The subject of the paper is to point out the influence of the so-called "neoliberal culture" on economic development in the SEE countries and to explain the relationship between "neoliberal culture" and alternative institutions. In order to understand the topics covered by the research, the nature of the relationship between culture and institutions, as well as the relationship between culture and economic development, are additionally explained. The goal of the research is to ascertain the negative impact of the so-called "neoliberal culture" in SEE countries. It is based on the hypothesis that, with its hybrid and pseudo characteristics, it favored the formation and strengthening of alternative institutions, that is, a long-term socio-economic crisis. In addition to the usual methods of social and economic sciences, the descriptive method and the creation of logical images and schemes were mainly used in the work. In conclusion, the initial hypothesis was verified.

This study embarks on a comparative evaluation of Circular Economy (CE) performance in the Baltic States (Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia) using a ro-bust multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) framework. Drawing on 22 key indicators, the research applies the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) to systematically rank the country-level CE implementation across five thematic dimensions: production and consumption, waste management, secondary raw materials, competitiveness and innovation, and global sustainability. The results reveal that Latvia ranks highest, followed by Lithuania and Estonia, underscoring significant differences in waste management efficiency, investment in CE sectors, and material self-sufficiency. The main contribution of this paper lies in the development of a comprehensive, quantitative bench-marking framework that integrates multiple CE indicators and MCDM methods to assess national performance in a data-driven manner. The methodology developed here can serve as a replicable model for CE assessment in other regional or national contexts.