Although German unification has had a profound impact on European integration and economic development, very few studies of the East German economy exist. The editors of this volume have therefore brought together specialists in economics and politics who analyze such important issues as privatization, monetary reform and unemployment. The aim is to provide scholars and generally interested readers with a critical understanding of the complex processes of German unification and to identify the general lessons that can be learnt from their analysis for economies and societies that undergo such profound transformations as has been the case in East Germany since the early 1990s. Thomas Lange is Director of the Centre for International Labour Market Studies, The Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen. J. R. Shackleton is Head of the Business School in Faculty of Management at the University of Westminster, London.