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The onset of the independence process in Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries during the 1990s was marked by tremendous optimism and a declared wish for stronger fiscal decentralisation and the transfer of powers, responsibilities and resources to the units of local and regional self-government that were supposed to be closest to citizens in resolving their daily problems. However, this has not happened in these countries, at least not according to the basic financial decentralisation indicators, and this is the main thesis of this work. Despite numerous adjustments made in the local self-government organisation in the observed countries, an optimum level of local and regional self-government organisation has still not been achieved. The units of local and regional self-government are still heavily dependent on, or rather restricted by, the strong central governments, which reduces their autonomy and their influence on the local social and economic development.

The onset of the independence process in Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries during the 1990s was marked by tremendous optimism and a declared wish for stronger fiscal decentralisation and the transfer of powers, responsibilities and resources to the units of local and regional self-government that were supposed to be closest to citizens in resolving their daily problems. However, this has not happened in these countries, at least not according to the basic financial decentralisation indicators, and this is the main thesis of this work. Despite numerous adjustments made in the local self-government organisation in the observed countries, an optimum level of local and regional self-government organisation has still not been achieved. The units of local and regional self-government are still heavily dependent on, or rather restricted by, the strong central governments, which reduces their autonomy and their influence on the local social and economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This response deals with some aspects of Luther Martin and Donald Wiebe's paper "Religious Studies as a Scientific Discipline: The Persistence of a Delusion". The authors think that the human mind in general constantly tends towards religiousness and thus comprehensive scientific inquiry into religion is actually impossible. They argue that "such study is not ever likely to occur in that or any other setting" (p. 9). They also stress that they were deluded in the past and argue that especially (or only) the cognitive approach can help us to elucidate the proclivity towards religiousness. I partly agree with them, particularly that the promotion of "extra-scientific" agendas in Academia is questionable, but I do not see it as such a serious problem. The reduction of the biases to only "religious" agendas is mistaken. The history of the field is a history of diverse "extra-scientific" agendas which change in accordance with social development and prevailing political interests. I present the situation from a central and eastern European point of view. At the same time, I argue that many scientific fields deal with the same issue, even if not to such an extent. This is because religious studies, more than other disciplines, attracts scholars with a special inclination toward religion. I also argue that scholarly results are much more important than "personal" agendas. Also, the aspiration of religious studies as presented by Martin and Wiebe seems to me too idealistic, perhaps utopist and thus unrealizable. [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]

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 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]

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Given the high resilience of the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) banking sectors during the last financial crisis and their major role in the CEE region in financing the economy and supporting the high growth rates achieved there, our paper investigates the determinants of banking profitability in the CEE banking sectors based on a Generalized Method of Methods (GMM) approach using data between 2009 and 2018. We have selected determinants from the macroeconomic factors and from the financial-banking specific factors using a two-step GMM method. Our findings demonstrate that unemployment rate, inflation, budget balance, non-governmental credit, non-performing loan rates, concentration rate and capitalization rate negatively impact on the banking profitability in the CEE banking sectors. According to these findings, some policy recommendations were elaborated. [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.

