Benefit Dependency and the Dynamics of the Welfare State: Comparing Sweden and the Netherlands

In this article we analyse the dynamics of the welfare state, focusing on the Netherlands and Sweden. The basic question is whether the different social systems of these countries result in differences in persistency of benefit dependency. We conclude that although benefit dependency at a macroecono...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International social security review (English edition) 2001-01, Vol.54 (1), p.3-17
Main Authors: Einerhand, Marcel, Eriksson, Ingemar, Van Leuvensteijn, Michiel
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Dependency
Employment
Netherlands
Public welfare
Social and economic security
Social policy
Sweden
Welfare benefits
Welfare state
Western Europe
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Summary:In this article we analyse the dynamics of the welfare state, focusing on the Netherlands and Sweden. The basic question is whether the different social systems of these countries result in differences in persistency of benefit dependency. We conclude that although benefit dependency at a macroeconomic level is more or less the same, patterns of mobility of individuals between benefits and jobs are different. These different patterns are partly explained by overrepresentation of benefits with a high degree of persistency in the Netherlands. This overrepresentation is, however, not sufficient to account for the large differences observed in dynamics. Characteristics of the welfare state account for that.
ISSN:0020-871X
1468-246X
DOI:10.1111/1468-246X.00082