics of care to overcome the structural separation between the latter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the political origins of diverse peripheral growth models in Europe, focusing on debt-based consumption-led growth model in Southern Europe and FDI-based export-led growth model in Central and Eastern Europe. Contrary to existing approaches that attribute this East-South divergence to their geographic position and systemic features of European monetary integration, the paper argues that these growth models stem from different national and EU-level policy responses to the challenge of core-periphery market integration. While the Southern states sought to protect domestic firms, allowing for, or even directly contributing to deindustrialisation in the face of competition with the European core economies, Central and East European states aimed to preserve their industrial legacy even at the expense of FDI-dependency. These policy responses were, in turn, shaped by distinct patterns of interaction and accommodation between segments of state elites and domestic economic groups, as well as by dramatically different EU strategies of governing integration. In contrast with society-centred perspectives on the politics of growth models, the paper highlights the autonomous role of the state as a key actor balancing between the demands and accommodation of domestic economic groups, and the constraints and opportunities created by regional institutions governing market integration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper examines the operation of the Catholic Church in Czechoslovakia under the Communist regime, one of the most oppressive communist regimes in Eastern Europe, and the choice of the Church to operate both officially and secretly. Based on the religious economy approach, it defines the conditions favoring diversified operation on both the legal market and the black market. Despite repression, the Church strived to maintain official operation in Czechoslovakia. Simultaneously, it developed an underground structure that allowed for uncompromised religious life. The case study confirms the theoretical predictions that severe repression favors underground operation without eliminating the need for the official presence of the Church. Beyond the religious economy approach, the paper points to the role of agency. The diversification strategy could only emerge and function due to the combination of externally imposed circumstances and individual initiative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Desomorphine is a composite of the self‐made illicit drug "krokodil", which is popular in Eastern Europe and other parts of the world. It causes toxic damage of different organs including bones. In this paper, a clinical portrait of the patient with drug‐induced osteonecrosis of mandible who refused surgical treatment in the early stages of the disease, is presented. At the time of first presentation, the patient displayed swelling of oral soft tissues and purulent discharge in the molar area of the right mandible. Radiographic examination demonstrated several small radiolucent lesions in the body of the mandible. The patient gave consent for surgical treatment and rehabilitation only after 12 months of the diagnosis. During this period of time, the necrosis of the mandibular bone progressed and a pathological fracture of the jaw was developed. Patient underwent surgical treatment – resection of the mandible. Management of drug‐induced jaw osteonecrosis is challenging as the necessity of dental and surgical treatment as well as treatment and rehabilitation of substance use disorder arises. Involvement of a multidisciplinary healthcare professionals team is essential in successful treatment of this pathology. The latter includes early surgical intervention/medical treatment and rehabilitation from drug addiction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Takács sets out by retracing the sustained criticism of existentialism articulated by Lukács at various stages of his post-war thought (from his 1948 I Marxism and Existentialism i , to his 1954 I Destruction of Reason i , to his posthumous I Ontology of Social Being i ), in which he consistently condemned existentialism's "idealist and irrationalist" anthropological underpinnings. Keywords: Existentialism; Marxism-Leninism; Eastern Europe; Philosophy EN Existentialism Marxism-Leninism Eastern Europe Philosophy 367 372 6 08/31/23 20230901 NES 230901 The papers in this special issue address the reception, critique, and appropriation of existentialist philosophy in state-socialist Europe from complementary thematic and methodological vantage points, focusing either on specific case studies from the various socialist states or developing a more comprehensive transnational perspective. Consequently, the previous positive reception of existentialism at the hands of Marxists humanists came to be seen as a subjective idealist deviation, whereas existentialism remained ill-reputed until the late 80s. [Extracted from the article]

