Shortage, fuzzy property and other dead ends in the anthropological analysis of (post)socialism

Abstract

The article begins with the observation that, despite almost ideal conditions, anthropological research on postsocialism has had little impact on general theoretical debates. One reason for this development, it will be argued, can be found in earlier interpretations of socialism that continue to have an effect on the field by obstructing innovative conceptualizations. The appropriation of ideas derived from neo-institutionalism by anthropologists produced analyses that found both socialism and postsocialism to be deficient. Thereby the ambivalent construction of the socialist ‘other’ allowed the general focus on economics to appear unproblematic. Following the introduction of Western institutions into formerly socialist contexts, the analytical focus shifted from old ‘different’ and ‘inefficient’ institutions to now ‘inefficient’ or at least ‘different’ actors. Taking the example of work relations, the article shows that only by overcoming these normative assumptions about the ‘other’ can anthropologists begin to question implicit knowledge and thereby open the possibility for new theorizing.