Document Type
Dissertation
Date of Award
1976
Keywords
Elite (Social sciences), Greece, Politics and government, 1935-1967
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Political Science
First Advisor
Richard H. Dekmejian
Second Advisor
Arthur K. Smith
Third Advisor
Edward Weisband
Abstract
The primary concerns of this study are a) to present an evaluative overview of the Greek ruling elite in its evolving social setting, and b) to examine the changing composition of the cabinet elite (N = 589) from 1946 to 1976, especially as it relates to systemic change.
The first part of the study describes how an identity crisis resulting from the Ottoman slavery led the Greek elite to make Europe its point of reference and adopt European cultural patterns. This quest for identity was materialized internally by the imposition on school curricula of classical studies and “katharevousa” language, which was also the official language of the state bureaucracy. Concomitantly the elite relied on the ideology of “Megali Idea” to build national identity by focusing popular attention on the liberation of Greek-populated territories.
Through the “mimesis” effect, the Greek elite became a modernizing force as the middle class began to imitate elite patterns of education, consumption and overall behavior. This process of emulation has contributed to the narrowing of the cultural gap that separated the elite from the masses. On the other hand, the elite’s initial contempt for the indigenous mass culture gradually began to change as exemplified by its belated acceptance of popular music and other aspects of mass culture.
In assessing the nature of the Greek elite, a number of hypotheses were generated and substantiated in the second part of the study. Thus, in examining the social profile of the particular elite contingent—cabinet elite members—it was found that the centrality of Athens in elite culture is reflected in the demographic patterns of cabinet elite recruitment. In addition, a high degree of cosmopolitanism is manifest in perpetuating patterns of study abroad. The task of protecting and controlling ties with abroad is undertaken by a small “inner elite,” which through a restrictive circulation process has perpetuated itself in the strategic post of the ministry of foreign affairs.
The second part of the study traces the changes in the social profile of the elite through three historical periods characterized by different patterns of elite behavior and policies. However, this study has not attempted to assess the extent to which changes in social background characteristics have influenced the elite's behavior.
A number of salient findings may be summarized: The analysis of cabinet recruitment showed that state functionaries and members of liberal professions constituted the largest sources of recruitment. As in other polities, cabinet members tended to age in office, thereby blocking young aspirants. This blockage could only be resolved through systemic crises as in 1946, 1965, 1967 and 1974. The conflictual ideological orientations among various elite generational cohorts were the result of discontinuous socializational process accentuated by acute domestic conflicts. These conflicts bifurcated not only the elite itself but brought it into violent confrontation with the counterelite, that is the communists. However, the period of the republic has witnessed a considerable elite-counterelite accommodation. Conflictual issues as language and classical education have been tempered to a degree that permits overall social integration.
There were a number of findings on patterns of elite transformation. In recent years, a larger number of urbanites have appeared in cabinet positions, particularly Athenians. Furthermore, in keeping with the fast tempo of Greek socioeconomic development, a growing number of technocrats have risen to ministerial positions. Nevertheless, the study has discerned a lag between elite transformation and social change.
Methodologically, two advanced statistical techniques have been of particular interest. Factor analysis has been utilized in discerning patterns of elite recruitment, especially as they are related to patterns of social mobilization. Also, multiple regression analysis has been used in measuring the net effect of elite background characteristics on individual cabinet mobility.
Recommended Citation
Koutsoukis, Kleomenis Spiro, "Elites and society in modern Greece: cabinet circulation and systemic change (1946-1976)" (1976). Graduate Dissertations and Theses. 344.
https://orb.binghamton.edu/dissertation_and_theses/344
Comments
Pages 292 and 294 available as additional files.