Academic literature on the topic 'Globalised welfare states'

AbstractCurrent restructuring of provision across European welfare states emphasises proactivity, individual responsibility and access to opportunities. Much established social protection rests on a more passive approach and seeks to provide security against the risks encountered during a normal life-course, together with some redistribution towards the poor. A more liberal individualism may suit a more globalised and post-industrial world in which the logic of markets is more powerful and the working class correspondingly weaker. From one perspective, it risks damaging the support for collective provision on which the welfare state rests. This paper uses data from the 2008 European Social Survey to examine whether the shift in responsibility for outcomes more towards individuals may threaten the political legitimacy of welfare states. It shows that a corresponding proactivity of government to secure good access to more equal opportunities for vulnerable groups is required to support individual proactivity in grasping opportunities.

AbstractThe phenomenon of migration that typifies a globalized world has created a society characterized by cultural and religious diversity. This has led to different types of conflict. States cannot disregard the current situation, and so intercultural strategies that encourage interreligious dialogue aimed at building a culture of peace must be part of educational curricula. This article analyses the religious education implemented in most European states so that using this material as a starting point, educational guidelines and strategies can be developed to make religious education into a subject that can contribute to the welfare of all human beings in a globalized world, valuing cultural diversity and social equality.

The mission of the present study is to establish a robust and reliable reference framework on the ecosystem of Non-Governmental Organizations and the Third Sector for literature review in scholarly contributions and publications. Two goals are set: first, to re-establish the importance of Nongovernmental Organizations as integral key players on the arena of social welfare in an era that is largely defined by globalized economies, debt-ridden states, limited resources, increased competition for donations and volunteers, and enhanced needs related to poverty and acceptable standards of living. Second, to position NGOs on the sphere of political influence where they negotiate agendas, form coalitions with local and international partners, mobilize constituencies for policy change, and ultimately engage in all stages of the policy process. Finally, the absence of a concrete evaluation system is pointed out: an accountability framework is fundamental to the assessment of NGO performance and impact on their intended beneficiaries.

At the beginning of 2020, the COVID-19 Pandemic has swept the world, which raises the awareness of global governance and global civil society. This paper attempts to prove global civil society is feasible and analyses its main functions during the period of resistance of the COVID-19 Pandemic. The paper unfolds in four parts. The First part is a brief introduction to the question this paper tends to address after the COVID-19 Pandemic. After that, it is the definition of civil society. Civil society can be defined as a complementary arena for state and market to ensure common welfare and public good through non-violent, voluntary and bottom-up process. However, this definition encompasses different connotations with the passage of time. In the third part, it states that civil society is inevitably globalized in the challenge of globalization. Quite a number of problems go beyond borders and the reaches of states, which leaves a vacuum for a corresponding force to regulate them. Also, global social movement-the main actor of global civil society, as an important agent, ensures the economy liberalism-embedded transnational economic organizations, as the main structure of global governance, accountable. In addition, the development of convenient communication and value convergence provide the objective conditions for the emergence of global civil society. Global civil society makes transnational organizations accountable, solves problems beyond state borders and ensures the public good and welfare. In a nutshell, global civil society is an indispensable part of today’s global governance.

The great conclusion of this paper is to prove the synergy between religion and politics in the economic development of a State. The more polarized the system of ethical-religious and political beliefs, the more help the economic development of a State. Based on the discourse on the religion and politics of the author in the direction of Beng-Lan Goh (2006), Wilson Erin K (2014), and Melleuish Gregory (2014) explaining the ideology of the state as an alternative logic forming religious symbolism from capitalist exploitation or commoditization, the best civilian politics in serving the people's welfare by rejecting the dichotomy of morality and interest systems, as well as religious and political understanding limits the capacity of religious clerics and actors in their significant influence on religious actions and rituals to the political sphere that greatly affects economic growth. The authors oppose the opinions of Bin Hassan (2007), San Juan (2011), Martinelli (2013) and Faux Jeff (2004) explaining that Effects of Islamic revival around the world in the competition of political power that directly and indirectly contribute to the development of Islam in politics, the United States and transnational geopolitical interests as a consequence of the contradiction between emerging and conservative nationalist impulses, the United States Congress that has successfully influenced key decisions on regulatory policy, has so far weakened existing systems and American economic politics flourish across borders, the same that happens in today's globalized economy. The data used in this paper comes from secondary data obtained from books, magazines, the Internet and other documentation relating to the study of the problems and this paper. This writing is descriptive qualitative with the approach of the research library.

