The Institutions of a Changing Welfare State

The welfare state as we know it today is in a crisis. There are many reasons for this and it is surely not the result of just one or two of the causes mentioned in this volume. But whether it is due to the financial crisis and whether temporary by nature, the question arises as to what to do about it. When, for example, the social security system has obviously been over-stretched, we have to decide on what to do next: abolition of the total security system, reshape it or simply cut back on a few items? And, if so, which items? And how do we deal with the legitimacy crisis or, if it exists, the institutional one? The answers to most of these questions have ideological implications and are fundamental to the future of the welfare state.