The concept, methodology and data

The main purpose of the thesis is a synthetic description of selected key phenomena, processes and trends in the economies of the 16 CEE countries since the beginning of the post-socialist system transformation in the 1990s. It provides a kind of review and compendium of information on the region’s economic development during nearly three decades of systemic changes. The specificity of this study is determined by the fact that it was prepared with particular emphasis on the theoretical perspective and methodological categories of Comparative Capitalism, including discussions inspired by the results of research by Hall and Soskice (2001) and Amable (2003). The conceptual framework of the work is outlined by the context of this perspective, rooted in the debate on the models of modern capitalism after the fall of Soviet Union in 1991. The use of new terms, such as: “emerging markets” and “transition economies”, drew attention to the importance of the differentiations of the development levels and the institutional shape of many economies becoming involved in globalisation processes. The principles of Anglo-Saxon capitalism, which then reached its apogee of political significance, had a particularly great impact on the direction of development of the CEE countries; especially that in in the 1990s this model was largely supported by the EU. This was related to the interests of the strongest EU countries which saw the opportunity of strengthening their competitiveness through expansion into post-socialist countries that were undertaking major systemic reforms.