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]

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]

Background: The mechanism of individual constitutional complaints has been in place in most European states. In the constitutional legal practice of European states, constitutional complaints as the specific procedural instrument for protecting a person's constitutional rights and freedoms have become an increasingly acceptable, applicable, and justifiable measure. However, Lithuania has introduced this mechanism of human rights protection only with constitutional amendments of 2019. This article examines the legal regulation governing the institution of constitutional complaints, as well as the use of this institution in Lithuania in 2019-2022. The research aims to shed light on the choice of the Lithuanian model of constitutional complaints and its main features, as well as to identify the problematic aspects of this model. Methods: To reveal theoretical and practical aspects of the question under consideration, this article combines different methods of scientific inquiry, including analysis of documents, as well as the logical, systemic, critical, comparative, teleological, and linguistic methods of analysis. The method of document content analysis was used to analyse the content of relevant normative and jurisprudential research sources. This approach used the text of the analysed documents to identify relevant words and phrases, contextualise their usage, and link the acquired data to statements in specialised literature. The analysis hinged on theoretical methods, particularly systemic and logical analysis, used to analyse virtually all the aspects discussed in the paper. Comparative analysis was used to compare the legal regulation of the constitutional complaint model in other Central and Eastern European countries and the Lithuanian legal regulation on similar issues. Teleological and linguistic methods of analysis have been used to clarify the content of the ambiguously understood provisions governing the individual constitutional complaint model, the true intentions of the legislator, and the meaning of the concepts contained in the legislation. The paper also analyses the statistical information on the admissibility of constitutional complaints in Lithuania and other aspects of using this human rights protection mechanism in 2019-2022. Results and conclusion. The paper concludes that after the amendments to the Constitution concerning the consolidation of individual constitutional complaints entered into force in 2019, Lithuania can no longer be categorised among the states with a limited scope of entities entitled to apply to the constitutional court and that the consolidation of the institution of individual constitutional complaints in Lithuania was undoubtedly a necessary step. The paper also concludes that most of the elements of the Lithuanian constitutional complaint model in the context of effective human rights protection should be viewed positively and align with the tendencies existing in other Central and Eastern European states. However, it's essential to acknowledge that Lithuania's national model of constitutional complaints falls short in providing certain effective legal remedies that have proved to be successful in other states of the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper studies the productivity change of the commercial banks in the CEE countries over the post-crisis period 2013–2018. The productivity change is measured by the Malmquist Productivity Index and its sub-components, applying two approaches—the asset-oriented and profit-oriented intermediation approaches. The analysis uses data from a balanced panel of 181 commercial banks in 11 CEE countries. We find that commercial banks' productivity, measured with the asset-oriented intermediation approach, decreased in most of the CEE countries over 2013–2018, with a decline ranging, on average, from 1% to 6.9%, driven mainly by a decline in technical efficiency. Nevertheless, estimates using the profit-intermediation approach point to productivity growth in commercial banks in all CEE countries, ranging, on average, from 0.5% to 6.3%. The empirical findings imply the need for the CEE commercial banks to further digital transformation and cost rationalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contact restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic have contributed to the rapid expansion of remote work. With this expansion, new opportunities arise for the typical migrant-sending countries in Central and Eastern Europe to remotely involve their diaspora in their labor market. The aim of this paper is, by using the case study of Latvia, to show the potential of cross-border remote work for alleviating human capital losses caused by emigration. We assess the main obstacles and necessary adjustments in taxes, social benefits, labor market regulation and other areas to facilitate the labor market transition and show what incentives the country can use to become a place of choice for performing remote work for the diaspora. Combining the perspectives of employers, employees and the government, this study sheds new light on the challenges and opportunities related to the rise of remote work for countries suffering from emigration. The comprehensive analysis builds on triangulating secondary data, analysis of policy documents, a survey of employers, as well as a survey and in-depth interviews with cross-border remote workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this scientific paper, we will conduct a multiple regression analysis using the nongovernmental credit (NGC) as the dependent variable and the inflation rate, unemployment rate and the M2 -- money supply as independent variables, over a ten-year period, specifically the period of 2013-2022. The study was conducted analyzing the macroeconomic data of Romania and the purpose of this paper is to perform multiple regression analysis method to determine how turbulences such as the pandemic crisis, the Russian-Ukrainian war, and the energy crisis, have impacted the nongovernmental lending activity and to find whether there is a significant association as determining factors (a correlation) between the mentioned variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Acta Universitatis Lodziensis. Folia Luridica is the property of Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Lodzkiego 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.)

