Informal Economies in Post-socialist Spaces ― Practices, Institutions and Networks

Informed by in-depth case studies focusing on a wide spectrum of micro and macro post-socialist realities from Lithuania to Kosovo, from Ukraine to China, this volume demonstrates the multi-faceted nature of informality and suggests that it is a widely diffused phenomenon, used at all levels of a society and by both winners and losers of post-socialist transition. In particular, by critically engaging with concepts such as bribery, nepotism and illegal transactions in general, the collection suggests that informality has a systemic reality not only at the micro but also, and more importantly, at the macro level. In an attempt to move beyond functionalist or structuralist perspectives, the authors propose that informality at the macro scale is an alternative way of responding to policy-making and that its reality must inform policy decisions.

Jeremy Morris is an Area-Studies specialist at the University of Birmingham, UK. His current research is focused on ethnographic approaches to understanding actual lived experience in the former Soviet Union, particularly in relation to work, class and the diverse economy.

Abel Polese is Senior Research Fellow at Dublin City University, Ireland and Tallinn University, Estonia. He has authored a number of resource tools and publications in eight languages and his project 'Sustainable Development in Cultural Diversity' received the Global Education Award by the Council of Europe in 2011.