Much of the literature on the "sequencing" of economic and political liberalization suggests that new democracies cannot successfully implement market-oriented reforms. Yet, post-Communist transformations have shown that under certain conditions, economic liberalizers are able to gain the upper hand in the political process.

In this interdisciplinary volume, eminent scholars offer a cohesive framework for analyzing the forces that bolster or undermine liberalization and pursue four potential scenarios for the future of liberalization in these emerging states.