ABSTRACT
The development in Poland after 1945 is characterized by continual socio-economic crises. The official outline of the economic reform was based on three pillars, the so-called "3 S's": autonomy, self-management, and self-financing. In emergency situations or in the case of meeting international obligations, the State economic apparatus would have the right to include a specific assignment to an enterprise's production plan, or to stipulate production beyond target. The task of integrating these two semi-contradictory elements of reform implementation was turned over to the economic policy makers. The economic crisis and political conflicts radicalized a large part of the society, which in turn caused "Solidarnosc" to change their existing strategy. The reform plan was to deal with the 1979-82 crisis exceeded the traditional threshold, which most of the economic reforms in Poland and other socialist countries had failed. The changes envisaged in the central planning of the economy referred both to its socio-political and its systemic aspects.
