ABSTRACT
The purpose of devolution is to shift the exercise of political authority from the center to the periphery, while the purpose of deconcentration is to strengthen the hold of central authority over the periphery. Decentralization as devolution entails a substantial expansion of peripheral authority, especially the authority to raise and expend revenues; but in a plural society, decentralization can intensify rather than diffuse the centrifugal tendencies inherent in the system. Alienation from central authority was a particularly powerful determinant of levels of support for the devolution of authority among Lithuanians; in Russia and Eastern Ukraine, alienation was also an important factor, although not so dramatically as in Lithuania. In Western Ukraine, the most important determinants of the degree of support for devolution were nationality and the place of residence of the respondent. In Eastern Ukraine, respondents living in urban areas were the most likely to support the devolution of authority to republican governments.