In 1990, three years after Andy Warhol's death and one year after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) organized the first one-man show of this pop artist in Eastern Europe. The Prints of Andy Warhol, although never shown at the MoMA in New York, traveled to the Fondation Cartier pour l'Art Contemporain in Jouy-en-Josas, France, the Národní Galerie in Prague, Czechoslovakia, the Staatliche Kunstsammlung in Dresden, the GDR, the Mücsarnok in Budapest, Hungary, and the Muzeum Narodowe in Warsaw, Poland. The current paper analyzes the cultural–political context of The Prints of Andy Warhol. It first discusses the place of both American pop art and Eastern Europe in MoMA's International Program (IP) and then explores the organizational challenges, art historical contents, and public reception of the exhibition. The paper concludes by examining the broader impact of The Prints of Andy Warhol on both the growing awareness of American pop art in Eastern Europe and MoMA's cultural diplomacy in this region after the fall of the Iron Curtain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The past decade has witnessed an escalating, well-financed, and well-organized international mobilization against any study, policy, or discussion related to gender or LGBTQI+ issues in many parts of the world. The countries of Central and Eastern Europe have been disproportionately affected by this backlash, resulting in public threats and violence against scholars and representatives of the nongovernmental sector who work on gender and LGBTQI+ issues. The anti-gender mobilization has been extremely successful in Bulgaria, where there have been numerous threats against scholars, nongovernmental organizations, and public figures dealing with gender and sexuality issues. The Bulgarian Constitutional Court was the first court on a global level to pronounce the term "gender" anti-constitutional in response to a request submitted by the government regarding ratification of the so-called Istanbul Convention. Dealing with gender and LGBTQI+ studies in Bulgaria is believed to be "illegal" by many, based on the court's decision. As a result, any approaches to gender and sexuality that do not fit essentialist and religious beliefs have become dangerous and have endangered knowledge in many contexts. In this paper, I discuss the rapid development of the anti-gender mobilization within certain neoliberal discourses and values, and using the concept of a "neoliberal utopian gaze," I outline the challenges gender and sexuality studies have faced. Based on case studies, personal experiences, and public discourses, the paper explores how gender and sexuality studies have been affected by (1) institutional decisions, (2) manipulation of scientific information, (3) radical political populism, (4) transnational religious movements, and (5) the advancement of social media. Finally, the paper discusses possible solutions to this alarming trend, paying particular attention to academic solidarity, knowledge production, and institutionally coordinated policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the weak form of the Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH) across fourteen European Stock Markets from October 2018 to April 2021, a period divided into subsamples based on the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Using non-parametric tests, including Runs, Bartel's rank, and Wright's rank and sign test, the findings indicate that EMH holds for developed capital markets. However, capital markets in Central and Eastern Europe exhibited a heterogeneous response to the pandemic. Some markets violated the efficiency hypothesis (Latvia and Lithuania), others consistently adhered to it (Hungary and Slovenia), while others became less efficient post-pandemic (Estonia and Romania). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The North-South divide forms the central axis along which scholars study the contemporary global order. Yet many countries fall in-between the cracks of a world divided into core and periphery. This paper develops a structural account to understand the position of countries in this space of in-betweenness. The focus is on Central and Eastern Europe. I draw on already existing scholarship on liminalities, the varieties of capitalism and transition studies to argue that a liminal identity of in-betweenness goes hand-in-glove with a domestic logic of transitioning, as the state seeks to move somewhere else. Furthermore transitioning dynamics position the state in the semi-periphery, as the transition to the civilizational core requires capital and know-how from abroad. The resulting semi-peripheral position further underlines the liminal identity. The paper uses this apparatus to understand why CEE countries are typically climate change laggards within the EU. Their continuing liminal identity results in frustration over and resistance against the schooling tendencies of Brussels and Western European capitals. The dynamics of a sense of imposition of climate change mitigation policies stem from CEE's liminal positioning as apprentices, but the reasons for the perceived alienness of such policies are located in domestic societal dynamics, and CEE countries' economic structure. The specific political structures of communism and the communist transition have strengthened particularistic personal ties of friendship and family between individuals and the localities they live in, while simultaneously weakening general and abstract conceptions of the public good. Accordingly initiatives for preserving specific localities can be strong, but conceptions of protecting an abstract, global climate, are not well developed. Additionally, the material costs of protecting the climate are higher in post-communist economies due to their comparative advantage in resource and labour intensive industries, their reliance on foreign capital, and a lack of domestic innovations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Can linguistic diversity in the media impede state language proficiency? In this paper, we test the extent to which the availability of minority languages in the media affects state language proficiency for ethnic minorities. We take advantage of an exogeneous development: The rapid expansion of Budapest-originating media outside Hungary in the mid-2000s transformed the media landscape in neighbouring states. Using an original survey data of ethnic Hungarians in minority regions in four Central-Eastern European states over two waves, we find (1) the availability of minority language media means minorities are consuming less media in the state language, which in turn induces