Table Of ContentSocial Capital in Eastern Europe
Katarzyna Lasinska
Social Capital in Eastern
Europe
Poland an Exception?
Katarzyna Lasinska
Mannheim, Germany
Based on dissertation at University of Mannheim, defended in November 2011.
ISBN 978-3-658-00522-1 ISBN 978-3-658-00523-8 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-3-658-00523-8
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Preface 5
Preface
The book you have in your hands is a slightly revised version of my dissertation
manuscript that was submitted at the University of Mannheim (Germany) in Sep-
tember 2011. The thesis was defended on 9 November 2011 in front of a PhD
board including Professors Dr. Jan van Deth, Dr. Rüdiger Schmitt-Beck and Dr.
Sigrid Roßteutscher. I would like to thank the board members for an interesting
discussion and their critical questions on my project, and the public for the warm
moral support.
The general question I ask in this book (What makes Polish society special and
why?) is not only of a scientific nature; it is partly a personal question, too. When
living in another country you start to perceive your compatriots from a distance,
and this perspective highlights the differences between the culture you come from
and the one you live in. This is a subjective perspective, of course, and you can
never be sure how much of your cultural heritage stays with you when you live
abroad. These subjective observations were the starting point for the scientific study
presented in this book. During long hours of commuting between Saarbrücken,
where I lived, and Mannheim, where I worked at the university, I often caught
myself revising my subjective perspective based on the study’s objective findings.
Since the project is finished, I have a kind of satisfactory “peace of mind.” I hope
the readers will find the subject intriguing, too, since it revises some of the stereo-
types concerning Polish people, post-communist societies in transformation and
cultural Catholic heritage.
This book would not have seen daylight without the help of two people in par-
ticular. The first is my supervisor and mentor Professor Dr. Jan van Deth. I would
like to thank him for his continuing support and patience; he believed in the success
of my project from the very beginning, despite the fact that I initially lacked experi-
ence in applied research. It was an honour for me to get his undivided attention
answering numerous professional questions, structuring the chaotic shower of ideas
and encouraging me to go beyond the borders. I would also like to thank a number
of colleagues from the Chair for Political Science and International Comparative
Social Research in University of Mannheim. In the initial phase of the project, Dr.
Julia Rathke helped me obtain the Schlieben-Lange Programm scholarship for female
PhD students striving to combine family and a scientific career. Thanks to this
financial support, I was able to unfold my wings and profit from the department’s
scientifically fruitful and friendly atmosphere while working on my project. I also
6 Preface
thank my colleagues Dr. Martin Elff, Dr. Simone Abendschön and Dr. Marcus
Tausendpfund for their critical input when developing my research plan and for the
intensive discussions on the preliminary research results during our departmental
meetings. I would also like to thank Christian Schnaudt and Dr. Gema García
Albacete for their moral and professional support in the final phase of the writing
and preparation for the defence; your sense of humour, as well as your encourage-
ment and friendship, helped me accomplish the project. Last but not least, I would
like to thank the students working in the department: Sarah Odrakiewicz, for her
devoted and enthusiastic engagement in research, and Jasmina Islamovic, for her
accuracy and dedication when processing the research data. I am also grateful for
backing and understanding from colleagues Andrijana Preuss and Dr. Ellen Quin-
telier, and many others I met at the European Consortium for Political Research
Conference in Lisbon and during my regular work at the University of Mannheim.
The second person who seriously contributed to the appearance of this book
is my husband Marcin, who encouraged me to re-enter the scientific career path.
Not to mention his emotional and intellectual support over all the years of working
on this project, sharing with me periods of frustration and doubt, as well as mo-
ments of euphoria and satisfaction. His tolerance of stackes of books, papers and
sheets spread throughout a room we converted into an office was quite impressive.
I would also like to thank my son Ivo for being understanding not only of my men-
tal absence at times, but also of the closed doors to my office when I was working
under time pressure. Last but not least I would like to thank my parents, especially
my mother, for keeping my spirits high and for helping whenever it was possible,
including financial support for publishing this book. I thank you for believing in me
and for all you have given me in life.
