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‘Frozen Landscapes’ revisited: path creation in the European social model
- Author:
- LESSENICH Stephen
- Journal article citation:
- Social Policy and Society, 4(4), October 2005, pp.345-356.
- Publisher:
- Cambridge University Press
The institutional paralysis of Continental European social policy has become common wisdom in comparative welfare state research. The article seeks to challenge the all too simplistic picture of an inherently immovable and inflexible ‘conservative’ world of welfare capitalism. In confronting ‘path dependence’ theory with the concept of ‘path creation’, it is argued that there are – typically inconspicuous or even hidden – paths out of ‘path dependence’ precisely in those welfare states that most obviously embody the institutional heritage of what may be called the ‘European Social Model’. The fundamental ambivalence of Continental European welfare state institutions opens a permanent window of opportunity for ‘institutional entrepreneurs’ pursuing welfare state change. A short account of the recent transformation of social insurance institutions in Germany is presented as a first illustration of this thesis.
What the European and American welfare states have in common and where they differ: facts and fiction in comparisons of the European Social Model and the United States
- Author:
- ALBER Jens
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of European Social Policy, 20(2), May 2010, pp.102-125.
- Publisher:
- Sage
The similarities and differences between European social policies and those of the US are examined. First the author outlines some key characteristics of the American welfare state, he then considers whether recent developments signal convergence in the sense of an “Americanisation of European social policies” and finally he concludes that even though differences remain, the US and Europe have far more in common than the traditional distinction between “residual” (primarily catering for the working class and poor) and “institutional-redistributive” welfare states suggests. The focus of the article is on the expenditure rather than the financing aspect of the service. The author asserts that the classification of the American system as ‘residual’ does not match the facts; it is dominated by public provisions for welfare among which social insurance programmes, notably Social Security and Medicare, predominate, while public pensions are more universal, redistributive and generous than in some European countries. Key differences do persist with respect to a stronger reliance on private provisions in pensions and health, a stronger emphasis on work-conditioned benefits and a greater importance of selective schemes. It is suggested that the term ‘work-conditioned’ welfare state captures some of these key features more adequately than the concept of the ‘residual’ welfare state.
Disability as a phenomenon: a discourse of social and biological understanding
- Author:
- HEDLUND Marianne
- Journal article citation:
- Disability and Society, 15(5), August 2000, pp.765-780.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
This Swedish article addresses conceptualisations of disability and what it constitutes as a category in a social security system. It argues that the conceptualisation of disability involves a discourse about definitions, and discusses which domains of interest are produced by each of these understandings. The article argues that, rather than approaching the biological understanding as representing an antiquated concept to disability and the social model as a modern conceptualisation, these understandings are competitive. This makes disability into a flexible and heterogeneous concept, a term difficult to give a specified and limited meaning.
Models of disability, work and welfare in Australia
- Author:
- HUMPAGE Louise
- Journal article citation:
- Social Policy and Administration, 41(3), June 2007, pp.215-231.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
In discourse around disability there has been a shift away from a ‘medical model’, which perceives disability as an individual problem to be ‘cured’ or contained, towards a ‘social model’. The latter focuses on the relationship between people with disabilities and their social environment, locating the required interventions within the realm of social policy and institutional practice. Drawing upon a small qualitative study conducted in Melbourne, this article argues that recent plans by the Australian government to introduce mutual obligation requirements for recipients of the Disability Support Pension (DSP) sit in tension with this shift from the medical to the social models of disability. Mutual obligation is based on the assumption that income support recipients need to be taught how to be more ‘self-reliant’, to ‘participate’ in society more fully and to become ‘active’, rather than ‘passive’, citizens. This language appears to overlap with that used to articulate a social model, which places emphasis on participation in the community and attempts a shift away from reliance on the medical profession. However, examples from interviews conducted with current and former DSP recipients demonstrate that, in practice, mutual obligation is likely to reinforce a medical model of disability, frame DSP recipients as ‘conditional’ citizens and ignore the obligations of the state and society regarding access and inclusiveness for people with disabilities.
Disabled people, health professionals and the social model of disability: can there be a research relationship
- Author:
- BRICHER Gillian
- Journal article citation:
- Disability and Society, 15(5), August 2000, pp.781-793.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
The social model of disability is proposed as an alternative to models that have viewed disability as an individual, rather than a socio-political issue. The use of this model to guide both research theory and practice is proposed in order to equalise research power relationships, and involve and empower disabled people. Health professionals have traditionally reinforced the medical model of disability in both research and practice, and this has been seen as contributing to the oppression and marginalisation of disabled people. Argues that if the social model is to achieve wider dissemination, it is important to develop a dialogue between disabled people and health professionals. Concludes that it is essential to look at ways in which disabled people and health professionals can work together to overcome the oppression and marginalisation that has been limited to the provision of health services.
Disabled people and social policy: from exclusion to inclusion
- Authors:
- OLIVER Michael, BARNES Colin
- Publisher:
- Longman
- Publication year:
- 1998
- Pagination:
- 187p.,bibliog.
- Place of publication:
- Harlow
Provides an introduction to key issues in disability and social policy which have emerged in the light of changing approaches towards disability over the last fifteen years. The concepts of exclusion and inclusion provide the central focus around which the book is organised. Examines the contradictions and dilemmas of state provided welfare; explores the definitions surrounding disability, the historical background to analysis and the development and implications of social policy for disabled people; analyses the social model of disability and the perceptions and attitudes surrounding the meaning of disability within contemporary society; explores the disabled people's movement and the focus on independent living; outlines policy options for empowering disabled people; and includes policy statements written by disabled people and their organisations, various international charters and documents emphasising the rights of disabled people and selected extracts from legislation and policy statements.
Understanding disability: from theory to practice
- Author:
- OLIVER Michael
- Publisher:
- Macmillan
- Publication year:
- 1996
- Pagination:
- 218p.,bibliog.
- Place of publication:
- Basingstoke
Collection of essays discussing recent and perennial issues concerned with disabled people. Interwoven with the authors personal experiences, he looks at citizenship, community care, social policy and welfare, education, rehabilitation, the politics of new social movements and the international context. The book is a personal exploration as well as an attempt to take further the theoretical understanding of disability.