low levels of state language proficiency – i.e. through an exogeneous exposure mechanism; and (2) minorities with weaker state language proficiency choose to consume minority language media – i.e. through an endogenous selection mechanism. The results suggest a strong relationship between the language of media consumption and linguistic proficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many collections held by Columbia's Rare Books and Manuscript Library contain precious and little explored visual documentation on the turbulent history of late 19th and 20th century Russia, the Soviet Union, and Eastern Europe. These photographs deal with topics ranging from Russian culture in emigration, the late Romanov dynasty and the Russian imperial military to American travelers and philanthropy in revolutionary Russia and Eastern Europe. The Columbia collections in great part complement those held at the Hoover Institution Archives and the nearby NYPL Slavic collections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to examine the development of welfare conditionality and especially benefit sanctions in Central and Eastern Europe (the CEE) and to develop a methodology by implementing Institutional Grammar (IG) for studying rules on benefit sanctions relying only on legal text. Design/methodology/approach: IG was used as a tool for analyzing legal regulations on benefit sanctions. It was incorporated into a social rights framework that provided a theoretical background for the study. Findings: The paper shows the dynamic development of rules on benefit sanctions in Poland in social assistance and unemployment services. Both the harshness and strictness of these rules have increased. Simultaneously, the rules of benefit sanctions in social assistance remain more liberal than those associated with unemployment services. Originality/value: The study presents the first comprehensive and concise overview of benefit sanctions development in the CEE and the first long-term comparison of these types of sanctions in two safety net systems operating in one country. The study also used IG for the first time in social policy research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the 2008 Beijing Olympic and Global Financial Crisis, the rise of China has been a key topic in the international arena. Capitals in the USA and Western Europe, as leaders of the West, have explicitly expressed their concerns, labelling China as a sharp power, a strategic competitor and a systemic rival. One concern repeatedly raised by Brussels, in recent years, is the potential of deepening the East–West division inside the Union by China's effort in reinvigorating its relation with countries in Central and Eastern Europe via the 16 + 1 cooperation mechanism. This paper devotes to map the impacts on China perception in the EU member states who are participants in the 16 + 1. Subsequently, it examines whether 16 + 1 has widened the East–West divergence in the EU. Applying public opinion survey data, it is found that the additional communication and cooperation provided by 16 + 1 have not constructed a united identity in Central and Eastern Europe. Basing on the identified differences among Central and Eastern European countries, this paper divides them into four categories: China-friendly, China-neutral, China-polarised and China-sceptic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the aftermath of several decades of neoliberalism in Eastern Europe, the social fabric of post‐socialist societies is frayed. In this context, nationalist cultural policies and everyday displays of national belonging have emerged as key instruments of social solidarity. There has recently been a drive of state initiatives in Latvia in the field of cultural policy aimed at strengthening national identity. In this paper, we focus our attention on one particular cultural policy initiative, Latvian Films for Latvian Centenary. Drawing on qualitative interviews with 16 film directors who participated in the Centenary film programme, the paper explores how artists and cultural operators involved in this programme are mobilised as national(ist) subjects and how they see their work within such a framework. We argue that nationalist cultural policy can be successfully implemented because the artists, themselves formed as responsible political and moral subjects in the tradition of Latvian cultural nationalism, share a regard for culture and the arts as a resource for sustaining the political statehood and the national community. However, the artists also recognise the limitations of their work as a source of social cohesion and solidarity in a society that is ethnically divided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Overall living conditions improved significantly in Romania during 2010-2020, even though over the entire period Romania has been one of the countries with the highest income inequality, poverty and social exclusion rates among the EU member states. Many research and policy analyses pointed out the improvements in social outcomes, as success stories of the economic and social reforms in Romania, despite the poor results from a European comparative perspective. Yet, starting with 2015, the number of those warning about concerning disparities between rural and urban areas increased. However, no systematic analyses focused on the dynamics of these geographical disparities. Thus, the paper proposes an analysis of the dynamics of the disparities between rural communities and cities. It argues that high and consistently growing disparities in all welfare indicators between these two extreme residential types can be better understood, explained, and addressed by applying the concept of geographical polarization to sustainable welfare. The paper provides a broad overview of the determinants of the growing polarization of sustainable welfare. It