Globalisation is a phenomenon that dominates the defining spirit (zeitgeist) of our historical time. The article revisits Popper?s critique of the methodology of the social sciences in the light of contemporary theories of globalisation. His standpoint contributes to the establishment of new arguments in the current debate between the pros and cons of globalisation. Here, neoliberalism, the dark side of globalisation, is carefully scrutinised since it is the most controversial consequence of the world?s transformation. Not only does neoliberalisation accelerate the rapid growth of the free market, but its consequences are such that most sovereign nation-states have abandoned the previously de rigueur welfare policies. Paradoxically, the neoliberal economic programme, invoking liberal values with which it has little in common, encourages activities which diminish the importance of regulations and control by the state, ultimately leading to increased social disparity among people and permanently threatening traditional liberal values. Against such a reductionist policy of global social engineering, we oppose the arguments presented in Popper?s critique of historicism and holism in order to revise the methodology that provides the grounds for current globalisation theories through philosophical research. We integrate the facts into a coherent critical argument to point out the shortcomings of these theories and how they can be corrected. Finally, in proposing plausible solutions for the new role of the sovereign nation-state in correcting the negative consequences of the globalisation process, we clarify which aspects within the theories of globalis ation require further philosophical research.

There has been a growing trend towards protectionism, particularly in the Global North in recent years. The rise of Trump, Brexit and tighter immigration control across Europe and America seem to run contrary to the conventional neoliberal globalism discourse of free flow of people, capital, goods and information across the globe. Using a qualitative approach and drawing on data from published works, this paper argues that these events are part of the Global North’s rebellion against neoliberal globalism. This process is not external to the process of neoliberal globalism but integral to it. Although the current rise of nationalism and protectionism does not represent an end of globalization, it represents the end of the discourse of globalization as a fit all economic and political solution to diverse nations. This demands that alternatives to the current thinking be considered. A new form of globalization must consider issues of income and economic inequality among nations and people. It must offer the chance to the nation state to reinvent itself as the welfare providing and protecting states.

The concept of citizenship was instrumental to the formation of the disability movement in the West by recasting disability as the denial of equal citizenship of persons with impairments. The disability movement expanded notions of citizenship by not only focusing on nondiscrimination and the protection of civil and political rights, but also the necessity of self-directed, but state-provided, social rights as prerequisite for substantive equality. With the passage of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Western approaches to disability citizenship as state protected rights have globalized. Critical disability scholars are increasingly arguing that Western theories of disability, citizenship, and rights are inappropriate in local contexts in the Global South where weak welfare states are the reality. In such cases, self-help and mutual support are more determinative in the lives of disabled persons than formal rights. I extend these arguments by analyzing three grassroots disability associations in Nicaragua that assist their members achieve citizenship through self-help, service and solidaridad with the community.

Esta crisis financiera y de confianza que se está produciendo en un mundo globalizado y como consecuencia más interdependiente, que aboca a los Estados a financiar y volver a reflotar a quienes nos sumergieron en ella, no puede ni debe ser la coartada para desmantelar el Estado de Bienestar de los países occidentales ni seguir produciendo la muerte, el hambre y la miseria de millones de personas, del mismo modo, la inacción de las grandes instituciones mundiales y agentes políticos está abocando a que esta crisis se alargue en el tiempo y haga renacer reivindicaciones que en algunos casos pueden convertirse en violentas, situación que hasta el momento no se está produciendo.This financial and reliable crisis that there are producing in a globalized world and like a interdependent consequence, which brought about the States to revive and finance again who immersed us in it, it can’t and mustn’t be the reason to dismantle the Welfare State of the occidental countries, and no longer to produce death, hunger and misery of million people. In the same way the non actions of the large global institutions and political agents are helping that this crisis is prolonged in the time and this makes claims to be born which in some cases may be violent, but this is a situation that so far there hasn’t been happened.

