This article investigates the degree to which the East Germans have acted on the freedoms they gained after the fall of the German Democratic Republic (GDR). Initially, many observers expected that the East Germans would quickly take advantage of their political, religious, and economic freedoms to become as entrepreneurial, partisan, and religious as their Western counterparts. Over the past decade, however, social scientists have discovered the persistence of ‘Leninist legacies,’ arguing that the East Europeans’ socialization under communism will make them reluctant to act on the before-mentioned freedoms. Contrary to both of these expectations, we find considerable variation in the Easterners’ behavior. In the economic sphere, while the Easterners have been willing to engage in legal market activity, they have been reluctant to get involved with gray market activity. In the political realm the elites have embraced partisan politics more thoroughly than have ordinary citizens. Finally, the Easterners have flocked neither to the Catholic and Protestant churches nor to new religious movements like Scientology. These results suggest that the combination of Western rights and Eastern Leninist legacies has created a unique incentive structure in East Germany. The Easterners face a different cost-benefit calculus than do the Westerners and, as a result, at times are less willing to act on their positive freedoms.
Skip Nav Destination
Article navigation
September 2002
Research Article|
September 01 2002
You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t (always) make it drink: postive freedom in the aftermath of German unification Available to Purchase
L.K. Davidson-Schmich,
L.K. Davidson-Schmich
*
aDepartment of Political Science, University of Miami, P.O. Box 248047, Coral Gables, FL 33124-65334, USA
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +1-305-284-2401; fax: +1-305-284-3636. E-mail addresses: [email protected] (L.K. Davidson-Schmich); [email protected] (K. Hartmann); [email protected] (U. Mummert).
Search for other works by this author on:
K. Hartmann,
K. Hartmann
bInstitut für interdisziplinäre und angewandte Diakoniewissenschaft, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn, Fliednerstraße 2, D-45481 Mülheim an der Ruhr, Bonn, Germany
Search for other works by this author on:
U. Mummert
U. Mummert
cDepartment of Economics, Georg-Simon-Ohm Fachhochschule, (Nürnberg University of Applied Sciences), 90402 Nürnberg, Germany
Search for other works by this author on:
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +1-305-284-2401; fax: +1-305-284-3636. E-mail addresses: [email protected] (L.K. Davidson-Schmich); [email protected] (K. Hartmann); [email protected] (U. Mummert).
1
Tel.: +49-208-4843151; fax: +49-208-4843105
2
Tel.: +49-911-5880-2867; fax: +49-911-5880-6720
Communist and Post-Communist Studies (2002) 35 (3): 325–352.
Citation
L.K. Davidson-Schmich, K. Hartmann, U. Mummert; You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t (always) make it drink: postive freedom in the aftermath of German unification. Communist and Post-Communist Studies 1 September 2002; 35 (3): 325–352. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0967-067X(02)00014-4
Download citation file:
Sign in
Don't already have an account? Register
Client Account
You could not be signed in. Please check your email address / username and password and try again.
Could not validate captcha. Please try again.