Join Columbia's Harriman Institute for a talk with Anastassia V. Obydenkova and Zafar Nazarov on the consequences of post-Communist democratization for society. 

Since the late 1980s, the post-Communist states have undertaken various paths of regime transition: by the early 2000s, some states became democracies (e.g., three Baltic Republics), while others became autocracies (e.g., Belarus, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan). Abundant literature has addressed in detail the causes of democratization. However, there are few studies focused on the impact of post-Communist democratization. Obydenkova and Nazarov's research project tackles this issue directly and aims to answer the following question: What are the consequences of post-Communist democratization for society?

Their project addresses this question within the framework of theory of democratization and post-Communism studies. It aims to provide a unique analysis of the so-called fourth wave of regime transition and is based on quantitative analysis of data collected from numerous sources such as World Bank, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and Freedom House, among others. Focusing on post-Communist states, Obydenkova and Nazarov's talk will provide new insights into the success or failure of the fourth wave of democratization. Their findings have implications for the theory of democratization and regime dynamics worldwide.

Speakers:

Anastassia V. Obydenkova, co-director of the research project “Regionalism and Regional International Organizations in a Fragmented World,” Princeton University; research fellow, National Research University Higher School of Economics; visiting professor, Barcelona’s Institute of International Studies; research affiliate, Institute for Economic Analysis of the Spanish Council for Scientific Research (Barcelona)

 Zafar Nazarov, associate professor of economics, Purdue University Fort Wayne