The Current Nordic Welfare State Model


Book Description

The Nordic Social Welfare State Model has its intellectual roots in the depression of the 1930s, but was formed in the 1950s and got its name in the 1970s. Following the traditional model, it has recently become popular as a basic concept for shaping future approaches to European and US social politics. Challenging the Anglo-Saxon models, the Nordic models framework is regarded as a path that could be adjusted and followed. In the context of this model, this engaging and comprehensive book presents a comparative discussion of developments and innovations. The authors provide extensive examples of contemporary shifting pressure from external environments, showing how the model through the years is becoming modified without losing power due to its emphasis on social equality, solid pension arrangements, universal health care and active labor market policy.




Changing Social Equality


Book Description

Taking a comparative perspective, this book casts new light on the changing inequalities in Europe.




The Nordic Model


Book Description

The political structures of the Scandinavian nations have long stood as models for government and public policy. This comprehensive study examines how that “Nordic model” of government developed, as well as its far-reaching influence. Respected Scandinavian historian Mary Hilson surveys the political bureaucracies of the five Nordic countries—Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden—and traces their historical influences and the ways they have changed, individually and as a group, over time. The book investigates issues such as economic development, foreign policy, politics, government, and the welfare state, and it also explores prevailing cultural perceptions of Scandinavia in the twentieth century. Hilson then turns to the future of the Nordic region as a unified whole within Europe as well as in the world, and considers the re-emergence of the Baltic Sea as a pivotal region on the global stage. The Nordic Model offers an incisive assessment of Scandinavia yesterday and today, making this an essential text for students and scholars of political science, European history, and Scandinavian studies.




The Changing Meanings of the Welfare State


Book Description

In discussions of economics, governance, and society in the Nordic countries, “the welfare state” is a well-worn analytical concept. However, there has been much less scholarly energy devoted to historicizing this idea beyond its postwar emergence. In this volume, specialists from Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Norway, and Iceland chronicle the historical trajectory of “the welfare state,” tracing the variable ways in which it has been interpreted, valued, and challenged over time. Each case study generates valuable historical insights into not only the history of Northern Europe, but also the welfare state itself as both a phenomenon and a concept.




Normative Foundations of the Welfare State


Book Description

This book conveys analyses, perspectives and interpretations of the normative foundation of the unique 'Nordic welfare state model' which are relevant across the globe.




Nordic Welfare States in the European Context


Book Description

This important sequel to Nordic Social Policy (Routledge 1999) compares welfare state development over the last twenty years in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden with that of Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and other Western European countries. Topics covered include: * income distribution, health inequalities and gender equality * gender policies, health and social care services and policy reaction to family changes * social security and employment policies * financing of welfare states. In the context of globalisation, ageing populations, changing employment patterns and rising inequalities, Nordic Welfare States in the European Context offers an empirical analysis of welfare adaptations and a lively discussion of the historical development of European social policy. It finds a greater ambiguity regarding variation and trends than is commonly suggested. Contrary to expectation, there is little evidence of the Europeanisation of Nordic welfare states, rather the reverse. The comparable and empirical data used in this study make it a unique contribution to understanding current trends in European social policy.




The Nordic Welfare State in Three Eras


Book Description

Nordic welfare states are known for a unique combination of equity and efficiency and for political institutions facilitating compromise and consensus between conflicting interests. The Nordic Welfare State in Three Eras: From Emancipation to Discipline analyses the historical and contemporary evolution of Nordic welfare states in Denmark, Sweden and Finland during three periods: the developmental period until the end of WWII, the period of emancipatory welfare institutions until the 1980s, and the period of restructuring from the 1980s until present times. The three eras discussed are shared in one way or another by all welfare states. However, Nordic welfare institutions are unique in the sense that they were particularly compatible with the ideas of Keynesian macro-economic management that constituted the blueprint of international economic ideas during the post-war period. This ground-breaking book will show how preceding emancipating elements of Nordic welfare states were largely lost in the process of renegotiating the post-war social order, and replaced by new elements of discipline and control.




The Nordic Model of Social Democracy


Book Description

Social Democracy has long been prominent in Nordic politics through the dominant parties and ideological hegemony of the centre-left. This book explores the growth of social democracy and the policy dilemmas that social democrats face today. It breaks new ground by relating recent literature on social democracy in Europe to Scandinavia.




The Media Welfare State


Book Description

The Media Welfare State: Nordic Media in the Digital Era comprehensively addresses the central dynamics of the digitalization of the media industry in the Nordic countries—Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, and Iceland—and the ways media organizations there are transforming to address the new digital environment. Taking a comparative approach, the authors provide an overview of media institutions, content, use, and policy throughout the region, focusing on the impact of information and communication technology/internet and digitalization on the Nordic media sector. Illustrating the shifting media landscape the authors draw on a wide range of cases, including developments in the press, television, the public service media institutions, and telecommunication.




Dilemmas of Care in the Nordic Welfare State


Book Description

The Nordic welfare model has become an ideal in feminist literature and in welfare state studies. This has heightened scientific and political interest in the model and its key aspects, including the provision and production of care as public responsibility. In this engaging volume, contributors from various professional disciplines - including sociologists, anthropologists, political scientists and educationalists - provide a comprehensive overview of the complex state of paid work in social care within the Nordic welfare states and of the dilemmas facing state-provided care in the region. They develop insights into the conditions, practices and trends in the area of paid care in the social and health care sector, insights that expose the dilemmas and tensions associated with paid care and care education. Divided into four parts, the book will greatly interest academics, post-graduate students and professionals concerned with the Nordic model and welfare states. It will also benefit those from outside the region interested in a specific Nordic tradition of research on publicly-provided care and the current dilemmas and challenges facing training in care.




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