The transition from totalitarian, socialist regimes to more democratic, market-oriented ones in post-1989 Central and Eastern Europe presents economists and other social scientists with a unique environment in which to investigate fundamental issues. This natural experiment has also redefined the field of comparative economics.
No longer confined to comparative static analysis of equilibria under different sets of rules and relationships, scholars are now able to examine the multiple paths resulting from different initial conditions and different decisions made during the transition process.