Introduction

For more than four decades, people of Central and Eastern Europe were subject to close supervision, suppression of initiative and of freedom of choice, paternalism, sanctioning of disobedience and rewards unrelated to effort and performance (Schwartz and Bardi, 1997). The collapse of communism came as a psychological shock. The extent of this, however, was difficult to evaluate due to its scale and a lack of comparative indices. Within a relatively short period of time, new laws, new institutions and a new economic system started to be implemented, creating an environment which was hard to control. Compared to younger, post-transition generations who are increasingly exposed to a transformed society, with a substantial use of modern technologies nurturing a rapid spread of Western values (Sobotka et al, 2003), older, pre-transition generations are more anchored in the past, and may be more resistant to rapid social, economic and political changes. This chapter, using the present authors’ own empirical findings and those reported in the literature, will first seek to find out whether and how the communist system affected the basic values of its citizens and, second, attempt to shed some light on the values and experiences of individuals living through profound socio-economic transition, such as the shift from communism to democracy. The focus of this chapter is on Romania, which, like other Eastern European countries, has gone through dramatic transformation after the breakdown of communism in December of 1989.

When confronted with novel situations, the individual becomes aware of his/her beliefs and values and can react in two different ways: (a) displaying a defence reaction by avoiding the changes in order to maintain his/her identity or (b) displaying an adaptation reaction by changing the goals and the strategies needed to reach the goals (Trommsdorff, 1999). Several works argue that adaptation to life circumstances is important for value formation (for example, Rokeach, 1973), and this adaptation implies adjusting effectively to the existing opportunities and constraints. While communist regimes in Eastern Europe provided for the basic needs of its citizens (housing, employment, and so on), very few choices were available in terms of work, education and leisure. These limited choices may have led to the adoption of certain value priorities (Schwarz and Bardi, 1997). The demands and opportunities of the new system raise questions with regard to how individuals (of different ages and gender) were affected socially and psychologically.