Instructor:

Professor Dr. Zhou Hong

Department of European Studies, Graduate School of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

Phone: +86-10-8519-5731

Zhou-hong@cass.org.cn

http://ies.cass.cn

Course:

Optional Course on European Welfare States

Date:

Tuesday, 1.00 p.m. – 5.00 p.m.
             (March to June)

Prerequisites:

Introduction to Comparative Political Economics

Level:

MA and Ph.D. Students

Credits:

2

Course Syllabus:

This is an optional course offered to the students who have already taken all the five core courses, i.e. the CORCUR offered to Chinese MA/PhD students in the field of European Studies. The course aims at providing students with a more specific knowledge background for the understanding of European Welfare States as an economic, political and historical phenomenon and more specifically with necessary skills for further research on the Europeanization of the national welfare states in Europe, and more broadly on its impact.

Course Content:

Different programs that form European welfare states have not been fully covered due to the lack of time and space. Students interested in different subject areas such as employment, education or social security in specific welfare states, should continue to read through self-training.

Some fundamental issues related to European welfare states and their Europeanization are covered here, including:

¨         The origins of the European welfare states and their diversities

¨         The market failure in the age of industrial capitalism

¨         State intervention in the European nations

¨         The distributive role of the social policies

¨         The implications of welfare states on society and on politics in the West European countries

¨         The impact of economic globalization and European integration

¨         Changes in the legitimacy, citizenship and social values in the traditional welfare states

¨         Main actors in framing a European Social Policy

¨         Approaches and a New Mode of Governance within the field of social affairs

¨         Options of Member States within a European Social Dimension

Since the formation of the Welfare State combines the aspects of industrial capitalism, mass democracy and factors resulted from the emergence of nation states in Europe, the course is deemed multi-disciplinary to fit the basic knowledge requirements of the understanding of such development. Disciplines covered are:

History, especially economic and social history

Economics, especially political economics and labor economics

Political science

Sociology

Session 1: Introduction and the Coming of the Welfare State

The modern welfare state is a European “invention”, in the same way as the nation state, mass democracy and industrial capitalism. Its origins reach back to the 19th century, some of their present institutional features predating the First World War. Their present format is mainly a product of the ‘golden age of the welfare state’ from the early 1960s to the mid-1970s, when the world-wide economic crisis put an end to this historically unprecedented expansion. In this session, students are expected to know about the common origins, the sources of diversity, as well as other determinants of the European welfare states.

Session 2: The Great Issues of the Welfare State

In this session, students are expected to understand the coming of the welfare states from the perspectives of the unequal distribution of income and wealth and necessity of state intervention. The concept of social justice, risk sharing and three categories of welfare states shall also be discussed in this session so as to provide a socio-economic foundation for the further understanding of the formation of the European welfare states.

Session 3: Welfare States in West Europe

In this session, students are expected to understand the historical contexts, formation and social implications of 3 main types of welfare state regimes. State is a central conception. It is perceived not only as a provider of welfare items but also as an agent of social stratification. Therefore, a relevant question “Who benefits from welfare provisions?” is to be addressed. Moreover, most mature welfare states have been facing challenges caused by changing social economic circumstances in the post-war era. It is imperative to restructure the welfare system in the 3 welfare state regimes. Diversity caused by different welfare state regimes is to be discussed.

Session 4: Welfare States in Crisis

The crises of the contemporary welfare are mainly exogenous, resulting from the scope of the market, the mode of production and the changes in political and social stratifications. In this session, issues such as the new labor market risks, the mixed economy of social care in modern Europe and changing legitimacy of the welfare state as well as citizenship and social values are to be address and reassessed

Session 5: Remodeling European Social mode

Part I: Europeanization of Social Policy

This session aims at providing a comprehensive picture of remodeling of welfare state at European level. Three main issues are covered. First, the driving forces behind this remodeling process, including challenges of globalization and new demands accompanying the completion of EMU, are discussed. Second, the question “Who shapes the forthcoming European Social Policy?” is to be answered. Europeanization of Social Policy involves a multi-tier participation and calls for a re-organization of social actors at European level. Third, how is this Europeanization to be realized? Considering various historical heritages, current interests and policy priorities of member states, an innovation of policy instrument is demanded and a new policy instrument “Open Method of Co-ordination” first introduced in employment policy field is to be discussed in detail.

