The Social Contract and Well-Being in the USSR: A Comparison of Central Asia, Kazakhstan, and the Donets-Dnieper Region
Author(s)
Hamilton, Ellen
Abstract
Social contract theory is used to examine changes in well-being from 1959-1979 in three very different regions: a developed region, the Donets-Dnieper region in the Ukraine; a developing region, northern Kazakhstan; and a less-developed region, Central Asia. Four variables are analyzed: social services, social facilities, capital investment and new housing construction rates. Government initiatives during this period improved the well-being of those in the least-well-off regions, but were not sufficient to alter the existing regional rankings. However, the provision of social or cultural facilities did become more equitably distributed in 1979 than in 1959.
