Introduction: Economists and Social Change

The rapid and, for most, unexpected collapse of the socialist regimes in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union at the turn of the 1990s remains a perplexing puzzle: how was it possible that, within a few years, if not months, the reassertion of socialist ideology and the perceived superiority of socialism were replaced by calls for a transition to Western-style markets and democracy as the only viable path for socio-economic development? Despite a vast body of literature produced since the beginning of the “transition,” the end of Soviet rule still harbors many blind spots, misunderstandings, and even myths. In Russia, dominant narratives of these pivotal events range from theories of American government conspiracies aimed at dismantling the Soviet Union through radical liberalization policies (Yablokov 2018), to accusations of treachery, corruption, and incompetence among Soviet leaders and post-Soviet reformers, or, in more charitable interpretations, misguided adherence to the advice of foreign experts. Three decades later, such assessments often serve as justification for closing the chapter on liberalization, romanticizing the late Soviet era, and fostering political and cultural isolationism in contemporary Russia.