My main research areas include:
- the Soviet regime and the mechanisms of totalitarian rule;
- Soviet state policy towards the intelligentsia;
- the Sovietisation of the Moldavian SSR;
- the famine of 1946–1947;
- deportations and political repression;
- communist propaganda and social control;
- the war waged by the Russian Federation against the Republic of Moldova in 1992;
- the Transnistrian conflict and its consequences;
- relations between the Republic of Moldova, Romania, and the Russian Federation;
- the memory of communism and its social and political legacies;
- Russian influence, information warfare, and the crisis of democracy in Eastern Europe.
My research examines the relationship between power, society, and memory, as well as the ways in which state policies have shaped the lives of individuals, communities, and intellectual elites.
My professional experience in the Republic of Moldova and Romania allows me to analyse Eastern Europe both from the perspective of Soviet and post-Soviet history and in the context of European integration.
I am the author of books, studies, and articles on contemporary history, communism, famine, political repression, war, and collective memory. In my work, I aim to combine scholarly rigour with clear and accessible writing.
Professional experience
Question: A significant part of your professional career took place in higher education in the Republic of Moldova. What did you teach, and what did that experience mean for your development?
Mariana S. Țăranu: I worked in higher education in the Republic of Moldova, where I taught sociology and political science. Working with students required me to explain complex processes clearly, connect social theory with historical reality, and regard political regimes not simply as a sequence of decisions, but as mechanisms that change institutions, mentalities, and behavior. This experience is also visible in my books: I am equally interested in structures of power and in the ways they enter people’s everyday lives.
Since 2011, I have held the academic teaching title of Associate Professor in Sociology in the Republic of Moldova. This clarification matters because the university systems of the Republic of Moldova and Romania use similar terms without automatically granting them the same legal effect. The Agreement on the Mutual Recognition of Diplomas, Certificates, and Scientific Titles, signed on November 23, 2021, and ratified in Romania through Law No. 174/2022, provides for the recognition of educational credentials and, with regard to scientific titles, the recognition of the doctoral diploma and title in accordance with national procedures. My teaching title is not recognized as such in Romania under this agreement and is not granted automatic equivalence: the Moldovan academic teaching title of Associate Professor does not automatically become the teaching position of associate professor in Romania. Professional recognition and appointment are governed by the legislation of each country, while obtaining a university position in Romania follows the procedures established by law and by higher education institutions.
For me, this administrative situation changes neither the experience I accumulated in the classroom nor my responsibility toward the field in which I was trained. I mention it out of respect for biographical accuracy and for the reader: my title was obtained and remains valid within the university system of the Republic of Moldova, but it does not benefit from automatic equivalence in Romania.