IntroductionNordic mythology, also known as Norse mythology, is a term used to describe Medieval creation myths and tales of Gods and otherworldly realms, told and retold by Northern Germanic and Scandinavian tribes of the ninth century AD (see for example Gaiman).I discuss a new type of Nordic mythology that is being created through popular culture, social media, books, and television shows. I am interested in how contemporary portrayals of the Nordic countries has created a kind of mythological place called Scandinavia, where things, people, and ideas are better than in other places.Whereas the old myths portray a fierce warrior race, the new myths create a utopian Scandinavia as a place that is inherently good; a place that is progressive and harmonious. In the creation of these new myths the underbelly of the North is often neglected, producing a homogenised representation of a group of countries that are in actuality diverse and inevitably imperfect.ScandimaniaGenerally the term Scandinavia always refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. When including Finland and Iceland, it is more accurate to refer to the five as the Nordic countries. I was born and grew up in Denmark. My observations are skewed towards a focus on Denmark, rather than Scandinavia as a whole. Though I will use the term Nordic and Scandinavia throughout the article, it is worth noting that these definitions describe a group of countries that despite some commonalities are also quite different in geography, and culture.Whether we are speaking strictly of Scandinavia or of the Nordic countries as a whole, one thing is certain: in recent years there has been a surge of popularity in all things Nordic. Scandinavian design has been popular since the 1950s, known for its functionality and simplistic beauty, and globalised through the Swedish furniture chain IKEA. Consequently, Nordic interior design has become a style widely praised and emulated, as has Nordic fashion, architecture, and innovation.The fact that Scandinavian people are often represented as being intelligent and beautiful adds to the notion of stylish and aesthetically pleasing ideals. This is partly why sperm from Danish sperm donors is the most sought after and widely distributed in the world: perhaps prospective parents find the idea of having a baby of Viking stock appealing (Kale). Nordic countries are also known for their egalitarian societies, which are described as “the holy grail of a healthy economy and society” (Cleary). These are countries where the collective good is cherished. Tax rates are high (in Denmark between 55 per cent and 60 per cent of income), which leads to excellent welfare systems.In recent years other terms have entered the collective Western vocabulary. New Nordic Cuisine describes a trend that has taken the culinary world by storm. This term refers to food that is created with seasonal, local, and foraged ingredients. The emphasis being a renewed connection to nature and old ways. In 2016 the Danish word hygge was shortlisted by the Oxford Dictionary as word of the year. A word, which has no direct English translation, it means “a quality of cosiness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being (regarded as a defining characteristic of Danish culture)”. Countless books were published in the United Kingdom, and elsewhere, explaining the art of hygge. Other Scandinavian words are now becoming popular, such as the Swedish lagom, meaning “just enough”.In the past two years, the United Nations’ World Happiness Report listed Denmark and Norway as the happiest places on earth. Other surveys similarly put the Nordic countries on top as the most prosperous places on earth (Anderson).Mythologies and Discursive FormationsThe standard definition of myth is a “traditional story, especially one concerning the early history of a people or explaining a natural or social phenomenon, and typically involving supernatural beings or events.” Or “A widely held but false belief or idea” (Oxford Dictionaries, Myth).During what became known as the “discursive turn”, both Barthes and Foucault expanded the conception of myth by placing it within a wider socio-political and historical contexts of power and truth. “Discursive formations” became a commonly accepted way of describing a cluster of ideas, images, and practices that define particular “truths” within a given cultural context (Hall 6). In other words, myths serve specific purposes within given socio-cultural constructions.I argue that the current idolisation of Scandinavia is creating a common global narrative of a superior society. A mythical place that has “figured it out”, and found the key to happiness. The mythologised North is based on an array of media stories, statistics, reports, articles, advertising, political rhetoric, books, films, TV series, exhibitions, and social media activity. These perpetuate a “truth” of the Nordic countries as being especially benign, cultured, and distinguished. The Smiling PolicemanIn his well-known essay Myth Today, Barthes analyses an image of a North African boy in uniform saluting the French flag on the front cover of a magazine. Barthes argues that by analysing the semiotic meaning of the image in two stages, one can identify the “myth”.The first level is the signifiers (what we see), a dark skinned boy, a uniform, a raised arm, a flag. The signified is our recognition of these as a North African boy raising his arm to the French flag. The second level of interpretation is the wider context in which we understand what we see: the greatness of France is signified in the depiction of one of her colonial subjects submitting to and glorifying the flag. That is to say, the myth generated by the image is the story of France as a great colonial and military nation.Now take a look at this image, which was distributed the world over in newspapers, online media, and in turn social media (Warren; Kolff). This image is interesting because it epitomises much of what is believed about Scandinavia (the new myths). If we approach the image through the semiotic lens of Barthes, we firstly describe what is seen in the picture (signifiers): a blonde policeman, a girl of dark complexion, a road in the countryside, a van in the distance, and some other people with backpacks on the side of the road. When we put these elements together in context, we understand that the image to be depicting a Danish policeman, blonde, smiling and handsome, playing with a Syrian refugee girl on an empty Danish highway, with her fellow refugees behind her.The second level of interpretation (the myth) is created by combining the elements into a story: A friendly police officer is playing with a refugee girl, which is unusual because policemen are commonly seen as authoritarian and unfriendly to illegal immigrants. This policeman is smiling. He is happy in his job. He is healthy, good-looking, and compassionate.This fits the image of Scandinavian men as good fathers (they have paternity leave, and often help equally with child rearing). The image confirms that the happiest people on earth would of course also have happy, friendly policemen. The belief that the Scandinavian social model is one to admire would appear to be endorsed.The fact that this is in a rural setting with green landscapes adds further to the notion of Nordic freshness, naturalness, environmentalism, and food that comes from the wild. The fact that the policeman is well-groomed, stylish, well-built, and handsome reinforces the notion that Scandinavia is a place of style and taste, where the good Viking gene pool produces fit and beautiful people.It makes sense that in a place with a focus on togetherness and the common good, refugees are also treated well. Just as the French image of a dark-skinned boy saluting the French flag sent out messages of French superiority, this image sends out messages of inherent Nordic goodness in a time where positive images of the European refugee crisis are few and far between.In a discursive discussion, one asks not only what meanings does this image convey, but why is this image chosen, distributed, shared, tweeted, and promoted over other images? What purpose does its proliferation serve? What is the historical context in which it is popularised? What is the cultural imagination/narrative that is served? In the current often depressing socio-political situation in Europe, people like to know that there is a place where compassion and play exists.Among other news stories of death, despair, and border protection, depictions of an idealised North can help calm anxieties by implying the existence of a place that is free of conflict. Jakob Stougaard-Nielsen writes:The flood of journalistic and popular ethnographic explorations of the Nordic region in the UK is an expression, perhaps, of a search for a lost sense of identity, a nostalgic longing for an imagined past society more in tune with pre-Thatcherite welfarist values, by way of consuming, appropriating and exoticising proximate cultural identities such as the now much hyped Danish or Nordic utopias. (Nordic Noir, 6)In The Almost Nearly Perfect People, British writer Michael Booth wonders: “one thing in particular about this new-found love of all things Scandinavian … which struck me as particularly odd: considering all this positive PR, and with awareness of the so-called Nordic miracle at an all-time high, why wasn’t everyone flocking to live here [in Denmark]?” (7).In actuality not many people in the West are interested in living in the Nordic countries. Rather, as Barbara Goodwin writes: “utopias hold up a mirror to the fears and aspirations of the time in which they were written” (2). In other words, in an age of anxiety, where traditional norms and stabilities are shifting, to believe that there is a place where contemporary societies have found a way of living in happiness and togetherness provides a sense of hope. People are not flocking to live in Scandinavia because it is not in their interests to have their utopian ideals shattered by the reality that, though the North has a lot to offer, it is inevitably not a utopia (Sougaard-Nielsen, The Truth Is).UnderbellyParadoxically, in recent years, Scandinavia has become well known for its “Nordic Noir” crime fiction and television. In the documentary TV series Scandimania, British TV personality Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall travels through Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, exploring the culture, scenery, and food. He finds it curious that Denmark has become so famous for its sombre crime series, such as The Killing and The Bridge, because it seems so far removed from the Denmark he experiences riding around the streets of Copenhagen on his bike.Fearnley-Whittingstall ponders that one has to look hard to find the dark side of