LOOKING BACK - THE YEAR 1989 AS A CULTURA L AND CIVILIZATIONAL BREAK

Post-communist transition in Eastern and Central European societies is analysed here in order to direct the focus of sociology to the basic dualities of the new social processes emerging in the transformation p eriod. So far, the contradiction between the emergence of political de mocracy and the introduction and expansion of the economic market has been the most frequent subject of analysis. A further relevant perspec tive - the focus of this article - die ferentiates between those proce sses occurring at the level of institutions and organisations and thos e occurring at the cultural and civilisational levels. The reconstruct ion of the political and economic system cannot consist solely in the rapid imitation and implementation of Western institutions. To operate successfully within the new institutions and organisations people req uire new fundamental cultural resources which create their,,civilisati onal competence'' in the area of polity and economy. Thus, the revolut ions started in 1989 will not have been completed until the formation of socially constructed cultural foundations is finished. This is the task of future generations.