Abstract
East Germany is an interesting area of study for transformation theory and sociological theory generally because of the predominant role of `national integration' in this particular process of transformation and the element of `strategic learning' among the major players guiding large-scale transformation processes. The major mistake made in the German case has been the assumption that nationalism and national identity are the integrating forces in both Eastern and Western European societies. The `model' case of East Germany seems to suggest, however, that national integration under conditions of modernity can have quite different sources. In particular, I argue that one should put a greater focus upon the structural distribution of life chances through the mechanism of nationally structured career patterns and individual, biographically acquired, access to nationally shaped career opportunities.
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