Schools and healthcare in some post-Soviet hybrid democracies have improved. How?

After the end of the Cold War some ex-communist countries embraced full democracy, some became hybrid regimes while others backslid to authoritarianism. Andrea Cassani, Francesca Luppi, and Gabriele Natalizia examined the quality of education and healthcare in these states. They found that while the more democratic a country the better its public services, some hybrid regimes have also managed to improve living standards. While this is good for ordinary people’s social needs, it can also dampen down dissent and ensure the ruling hegemony stays in place.