Denmark, and that perhaps it does not actually exist at all. This observation points to something essential. Even though millions of viewers worldwide have seen shows such as The Killing, which are known for their dark story lines, bleak urban settings, complex but realistic characters, progressive gender equality, and social commentary, the positive mythologising of Scandinavia remains so strong that it engenders a belief that the underbelly shown in Nordic Noir is perhaps entirely fictional.Stougaard-Nielsen (see also Pitcher, Consuming Race) argues that perhaps the British obsession with Nordic Noir (and this could be applied to other western countries) can be attributed to “a more appropriate white cosmopolitan desire to imagine rooted identities in an age of globalisation steeped in complex identity politics” (Nordic Noir, 8). That is to say that, for a segment of society which feels overwhelmed by contemporary multiculturalism, there may be a pleasure in watching a show that is predominantly populated by white Nordic protagonists, where the homes and people are stylish, and where the Nordic model of welfare and progressive thinking provides a rich identity source for white people as a symbolic point of origin.The watching/reading of Nordic Noir, as well as other preoccupations with all things Nordic, help build upon a mythological sense of whiteness that sets itself apart from our usual notions of race politics, by being an accepted form of longing for the North of bygone ages: a place that is progressive, moral, stylish, and imbued with aspirational ways of living, thinking, and being (Pitcher, Racial Politics).The image of the Danish police officer and the refugee girl fits this ideal of a progressive society where race relations are uncomplicated. The policeman who epitomises the Nordic ideal is in a position of power, but this is an authority which is benevolent. The girl is non-threatening in her otherness, because she is a child and female, and therefore does not fit the culturally dreaded Muslim/terrorist stereotype. In this constellation the two can meet beautifully.The reality, of course, is that the race relations and issues surrounding immigration in Denmark, and in other Nordic countries, are as complicated and often messy and hateful as they are in other countries. In Sweden, as Fearnley-Whittingstall touches upon in Scandimania, there are escalating problems with integration of the many new Swedes and growing inequalities in wealth. In Norway, the underlying race tensions became acutely topical in the aftermath of the 2011 massacre, where right-wing extremist Anders Breivik killed 77 people. Denmark has one of the harshest anti-immigration laws in Europe, laws that are continuously being tightened (Boserup); and whenever visiting Denmark I have been surprised to see how much space and time discussions about immigration and integration take up in the news and current affairs.If we contrast the previous image with the image above, taken within a similar timeframe on the same Danish highway, we can see the reality of Danish immigration policies. Here we are exposed to a different story. The scene and the location is the same, but the power dynamics have shifted from benign, peaceful, and playful to aggressive, authoritarian, and conflict ridden. A desperate father carries his daughter, determined to march on towards their destination of Sweden. The policeman is pulling his arm, attempting to detain the refugees so that they cannot go further, the goal being to deport the Syrians back to their previous place of detention, just over the border in Germany (Harticollis). While the previous image reflects the humanity of the refugee crisis, this image reflects the politics, policies, and to a large extent public opinion in Denmark, which is not refugee-friendly. This image, however, was not widely distributed, partly because it feeds into the same depressing narrative of an unsolvable refugee crisis seen so often elsewhere, and partly because it does not fit into the narrative of the infallible North. It could not be tweeted with the hashtag #Humanity, nor shared on Facebook with a smiley face and liked with an emoji heart.Another image from Denmark, in the form of a politically funded billboard, shows that there are deep-seated tendencies within Danish society that want to promote and retain a Denmark which adheres to its traditional values and ethnic whiteness. The image was displayed all over the country, at train stations, bus stops, and other public spaces when I visited in 2016. It was issued by Dansk Folkeparti (the Danish People’s Party); a party which is anti-immigration and which was until recently the country’s second largest party. The title says “Our Denmark”, while the byline cleverly plays with the double meaning of passe på: it can mean “there is so much we need to take care of”, but also “there is so much we need to beware of.” In other words, the white working-class family needs to take care of their Denmark, and beware of anyone who does not fit into this norm. Though hugely contested and criticised (Cremer; see a counter-reaction designed by opponents below), the fact that thinly veiled anti-immigration propaganda can be so readily distributed speaks of an underbelly in Danish society that is not made of the dark murder mysteries in The Killing, but rather of a quietly brewing distain for the foreigner that reigns within stylishly designed living rooms. ConclusionMyths are stories cultures tell and retell until they form a belief system that becomes a natural part of our collective narrative. For Barthes, these stories were intrinsically connected to our understanding of language and our ability to read images, films, artifacts, and popular culture more generally. To later cultural theorists, the notion of discursive formations expands this understanding, to see myth within a broader network of socio-political discourses placed within a certain place and time in history. When connected, small narratives (images, advertising, film, music, news stories, social media sharing, scientific evidence, etc.) come together to form a common narrative (the myth) about how things are and should be in relation to a particular topic. The culminating popularity of numerous Nordic themes (Nordic television/film, interior design, fashion, cuisine, architecture, lifestyle, sustainability, welfare system, school system, gender equality, etc.) has created a grand narrative of the Nordic countries as a type of utopia: one that shows the rest of the world that an egalitarian society of togetherness and progressive innovation is possible. This mythologisation serves to quell anxieties about the flux and uncertainty of contemporary times, and may also serve to legitimise a yearning for a simple, benign, and progressive whiteness, where we imagine Nordic families sitting peacefully at their beechwood dining tables, candles lit, playing board games. This is a projected yearning which is otherwise largely disallowed in today’s multicultural societies.ReferencesAnderson, Elizabeth. “The Most Prosperous Countries in the World, Based on Happiness and Financial Health.” The Telegraph, 2 Nov. 2015. <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/economics/11966461/The-most-prosperous-countries-in-the-world-based-on-happiness-and-financial-health.html>.Barthes, Roland. Mythologies. London: Vintage, 2000 [1957].———. “Myth Today.” Mythologies. London: Vintage, 2000 [1957].Booth, Michael. The Almost Nearly Perfect People. London: Jonathan Cape, 2014.Boserup, Rasmus Alenius. “Denmark’s Harsh New Immigration Law Will End Badly for Everyone.” Huffington Post. <https://www.huffingtonpost.com/rasmus-alenius-boserup/denmark-immigration-law_b_9112148.html>.Bridge, The. (Danish: Broen.) Created by Hans Rosenfeldt. Sveriges Television and DR, 2013-present.Cleary, Paul. “Norway Is Proof That You Can Have It All.” The Australian, 15 July 2013. <http://www.theaustralian.com.au/life/norway-is-proof-that-you-can-have-it-all/news-story/3d2895adbace87431410e7b033ec84bf>.Colson, Thomas. “7 Reasons Denmark Is the Happiest Country in the World.” The Independent, 26 Sep. 2016. <http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/7-reasons-denmark-is-the-happiest-country-in-the-world-a7331146.html>.Cremer, Justin. “The Strangest Political Story in Denmark Just Got Stranger.” The Local, 19 May 2016. <https://www.thelocal.dk/20160519/strangest-political-story-in-denmark-just-got-stranger>.Dregni, Eric. “Why Is Norway the Happiest Place on Earth?” Star Tribune, 11 June 2017. <http://www.startribune.com/the-height-of-happy/427321393/#1>.Foucault, Michel. The History of Sexuality: The Will to Knowledge. London: Penguin Books, 1998 [1976]. Gaiman, Neil. “Neil Gaiman Retells Classic Norse Mythology.” Conversations. Radio National 30 Mar. 2017.Goodwin, Barbara, ed. The Philosophy of Utopia. London: Frank Cass, 2001.Hall, Stuart, ed. Representation: Cultural Representations and Signifying Practices. London: Sage, 1997.Hartocollis, Anemona. “Traveling in Europe’s River of Migrants.” New York Times, 9 Sep. 2015. <https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/projects/cp/reporters-notebook/migrants/denmark-refugees-migrants>.Helliwell, J., R. Layard, and J. Sachs. World Happiness Report 2017. New York: Sustainable Development Solutions Network, 2017.Kale, Sirin. “Women Are Now Pillaging Sperm Banks for Viking Babies.” Vice, 2 Oct. 2015. <https://broadly.vice.com/en_us/article/3dx9nj/women-are-now-pillaging-sperm-banks-for-viking-babies>.Killing, The. (Danish: Forbrydelsen.) Created by Søren Sveistrup. DR, 2007-2012.Kolff, Louise. “Part III: The Hunk & the Refugee.” Perspectra, 3 Dec. 2015. <https://perspectra.org/2015/12/03/danish-police-and-refugee-girl/>.Oxford Dictionaries. “Hygge.” <https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/hygge>.Oxford Dictionaries. “Myth.” <https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/myth>.Pitcher, Ben. Consuming Race. London: Routledge, 2014.———. “The Racial Politics of Nordic Noir.” Mecetes, 9 April 2014. <http://mecetes.co.uk/racial-politics-nordic-noir/>.Scandimania. Featuring H. Fearnley-Whittingstall. Channel 4, 2014.Sougaard-Nielsen, Jacob. “Nordic Noir in the UK: The Allure of Accessible Difference.” Journal of Aesthetics & Culture 8.1 (2016). 1 Oct. 2017 <http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.3402/jac.v8.32704>.———. “The Truth Is, Scandinavia Is Neither Heaven nor Hell.” The Conversation, 19 Aug. 2014. <https://theconversation.com/the-truth-is-scandinavia-is-neither-heaven-nor-hell-30641>.Warren, Rossalyn. “The Touching Moment a Policeman Sat Down to Play with a Syrian Refugee.” BuzzFeed News, 15 Sep. 2015. <https://www.buzzfeed.com/rossalynwarren/the-adorable-moment-a-policeman-sat-down-to-play-with-a-syri?utm_term=.qjzl2WEk7#.kgZXOp76M>.

