Upward Social Mobility under Socialism in Eastern Europe 1945-1989

CLASS-UP proposes a qualitative comparative study of upward mobility (UM) under socialism, comparing Poland, Romania, and Yugoslavia. UM was a crucial social battleground in postwar Europe. Yet, we don’t understand how UM worked in socialist states, which differed from the West because of the historical post-feudal and post-imperial trajectory, the upheaval of WWII, and the geopolitical changes after 1945. The latter resulted in a dramatic redistribution of welfare and socialist visions of UM which promised the collective advancement of the working classes and a new egalitarian society.First, (RQ1) how was UM defined, and what were its indicators? How was it presented in official discourses and the press, and how did these shape people’s horizons of expectations? CLASS-UP traces diverse layers of social reality to propose a socialist understanding of UM. It also critically revises sociological research from the period, which diagnosed and defined UM. After building context and a localized understanding of UM, CLASS-UP examines (RQ2) how UM shaped biographies and family histories. An innovative method of intergenerational class biographies follows advancing citizens and traces transfers of social, cultural, economic, and political privileges, along with the costs of mobility over generations. While new divisions based on welfare stratification, politics, and education shaped postwar socialist societies, persistent prewar distinctions remained: advancement and reproduction collided. Sensitive to gender, rural-urban divide, and ethnic diversity, CLASS-UP also includes provincial socialism, moving beyond the industrial hubs and cities. It reexamines postwar history focusing on those who experienced UM thanks to authoritarian regimes. With most of today’s population coming from the working classes, the story of UM is the story of most of us.