Demokratizacija političke kulture postkomunističkih društava – za i protiv kulturološkog i institucionalnog modela
Democratization of political culture in post-communist societies: Pro et contra institutional and cultural model

Summary/Abstract: The democratization of the former communist countries at the end of the 20th century revived the culture vs. structure debate that has been going on for decades. The two prevailing models of the political culture change had diverse predictions regarding the possibility of democratization of the political culture of the previously non-democratic societies. The cultural model, which argues that the structure of the political system has cultural roots and preconditions, gave pessimistic predictions – political culture can change only in the long term by generational replacement and under the influence of some more general structural changes in the society. The chances for new democracies were more optimistic according to the institutional model, which proposes the reverse influence, from structure to culture. The basic assumptions of the two models are first described in the paper, and then follows a short overview of empirical studies. The concluding part discusses some dilemmas and shortcomings of the two models.

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