Since the eastern enlargement of the European Union (EU), the movement from east to west has become the main driver of intra-EU mobility. Recently, the free movement of labour has been contested not only in the debates around Brexit, but also in other receiving countries. It is not on the political agenda, but several studies have highlighted the economic and demographic effects of massive emigration in eastern EU Member States. More recently, the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the functioning of free movement. Economic integration theory assumes that migration continues until wages are equalized in the receiving and sending countries. This paper analyses the perception of intra-EU mobility in the literature and empirically tests whether there is a relationship between the dynamism of income growth in the receiving (Germany, Austria and Spain) and sending (Central and Eastern European) countries, and the dynamism of migration. The empirical results do not support the neoclassical assumption that an equalization mechanism can function, even in the long run. To cope with recent challenges, this paper argues that free movement should not be considered as an element of a spontaneous market mechanism, but as an economic-political product, based on a constitutional order. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the impact of COVID-19-induced disruptions on supply chains, specifically focusing on the interconnectedness of supply chains and the transmission effects they cause. The gravity model framework, together with difference-in-differences analysis, is employed to analyze monthly trade patterns among Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries, Western European countries, and other trading partner countries. The model presented accounts for the country's roles in global value chains (GVCs) by incorporating data related to exports, imports of intermediate and capital goods, and imports of final consumption goods. CEE countries have demonstrated a certain resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, they were not immune to adverse consequences due to disrupted supply chains, primarily in the imports of intermediate and capital goods. We find that the countries that suffered from the COVID-19 pandemic the least demonstrated remarkable resilience against disrupted GVCs. The findings of our study enrich the literature on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, specifically for the CEE region, by providing a framework for understanding the pandemic's impact on international trade. The results show that supply shock might be greater than demand shocks on production and trade dynamics. Furthermore, our results suggest that policymakers seek adaptability to changing supply and demand patterns, while enterprises should consider broader diversification both within the region and locally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The internationalization of communication studies has become a trending topic over the past decades, and there have been many efforts to increase the geographical diversity of the discipline. International collaboration has succeeded in internationalizing the field, and different world regions offer particular strategies for cooperation. However, there is no "royal road" for successful internationalization, and different world regions follow their own trajectories. In this article, we discuss the historical, cultural, and disciplinary features of Central and Eastern European (CEE) communication research and then provide an analysis of the region's international collaboration in research publishing over the past 20 years. Results point to a growing level of CEE internationalization with expanding geographical diversity, but intra-regional collaboration is still weak. We argue that to raise the international competitiveness of the region, CEE communication scholars might have to develop a regional identity by increasing strategic cooperation between different countries of the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent COVID-19 health crisis determined a global economic crisis and numerous economic consequences at different levels. In these conditions, the study of the economic impact of the health crisis became a necessity. Therefore, the present paper focuses on the study of the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on international economic relations, using the example of two countries. Based on the regression methodology it was measured the impact of the COVID-19 burden on the international trade flows of two European countries, namely Romania and Hungary. The results of the research illustrated that the COVID-19 burden had an effect on international trade in the two countries. However, the influences differed in the two countries, with the exports flows being more affected than imports in both countries and with exports in Hungary being more affected that those of Romania. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Central and Eastern Europe has become a ripe target for disinformation and malign narratives propagated by foreign actors. A deluge of propaganda deployed by hostile states is aimed at polarizing societies, undermining the decision-making capabilities of governments, and influencing public policy. Against the backdrop of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the stakes are enormous. Heeding research on debunking and pre-bunking strategies recognizing the limitations and potential of these approaches in inoculating populations against disinformation, this paper examines how several tactics deployed in the CEE region can both speak to and draw from this literature. While certain segments of CEE populations may be vulnerable to disinformation, the region also boasts civically engaged publics that want to take an active part in fostering societal resilience. The rise of digital elves (volunteer information warriors taking the fight to online trolls), the outsourcing of counter-disinformation activities to popular public institutions (like the police and military), and the use of crowdfunding to support news literacy education and independent