ABSTRACT
This chapter deals with the post-socialist condition as an explanatory framework for East Central European urban development. It then starts from the assumption that looking at post-socialist cities two decades after the fall of state socialism is a good opportunity to re-examine some of the long-held assumptions about the pathways, characteristics and the underlying dynamics of their development. The chapter also introduces a systematization of post-socialist urban change and considers the impact of the post-socialist condition on urban development in East Central Europe. Post-socialist transition consists of several dimensions of change. It comprises the change from socialism to capitalism at the national and local level and, at the same time, the integration of socialist states into the global capitalist order. Finally, the chapter discusses the explanatory value of the post-socialist condition for East Central European urban development and reflects on the interlinkages of post-socialism and other macro-processes that impact on urban change.
