66710 - Political Economy of Welfare Systems

Course contents

Textbooks

Castles, F. and C. Pierson, The welfare state reader, Polity Press, 2000 (and some chapters in 2nd edition 2006).

Castles, F., Leibfried, S., Lewis, J., Obinger,H., Pierson,C. (eds). The Oxford Handbook of the welfare state, Oxford University Press, 2010.

 

1. Philosophical foundations

 

Hayek, F.A. von, The meaning of the welfare state, in Reader, 2000 (and 2006).

Nozick, R. Anarchy, State and Utopia, Oxford, Blackwell, 1974, Chps. 2-3.

Rawls, J. A Theory of Justice: Revised Edition, Harvard University Press, 1999.

Sen, A. Equality of What? in Sen, A. Choice, welfare and measurement,  Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1982.

 

 

2. The origins of the welfare state

Briggs, A. The Welfare State in Historical Perspective, in Reader, 2006.

Kuhnle, S. and Sander, A. The emergence of the western welfare state, in Oxford Handbook of the Welfare State, Oxford University Press, 2010, chp 5.

Nullmeier, F. and Kaufmann, F-X, Post-war welfare state development, OHWS, chp 6.

 

3. Comparing welfare states I

Sartori, G. (1994) Compare Why and How. Comparing, miscomparing and the comparative method, in Dogan,M. K e Kazancigil, A. (eds.) Comparing nations: concepts, strategies and substance, Oxford, Basil Blackwell.

Arts W.A. and Gelissen, J. Models of the Welfare State, in OHWS, chp 39.

Esping-Andersen, G. Three Worlds of Welfare Capitalism, in Reader. 

 

4. Comparing welfare states II

Kautto, M. The Nordic countries, in OHWS, chp 40

Palier, B. Continental western Europe, OHWS, chp 41

Ferrera, M. The South European Countries, OHWS, chp 42

Castles, F. The English Speaking Countries, OHWS, chp 43

 

5. REVISION AND MID-TERM EXAM

 

WEEKS 6-10:  TOPICS IN WELFARE STATE

 

 6. INPUTS AND ACTORS

Orloff, A.S. Gender, in OHWS, chp 17.

Trifiletti, R. Southern European Welfare Regimes and the Worsening Position of Women, in Social Policy, 1998.

Castles, S. and Schierup, C-U, Migration and Etnic minorities, OHWS, chp. 19.

 

7. Welfare state in Europe

 

Falkner, G. European Union, in OHWS, chp.20.

Teague, P. Deliberative Governance and EU social policy, in Reader 2006.

Whyman, P.B., Braimbridge, M., Mullen, A. (2012)The political economy of the European social model, Routledge.

 

 

8-9. Political challenges to the welfare state 

 

8) Pierson, P.The New Politics of the Welfare State, in Reader, 2000

Clayton e Pontusson, Welfare State Retrenchment Revisited, in Reader, 2000.

 

9)  Häuserman, S. (2010), The Politics of Welfare State Reform in Continental Europe, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.

Steeck, W., and Thelen, K, (eds.) (2005)Beyond Continuity. Institutional Change  in Advanced Political Economies, Oxford, Oxford University Press.

 

 

 

10. Economic challenges to the welfare state

Atkinson, A. (2000),The economic consequences of rolling back the welfare state, MIT, chps.1, 2,5.

Hemerijck, A.  Changing Welfare States, Oxford University Press, 2013 

Teaching methods

Assessment methods

Written mid-term exam in week 5:  40% of final mark. Final oral exam: 60%
For students not attending lectures the mark is 100% final oral exam.

Office hours

See the website of Rosa Mulè