In the past half-century every Central and East European society has been twice subject to transformation. Initially, Hungary was transformed by Communist-style modernization, increasing industry, expanding secondary education and improving health. The second shock was the collapse of the Communist regime and the introduction of democratic institutions and a market economy. This text looks at how much or how little impact institutional change has had on the lives of ordinary people. Drawing on detailed surveys, highlighted in tables and figures, the authors: identify long-term changes in Hungary from the late 1940s to the late 1980s; analyse the impact of the collapse of the Communist system in the 1990s and compare long-term/short-term change in Hungary with trends in other Central and Eastern European countries.