THEORETICAL REMARKS ON THE POSTSOCIALIST URBAN TRANSITION IN EAST-GERMANY

Although many researchers turned their attention to the transition sta tes of Central and Eastern Europe after the dramatic changes of the la te 1980s, there still is no comprehensive theoretical framework for th e analysis of the transition process and its spatial impact. Urban dev elopment in general can be described as structural, change, depending on the economic, social, cultural and political conditions. Therefore the Theory of Regulation offers a theoretical background, as it allows to define the initial conditions before and the target conditions aft er the transition as well as the necessary steps of adaptation. The ad aptation process itself is subject to a number of theoretical approach es, both within the economic and the social sciences. The mainly favou red Theory of Modernization implies a ''catch-up modernization'' of th e transitional societies, which also includes a spatial adaptation to Western examples. On the large scale level the rent gap approach, init ially applied to gentrification processes, offers a suitable explanati on for the spatial development of transitional urban areas.