[Table 7 about here]
While social capital shows strength in explaining donations, region loses its statistical
significance when measures of social capital are included in the regression. This suggests
that any effect region has on support for the NGO community in terms of donations
operates through the measures of social capital.
Conclusion
The historical legacies of Eastern Europe became a fertile topic in examining the new
democracies of Eastern Europe after the overthrow of communist regimes (King 2000).
After the dissolution of Yugoslavia, “the legacies of war, communism and history”
implied major obstacles for democracy (Krastev 2002). It was assumed that ethnic
diversity meant ethnic animosity which would lead to tension and conflict. Viewed in
this light, the ethnic heterogeneity of Transylvania became a prime suspect in the
challenges facing Romanian democracy. At the same time however, historical legacy
approaches that place less emphasis on ethnic demographics and stress other
characteristics such as a former imperial imprint, dominant religion or early socio-
economic development see Transylvania in a much more favorable light.
The historical legacy approach is unified in its attention to pre-conditions of
democracy but different theories under this approach have different expectations
regarding Romanian regional differences. We know from previous studies that despite
observing clear differences in political behavior between sub-national regions of
Romania (Roper and Fesnic 2003), no clear differences in democratic values or norms are
identified (Bădescu 2003a; Mungio-Pipiddi 2003). Thus, a puzzle supporting diverging
interpretations both theoretically and empirically is present.
Our analysis extends the investigation into the consequences of historical legacies to
the realm of social capital. We targeted a number of cultural attributes, presumed to be
historically-rooted, which are commonly associated with the concept of social capital.
18
Convention