BOOK TRANSLATIONS AS IDEA FLOWS: THE EFFECTS OF THE COLLAPSE OF COMMUNISM ON THE DIFFUSION OF KNOWLEDGE
Переводы книг как потоки идей: влияние краха коммунизма на распространение знаний
2014-10-08
SCID: 54.1/xevw5tpx
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applied and social sciencesbook translationscollapse of Communismdifference-in-differencesinternational idea flows
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Abstract (AI)
We use book translations as a new measure of international idea flows and study the effects of Communism’s collapse in Eastern Europe on these flows. Using novel data on 800,000 translations and difference-in-differences approaches, we show that while translations between Communist languages decreased by two thirds with the collapse, Western-to-Communist translations increased by a factor of 4 and quickly converged to Western levels. Convergence was more pronounced in the fields of applied and social sciences, and was more complete in Satellite and Baltic than in Soviet countries. We discuss how these patterns help us understand how repressive institutions and preferences towards Western European ideas shaped the international diffusion of knowledge.
Key Findings
1
Book translations can serve as a measure of international idea flows and were used to study Communism's collapse effects.
2
Convergence in translation flows was stronger in applied and social sciences than in other fields.
3
Convergence was more complete in Satellite and Baltic countries than in Soviet countries.
4
Observed patterns indicate that repressive institutions and preferences for Western European ideas shaped international knowledge diffusion.
5
Translations between Communist-language countries fell by two thirds after the collapse of Communism.
6
Western-to-Communist translations increased fourfold after the collapse and rapidly converged to Western levels.
Research Object
Book translations as a measure of international idea/knowledge flows
Research Subject
How the collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe affected the diffusion of knowledge via book translations (changes in translation volumes and directional flows across Communist, Western, Satellite, Baltic, and Soviet language groups, and variation across fields like applied and social sciences)
Publication Details
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2014-10-08
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