In recent years, a discussion has emerged about the persistence of the Nordic model of welfare. A small but growing body of literature argues financialisation and related processes of marketisation...Show moreIn recent years, a discussion has emerged about the persistence of the Nordic model of welfare. A small but growing body of literature argues financialisation and related processes of marketisation and neoliberalisation to be at the core of the decline - or even the end - of the model. This thesis looks at the cases of Denmark and Norway between 2008 and 2021 in order to determine the extent to which we can still speak of a Nordic model of welfare. A set of indicators is introduced for each of three defining features of the model: universalism, decommodification and government commitment to full employment. Findings indicate that, though the system has weakened in some parts, it would be undue to speak of a strong decline of the Nordic model for the given period of time, let alone the end of it.Show less
This thesis compares the welfare state positions of FvD to the welfare state positions of other European populist radical right parties in terms of welfare chauvinism, welfare producerism, and...Show moreThis thesis compares the welfare state positions of FvD to the welfare state positions of other European populist radical right parties in terms of welfare chauvinism, welfare producerism, and welfare populism.Show less
There has been a growing body of research into exclusionary policy reforms that aim to restrict immigrants’ possibilities of gaining access to welfare state benefits, sometimes referred to as ...Show moreThere has been a growing body of research into exclusionary policy reforms that aim to restrict immigrants’ possibilities of gaining access to welfare state benefits, sometimes referred to as ‘immigrant-excluding welfare reforms’ (Koning, 2019). But despite increased attention for these policy changes, detailed studies into the drivers of their emergence and eventual implementation have remained scarce. This thesis confronts said literature gap by way of an in-depth qualitative case study of three immigrant-excluding welfare reforms in Belgium’s system of social assistance. Drawing on the existing literature, an analytical strategy is developed to meet the dual objective of (a) qualifying the nature of exclusionary reforms and (b) exploring their emergence and implementation through processtracing. The main results are the following. The qualifying analysis reinforces the notion that in Belgium - like in many other countries - social assistance provision has been increasingly linked to immigration law. The Belgian federal government’s objectives underpinning this ‘welfare-immigration policy linkage’ (Slaven, Casella Colombeau, & Badenhoop, 2021) relate to the desire to steer migration dynamics - resonating with the welfare magnet hypothesis (Borjas, 1999) - as well as to maintain support for welfare state redistribution through retrenchment. The exploratory analysis yields the conclusion that the long-term dynamics of immigrant-excluding welfare reforms in Belgium can be summarized as a combination of relatively high political pressures to restrict immigrants’ access, but also strong institutional constraints on the implementation of exclusionary policy change (comparable to the Netherlands, see Banting & Koning, 2017). The main recommendation for future studies is that additional in-depth research should be welcomed to more fundamentally unfold this complex interplay of pressures and constraints, whereby special attention should go out to the influence that (constitutional) courts exert on the eventual outcomes of exclusionary reforms after their initial implementation.Show less
Although they had been on the rise for the last few decades, Radical right parties (RRPs) across Europe enjoyed a significant surge in popularity following the refugee crisis of 2015 that saw...Show moreAlthough they had been on the rise for the last few decades, Radical right parties (RRPs) across Europe enjoyed a significant surge in popularity following the refugee crisis of 2015 that saw millions of refugees pour into Europe. While these parties traditionally tend to contest elections on their distinct positions on socio-cultural issues such as immigration and religious polarization, their attitudes and preferences on socio-economic issues such as the welfare state have received little scholarly attention until recently. This paper aims to contribute to the growing literature in this domain by examining the changes in welfare attitudes of two RRPs: Germany’s AfD and United Kingdom’s UKIP, in light of the 2015 refugee. Analysis of the two parties’ election manifestos for general elections held before and after the crisis shows that the radical-right ideology of nativism and xenophobia is more pronounced in the socio-cultural dimension for both parties in the post-crisis period. But when it comes to the socio-economic dimension and their attitudes towards the welfare state, radical-right behaviour of welfare chauvinism is more pronounced in AfD’s post-crisis manifesto compared to UKIP’s. The paper concludes by suggesting that this disparity in welfare attitudes may possibly be a result of the two countries having different types of welfare regimes more than due to their different experience with the refugee crisis itself.Show less
There is much research indicating that people’s attitudes towards immigration can influence whether or not they support redistribution programs. In accordance with one view, anti-immigration...Show moreThere is much research indicating that people’s attitudes towards immigration can influence whether or not they support redistribution programs. In accordance with one view, anti-immigration attitudes weaken support for redistribution, as those who hold negative attitudes towards immigration supposedly consider immigrants to be “free-riders” who disproportionately benefit from the welfare state. Nevertheless, there are competing views suggesting that the same negative attitudes towards immigration can arouse residents’ subjective income insecurities, which then leads them to support welfare solidarity and redistribution. This thesis analyzes evidence collected through the European Social Survey (ESS) in support of the latter view. More specifically, this research finds that negative attitudes towards immigration lead to higher support for redistribution when subjective income insecurity increases, whilst pro-immigration attitudes also lead to support for redistribution when there is a higher percentage of foreign-born citizens.Show less
This article examines how and to what extent different types of welfare regimes affect crime rates. The emergence of crime remains a subject demanding further research, especially with the...Show moreThis article examines how and to what extent different types of welfare regimes affect crime rates. The emergence of crime remains a subject demanding further research, especially with the disciplinary field ‘political economy’ as focal point. Three types of welfare regimes are investigated in this article, namely liberal, conservative and social democratic welfare regimes. This article has discovered several intriguing findings. First, statistical analysis has shown that social democratic welfare regimes suffer the least amount of crime in comparison to both liberal and constructive welfare regimes. Second, statistical analysis demonstrates that liberal welfare regimes experience the highest level of crime in comparison to social democratic and conservative welfare regimes. However, regarding the question ‘to what extent do welfare regimes affect crime rates’, evidence revealed that the impact of welfare state generosity is negligible. Finally, regarding the question ‘how do welfare regimes affect crime rates’, evidence shows that the way welfare regimes are constructed, rather than the amount of money spent, has a high possibility of affecting crime rates.Show less
