“Spirit of the Soviet times” or Influence of cultural factors on FDI inflows in the Central and Eastern European countries from the post-Soviet block in the frame of the European Union integration process”

Abstract

Integration into the European Union Institutions is likely to provide new member-states with access to additional financing through different channels. One of such channels is FDI. Attraction of FDI is determined by a number of factors, among them are cultural factors. Influence of the Soviet culture as an important FDI determinant for countries from the post-Soviet block (Czech Republic, Estonia, Slovak Republic, Hungary and Poland), which are already in the EU, was studied from the perspective of the EU integration process. It was analyzed how power distance and uncertainty avoidance had been affecting FDI inflow of the tested countries over the period of the institutional transformation caused by EU integrational process. Moreover, it was shown how common language positively influences FDI inflow of the host countries.