Swedish name: The Welfare State in a Period of Challenge and Change
This syllabus is valid: 2009-05-18 and until further notice
Course code: 2SV021
Credit points: 7.5
Education level: First cycle
Main Field of Study and progress level:
Political Science: First cycle, has less than 60 credits in first-cycle course/s as entry requirements
Grading scale: Three-grade scale
Responsible department: Department of Political Science
Over the last decade and a half, dramatic changes (even in an international perspective) have been taking place in the welfare state in Sweden. These are challenging the ?Swedish model? and raising the question: Does it still exist? The purpose of this course is to give an understanding of the welfare state in Sweden, what it is, how it has developed and where it is going in a period of challenge and change. A comparative perspective is adopted to facilitate the exploration of what is distinctive about the Swedish Model. Welfare states are found in varying forms in the Western world and consideration is given to what differentiates the Scandinavian model from, for example, the British, German or Italian models. Nascent welfare states are appearing in, for example, South East Asia and Eastern Europe and attention is also paid to the types of welfare state emerging in these countries and their similarities and differences compared with the various western models. Tendencies towards a convergence of welfare state types are also discussed and related to common/country specific challenges that may be leading to convergence/divergence. These include external factors such as globalization, and the growth of supra-national organizations (e.g. the European Union); and internal factors such as demographic changes (e.g. ageing populations), the rising costs of health care, the changing nature of work and the labour market, political developments and economic recession. Attention is paid to current trends and developments in the welfare state such as the introduction of internal markets and purchaser-provider models. Further, traditional classifications of welfare states generally lack gender and ethnic perspectives and disregard, for example, the fact that welfare arrangements in different countries are based on key assumptions about the different positions of women and men in the labour market. Women are not only employed to a greater extent than men by the welfare state, but also make greater use of its services and have been affected by the cut-backs in the welfare state both in their role as employees and in their capacity as carers. Accordingly, particular attention is paid to the relationship between women and the welfare state.
Students who successfully complete this course are expected to -gain an understanding of the welfare state in Sweden from a comparative perspective; what it is, how it has developed and where it is going in a period of challenge and change.
30 ECTS-credits in Political Science or equivalent.
The course is given in the form of a mixture of lectures and seminars.
Each module (moment) ends with an examination. The type of examination varies. Both written and oral examinations covering sub-course literature and lectures may be used. Final grades may also be based on research papers, other written assignments, oral presentations, and participation in seminars. Final course grades, which include all sub-courses, are awarded once all examinations and other obligatory written and oral work has been submitted. Three grades can be awarded: fail, pass, and high pass. Students who fail an examination may take a retest, and students have the possibility to retest a minimum of 5 times. A student has the right to request a new examiner if he/she fails two sub-course examinations (i.e. an examination and a retest). In such cases students should contact the Director of Undergraduate Studies (Studierektor). A student has the right to an examination based on the course and literature described in this document for a period of two years after he/she first registered for the course. TILLGODORÄKNANDE The Director of Undergraduate Studies (Studierektor) makes decisions about transfer credits for a module or course. Students who want to transfer credits should submit a written request to the Director of Undergraduate Studies. The request should specify which sub-course or course the request applies to. An official transcript should also be submitted. The transcript must include the following information: where and when the course was given, the discipline and level of the course, total course credits and grade received. A syllabus describing the course and listing required reading should be submitted with the request. Where applicable, written research papers should also be submitted.
Course evaluations are administered at the end of each sub-course.
Towards A Post-Fordist Welfare State
Burrows Roger, Loader Brian
London : Routledge : 1994 :
Clarke John
Changing welfare, changing states. New directions in social policy
London : Sage : 2004 :
Esping-Andersen Gösta
Welfare States in Transition: National Adaptations in Global Ecnomies
London : Sage :
Flora Peter
Growth to Limits: Western European Welfare States since World War Two, Volume 1
Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Berlin : Walter de Gruyter : 1986 :
The Development of Welfare States in Europe & America,
Flora Peter, Heidenheimer A.J
New Brunswick & London : 1981 :
Jones Catherine
New perspectives on the Welfare State in Europe
London : Routledge : 1993 :
Kautto Mikko
Nordic Welfare States in the European Context
London : Routledge : 2001 :
Pierson Christopher
Beyond the Welfare State? The New Political Economy of Welfare
2nd ed : Cambridge : Polity Press : 1998 :
The Welfare state Reader
Pierson Christopher, Castles Francis
Cambridge : Polity Press :
Sainsbury Diane
Gender and Welfare States Regimes
Oxford : Oxford University Press : 1999 :
Globalization & European Welfare States
Sykes Roberg, Palier Bruno, Prior Pauline M
Palgrave; Houndmills : Basingstoke : 2001 :
Taylor-Gooby Peter
Welfare States under Pressure
London : Sage : 2001 :
Titmuss Richard M
Social Policy
London : Allen & Unwin : 1974 :
Bennett Robert J.
Included in:
Policy studies journal
Oxford : Blackwell : 2003- : pages 683-701 :
Bennett Robert J.
Decentralization, Local Government, and Markets: is there a Post-Welfare Agenda in Planned and Market Economies?
pages 683-701 :
Bouget Denis
Convergence in the Social Welfare Systems in Europe: From Goal to Reality
Included in:
Social policy & administration
pages 674-693 :
Chan Raymond K.H
An Overview: Themed Section on Globalisation and Welfare Systems in Asia
Included in:
Social policy and society :[Elektronisk resurs]b a journal of the Social Policy Association.
Cambridge : Cambridge University Press : 2002- : pages 253-258 :
Gustafsson Bo
Foundations of the Swedish Model
Included in:
Nordic journal of political economy.
Oslo : Exp. : 1995- : pages 5-26 :
Gender and Welfare: Towards a comparative framework
Langan Mary, Ostner Ilona
Included in:
Towards a European welfare state?
Bristol : SAUS : 1991 : x,282p : pages 127-150 :
Pressures on State Welfare in Post-industrial Societies: Is More or Less Better?
Meier Jaeger Mads, Kvist Jon
Included in:
Social policy & administration.
Oxford : Blackwell : 1979- : pages 555-572 :
The Trajectory of Post-communist Welfare State Development: The Cases of Bulgaria and Romania
Sotiropoulos Dimitri A., Neamtu Ileana, Stoyanova Maya
Included in:
The Trajectory of Post-communist Welfare State Development: The Cases of Bulgaria and Romania
pages 656-673 :
Taylor-Gooby Peter
Introduction: Open Markets versus Welfare Citizenship: Conflicting Approaches to Policy Convergence in Europe
Included in:
Introduction: Open Markets versus Welfare Citizenship: Conflicting Approaches to Policy Convergence in Europe
pages 539-554 :