POLITICAL-ECONOMIC CONTEXT AND SENSITIVITY TO EQUITY - DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE UNITED-STATES AND THE TRANSITION ECONOMIES OF CENTRAL AND EASTERN-EUROPE

Recent labor economics studies suggest that low enterprise productivit y in former socialist economies can be corrected by adopting reward sy stems emphasizing compensation for performance. We used the equity sen sitivity construct to test for differences in the attitudes toward equ ity of business students from the United States and five countries of Central and Eastern Europe. ''Entitlement attitudes'' were more pervas ive in the transition economies of Central and Eastern Europe than in the United States, suggesting U.S. compensation practices may not be d irectly applicable in that region.