The study sought to uncover the constitution of migrant women's agency as they rebuild their lives in Australia, and to explore how contact with any publicly funded services might influence the capacity to be self determining subjects. The thesis used a framework of lifeworld theories (Bourdieu, Schutz, Giddens), materialist, trans-national feminist and post colonial writings, and a methodological approach based on critical hermeneutics (Ricoeur), feminist standpoint and decolonising theories. Thirty in depth interviews were carried out with 6 women migrating from each of 5 regions: Vietnam, Lebanon, the Horn of Africa, the former Soviet Union and the Philippines. Australian based immigration literature constituted the third corner of triangulation. The interviews were carried out through an exploration of themes format, eliciting data about the different ontological and epistemological assumptions of the cultures of origin. The findings revealed not only the women's remarkable tenacity and resilience as creative agents, but also the indispensability of Australia's publicly funded infrastructure or welfare state. The women were mostly privileged in terms of class, education and affirming relationships with males. Nevertheless, their self determination depended on contact with universal public policies, programs and with local community services. The welfare state seems to be modernity's means for re-establishing human connectedness that is the crux of the human condition. Connecting with fellow Australians in friendships and neighbourliness was also important in resettlement. Conclusions include a policy discussion in agreement with Australian and international scholars proposing that there is no alternative but for governments to invest in a welfare state for the civil societies and knowledge based economies of the 21st Century.