Katarzyna Lasinska
Mannheim, October 2012
Table of content 7
Table of content
Preface ............................................................................................................. 5
Table of content .............................................................................................. 7
List of Figures ................................................................................................ 11
List of Tables ................................................................................................. 15
1 Exploring social capital in Poland ......................................................... 19
1.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 19
1.2 Poland – the ‘Southern Italy’ of Eastern Europe? ...................................... 20
1.2.1 Relevance of civic legacies ......................................................................... 20
1.2.2 Lack of civic legacies in Poland; similarities to Southern
Italy ............................................................................................................... 21
1.2.3 Contradictions ............................................................................................. 22
1.3 Research goal, method and research questions ........................................... 24
1.3.1 Communism ................................................................................................ 25
1.3.2 Systemic transition ...................................................................................... 26
1.3.3 Catholicism .................................................................................................. 26
1.4 Study design ....................................................................................................... 27
1.4.1 Research strategy ......................................................................................... 27
1.4.2 Data sources................................................................................................. 29
1.5 Plan of the book ............................................................................................... 30
2 Social capital – conceptual framework and empirical
findings ................................................................................................. 33
2.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 33
2.2 Social capital: functions and definition ......................................................... 33
2.2.1 Components of social capital .................................................................... 35
2.2.2 Double nature of social capital ................................................................. 40
2.2.3 Social capital as a single construct? .......................................................... 41
2.3 Why is social capital an important resource for Central
Eastern Europe? ............................................................................................... 42
2.3.1 Social capital and democracy .................................................................... 42
2.3.2 Social capital destroyed by communism? ............................................... 43
2.4 Social capital in Central Eastern Europe: operationalisation
and distribution ................................................................................................. 44
2.4.1 Social networks ............................................................................................ 45
2.4.2 Social trust .................................................................................................... 52
8 Table of content
2.4.3 Norms and values ....................................................................................... 54
2.5 Conclusions: is Polish society exceptionally weak endowed
with social capital? ............................................................................................ 60
3 Communist legacy and systemic transition .......................................... 63
3.1 Time perspective ............................................................................................... 63
3.2 Before the collapse of communism – similarities across
countries ............................................................................................................. 64
3.2.1 Social networks ............................................................................................ 64
3.2.2 Social trust .................................................................................................... 69
3.2.3 Norms and values ....................................................................................... 70
3.3 Before the collapse of communism – dissimilarities .................................. 73
3.3.1 Frequent protest action in Poland ........................................................... 74
3.3.2 Relative pluralism and autonomy in Poland........................................... 77
3.3.3 Why was “Solidarność” ephemeral? ........................................................ 79
3.3.4 The Catholic Church’s support of the opposition ................................ 80
3.3.5 Strong family ties and traditional values ................................................. 81
3.4 Conclusions – conditions before the collapse of
communism ....................................................................................................... 83
3.5 After the collapse of communism – similarities and
dissimilarities ..................................................................................................... 83
3.5.1 Persistence of behavioural and attitudinal patterns .............................. 84
3.5.2 Negative effects of transition .................................................................... 85
3.6 Conclusions – is the communist legacy and systemic
transition different in Poland? ........................................................................ 96
4 Catholicism and social capital .............................................................. 99
4.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 99
4.2 Why does religion matter for social capital endowment? .......................... 99
4.2.1 Exploring “denomination effects”......................................................... 100
4.2.2 Exploring “affiliation effects” ................................................................ 113
4.3 Conclusions ..................................................................................................... 118
5 Catholicism and social capital in Poland in a comparative
perspective – empirical evidence ......................................................... 121
5.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................... 121
5.2 “Denomination effects” across Catholic societies .................................... 122
5.2.1 The concept of “Religiously Rooted Conservatism” ......................... 122
5.2.2 Religiously Rooted Conservatism and social capital ........................... 135
5.2.3 “Denomination effects” – concluding remarks ................................... 152
5.3 “Affiliation effects” in Central Eastern Europe ........................................ 152
5.3.1 Church affiliation and social capital ....................................................... 153
5.3.2 “Affiliation effects” – concluding remarks .......................................... 181
Table of content 9
5.4 The impact of religion on social capital in Poland –
conclusions ...................................................................................................... 182
6 Is social capital building different in Poland? ...................................... 187
6.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................... 187
6.2 A comprehensive picture of social capital building in Poland ............... 187
6.2.1 Reference group ........................................................................................ 188
6.2.2 Explaining social capital........................................................................... 188
6.3 Research strategy ............................................................................................ 197
6.4 Exploring determinants of Polish social capital ........................................ 199
6.4.1 Social networks .......................................................................................... 199
6.4.2 Trust ............................................................................................................ 220
6.4.3 Norms and values ..................................................................................... 225
6.5 Different mechanisms of social capital building in Poland:
conclusions ...................................................................................................... 232
7 Why is Poland an exception among post-communist
societies? .............................................................................................. 237
7.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................... 237
7.2 Main findings ................................................................................................... 237
7.2.1 Crucial factors ............................................................................................ 237
7.2.2 Dissimilar conditions or mechanisms? .................................................. 241
7.3 Implications for the future ............................................................................ 243
7.3.1 Future development of social capital in Poland .................................. 243
7.3.2 Implications for further research ........................................................... 247
References .................................................................................................... 249
List of Figures 11
List of Figures
Figure 1.1 How can Polish exceptionality be explained? .................................... 28
Figure 2.1 Membership in European countries (percentages) ........................... 47
Figure 2.2 Volunteering in European countries (percentages) .......................... 48
Figure 2.3 Informal networks in European countries (percentages) ................ 50
Figure 2.4 Generalised trust across European countries (percentages) ........... 53
Figure 2.5 Norms of civil behaviour in European countries (mean
index scores) ............................................................................................ 56
Figure 2.6 Norms of social behaviour in European countries (mean
index scores) ............................................................................................ 59
Figure 3.1 Infant mortality rates in Europe 1955-1990 (deaths per
1,000 live births; weighted averages for groups of Eastern
and Western European countries) ....................................................... 76
Figure 3.2 GDP growth per capita in Europe 1990-2007, PPP (annual
growth rates in percentages; weighted averages for groups
of Eastern and Western European countries) ................................... 87
Figure 3.3 Income inequalities in Europe 1988-2005 (GINI coefficient
for income in Eastern European countries; weighted
average for groups of Western European countries) ....................... 89
Figure 3.4 Unemployment in Europe 1992-2007 (annual
unemployment rates in percentage of total labour force;
weighted averages for groups of Eastern and Western
European countries) ............................................................................... 90
Figure 4.1 Membership in religious organisations in European
countries (percentages) ........................................................................ 106
Figure 5.1 Support for a traditional concept of family (mean factor
scores by country; rescaled – TCFI takes values from 0 to 1) ...... 127
Figure 5.2 Relevance of religion (mean factor scores by country;
rescaled – RRI takes values from 0 to 1) .......................................... 129
Figure 5.3 Morality (mean factor scores by country; rescaled – MI
takes values from 0 to 1) ..................................................................... 131
Figure 5.4 Religiously Rooted Conservatism (mean factor scores by
country; rescaled – RRCI takes values from 0 to 1) ....................... 133
Figure 5.5 Membership and conservatism (aggregate levels) ........................... 136
