Social Mobility and Political Regimes: Intergenerational Mobility in Hungary, 1949-2017

Area of Science:

• Sociology
• Economics
• History

Background:

• Hungary experienced two distinct socio-political regimes: the communist Hungarian People's Republic (1949-1989) and a modern liberal democracy (1989-2017).
• Understanding social mobility is crucial for assessing societal equality and the impact of different economic and political systems.

Purpose of the Study:

• To measure social mobility rates in Hungary between 1949 and 2017.
• To compare social mobility across different socio-political regimes and identify factors influencing it.
• To analyze the persistence of historical social stratification.

Main Methods:

• Utilized surnames as a proxy for measuring intergenerational social status.
• Analyzed social mobility trends over an extended period (1949-2017) encompassing significant political and economic changes.
• Compared mobility rates between the communist and democratic periods.

Main Results:

• Overall social mobility rates were consistently low for both upper- and lower-class families, with a high intergenerational status correlation (0.6-0.8).
• Social mobility rates did not differ significantly between the communist and democratic periods.
• The Romani minority exhibited substantially lower social mobility rates throughout both regimes.
• Descendants of the 18th-century Hungarian nobility retained significant privileges even after 1949.
• While overall mobility was stable, the composition of the political elite shifted rapidly after the transition to democracy.

Conclusions:

• Hungarian society demonstrated persistent low social mobility irrespective of the prevailing political and economic system.
• The transition to democracy did not lead to measurable changes in social mobility rates.
• Deep-seated social stratification, including historical privileges and minority disadvantages, characterized Hungarian society over seven decades.