CIVIC ENGAGEMENT IN A POSTCOMMUNIST STATE

During the communist era, numerous social and political constraints li mited civic engagement in communities throughout Central and Eastern E urope. This paper explores whether such constraints have left lasting marks, and whether such lingering effects potentially slow the process of democratization. Three specific questions were explored: (I) wheth er civic engagement in a post-communist state differs from that in an established Western democracy; (2) whether the quality of social perce ption suffers when civic engagement is constrained; and (3) whether a link exists between civic engagement and tangible forms of political j udgment, Data were analyzed from surveys conducted in Cluj-Napoca, Rom ania, in 1994 and in South Bend, Indiana, in 1984, Compared with South Bend residents, the people of Cluj-Napoca discuss politics less, enga ge in interactive forms of political participation at lower rates, kno w less about their neighbors, and fail to link the interests of people in the community to broader political judgments. Given the centrality of civic engagement to democratic legitimacy, these findings justify concern regarding the prospects for full democratization in Central an d Eastern European contexts in which social interaction does not yet f lourish.