media outlets present compelling alternative strategies towards responding to foreign influence. These activities show promise in overcoming obstacles faced by conventional approaches to disinformation and addressing CEE-specific issues related to media distrust and state capture of the media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fintech is the delivery of financial products and services to consumers using a combination of innovation and technology. Fintech offers new solutions that have the potential to replace traditional banking operations. The paper presents, as the first contribution of its kind, a summary of the legislation and innovation facilitators provided by Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries for fintech companies. The purpose of this paper is to identify the barriers and challenges created for fintech companies by the current legislation. Another goal is to see how the regulatory environment adapts to the challenges presented by these technology-based companies operating in the financial and banking sectors. Using a comparative analysis, the most progressive countries regarding the preparation of legislation and the facilities that they create for fintech companies are Estonia, Lithuania, and the Republic of Slovakia. The least developed countries in terms of legislation and facilities for fintech companies are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, and Serbia. Regulators in some CEE countries have created Regulatory Sandboxes and Innovation Offices, but fintech companies face many challenges, such as a lack of regulations, the prohibition of fintech companies' activities, and the existence of two different regulators. The study also analyzes the results of the DiGiX index for the years 2018 and 2020. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: Most CEE countries have at least two types of spatial plans at the local level. In every CEE country, at least one type of spatial plan is a universally binding legal act. A recurring problem in them is the appearance of barriers to the interpretation of planning provisions. Differences can be found across CEE countries, in relation to the role of spatial plans. A problem is the differentiation of the contents of the different types of plans. What are the main findings? There are major analogies in the countries studied regarding the legal formula of local spatial plans and the practical problems involved. The implementation of the spatial plans into other acts is a serious challenge in the countries studies. What is the implication of the main finding? A practical debate is needed on the optimal formula of spatial plans, based on the experience of the countries studied. It is necessary to develop an interdisciplinary discourse to help implement the findings of the plans more widely. The article deals with the issue of spatial plans at the local level. The aims of this paper are (1) extracting the characteristics of local spatial plans that can be compared more broadly (2) identifying, on this basis, the role of spatial plans at the local level in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). In achieving these aims, the authors have critically examined spatial plans and their performance, as well as the planning systems they belong to. Hence, they have investigated the types of local plans in each country, their legal features, and the layout of their content. This examination has revealed a host of problems in the workings of the CEE planning systems. The article highlights those spatial planning issues that could be the subject of more in-depth international comparisons. The study provides additional evidence that in countries where spatial plans are legislated, there are more (mutually differentiated) legal problems in their application. Such problems have been analyzed. Besides procedural problems, discrepancies between the contents of different types of plans (e.g., general plans and detailed plans) are very often a problem. The paper also proposes a novel method for detailed comparisons of selected aspects of spatial plans. It can be applied to a large number of countries and also to other aspects of spatial planning. Last but not least, the paper emphasizes the need for a detailed multi-stage consultation of each aspect to be compared. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper intends to delve deeply into the current understanding of the ways in which the transition from a central-based economy to an economy relying on free competition has led to changes in the big urban centers, bringing about a change in the relationships with the suburban areas. The authors take into account the high population density, the lack of space, and the elevated price of land within the big cities, which leads to urban functions migrating beyond the administrative boundaries, thus favoring the process of suburbanization. Given the context, commercial forces shift, migrating from the center to the urban peripheries or even outside them. This research is based on a comprehensive process of participative investigation (2012–2022) in Bucharest, Romania's capital city. The research relies on field investigation, statistical and quantitative analyses and bibliographical sources. The conclusions rely primarily on the idea that political changes cannot be separated from economic, cultural and environmental ones, highlighting globalizing flows and the development of big cities. Industrial activities, strongly developed within a central-based economy, have significantly declined, which is partly compensated for by the development of the tertiary sector and, in particular, of commercial services leading to a functional reconversion of the urban peripheries and of suburban areas. The conclusions suggest that it is very important to be highly careful regarding the dilemmas and challenges ensuing from uncontrolled urban growth; therefore, several measures of urban planning should be taken with a view to achieving a better cooperation between urban stakeholders and those from the metropolitan areas so as to attain some common objectives in infrastructure in order to reach an integrated