Examining multiple countries in this course, I was surprised to not see in-depth explanations of the variations between countries’ welfare systems that we have observed. Our textbook, Introduction to Comparative Politics, mentions the fact that countries like the UK, France, and Germany have welfare systems, however, the book does not go into detail on some of the key differences between these systems. With this in mind, I wanted to share a bit of background on variations in welfare systems, specifically around the work of Gøsta Esping-Andersen, a Danish sociologist who has written on the topic extensively. In his book, The Three Worlds of Welfare Capitalism, Esping-Andersen identifies three forms of welfare systems, the conservative system, which is utilized by countries like France and Germany, the liberal systems, which is used in the United States (and to a certain extent the United Kingdom), and the social-democratic system, which is primary used in Nordic countries.

These systems vary in how they attempt to provide welfare to citizens in the country. Liberal systems like in the United States typically provide welfare to citizens based on need. This can be observed in the US in systems like Medicaid, SNAP, and WIC. These systems provide aid but this aid is contingent upon means testing, which is typically measured by a family’s income. The conservative system differs in that it typically provides a broader array of services but the extent of these services varies based on individuals’ existence in certain groups. This can be observed in France by the various pension schemes that are supported by the government but vary in amount and in retirement age based on an individual’s profession. Many of these systems formed in the 19^th century in countries with conservative leaders like Otto von Bismark in Germany, in order to co-opt certain groups in society and prevent a push for democracy or greater union participation. The third welfare system is the social-democratic model, which seeks to provide universal services to citizens. This may include universal access to services like healthcare, childcare, university as well as strong protections for unemployed individuals. The thought behind this system is that the universal distribution of welfare services helps to build broad support for the program across economic classes as every citizen in the country benefits from the taxes being collected to provide these services.

This is just a brief blog post to get people thinking about the systems. I would be curious to hear which systems are typically used in your countries of origin and which you think may be the most effective based on your views of the role that government should play in supporting the population.

If you find this topic interest you can read the first chapter of Esping-Andersen’s book The Three Worlds of Welfare Capitalism is available here.