CREATING WELFARE STATES IN CZECHOSLOVAKIA AND HUNGARY - WHY POLICY-MAKERS BORROW IDEAS FROM THE WEST

Political change in Eastern Europe meant that a policy reform was soon to follow. The initial expectation was that reform would stem from ef forts to emulate the Western democratic countries, and that policymake rs in Eastern Europe would borrow from the West. In this study it was found that in Czechoslovakia policymakers were attempting to borrow po licies primarily from Britain and Sweden, whereas in Hungary the prima ry models were Germany and Austria. An explanation for this difference is that historical similarities in social-policy development structur ed the choice of countries, suggesting that historical trends have per sisted despite the long period of Communist rule.