argues that European and national strategies have been crucial in guiding the social reforms in Romania, but not enough to prevent substantial loss of opportunities. The fast-paced transition to a market economy and to European institutions sparked an uneven and opportunistic development of its social policy framework. Finally, the concept of polarization of sustainable welfare, intimately linked to that of inequality of opportunities, allows a change of narrative and, therefore, also a change in focus regarding the need for social intervention, from remedial re-distributive measures and policies to strategies of enhancing individual and collective capabilities to sustain welfare over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dialysis is a replacement therapy for patients with End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). Patients on dialysis are at high risk of acquiring hepatitis C virus (HCV), which has become a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in this population. There is a wide range of prevalence of HCV in dialysis populations around the world. It is still unknown how prevalent HCV infection is among worldwide dialysis patients (including those undergoing hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis). A review was conducted to estimate the global epidemiology of hepatitis C in dialysis patients. We searched PubMed, Excerpta Medica Database (Embase), Global Index Medicus and Web of Science until October 2022. A manual search of references from relevant articles was also conducted. Heterogeneity was evaluated by the χ2 test on Cochrane's Q statistic, and the sources of heterogeneity were investigated using subgroup analysis. In order to assess publication bias, funnel plots and Egger tests were conducted, and pooled HCV prevalence estimates were generated using a DerSimonian and Laird meta-analysis model. The study is registered with PROSPERO under CRD42022237789. We included 634 papers involving 392160 participants. The overall HCV case fatality rate was 38.7% (95% CI = 28.9–49). The global prevalence of HCV infection in dialysis population group were 24.3% [95% CI = 22.6–25.9]. As indicated by UNSD region, country, dialysis type, and HCV diagnostic targeted; Eastern Europe had the highest prevalence of 48.6% [95% CI = 35.2–62], Indonesia had 63.6% [95% CI = 42.9–82], hemodialysis patients had 25.5% [95% CI = 23.8–27.3], and anti-HCV were detected in 24.5% [95% CI = 22.8–26.2]. Dialysis patients, particularly those on hemodialysis, have a high prevalence and case fatality rate of HCV infection. Hemodialysis units need to implement strict infection control measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While research on entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial ecosystems (EEs) has consolidated over the last decade, one question remains unanswered: how can the sustainability orientation of EE actors facilitate the intensity and growth orientation of entrepreneurship in the ecosystem? Entrepreneurship activity relies on the sustainability orientation of the ecosystem, which is lacking in most developing countries where reaching the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is the most pressing concern. Using primary data on 1789 EE actors from 17 cities in East and South-East Europe and econometric analysis techniques, we investigate the relationship between the sustainability orientation of EE actors and EE outcomes. We find that this relationship is conditional on the country's institutional quality and is consistent for a variety of EE outcomes. Practical implications for regional policymakers and entrepreneurs are developed. Plain English Summary: This paper finds that regions in the developing countries are able to level up in growth orientation and intensity of entrepreneurial activity with the regions in developed countries should entrepreneurial ecosystem prioritizes sustainability orientation. Most scholars agree that entrepreneurial ecosystems facilitate growth aspirations and create opportunities for entrepreneurs. However, a few studies have lately suggested that sustainability orientation of ecosystem—under specific circumstances—may actually level up growth orientation and intensity of entrepreneurial ecosystems when sustainable orientation is supported by an increase in institutional quality in developing countries. This paper goes deeper into the sustainability view of entrepreneurial ecosystems by studying cities in Eastern and South-Eastern Europe. In this region, the sustainability orientation of entrepreneurs has received increasing attention. However, as of yet, the literature has focused only on single actors (the entrepreneurs) and the development of their ventures. How the sustainability orientation of entrepreneurial ecosystem actors as a whole (including, e.g., policymakers, university professors, investors, managers of business incubators) may influence EE outcomes, and if there might be differences between developed and developing regions, remains an unaddressed gap. The aim of this study of this paper is to examine the entrepreneurial ecosystem outcomes across regions with different levels of sustainable orientation and quality of institutional environment. An important implication of our findings is that even in Europe's least developing regions, active sustainability orientation and a marginal improvement of institutional quality are particularly pertinent for entrepreneurial ecosystems growth orientation and the rate of entrepreneurship in the ecosystem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Processes of outsourcing and offshoring have driven the changing spatial divisions of labour through foreign investment and development of peripheral regions into key offshore destinations for business services. This paper focuses on the role of elites, transnational and domestic, in