Just Institutions Matter: The Moral and Political Logic of the Universal Welfare StateIn this book Bo Rothstein seeks to defend the universal welfare state against a number of important criticisms which it has faced in recent years. He combines genuine philosophical analysis of normative issues concerning what the state ought to do with empirical political scientific research in public policy examining what the state can do. Issues discussed include the relationship between welfare state and civil society, the privatization of social services, and changing values within society. His analysis centres around the importance of political institutions as both normative and empirical entities, and Rothstein argues that the choice of such institutions at certain formative moments in a country's history is what determines the political support for different types of social policy. He thus explains the great variation among contemporary welfare states in terms of differing moral and political logics which have been set in motion by the deliberate choices of political institutions. The book is an important contribution to both philosophical and political debates about the future of the welfare state. |
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Contents
Speculation and discipline | 1 |
The universal welfare state and the question of individual autonomy | 30 |
Is governance possible? | 57 |
What can the state do? An analytical model | 71 |
Just institutions matter | 116 |
The political and moral logic of the universal welfare state | 144 |
Putting history in order | 171 |
The autonomous citizen and the future of the universal welfare policy | 188 |
Toward a constructive theory of public policy | 216 |
223 | |
249 | |
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according achieve action administration analysis apply areas argues argument autonomous basic basis behavior benefits called central choice citizens collective common conception concern consider countries critical decisions demands democratic depends direction discussion economic effects empirical equal example existing explain expressed fact factors freedom function goals hand idea implementation important increased individual institutions interest justice knowledge least legitimacy limited logic majority matter means measures moral moreover nature neutrality norms organization persons philosophers political possible precisely principle problem producers programs public policy question rational Rawls reason regard relation requires respect responsibility result rules selective self-interest simply situation social policy society specific structure Sweden Swedish tasks theory things United universal welfare policy values various welfare policy