The effect of the collapse of Communism on the translation of influential titles/authors

This study uses difference-in-differences OLS regressions to examine the effect of the collapse of Communism on the translation of influential titles/authors in Eastern Europe. The results show that the collapse of Communism led to a significant increase in the number of titles/authors translated into Eastern European languages. This increase was particularly pronounced for titles/authors that were considered to be anti-Communist, written by Nobel laureates, or published during the Communist era.

The study also finds that the effect of the collapse of Communism was larger for titles/authors that were considered to be more influential in the West. This suggests that the collapse of Communism led to a greater diffusion of Western ideas and knowledge in Eastern Europe.

The study’s findings have important implications for understanding the role of books and other cultural products in the spread of ideas and knowledge. The results suggest that the collapse of Communism created new opportunities for the diffusion of Western ideas and knowledge in Eastern Europe. This diffusion of ideas is likely to have had a significant impact on the political, economic, and social development of Eastern Europe.

For more information, please see the following paper:

Sin, David H. (2015). The effect of the collapse of Communism on the translation of influential titles/authors. Journal of Economic History, 75(4), 1133-1164.