Bulgaria’s Family Resilience: Navigating Economic Transition

1. Bulgaria’s Reform and the New Market Economy: What Does it Mean for Families ? A synopsis of how macro forces impact on the well-being of families and the various ways in which families adapt and demonstrate resilience during times of great economic, social and cultural change.

2. Post-totalitarian transition EU accession Collapse of national institutions NATO oversight US/PAL incentives rapid vs. slow reform Changing worldview Macroforces Transforming Bulgarian Family Life

3. Everyone received subsidies in all areas of living High literacy rate (associated with need to disseminate propaganda) State control of the church Free education State managed family life-- public and private Gender equality emphasized Divorce penalty Dual wage economy Social Systems and Communism

4. Polarization between slow and rapid reform communities Uneven and unequal redistribution of wealth Disintegration of the middle class Increases in organized crime & corruption Lack of social contract between citizens and government Socio-Economic Issues

5. Worldview: from totalitarian-post totalitarian to democratic ways of thinking and doing Re-thinking shifting away of social problems to villages, Parents teach spirit of entrepreneurship and democratic values Middle class sector critical to affirming democratic values Re-interpreting historical Christian liberation pedagogy in the context of transition, democracy and family stability Shifting Cultural Values and Beliefs

6. Under market economy , poor support AND uncertainty in standard of living Decline of institutions supporting middle class sector 10-12% Immigration primarily middle class Faith as a factor in family stability Increase living standard problems with elderly Econ. challenges delay age of marriage & birth rate Increase in co-habitation among young couples High unemployment stabilized/assuaged by EU & US funding Transition and Family Well-Being

7. Critical to reform effort historically, western-oriented Decline in m.c., slower progress in reform Significance of Middle Class

8. Women: problems balancing household work and family time Gender and employment Increase in intergenerational households Underemployment Declining social benefits Declining birth rate (1.8) Increase in co-habitation among young couples Demographics & Family Household Issues

9. High birth rates Separate but equal education Defining democracy and equality in the new market economy Turkish population more successfully integrated Equal access to Employment and education Minority Families: Roma and Turkish Communities

10. Bulgaria mimics other market economy countries demographic trends Marriage based on modern vs. traditional arrangements Western values and beliefs Low birth rate Delayed marriage Increase in co-habitation Increase in aging population Demographics and Global Trends

11. Developing a new social system paradigm for Democratic Bulgaria Employment Rebuilding national institutions Decreasing immigration of middle class Role of religion in societal and family stability Balancing work and family life Minority economic and political representation Rebuilding rural /village infrastructure Aging of the population Equal assess in education Se’meystvo: Future Issues and Challenges

12. Reflections On Bulgarian Family Life . Family life borders on both the traditional and the modern. The traditional is evidenced in the many folk ceremonies and rituals that are an integral part of Bulgarian life. Bulgaria also reflects the modern family in the trends that mimic other Western countries. Family historian Peter Drucker suggests that every few hundred years a sharp transformation occurs in society and this is followed by decades of re-arranging of worldview, values social and political structures. My brief glimpse into Bulgarian family life reminded me of how families also possess what social scientist have called, human agency—in the face of adversity, they use their historical triumphs and faith to adapt , impact on the larger culture and subsequently become a testament to endurance.

13. For More Information: Contact • Gloria Warren, Ph. D. 1154 Virginia Park Detroit, MI 48202, U.S.A. (313) 871-4644 Email: Gloria_Warren18@hotmail.com