B7769 - Welfare Systems and Local Policies

Learning outcomes

The course aims to provide in-depth knowledge of the conceptual and methodological tools to analyse, also from a comparative perspective, welfare systems in advanced economies as well as their historical evolution and potential future development in relation both to new social risks and the processes of territorialisation of social policies. At the end of the course, students will be able to: a) know and independently use the conceptual and analytical tools for the study, including comparative methods, of welfare systems and processes of territorialization; b) analyse and elaborate the institutional design of local welfare systems, identifying their strengths and weaknesses both from the point of view of the recipients and of the institutions; c) examine the processes of implementation of welfare policies at a local level, the role of different actors operating in the field of local-level social policies, and identify critical points and areas for improvement.

Course contents

The course is organized into lectures and seminars, according to the following program.

An initial section consists of classroom lectures (16 hours) and is designed to introduce students to the key conceptual and theoretical tools required to analyze the characteristics and dynamics of change in welfare systems, as well as the processes through which welfare policies are implemented at the local level and the role of the various actors involved. In particular, the following topics will be addressed:

• Historical, political, and social origins of the welfare state
• Welfare models and the distinctive features of the Italian case in a comparative perspective
• The crisis of welfare, new social risks, and trajectories of change between continuity and recalibration
• Rescaling and the territorialization of welfare policies
• Configurations of multi-level governance, welfare mix logics, and recent forms of collaboration between public administrations and civil society, including shared administration, co-programming, and co-design
• Policy implementation: instruments, professional discretion, and interactions between service providers and policy beneficiaries
• Contemporary challenges facing local welfare systems

The overall objective is to develop analytical skills that enable students to interpret welfare not merely as a set of institutions and programs, but as a complex social process in which different actors cooperate, negotiate, and sometimes come into conflict, thereby contributing to the shaping of policies and the production of their outcomes.

A second section, organized in seminar format (12 hours), is aimed at applying and deepening the knowledge acquired by examining some of the major challenges characterizing contemporary local welfare systems. The seminars will focus on strategic areas of social policy such as poverty reduction, work–family reconciliation policies, housing policies, and policies for the inclusion of immigrants. The emphasis will not be placed exclusively on policy content, but above all on the processes through which policies are designed, governed, and implemented at the local level.

For each policy area, the different institutional configurations that characterize local welfare systems will be analyzed, highlighting the roles played by public administrations, healthcare organizations, Third Sector entities, volunteer organizations, social cooperatives, foundations, civic associations, informal groups, and citizens. Particular attention will be devoted to the governance arrangements that regulate the relationships among these actors. The objective is to examine both collaborative and conflictual dynamics, showing how social policy-making results from processes of negotiation, power distribution, and priority setting.

The seminars will also explore the instruments of shared administration, co-programming and co-design practices, and more recent experiences of social innovation, discussing their potential, limitations, and conditions for effectiveness. A further cross-cutting theme will concern policy implementation. Through the analysis of case studies, particular attention will be paid to the role of frontline workers’ discretion, highlighting how decisions made in everyday service delivery can have a concrete impact on access to rights, the equity of interventions, and the quality of the responses provided to citizens.

Students will be divided into two groups for the seminar section. The total duration of the course is 28 hours

Readings/Bibliography

• Ranci C., Pavolini E. (2015), Le politiche di welfare, il Mulino, cap. 1, cap. 2 e cap. 3.
• Andreotti, A., Mingione, E., Polizzi, E. (2022). The Transformation of the Local Welfare System in European Cities. In Y. Kazepov, E. Barberis, R. Cucca, E. Mocca (a cura di), Handbook on Urban Social Policies. International Perspectives on Multilevel Governance and Local Welfare (pp. 101-116). Cheltenam: Edward Elgar Publishing.
• Kazepov, Y. A. K., & Barberis, E. (2017). The territorial dimension of social policies and the new role of cities. In P. Kennett, & N. Lendvai (Eds.), Handbook of European Social Policy (pp. 302-318)
• Gori, C. (2022). Le politiche del welfare sociale. Mondadori, cap. 1, cap. 2, cap. 5, cap. Cap. 8, cap. 9, cap. 12.
• Fung A., 2006, Varieties of Participation in Complex Governance, in Public Administration Review (pp. 66-75).
• Brandsen, Taco. "Governments and self-organization: a hedgehog’s dilemma." Critical Reflections on Interactive Governance. Edward Elgar Publishing, 2016. 337-351.

