Dados is one of the most widely-read social sciences journals in Latin America. Created in 1966, it publishes innovative works, originating from academic research, by Brazilian and foreign authors. Edited by IESP-UERJ, it aims to reconcile scientific rigor and academic excellence with an emphasis on public debate based on the analysis of substantive issues of society and politics.
Dados vol. 37 n. 2 Rio de Janeiro 1994
Abstract
The article presents a critical review of the theoretical and methodological foundations of the western social sciences' three main perspectives on the evolution of Eastern socialist states, to wit: totalitarianism, pluralism/interest groups, and corporatism/neocorporatism. All three attempt to analyze, explain, and classify soviet-type states on the basis of an inapt transposition of concepts and categories forged in the study of social realities that are qualitatively different from realities in the East. This has produced a distorted, misleading understanding of Eastern nations, an understanding that is capable neither of accounting for the basic dynamics of development during the earlier socialist period nor of explaining in all their severity the economic, political, and social crises now marking Eastern European transition processes. In conclusion, the article presents some suggestions towards an alternative theoretical framework.
Conceitos Fora do Lugar: Uma Crítica Epistemológica das Principais Teorias Ocidentais sobre os Estados Socialistas do Leste
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