This chapter begins with an overview of the contrasting phenomena that need to be reconciled within the sociology of ageing. It stresses respects in which ageing itself is a social phenomenon, arguing that they reveal deep social ambiguities and contestations in connection with the human life-course. It then examines both threats and resources associated with globalised aspects of contemporary ageing, before interrogating contributions by successive theoretical analyses of what ageing involves. The chapter explores the decisive impacts of welfare states on the circumstances of ageing, and their connections with the social distribution of family and caring roles. It continues to a discussion of generational and gender relations before examining wider environments for life-course development and their connections with familial and other forms of mutual care. Lastly, it addresses issues relating to social exclusion and ageism, before exploring aspects of social meaning connected with later life, and their potential for enhancement.

The liberal-leaning UK welfare state is contracting due to a sharp austerity programme. It is failing to address the challenges of population ageing and globalized competition. Increasingly provision is divided between maintained benefits for pensioners (rising in real terms) and those for working age people (harshly cut back). This gap has been exploited by the Conservative Party for political advantage, leading to a deepening of social divisions. At the same time concerns about immigration are leading to popular demands for a protectionist stance by government. In the 2016 referendum, these culminated in a vote to leave the EU. Brexit is currently being implemented, with damaging consequences for the UK economy, possibly triggering further EU fragmentation.

