Cross-Cultural Views of Personality and Aging 93
TABLE 10. An Overview of Recent History in Five Cultures.
Country 1915–1945 1945–1965 1965–1995
Germany Defeat in World War I;
Great Depression;decline of democracyand rise of Third Reich(Hitler); territorialexpansion; theHolocaust; defeat inWorld War IIMarshall Plan and post -
war reconstruction;
Soviet blockade ofBerlin and division ofGermany; Cold War,nuclear threat, BerlinWall; economicprosperity; televisionStudent movement and
liberalization of values;peace and prosperity;East/West rapproche -
ment and reunification.
Current concerns: un -
employment, AIDS, en -
vironmental pollution
Italy Social and labor unrest,
postwar nationalisticdiscontent leads to riseof fascism (Mussolini);conquest of Ethiopiaand occupation ofAlbania; alliance withGermany brings Italyinto World War II;defeat and civil war ofliberationMarshall Plan and
postwar reconstruction;industrialization andurbanization fosterrapid transformationof society andeconomic growthCenter–left coalition;
social conflict, studentmovement, and strongunionization;legalization of divorce;escalation of politicalconflict; terrorism;fighting mafia andpolitical corruption;emergence of newparties
Portugal Brief democracy;
World War I; 1926military coup anddictatorship (Salazar);restrictions on freespeech and socialdevelopment;neutrality buthardships in WorldWar IIInitial industrialization
in 1950s; beginning ofcolonial wars in Africa,1961, and return ofcolonists; continueddictatorship;widespread emigrationto northern EuropeIncreasing political
opening; end of colonialwar and massive immi-gration of ex-colonists;student movement in1960s; restoration ofdemocracy, 1974; entersEuropean EconomicCommunity (EEC);social liberalization;divorce legalized;women’s rights upheld
Croatia Austro-Hungarian
Empire dismantled;multiethnic Yugoslaviaformed under Serbianking; Croatianindependencemovement; occupationby Axis powers andcreation of independentCroatia under fascistpuppet dictator inWorld War IINonaligned
Communistgovernment (Tito)reunites Yugoslavia;gradual economicrecovery; continuednationalist sentimentEconomic boom, then
decline in 1980s;democracy restored inYugoslavia, 1990; war ofCroatian independence,recognized in 1992;continuing Balkanconflict
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