Psychological Development Programmes for Civil Society Building

Abstract

The post-Soviet period in Georgia, as in all post-communist societies to a greater or lesser extent, is characterised by social, economic and political crises. In common with the experience of all of these countries, the transformation process is proving extremely painful for the population. The transition to a market economy, democratisation and civil society building demands changes in the ways of thinking and the stereotypes of accustomed behaviour, and adaptation to a constantly changing environment. The situation in Georgia has been aggravated by protracted ethno-political conflicts, in the regions of Abkhazia and Ossetia, as a result of which there are some 300000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the country. These people have been left, for all intents and purposes, without adequate social protection. The majority of IDPs have to cope not only with the everyday problems associated with the transition, but also with a feeling of isolation from society. Latent tensions with the locals have become increasingly serious, thus making the question of the IDPs’ integration into the local community quite acute, and a crucial issue not just for the IDPs themselves, but, we could argue, for the entire process of democratisation in Georgia (Chervonnaia 1994).