59288 - History of the Welfare State

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course students will have the required knowledge of the complex and long-term history of welfare state. They will also cultivate an awareness of the varied forces and actors that have played a role in that process as well as the approaches historians and other scholars have developed to analyze and reconstruct this history. Specifically, the course aims to help students to understand the precedents of the contemporary welfare state in terms of their underlying motivations (political, social, ideological, economic) and the extent of their impact on the subsequent social welfare institutions and policies.

Course contents

This  course  surveys the history of  the welfare  state  in Western Europe and North America since its  emergence  in  the  nineteenth  century. We begin by considering the process of Western social policy development and implementation moving on to various forms of insurance and assistance schemes originating immediately after the Industrial Revolution. We pass to discuss the rise of the social policies in the XX century, especially after the Second World War, when  the welfare state is set up and sees its widest distribution. Then, we consider the challenges to the welfare state that emerge from changing labor market, demographic, and social conditions in the highly industrialized nations in the late-20th century. Finally, we examine the impact of globalization and the reforms to the welfare state in the beginning of 21th century. The course proceeds both thematically and chronologically, looking at case studies illustrating various aspects of general processes. We consider not only the evolution of policies, institutions and laws, but also classic theories about the relationship between markets, classes, and social protection; the role of social forces such as organized labor and the self-employed; the role and evolution of political institutions; the role of theories and ideologies that underlie social welfare policies and programs.

Readings/Bibliography

A. De Bernardi, Da mondiale a globale. Storia del XX secolo, Bruno Mondadori, Milano 2008

F. Conti, G. Silei, Breve storia dello stato sociale, Carocci, Roma 2013

A. Rapini, Lo stato sociale, Archetipo, Bologna 2010

Teaching methods

Assessment methods

Office hours

See the website of Alessio Gagliardi