What Modernization in Christian-Democrat Italy? The State facing Socio-Economic Transformation of 1948-1968

Abstract

According to Italian historiography, the term modernization refers to the transformation of Italian society between 1950 and the late 1960s. This study aims to analyse those years by adopting the specific framework defined by the action of State institutions, trying to clarify which contribution was given by the «State» to the modernization processes. The analysis starts from the period of political and institutional transition between Fascism and democracy, focusing the pivotal role played by Democrazia Cristiana (DC) to drive, and even delay, institutional and socio-economic transformations. It has been devoted some space to the «conquest of the State» by DC, enlighting the increasing connection between the DC political elites and State elites. During the Sixties, DC gained almost a complete control on the State apparatus, while the modernization was happening «out of the State». 1968 could be seen as a watershed in the history of the Italian Republic also by the State institutions’ point of view because of the regionalisation reform, but the regions would only be able to exercise their powers just from 1977, while the political system went on to be dominated by clientelism and restricted power-ful circles both on central and local level. Modernization would continue to be a deeply foreign enterprise for the Italian State. Only part of the private economy and some of the semi-public bodies would engage in it.