regional development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considering the negative effect of anthropological activities on climate in recent decades, all countries entailed a universal commitment to fight against climate change by boosting innovation and introducing new technologies. In this context, our paper aimed to investigate the impact of innovation input in terms of research and development (R&D) costs and technology expressed as technical equipment and machinery (TEM) on the reported greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in chemical industry companies in five Central and Eastern European countries. This study employed a panel regression model with fixed effects and covered data from 2015 to 2020. The empirical results emphasize a negative relationship between R&D costs and GHG emissions, indicating the companies' commitment to developing innovative solutions that contribute to lower destructive emissions. Additionally, the findings related to the influence of TEM on GHG emissions reveal a positive impact, highlighting the need to improve manufacturing technologies. The practical implications of our findings can be meaningful for both policymakers and businesses operating in the chemical industry in developing countries. Policymakers should offer financial incentives to support research and investments in clean technologies, while businesses should prioritise such investments to mitigate GHG emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relationship between human rights and religion cannot be seen as a relationship between two entirely distinct sets of values Human rights are deeply rooted in the Judeo-Christian religious tradition. However, throughout history religious institutions have interpreted human rights differently and have supported or hindered their implementation. This paper discusses the relationship between human rights and religion in the social and cultural matrix of post-communist Central and Eastern Europe. Our statistical analysis focuses on Hungary as an example of the region. In our view, the variations in the relationship between human rights and religion in Central and Eastern Europe are primarily determined by the region's wounded collective identity and the resulting overriding national and state security needs. Politically and culturally, the region is characterized by its betweenness, embodied in centuries of vulnerability to the great powers. Therefore, the social status and political discourse of human rights and religion should be tied to this primary regional marker. While examining the relationship between religion and human rights, we should be aware that the primary relationship is between human rights and the collective identity of the nation-state and between religion and the identity of the nation-state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While there is extensive literature that discusses the historical and institutional background of the relative underdevelopment of Central and Eastern European (CEE) academia in social sciences, we have a limited knowledge on how academics of the region perceive the culture of their scholarly fields. Building upon survey data from 481 social scientists from 16 CEE countries, this paper analyses the perceived meritocracy of the academic system. We found significant positive associations between meritocracy, publication requirements for promotions and international publication records. Moreover, results show that academic capital is typically accumulated though informal networks and even from the family, while the role of formal education is less important. Our findings suggest that raising the level of meritocracy in promotion and recruitment processes might help increase the international visibility of CEE social sciences through a growth in international publications, but also indicated that research institutions should motivate CEE scholars with both financial rewards and a reduction in teaching duties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The subject-matter of this paper is the economic situation in selected Eurasian countries affected by armed conflict at the turn of the 21st century. The aim of the paper is to assess the strength and impact of such conflict on the economic development of the affected countries from its outbreak until 2022.

Territorial-administrative organization belongs to the most important and highly debated topics of political geography. The paper focuses on boundary changes on a municipal level. Territorial amalgamation reforms have attracted a lot of attention of scholars from different disciplines, recently resulting also in meta-analyses of studies of impacts of those reforms. But the opposite process - of territorial fragmentation (splits or "divorces" of municipalities) has not attracted sufficient attention of academic community. And in the practice of Central and Eastern Europe this type of reforms has been at least equally frequent and equally important as territorial consolidation reforms. Immediately after 1989/1990 turn-over we could note massive territorial fragmentation in several countries of former Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and some others. But also more recently, within last 20 years there have been several cases of "municipal divorces". The paper provides inventory and draws general picture of such changes in 7 countries of the region (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia) and discusses both factors beyond the divorce initiatives as well as possible consequences for local democracy and local public service provision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Financial markets play an important role in the economies of the world as they are supporting economic development. The present paper focuses on the young financial markets of Central and Eastern Europe with the focus on three selected cases: Romania, Slovakia and Hungary. In these countries, the capital markets are studied through the assessment of performances and risks associated with mutual funds by comparison with stock exchanges. Statistical documentation and statistical empirical research