Restructuring the Welfare State - (Political Evolution and Institutional Change) by B Rothstein & S Steinmo (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

The modern welfare state is under threat from a variety of fronts. Changing demographic patterns, declining public trust, interest group demands and growing international competition for capital and labour are presenting modern states with intense pressures. This volume examines these competing pressures and offers a coherent analyses of both institutional resilience and institutional change. Adopting an evolutionary approach, this innovative volume demonstrates both how past practices and policies significantly affect the current options and how social and economic forces impinge upon each of these societies in surprisingly different ways. Cross-national in scope and unified in approach, Restructuring the Welfare State examines core issues facing the contemporary welfare state while at the same time significantly advancing historical institutionalist theory.

Review Quotes

'This is a rare combination of a coherent theoretical approach and important empirical evidence. Rothstein, Steinmo and their colleagues give a significant contribution to our understanding of the institutional dynamics of the welfare state.' - Johan P. Olsen, ARENA Programme, Oslo

'The essays in this volume, individually and jointly, succeed in establishing an original and very important proposition: The present diversity in welfare-state structures and performance is explained by differences in political legitimacy, a consequence of differences in welfare-state institutions. The basic argument is developed on solid theoretical foundations, and individual contributions provide fascinating empirical illustrations from diverse policy areas and different national contexts. In short: A book that is bound to have a major impact on the Comparative Political Economy of modern welfare states.' - Fritz W. Scharpf, Director, Max Planck Institute for the Studies of Societies

'The book is an interesting and coherent collection of highly sophisticated essays and it will certainly have a long-lasting impact on the academic literature on contemporary welfare states. Furthermore, its theoretical insights will undoubtedly prove to strengthen historical institutionalism as an approach to political analysis.' - Mikko Kuisma, Political Studies Review

'...this book provides some fascinating insights into the way in which diverse welfare institutions can give rise to different welfare outcomes and dilemmas. As such, it will be of interest to all those interested in the origins and future development of the welfare state.' - Robert Page, Local Govenment Studies

About the Author

BO ROTHSTEIN is the August Röhss Chair in Political Science at the University of Göteborg, Sweden

SVEN STEINMO is a Professor in Political Science at the University of Colorado at Boulder