Bent Greve

I debatten om velfærdsstaten tages der ofte udgangspunkt i en modsætning mellem velfærd og økonomisk bæredygtighed. Offentlige ydelser til sundhed, arbejdsløshedsforsikring, uddannelse m.m. er kun en mulighed, hvis der er penge til det i budgettet, og der er en løbende konflikt mellem at sikre tilstrækkelige offentlige ydelser og bevare skattetrykket på et acceptabelt niveau. I Den sociale og innovative velfærdsstat argumenterer professor Bent Greve for, at modsætningen mellem velfærd og økonomisk bæredygtighed er falsk. En væsentlig grund til, at Danmark er et effektivt samfund sammenlignet med mange andre lande, er, at vi har en innovativ stat, som investerer aktivt i velfærd og retter op på de skævheder og mangler, som præger det frie marked. Udgifter til bl.a. sundhed og uddannelse er ikke en underskudsforretning, men en fordel, fordi alternativet i form at et rent privat marked er dyrere for borgerne. Samtidig sikrer velfærdsstaten, at der er mindre ulighed og dermed mere tillid i samfundet, hvilket bevirker, at der spildes langt færre ressourcer på at sikre sig mod kriminalitet.

EU member states have seen high levels of unemployment in recent years especially amongst young people. At the same time the fiscal crisis of welfare states has made it difficult for them to invest in new jobs and new economic growth. The EU, at least since the enactment of the Amsterdam treaty, has had a focus on how to support member states’ development of an employment policy which aims for higher levels of participation, lower levels of unemployment and more gender equal approaches. Through exploring patterns in the recent development of financing and governance of social services and developments of social services and employment in the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany and the UK, this volume provides readers with new knowledge and evidence of the options regarding social innovation in social services. Furthermore, it provides a comparative European perspective on how the interplay between a public and private mix of social service on the one hand might help in creating jobs, and, on the other, be a way of coping with the needs and expectations of higher level of services in the core areas of the welfare state.

Definitions of the welfare state often focus on how and why a state intervenes in the economy and welfare of the individual citizen. A welfare state does not, however, have to mean state intervention; it may merely reflect the state’s restrictions and the demands of the labor market, families, and the rest of civil society. This book covers the history of the welfare state from Chancellor Otto von Bismarck’s reforms in Germany starting in 1883 to the present day. This third edition of Historical Dictionary of the Welfare State covers the history through a chronology, an introductory essay, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 400 hundred cross-referenced entries that focus on the definitions and concepts that are the most relevant, long lasting, and important concepts. It provides insights from major areas in social science, including sociology, economics, political science, and social work. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about the welfare state.

Although happiness is based upon individuals’ subjective perception of their own situation, understanding the concept of happiness is important for forming policies in modern societies. Taking into account discussions from disciplines across the social sciences, this book explores varying notions of happiness and how these are applied to create a theoretical understanding of the concept. The book then goes on to demonstrate how a general theoretical concept of happiness can be used to add to our knowledge of central aspects of modern society, ranging from questions related to welfare state analysis, through to evaluating everyday life for individual people. In doing so, Happiness presents an up-to-date and applied account of how happiness is now widely used in economics, sociology, psychology and political science, whilst also exploring the relationship between happiness and public policy.

Generally, the term "welfare state" refers to an ideal model of provision, where the state accepts responsibility for the provision of comprehensive and universal welfare for its citizens. Among other things, it determines under what conditions babies are born and children cared for, what happens when workers cannot find employment, and how the aged will cope with illness and the lack of income. This book provides the reader with historical and updated information on welfare states around the globe. Given the importance of the welfare state—and especially the new challenges it is facing—this reference work comes at the ideal time. Through cross-referenced A to Z entries, this book focuses on the historical development of the welfare state, while simultaneously providing in-depth explanation of core terms and elements of the welfare states, their structure, their present situation, and their historical developments. Supplementing the dictionary entries are a chronology, an introduction, and a bibliography.

Occupational welfare is becoming increasingly important in Europe. This book presents valuable new data on occupational welfare and its development, and questions not only the traditional clustering of welfare states, but also the analyses of welfare states in terms of public sector spending and involvement. By investigating the impact of occupational welfare on public finances, distribution and labour market behaviour, the author provides an original and significant addition to the existing literature on welfare state analysis, and offers basis for a new understanding of European welfare states. With a comprehensive and detailed analysis of occupational welfare, comparing ten countries in Europe, this book will be of great interest to researchers, political decision makers and readers interested in new perspectives on welfare.