|
|
 A European Context There is little evidence that Nordic social policy is undergoing a process of "Europeanization" |
|
|
|
The 1990s have been described as a new era for welfare states, due to internal factors that have contributed to fiscal stress, and to tensions arising from globalization and deepening European integration. The question has been raised as to whether tnese developments have also led to radical changes in Western European welfare states and, consequently, in the welfare of their populations.
While the changing conditions of welfare states have been the subject of considerable research and national evaluations, there was a shortage of genuinely comparative empirical studies on crucial dimensions. To fill this gap, a network of Nordic researchers was formed in the mid-1990s to design and implement a comparative international study on the nature and direction of trends in the Nordic and other Western European welfare states during the past two decades. |
|
|
|
The work was carried out in two phases, involving separate but complementary research strategies. In the first phase, the focus was on welfare-state trends in four Nordic countries, including changes in preconditions, policy reforms and other developments. A larger number of countries was studied in the second phase, which placed the Nordic experience within a broader European context, but on a more narrow range of dimensions. The main question posed was: How extensive were the changes in the Nordic welfare states in a European perspective? This study was published in 1999 under the title of Nordic Social Policy . It found that, despite heavy economic and other pressures, actual changes in the operation of the Nordic welfare state, including its outputs and people’s living conditions, appeared to have been limited. There was definitely no ”retrenchment” or ”dismantling” of the welfare state in any of the Nordic countries, whose similarities remained fairly consistent during the period studied. Following this first study, additional information became available regarding policy changes and growing income differentials in the Nordic countries. These and related developments were the subject of a second study, recently published under the title of Nordic Welfare States in the European Context. |
|
|
|
Changes in Western European social policies and living conditions were studied by comparing developments in the four Nordic countries of Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden with those taking place in Germany, The Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Additional countries were included whenever possible.
The main question addressed was whether the various countries have maintained qualitatively different social policies, or contrasts and distinctions that previously existed are now decreasing. In other words, has there been a ”convergence” of social policy? The answer to that question appears to be ”no”. Contrary to much current speculation, there is little evidence to suggest that the Nordic welfare states are becoming ”Europeanized”. The actual trend appears to be the reverse. This conclusion is based on an analysis of empirical data in the following areas: income distribution, health inequalities, gender equality and gender policies, health and social-care services, policy reactions to family changes, activation, social security, employment policies, and the financing of welfare states. The editors of of the recently published study are: Mikko Kautto and Hannu Uusitalo of Finland’s National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health; Johan Fritzell of the Swedish Institute for Social Research at Stockholm University; Björn Hvinden of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology; and Jon Kvist of the Danish National Institute of Social Research. Nordic Welfare States in the European Context London: Routledge, 2001 -- March 2001 |
|