the transformation of Romania into a major business services offshoring location in Central Eastern Europe (CEE) over the last two decades. The paper reveals the role of elite agency in connecting domestic resources to business services global production networks (GPNs) in order to drive domestic institutional transformation. A lot has been written about the agency of labour; yet there is a gap in our understanding of the agency of elites, specifically how transnational elites articulate with other elites at the national-, meso- and micro-level and produce institutional changes. Drawing on literature on enclave creation and dual economies, the paper illustrates how the alliance between domestic and transnational elites shaped transformation across the sector by implementing labour market flexibilisation and by crafting a 'sound' business environment in terms of infrastructure, investment incentives and bureaucratic framework to emulate institutional conditions of the home country. The development of the Romanian business services sector into an 'enclave economy' has become dependent on collaborative networks with domestic universities and intermediary organisations, which played a key role in facilitating foreign investment attraction and linking domestic resources to the needs of multinational firms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fall of communism in Eastern Europe did not bring about a radical and immediate destruction of the material heritage of communist dictatorships in the region. In fact, the process of de-commemoration has been more contested and more protracted than had been anticipated. Thus, what warrants a closer consideration is why this is the case since on the whole public acceptance of the regime change has been very high. This paper considers the case of Poland, the country of the Solidarity movement, which played a major role in the fall of communism in the region. The two-decade-long history of the right-wing nationalists' attempts to legislate street renaming culminating in the so-called de-communization law of 2016 will serve as a lens for investigating the responses that favoured the de-communization of public space. The paper argues that the protracted nature of the remaking of public landscape in Poland has been the result of the country's transitional legacies and different approaches to transitional justice among the former dissident opposition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relationships between foreign direct investment (FDI), trade openness, and economic growth are complex and analyzed by many researchers. Still, there are some gaps in our knowledge as literature documents positive, negative, and ambiguous impact of FDI and trade openness on economic growth. This paper addresses one of these gaps and focuses on the similarities and differences among countries from Central and Eastern Europe and West Africa. The econometric analysis covers the 1995-2022 period and employs panel data methods to reveal the long-term positive impact of FDI and trade openness on economic growth in West African countries and long-term positive impact of FDI on economic growth in Central and Eastern European countries. We also demonstrate that apart from cross-border linkages captured by FDI and trade flows, economic growth in Central and Eastern European countries positively correlates with global economic development, however, in case of West Africa this effect is statistically insignificant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to examine internal and external factors as well as main obstacles to managers'/owners' participation in education and training. Design/methodology/approach: The sample comprises managers of 151 Bulgarian predominantly micro- and small-size enterprises. The data was gathered in 2020 through direct standardized interviews at the respondent's workplace. This study uses quantitative estimation methods including binominal and multinominal logistic regression as well as nonparametric testing. Findings: Regarding the findings in the relevant studies, the results confirm that the larger firm's size, the existence of human resource management strategy and practices as well as learning-oriented culture stimulate employer-financed management training. The lack of trainers with relevant need-specific expertise appears to be a major barrier. Additionally, the outputs highlight the role of other important determinants not being extensively discussed so far such as the level of development of the region in which the company operates, involvement in R&D and innovation activity as well as the issue of trust in trainer. Practical implications: This study provides insights into (under)investments in continuing vocational training which might lead to practical implications for businesses, education and government policy in lifelong learning. Moreover, this study focuses on a country with one of the lowest participation rates in adult education across Europe which allows for a better understanding of similar examples. Originality/value: To the best of the author's knowledge, this is the first paper examining determinants of management training in Bulgaria and one of the few in the European context. It gives support to the existing literature but adds new findings as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of digital technologies in business and daily life. The paper aims to explore the theoretical and empirical aspects of the relation between digitalisation and income inequality in Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries between the years 2000–2020. It contributes to existing research on determinants of income inequality, focussing on the potential negative role of digitalisation as an unnoticeable driver of income inequality in CEE countries. To investigate the potential impact of digitalisation on income