ABSTRACT
Chapter 4 attempts to integrate the findings of studies that analyzed poverty in CEE/FSU countries. Research on the increase in poverty in the transitional economies affected by the collapse of socialism began soon after the beginning of the transition to capitalism. However, the nature of poverty in the former Soviet Union and Central and Eastern Europe differs, and two phases have been observed: a phase of increasing and stabilizing poverty in the 1990s and a phase of declining poverty in the 2000s. Taking into account the possibility that the impact of household size, education level, and urban residence, which are factors employed in traditional poverty research, may differ depending on the year or the region, this chapter attempted a meta-analysis. The results generally supported the hypothesis. In the 1990s, there was no difference between urban and rural populations in the probability of falling into poverty. After 2000, however, urban residence became a significant factor in reducing the probability of falling into poverty. In addition, different factors affected poverty in the former Soviet Union and Central and Eastern Europe. This phenomenon is believed to indicate an important future direction for research in comparative transitional economics. Furthermore, the trend in poverty dynamics seen here can probably also be regarded as indicating steady progress in transition.
