These ten essays are concerned with theoretical and empirical analyses of trust and distrust in post-Communist Europe after the collapse of the Soviet bloc in 1989. The contributors come from different disciplines, ranging from history, economics and political science to social psychology and sociology. They are all specialists on the countries about which they write, and they show above all that the Soviet 'bloc' was in fact a rich spectrum of different countries with diverse histories, cultures and traditions, and--not surprisingly--with different expectations for the future.
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This book develops a theory of social knowledge based on dialogicality (the capacity of the human mind to conceive and communicate social reality in relation or opposition to otherness) and the theory of social representations. It argues that dialogicality is the sine qua non of the human mind and change is at the center of all social phenomena. Ivana Markova's new book brings together the concept of dialogue and social knowledge and will be an important contribution to social psychology and discourse and communication studies.

Dialogue has developed from more primitive forms of communication during evolution. In Mutualities in Dialogue, "dialogue" refers to face-to-face interaction between two or more individuals using a system of signs. It asks the question "What is it that we share in the course of a dialogue?," arguing that mutualities of language, culture and some interpersonal information are prerequisite for effective communication. Even in instances of noncooperation or of asymmetrical dialogue elementary commonalities must be present.

Dialogue has developed from more primitive forms of communication during evolution. In Mutualities in Dialogue, "dialogue" refers to face-to-face interaction between two or more individuals using a system of signs. It asks the question "What is it that we share in the course of a dialogue?," arguing that mutualities of language, culture and some interpersonal information are prerequisite for effective communication. Even in instances of noncooperation or of asymmetrical dialogue elementary commonalities must be present.

This book develops a theory of social knowledge based on dialogicality (the capacity of the human mind to conceive and communicate social reality in relation or opposition to otherness) and the theory of social representations. It argues that dialogicality is the sine qua non of the human mind and change is at the center of all social phenomena. Ivana Markova's new book brings together the concept of dialogue and social knowledge and will be an important contribution to social psychology and discourse and communication studies.

Despite considerable research examining insight in patients with psychoses, non-psychotic disorders and chronic organic brain syndromes, results are inconclusive and insight remains a source of some mystification. To what extent can patients understand disorders which affect their mental function? Does insight bear a prognostic value? Is impaired insight determined by the illness or are other factors of equal importance? Ivana S. Markova examines the problems involved in studying insight in patients with mental illness in order to provide a clearer understanding of the factors that determine...

This fascinating book makes an important contribution to the history of the social sciences. It tells the largely hidden story of how social psychology became an international social science, vividly documenting the micro-politics of a virtually forgotten committee, the Committee on Transnational Social Psychology, whose work took place against the back-drop of some of the most momentous events of the twentieth century. Overcoming intellectual, institutional and political obstacles, including the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia, and the military coups in Chile or Argentine, the committee...

In contrast to a vast literature that provides information and guides about focus groups as a methodological tool, this book is an introduction to understanding focus groups as analytical means exploring socially shared knowledge, e.g. social representations of AIDS, biotechnology or democracy, beliefs and lay explanations of social phenomena. The main emphasis of the book is to examine how to analyse interaction and ideas expressed in focus groups. The book considers, first, different kinds of dynamic interdependencies among participants who hold the diverse and heterogeneous positions....

In contrast to a vast literature that provides information and guides about focus groups as a methodological tool, this book is an introduction to understanding focus groups as analytical means exploring socially shared knowledge, e.g. social representations of AIDS, biotechnology or democracy, beliefs and lay explanations of social phenomena. The main emphasis of the book is to examine how to analyse interaction and ideas expressed in focus groups. The book considers, first, different kinds of dynamic interdependencies among participants who hold the diverse and heterogeneous positions....

The dynamics of trust and distrust are central to understanding modern society. These dynamics are evident at all levels of society, from the child's relation to caregivers to the individual's relation to the state, and they span from taken for granted trusting relationships to highly reflective and negotiated contractual interactions. The collection of papers in this book questions the diverse ways in which the concept of trust has been previously used, and advances a coherent theorisation of the socio-cultural dynamics of trust and distrust. In this volume, trust and distrust are analysed...