Introduction to the Balance of Integration of Central and Eastern European Countries

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to perform preliminary weighing of the consequences of integration of these Central-Eastern European countries which, during the years 2004 and 2007, became members of the European Union. The elements considered in the analysis included changes observable in four areas: social, economic, cultural and that of the information society. Specifically, the analysis covered selected measurable variables relating to the above-mentioned areas. In the case of the economic field, the authors took into account the changes in production output of the economy, in public debt level, and the inflow of EU funds to the new member states. The social area factor considered was the change to the value of human development index. In the part related to the culture, particular attention was paid to four aspects: language learning, cultural heritage, employment in the cultural sector and the project of European Capital of Culture. In the last part of the article, the issues related to e-society were presented (in particular: the percentage of people regularly using the Internet, the indicator of software piracy and the index of networked readiness).