inequality, empirical analysis was performed for a sample of 10 CEE countries, namely Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia. The results of the canonical correlation analysis indicated that the sets of variables related to digitalisation and inequality as a group are significantly related to each other and a strong correlation exists between them. The relative contribution of each indicator to each standardised function showed that the highest values of significant standardised coefficients were observed for income inequality indicators such as the top 10% share, the Gini coefficient and the top 1% share, while in digitalisation measures, the highest value was observed for Internet users as well as fixed and mobile broadband subscriptions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The scope of this paper is the interpretation of sustainability through the university as a traditionally recognized, value-based institution of knowledge, based on the example of Central and Eastern Europe, Hungary. Its aim is to interpret sustainability from different aspects, using the example of Central and Eastern Europe, including Hungary. For this purpose, the paper reviews the development policy directions of the past period and institutional realizations through public databases. The results of the research show that there are different dynamics and focus in terms of resources and development implementations. From the point of view of sustainability, it represents that the use of resources with different dynamics and focus is a challenge for the institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on the role of Alexander J. Rolich (1923–2014), the first Slavic Bibliographer at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-Madison) Libraries. He was appointed as UW-Madison's first Slavic Bibliographer in October 1964 and remained for 37 years until his retirement in 2001. He was instrumental in guiding the development of the libraries' Slavic, East European and Central Asian collections in a period of rapid growth. It was estimated that the University's Slavic and East European collection had increased by ten-fold during his time as Slavic Bibliographer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article evaluates the presence of framing mechanisms in Dutch media reporting on the Second Karabakh war. The paper is led by the following questions: To what extent, and why, does the reporting of the Dutch press favour/undermine certain actors in the conflict? What kind of framing patterns are involved in generating such partiality? And did the frames change over the course of the war? In order to evaluate the presence of framing mechanisms in Dutch media reporting on the second Karabakh war, this research conducted a qualitative data analysis of 188 articles on the topic in nine major national Dutch news media. The paper finds that Dutch newspapers created a rather stereotypical, simplified picture of the Second Karabakh war. There are instances where the reporting gave the impression of a possible bias or overemphasis on certain dimensions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our paper revisits one of the fundamental questions of International Business (IB) scholarship, investigating the ways through which multinational enterprises (MNEs) establish legitimacy when entering a foreign market. We address this question in a novel context of Central and Eastern European (CEE) firms venturing into Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), employing a multiple case study approach. We investigate the process of legitimacy formation by Polish firms entering SSA for market-seeking reasons. We find that the firms studied use their initial liabilities of foreignness, outsidership, and origin as starting points for pragmatic, moral, and cognitive legitimacy-building by developing narratives that neutralize the distance between themselves and important local stakeholders. Our findings contribute to an understanding of the contingent nature of 'liabilities' in IB literature and shed light on the role of narratives in the internationalization process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Urban Studies (Sage Publications, Ltd.) is the property of Sage Publications, Ltd. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Pasado y Memoria. Revista de Historia Contemporánea is the property of Pasado y Memoria and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The aim of this paper is to investigate the assertion of gender difference and gender identity in contemporary Romanian feminist poetry, taking the works of Medeea Iancu, Iuliana Lungu, Mădălina Oprea, and Nóra Ugron as its starting point. This study will underline recurring thematic patterns, highlighting the priority awarded, within these poetry collections, to matters pertaining to textuality, as well as to the peripheral position of women writers within the literary field. As a result of the uneven development of Eastern Europe's women's movement(s) during the postcommunist transition, Romanian feminism can be described as a synthesis between Second- and Third Wave feminist themes (Miroiu), namely as having haphazardly imported both issues pertaining to "difference-" and to intersectional feminism. The emphasis local feminist poets place on positing difference, as well as on embracing a fluid identity, has motivated the usage of a theoretical framework based on the concepts of "sexual/gender difference", and justified the attempt of linking these literary projects to the tradition of so-called "French post-structuralist feminism". Lastly, this study proposes an overview of the possible political relevance that "neomaterialist" (Braidotti) strands of feminism may hold today, as well as an outline of some of the limitations that they pose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]