This book surveys and analyses the welfare consequences of the Great Recession in Europe and investigates how the burdens of the crisis were shared—between countries, between different socio-economic groups across Europe, and within individual countries. The studies are based on broad comparisons of 30 countries and deeper analyses of 9 country cases. The approach is grounded in classical theories about crisis responses and relates financial hardship to institutional characteristics—such as welfare regimes, currency regimes, socio-political patterns, affluence levels, public debt, and policy reactions during the crisis period—for example, stimulus versus austerity, the degree of social protection emphasis, the commitment to redistribution, and the significance of activation. Welfare and the Great Recession offers new evidence on and demonstrates the importance of the welfare state and government policies with regard to sheltering populations from the level of living consequences of serious economic contraction and distributing burdens in a crisis situation. The book offers various lessons from the crisis experience in Europe and ends with a discussion about welfare futures in a globalized, crisis-prone environment.

Welfare states in Spain and Italy are similar in that they combine social insurance pensions with liberal means-tested benefits and tax-financed universal healthcare and education. Both have responded to the crisis with major austerity programmes and, particularly in Spain, some recalibration to meet the needs of unemployed and low-waged people. Childcare provision has expanded in both countries. Anti-immigrant feeling is much stronger in Italy than in Spain. One of the most striking changes is the rapid decline of trust in government and trade unions and the emergence of new anti-globalization and anti-austerity parties. Both countries face real problems in developing strategies that will satisfy their electorates without damaging government finances and their competitive position in globalized markets.