Session 6: Remodeling European Social model continued

Part II: Persistence of national welfare state

In contrast to the preceding part, this part deals mainly with the adaptation of national welfare states which are exposed to external challenges while strive for maintaining their own existences. It should be noted that Europeanization of social policy is not aiming at building a European welfare system that would take the place of national welfare states. Rather, it aims at achieving certain policy convergence among member states in the field of social policy. This modest stance of European Social Policy is to be observed from 2 perspectives. Firstly, nation states continue to be main provider of social security items. A supranational/international regime is in the phase of shaping. Thus national welfare states are allowed to adjust their systems according to the changing situation. Secondly, as a “soft” method (OMC) is adopted in approaching a European Social Dimension, member states are able to choose the most suitable strategies of remodeling their welfare systems. This will help sustain national welfare state in a long run.

Methods of Assessment:

·      Students shall be graded on the basis of oral and written contributions. Oral contributions include participation in group discussions in class and a presentation of a selected topic in class. Written contribution will be in form of a short summary of one of the required readings and/or reports written in “problem based learning” sections and a final exam.

Reading List:

·     Peter Flora (ed.) Growth to Limits, The Western European Welfare States Since WWII, Introduction. Walter de Gruvter, Berlin, New York, 1986

·     Gaston V. Rimlinger, Welfare Policy and Industrialization in Europe, America and Russia. Department of Economics, Rice University, 1966

·     Anthony Forder, “Neo-classical and micro-economic theory”, in: Terry Caslin, Geoffrey Ponton &Sandra Walklate (ed.), Theories of Welfare, Routledge & Kegan Paul, London and Boston, 1984

·     Robert e.Goodin & John Dryzek, “Risk-Sharing and Social Justice: the Motivational Foundations of the Post-War Welfare State”, in Robert E. Goodin & Julian le Grand (ed.), Not Only the Poor. The Middle Classes and the Welfare State. Allen & Unwin, London, 1987

·     Richard M. Titmuss, Commitment to Welfare, Unwin University Books, London 1964

·     G.sta Esping-Andersen (ed.), The Three Worlds of Welfare Capitalism. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, 1990

·     G.sta Esping-Andersen (ed.), The Three Worlds of Welfare Capitalism. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, 1990

·     Lois Bryson, Welfare and the State.Macmillan, London,1992

·     Paul Pierson (ed.), The New Politics of the Welfare State, Oxford University Press, 2000

·     Jack Hayward and Anand Menon (ed.), Governing Europe. Oxford University Press, 2003

·     G.sta Esping-Andersen, Social Foundations of Post-Industrial Economics. Princeton University Press, Oxford University Press, 2004

·     Ramesh Mishra, The Welfare State in Crisis, Wheatsheaf Books LTD, Brighton, Sussex, 1985

·     Fritz W. Scharpf, “The viability of advanced welfare states in the international economy: vulnerability and options”, in: Stephan Leibfried (ed.), Welfare State Futures, Cambridge University Press

·     Ralf Dahrendorf, “The changing Quality of Citizenship”, in Bart van Steenbergen (ed.), The Condition of Citizenship. SAGE Publications, 1994

·     Fritz W. Scharpf, “Negative and Positive Integration in the Political Economyt of European Welfare States”, in: Gary Marks, etc.(ed.), Governance in the European Union, SAGE Publications, London, 1996

·     Magda de Galan, “The European Welfare State: a Plea for Political Union”, in: Philippe Pochet & Bart Vanercke (ed.), Social Challenges of Economic and Monetary Union

·     Patrick Ziltener, “EC social policy: the defeat of the Delorist project”, in: Stephan Silvia, “The Social Charter of the European Community: A Defeat for European Labor”, in: Industrial and Labor Relations Review, Volume 44,Nr. 4, July 1991

·     Anton Hemerijck, “The Self-Transformation of the European Social Model(s)”,in: G.sta Esping-Andersen (ed.), Why We Need a New Welfare State. Oxford University Press, 2002

·     De la Porte, Pochet and Room, “ Social Benchmarking, policy making and new governance in the EU”, in: Journal of European Social Policy, 2001, 11 (4), SAGE Publisher, London

·     Sabrina Regent, “The Open Method of Co-ordination: A New Supranational Form of Governance?” In European Law Journal, 2003, 9 (2), Blackwell Publisher, London

·     Sven Bislew and Dorte Salskov-Iversen, “Obstables to Welfare State Convergence: The Role of Culture”, in: Stuart Nagel (ed.), Policymaking and Democracy

·     A Multinational Anthology. Lexington Books, 2003, New York, Oxford

·     Maurice Mullard (ed.), The Politics of Social Policy in Europe. Edward Elgar Publishing

·     Fritz W. Scharpf, Governing in Europe. Effective and Democratic?. Oxford University Press, 1999