were used in order to compare mutual funds' evolution with the stock markets' evolution. The period of analysis also comprised the global financial and economic crisis, with obvious consequences on the results of the analysis. Among the main findings of the study are: mutual funds performed better (both in terms of returns and risks) than stock exchanges in the periods of economic turmoil; a movement from investing in highrisk assets (equity) towards investing in low-risk assets (bonds and monetary assets) takes place in the periods of economic distress; there were more similarities than differences in the evolutions of mutual funds and stock exchanges in these three countries, illustrating common characteristics at the regional level. The study concludes that mutual funds outperform stock markets, especially during economically difficult periods. This can be taken into consideration by fund administrators when deciding on their assets portfolio and when marketing their funds to investors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clinicians and researchers consider that there are a variety of symptoms that constitute negative symptoms in schizophrenia, and they may use different definitions for the same symptoms. These differences are also reflected in a variety of negative symptom rating scales. Both research and clinical work are negatively affected by the lack of consensus regarding the symptoms that constitute negative symptoms in schizophrenia. Leading research groups have investigated ways to reduce heterogeneity in the domain of negative symptoms in schizophrenia; however, little attention has been paid to regional differences in the concepts of negative symptoms in schizophrenia. The objective of this review was to collect and summarize information about the assessment and treatment of negative symptoms of schizophrenia in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Nineteen experts from 17 countries in CEE participated in this project. The participants collected information about their countries, including the following: (1) the most important publications about negative symptoms in schizophrenia (irrespective of the time of their publication); (2) the most frequently used negative symptom of schizophrenia in clinical practice; (3) definitions of frequently used negative symptoms; and (4) treatment of negative symptoms in schizophrenia. The participating experts/countries most frequently reported the following five negative symptoms: avolition, blunted affect, alogia, asociality, and anhedonia. Several experts also considered other symptoms as belonging to the negative symptom domain, such as a decrease in energy level and changes in personality. The importance of evaluating the long-term course and the relationship between negative symptoms and other symptom domains was also noted. No noticeable differences were reported in the treatment of negative symptoms compared to currently published guidelines and algorithms. The most frequently reported negative symptoms included those defined by the NIMH-MATRICS consensus statement on negative symptoms and recently endorsed in a guidance paper of the European Psychiatric Association. The main differences in the concepts, names, and definitions of primary negative symptoms, especially those related to personality changes, and to the evaluation of the long-term course and relationship between different symptom domains in CEE compared to the current English language literature deserve the attention of psychiatrists and other professionals in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The enlargement of the EU towards Central-Eastern Europe in the years 2004 and 2007 and the related EU funds provided new opportunities and created new challenges to both big metropolitan cities and smaller settlements. One of the particularly important challenges was to define appropriate national and local policies for the urban regeneration of neglected areas, which were abundant in this part of Europe. The objective of the paper is to analyze and evaluate actions taken in Bulgaria and Poland at the national and local level in the field of urban regeneration after the countries’ accession to the EU. The paper compares the general national and local planning approaches and capacity building for urban regeneration in the context of regulative and procedural issues. The local case studies represent two types of urban areas under regeneration: the metropolitan core cities Poznań and Sofia and medium-sized non-core towns of Piła and Gabrovo. The results are in the form of a concurrent evaluation of both the achievements and negative effects resulting from the national and local processes in the envisaged and the recently implemented activities with regard to the regeneration of deprived urban neighborhoods and areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current situation, shaped by the relocation of multinational companies following the disruption of global value chains, the efforts for attracting foreign direct investments (FDI) should be better focused on enhancing the flows that create value in the economy, stimulate the local business environment, and are destined to sectors with high value added. The aim of this paper is to identify the factors shaping competitiveness in Central and Eastern European countries that also matter for the foreign investors' decision regarding location. We have taken an innovative approach in dealing with the large range of FDI determinants and we have used the machinelearning based random forest methodology to identify the most important predictors of FDI in CEE countries from a set of 15 indicators also present in the calculation of the European Regional Competitiveness Index 2019. Our results show that countries' particularities, market size, digitalization of the economy, labour force characteristics (such as population in tertiary education and employment in knowledge-intensive services and high-tech manufacturing sectors), and economic potential market are the factors with the highest contribution in attracting FDI in the CEE region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]