Search results for " Welfare State"

Diritti sociali, istituzioni, risorse e la sfida dell'effettività

2019

This article concernes the effects of the financial and economic crisis on the effectiveness of social rights and on the sustainability of social spending. The Author discusses the relationship between rights and resources and between rights and institutions in order to deepen the factors that produce inequality in EU and in its member states. The article revises the European Pillar of Social Rights, criticizing the lack of innovative content ant its impossibility to found the revival of a social Europe

The Human Right to Social Security and Its Impact on Socio-Political Action in Germany and Finland

2017

Social human rights have rarely been given attention in social work research or comparative studies on welfare states. The paper aims at filling the gap by analysing the conception of human beings inherent in human rights and in unemployment policy documents in Germany and Finland. Its focus lies on the right to social security, a central norm of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The main question is what impact does the right to social security have on socio-political action in Germany and Finland. The results of the analysis, which was based on the objective hermeneutics, revealed a structural similarity between the conceptions of human beings in both cou…

The Economics of Freedom. Theory, Measure and Policy Implications

2012

What is freedom? Can we measure it? Does it affect policy? This book develops an original measure of freedom called 'Autonomy Freedom', consistent with J. S. Mill's view of autonomy, and applies it to issues in policy and political design. The work pursues three aims. First, it extends classical liberalism beyond exclusive reliance on negative freedom so as to take autonomous behavior explicitly into account. Second, it grounds on firm conceptual foundations a new standard in the measurement of freedom that can be fruitfully coupled with existing gauges. Third, it shows empirically that individual preferences for redistribution and cross-country differences in welfare spending in Organisati…

Financialization of Eldercare in a Nordic Welfare State

2022

Abstract The increasing presence of for-profit service providers in publicly-funded eldercare has transformed care in Nordic welfare states which have a strong tradition of public care provision. Macro-level research on care policies has mainly focused on public institutions, national policies, and marketization. The financialization of eldercare has not received much scholarly attention, and existing studies mostly focus on the UK. The financialization of eldercare refers to the ways in which care is both a site of profit extraction and financial engineering. The Nordic system is relatively universal, and, with rapidly ageing demographics, there is a secured demand for eldercare services. …

Changing Policy Environments in Europe and the Resilience of the Third Sector

2020

Contains fulltext : 202754.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Closed access) In the article, we analyse the impact of changing policy environments on the development of the third sector in Europe. Based on the results of systematic comparative research in eight European countries (Austria, Croatia, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain and the UK), we identify commonalities and differences. In a three-step analysis, we examine policy changes, effects on the third sector and responses by third sector organizations (TSOs) in the social domain. Overall, the third sector in Europe has proven resilient. However, not only have public and private funding decreased, the process for acquiring suc…

At the Interface of National and Transnational: The Development of Finnish Policies against Domestic Violence in Terms of Gender Equality

2017

Although gender inequalities are the main social mechanisms behind the (re)production of domestic violence, policy responses to domestic violence as a gender-related problem vary at both the national and transnational levels. This article examines the interaction between national and transnational policies against domestic violence, focusing on how domestic violence is constructed as a gender-related problem in Finland, a Nordic welfare state that is often cited as a role model in gender equality. Using the conception of policies as historically changing and culturally specific discourses, this article offers an overview of the ways in which the perspective on domestic violence of the trans…

Introduction. Education and the making of the Nordic welfare states.

2013

Current challenges and prospective analysis of the Third Sector of Social Action (TSSA) in Spain

2020

This paper analyses the current conditions and future challenges faced by the Third Sector of Social Action (TSSA) in Spain to consolidate itself as an institutional sphere of sustainable welfare and as a strategic actor in the development of social policies. The empirical basis of this work has been obtained with the use of qualitative methods such as in-depth interviews, focus groups and the mixed method of Delphi. The use of these methods is aimed at interpreting TSSA leaders' discourses, the collective voice of Non-governmental organisations (NGO) managers and representatives, and the opinions of experts on: the nature and past development of the sector. This research was carried out un…

Not just daycare: nordic mothers in research, development and innovation navigating work and childcare

2022

Nordic welfare policies mitigate work–childcare reconciliation; however, they are not enough for mothers working in intensive work cultures. In addition, there are differences among the three Nordic states in both work–family policies and cultural norms as to how they should be used. In this article, we study the resources mothers who work in research, development and innovation (R&D&I) in Finland, Norway and Sweden rely on in their work–childcare reconciliation. Thematic analysis of interviews with 74 professionals resulted in identifying four main resources: father involvement, parental leave system and daycare, flexible working, and grandparent help and networks. Our analysis brings to v…

Local social services in disaster management: Is there a Nordic model?

2017

Abstract The Nordic states have extensive welfare systems in which the local social services are an important component. Despite a growing research on disaster resilience, we lack research examining in systematic way whether and how local social services in the Nordic countries contribute to resilience. Aiming to fill this gap, this article asks whether we can identify a common Nordic model of the role of local social services in disasters, or whether the countries have taken different paths. We use policy documents and legislation to examine the extent to which roles for local social services are embedded in the disaster management systems of the five Nordic countries. We analyze the insti…