The welfare state is a complex system of social policies and programs designed to provide economic and social support to citizens. But what if this system is faced with political and societal...Show moreThe welfare state is a complex system of social policies and programs designed to provide economic and social support to citizens. But what if this system is faced with political and societal challenges? This thesis focuses on PRRPs positions regarding the welfare state. Therefore, this thesis sets out to answer the following question: What effect do exogenous shocks have on party positions of the populist radical right on welfare state policy? The thesis finds concludes that PRRPs are interested in the welfare state, but that exogenous shocks affect PRRPs stance on the welfare state differently, depending on the type of exogenous shock.Show less
Within Rawls’s theory of justice lies an endorsement of a ‘Property-Owning Democracy’ as a regime-type which has the capacity to meet the institutional demands of justice. In contrast, ‘Welfare...Show moreWithin Rawls’s theory of justice lies an endorsement of a ‘Property-Owning Democracy’ as a regime-type which has the capacity to meet the institutional demands of justice. In contrast, ‘Welfare-State Capitalism’, characterised by redistributive practices, is dismissed as incapable of realising the values of justice as fairness. This thesis presents a challenge to the alleged superiority of a ‘Property-Owning Democracy’ over welfare state regimes. Through an exploration of the concept of predistribution, it is demonstrated that there is conceptual space between ‘Property-Owning Democracy’ and ‘Welfare-State Capitalism’ for a ‘Predistributionist Welfare State’. It is then argued that when a Rawlsian normative framework, consisting of accounts of the values of political liberty, equality of opportunity, reciprocity and social equality, is invoked to evaluate the opposing regime-types, a ‘Predistributionist Welfare State’ performs at least as well as a ‘Property-Owning Democracy’. This leads to the conclusion that Rawlsian philosophers lack a decisive set of reasons to reject the welfare state outright in favour of a ‘Property-Owning Democracy’.Show less
Difficulties women experience in career development have been widely discussed and are a worldwide issue. This becomes evident when looking at, for instance, the number of women in management...Show moreDifficulties women experience in career development have been widely discussed and are a worldwide issue. This becomes evident when looking at, for instance, the number of women in management positions. Companies’ top functions are still mainly dominated by men and research has shown that Japan, among others, is a country which is still very much behind in placing women in top positions. This paper is aimed at the relation between the form of welfare state in these two countries and how these models work for combining care of children with a career. In which form of welfare state would women be most successful in combining a career with family care tasks?Show less
This Master Thesis in political philosophy aims to resolve the distributive inequalities within the European Union. This can be managed with the theoretical framework of democratic relational...Show moreThis Master Thesis in political philosophy aims to resolve the distributive inequalities within the European Union. This can be managed with the theoretical framework of democratic relational equality. Disregarding luck egalitarianism for its narrow scope on pure redistributive measures, it is argued that democratic equality within the EU has to be achieved with either the welfare state or an unconditional basic income. After the European applications of both the unconditional basic income and the welfare state are discussed, it is argued that democratic relational equality is much more compatible with the European Welfare State than with the Euro-dividend due to the former's better performance on the decommodification of the basic needs and the neutrality of the state, when distributing benefits.Show less