Teaching methods

First part of the course (16 hours): lectures. Through traditional lectures, the course contents are presented and discussed. This first part of the course is aimed at the acquisition of knowledge (concepts, theories, tools/procedures, facts/events).

Second part of the course (12 hours): seminar-based sessions. In the seminar component of the course, interaction among students and between students and the instructor is explicitly encouraged. For this reason, students are divided into two seminar groups, formed from the class that attended the lecture-based component.

Each seminar session will focus on the discussion of one or more scientific papers related to the course topics. Students are expected to come to class having read the assigned material and prepared a contribution to the discussion. They will be encouraged to engage in a structured process of comparison and verification of the knowledge acquired through the assigned readings. More specifically, in interaction with the instructor, their peers, and invited professionals, students will be asked to exercise their critical judgment in the analysis of empirical cases of innovation, distinguishing the roles and logics of action of the various actors operating in the field of local welfare and identifying the potential limitations and challenges associated with different policy measures and instruments.

In detail, the seminar sessions will be organized as follows:

1. Presentation of a paper by a student, with particular attention to the research question, theoretical framework, methodology, main findings, and implications of the study;
2. Participation of all other students as discussants, through the preparation of a brief individual contribution aimed at further exploring, critically discussing, or applying the contents of the paper presented.

In addition, data, research reports, institutional documents, or practical experiences may be presented in order to complement and critically contextualize the assigned readings.

Each seminar group attends only one seminar session per week. This arrangement gives students sufficient time to read, deepen their understanding of, and study the materials provided by the instructor in preparation for the session.

Assessment methods

For attending students:

- At the end of the first part of the course (Lecture section), students will take a written exam consisting of open-ended questions based on the content of the lectures and the materials used during the sessions (40% of the final grade). These questions will require relatively extensive answers on broad and cross-cutting topics, aimed at assessing the ability to organize complex content, critically engage with the themes discussed, and correctly apply analytical categories.

- For the seminar section, each student will be assessed on the following components: class participation, presentation of a selected article or book chapter, and discussion of a text presented by another student. This component also accounts for 40% of the final grade.

Evaluation criteria include: understanding of the text and key concepts, clarity and structure of the presentation, ability to synthesize information, ability to connect with the theoretical part of the course, use of relevant and up-to-date examples to clarify and deepen understanding, and critical thinking skills demonstrated through the formulation of thought-provoking questions for class discussion.

- At the end of the course, the final oral exam will assess students’ knowledge of the texts presented and discussed during the seminar sessions (all articles and chapters selected by students will be included in the exam). The exam will also evaluate the ability to relate these texts to the main concepts and issues addressed in the course, including those covered in the lecture section. This final exam accounts for 20% of the final grade.

Students who do not regularly attend classes will be assessed through an oral examination. They are encouraged to contact the instructors in advance to arrange the exam.

Assessment Criteria for Oral Exams

- 18–21: Basic knowledge of the topic and/or not always accurate; limited argumentative and re-elaboration skills.

- 22–25: Satisfactory knowledge of the topic; fairly solid argumentative and re-elaboration skills.

- 26–29: Good or very good knowledge of the topic; good or very good argumentative and re-elaboration skills.

- 30: Precise knowledge of the topic; excellent argumentative and re-elaboration skills.

- 30 with honors: Precise knowledge of the topic; excellent argumentative and re-elaboration skills; relevant and original personal elaboration of the content.

Teaching tools

Slides and readings uploaded to virtual.unibo.it.

Meetings with experts and practitioners

Office hours

See the website of Nicola De Luigi