AbstractAs migrants throughout the world make important contributions to their families’ social welfare, migration often implies changes in the ways in which individual’s and families’ needs for economic and social-welfare protection are met. This book contributes to the existing literature on transnational mobility and social protection by bringing in empirical evidence from across the globe which illustrates the multitude of mechanisms in which welfare concerns shape individual and family decisions about mobility and vice versa. By focusing on individuals, households and families rather than on nation states, the book’s contributors distance themselves from the macro and nation-state level of analysis in the field of migration and welfare research. Despite the emphasis on migrants’ subjective rationalities, the book’s chapters often highlight the political nature of many dilemmas faced by migrants and their families and expose national-welfare systems’ inherent sedentary bias. This book is designed for a broad range of audiences, from established scholars and policy-makers to graduate students of Sociology, Political Science, Anthropology and Human Geography who are interested in transnational mobility and social protection. We hope that the readers will find the contributions to this book insightful and valuable for their understanding of migrants’ experiences of social-welfare protection in a globalised world.

In the concluding chapter Stefán Ólafsson pulls the threads of this book together and discusses the lessons learned from the Great Recession along five dimensions: varieties of crisis experiences, how the burdens were shared, how the welfare state made a difference, how politics mattered, and lastly crises and the political economy of welfare futures. He summarizes the relationship between economic contraction, increased unemployment, and increased financial hardship in European countries, and he reviews how differing outcomes relate to welfare state structures, different policies, and other conditions. The chapter ends with a discussion of the future of welfare regimes in a globalized crisis-prone environment.

In an era of major technological, digital and scientific achievement, in the modern post-industrial globalized society of great contradictions, problems and conflicts, the unemployment phenomenon, which affects young people to a greater extent, is exacerbated. Greece is the country that was affected more than any other country in southern Europe by the multiple effects of the economic crisis, which among others catapulted youth unemployment to unprecedented levels. This chapter presents a research on views and attitudes analysis of male and female students of higher education in Greece towards unemployment as a social phenomenon, towards stereotypical attitudes on unemployment, as well as towards the ways and forms of the research phenomenon configuration. Subsequently, this research attempts to record, analyze and interpret the students' views and attitudes towards the Greek welfare state, thoroughly studying the correlations of all the above data.

In an era of major technological, digital and scientific achievement, in the modern post-industrial globalized society of great contradictions, problems and conflicts, the unemployment phenomenon, which affects young people to a greater extent, is exacerbated. Greece is the country that was affected more than any other country in southern Europe by the multiple effects of the economic crisis, which among others catapulted youth unemployment to unprecedented levels. This chapter presents a research on views and attitudes analysis of male and female students of higher education in Greece towards unemployment as a social phenomenon, towards stereotypical attitudes on unemployment, as well as towards the ways and forms of the research phenomenon configuration. Subsequently, this research attempts to record, analyze and interpret the students' views and attitudes towards the Greek welfare state, thoroughly studying the correlations of all the above data.

The mission of the present study is to establish a robust and reliable reference framework on the ecosystem of Non-Governmental Organizations and the Third Sector for literature review in scholarly contributions and publications. Two goals are set: first, to re-establish the importance of Nongovernmental Organizations as integral key players on the arena of social welfare in an era that is largely defined by globalized economies, debt-ridden states, limited resources, increased competition for donations and volunteers, and enhanced needs related to poverty and acceptable standards of living. Second, to position NGOs on the sphere of political influence where they negotiate agendas, form coalitions with local and international partners, mobilize constituencies for policy change, and ultimately engage in all stages of the policy process. Finally, the absence of a concrete evaluation system is pointed out: an accountability framework is fundamental to the assessment of NGO performance and impact on their intended beneficiaries.

This chapter explores the political context of human rights and how it is shaping the future. It argues that human rights constitute the very substance of democracy by conferring a universal set of rights on the citizen, arguing that Hannah Arendt’s famous phrase ‘the right to have rights’ defines the complex relationship between democracy, human rights and civil society. It discusses how human rights embracing both individual liberty and social justice have been historically contested and critically assesses the state of human rights in today’s world along with the potential threats and opportunities for human rights development into the future. The chapter concludes by arguing that the restoration of a universal welfare state, as the embodiment of human rights in a globalised world, arguably should be the priority for the future of democracy in the twenty-first century.