Edited by Bernhard Ebbinghaus, Professor of Sociology, University of Mannheim, Germany and Moira Nelson, Associate Professor of Political Science, Lund University, Sweden

‘This Handbook provides an outstandingly rich analysis of social policy developments and their politics since the early 2000s. It also discusses the theoretical and methodological issues at the frontier of welfare research. A major and timely contribution to the academic debate, destined to become an essential read for scholars and graduate students alike.’

• ContentsList of Tables viiiList of Figures xContributors list xiAcknowledgments xiv1 Welfare state reform in the age of polycrisis: An introduction 1Bernhard Ebbinghaus and Moira NelsonPART I THEORETICAL LENSES2 Exogenous and endogenous challenges to the welfare state 11Herbert Obinger3 Ideas and welfare state reform 25Daniel Béland and Ronen Mandelkern4 Mobilization from below facing welfare state reforms 37Benedikt Bender and Bernhard Ebbinghaus5 Growth regimes and welfare state reforms 51Anke Hassel and Pit Jasper Lee6 New Politics revisited: From path dependency to path departure 66Carsten Jensen and Georg Wenzelburger7 Political institutions and the welfare state 79Johannes Lindvall8 Welfare state governance: Going beyond New PublicManagement? 91Tanja KlenkPART II METHODOLOGICAL APPROACHES9 Measuring welfare state change 107Jon Kvist10 From case-study designs to process-tracing 121Cyril Benoît and Marek Naczyk11 Comparing welfare states and their reforms 136Bernhard Ebbinghaus12 Pooled time-series and other macro-indicator analyses 150Carina Schmitt and Kathrin D. Fiedler13 Longitudinal and life course analyses with individual panel data 164Katja Möhring and Andreas P. Weiland14 Studying public attitudes to welfare state reform with surveyresearch 180Elias Naumann15 Computational social science approaches to studying welfare statereforms 195Sebastian Stier, Alexander Horn and Jan SchwalbachPART III REFORM POLICY AREAS16 Towards social investment in education and training 209Ilze Plavgo and Niccolo Durazzi17 Family policy and its reform in Europe 223Mary Daly18 Activation and flexibilization 235Moira Nelson and J. Timo Weishaupt19 Minimum income protection 249Sarah Marchal, Ive Marx and Alessandro Nardo20 Pension reforms in ageing societies 263Karen M. Anderson21 Healthcare and long-term care reforms 278Claus Wendt22 Housing policies for changing societies 293Lindsay B. Flynn and Paulette KurzerPART IV THE POLITICS OF REFORM23 The electoral politics of welfare state reforms 309Frank Bandau and Leo Ahrens24 Welfare state attitudes, knowledge and reform 321Tijs Laenen, Bart Meuleman and Femke Roosma25 Redistributive politics in contemporary welfare states 334Jonas Pontusson and Jérémie Poltier26 Ideational drivers of welfare reform in the European Union 348Amandine Crespy and Bastian Kenn27 Studying the reconfiguration of EU social policy 362Miriam Hartlapp and Jana Windwehr28 International organizations and welfare state reform 375John Berten and Alexandra Kaasch

Edited by Bernhard Ebbinghaus, Professor of Sociology, University of Mannheim, Germany and Moira Nelson, Associate Professor of Political Science, Lund University, Sweden

‘This Handbook provides an outstandingly rich analysis of social policy developments and their politics since the early 2000s. It also discusses the theoretical and methodological issues at the frontier of welfare research. A major and timely contribution to the academic debate, destined to become an essential read for scholars and graduate students alike.’

• ContentsList of Tables viiiList of Figures xContributors list xiAcknowledgments xiv1 Welfare state reform in the age of polycrisis: An introduction 1Bernhard Ebbinghaus and Moira NelsonPART I THEORETICAL LENSES2 Exogenous and endogenous challenges to the welfare state 11Herbert Obinger3 Ideas and welfare state reform 25Daniel Béland and Ronen Mandelkern4 Mobilization from below facing welfare state reforms 37Benedikt Bender and Bernhard Ebbinghaus5 Growth regimes and welfare state reforms 51Anke Hassel and Pit Jasper Lee6 New Politics revisited: From path dependency to path departure 66Carsten Jensen and Georg Wenzelburger7 Political institutions and the welfare state 79Johannes Lindvall8 Welfare state governance: Going beyond New PublicManagement? 91Tanja KlenkPART II METHODOLOGICAL APPROACHES9 Measuring welfare state change 107Jon Kvist10 From case-study designs to process-tracing 121Cyril Benoît and Marek Naczyk11 Comparing welfare states and their reforms 136Bernhard Ebbinghaus12 Pooled time-series and other macro-indicator analyses 150Carina Schmitt and Kathrin D. Fiedler13 Longitudinal and life course analyses with individual panel data 164Katja Möhring and Andreas P. Weiland14 Studying public attitudes to welfare state reform with surveyresearch 180Elias Naumann15 Computational social science approaches to studying welfare statereforms 195Sebastian Stier, Alexander Horn and Jan SchwalbachPART III REFORM POLICY AREAS16 Towards social investment in education and training 209Ilze Plavgo and Niccolo Durazzi17 Family policy and its reform in Europe 223Mary Daly18 Activation and flexibilization 235Moira Nelson and J. Timo Weishaupt19 Minimum income protection 249Sarah Marchal, Ive Marx and Alessandro Nardo20 Pension reforms in ageing societies 263Karen M. Anderson21 Healthcare and long-term care reforms 278Claus Wendt22 Housing policies for changing societies 293Lindsay B. Flynn and Paulette KurzerPART IV THE POLITICS OF REFORM23 The electoral politics of welfare state reforms 309Frank Bandau and Leo Ahrens24 Welfare state attitudes, knowledge and reform 321Tijs Laenen, Bart Meuleman and Femke Roosma25 Redistributive politics in contemporary welfare states 334Jonas Pontusson and Jérémie Poltier26 Ideational drivers of welfare reform in the European Union 348Amandine Crespy and Bastian Kenn27 Studying the reconfiguration of EU social policy 362Miriam Hartlapp and Jana Windwehr28 International organizations and welfare state reform 375John Berten and Alexandra Kaasch

Edited by Bernhard Ebbinghaus, Professor of Sociology, University of Mannheim, Germany and Moira Nelson, Associate Professor of Political Science, Lund University, Sweden

‘This Handbook provides an outstandingly rich analysis of social policy developments and their politics since the early 2000s. It also discusses the theoretical and methodological issues at the frontier of welfare research. A major and timely contribution to the academic debate, destined to become an essential read for scholars and graduate students alike.’

• ContentsList of Tables viiiList of Figures xContributors list xiAcknowledgments xiv1 Welfare state reform in the age of polycrisis: An introduction 1Bernhard Ebbinghaus and Moira NelsonPART I THEORETICAL LENSES2 Exogenous and endogenous challenges to the welfare state 11Herbert Obinger3 Ideas and welfare state reform 25Daniel Béland and Ronen Mandelkern4 Mobilization from below facing welfare state reforms 37Benedikt Bender and Bernhard Ebbinghaus5 Growth regimes and welfare state reforms 51Anke Hassel and Pit Jasper Lee6 New Politics revisited: From path dependency to path departure 66Carsten Jensen and Georg Wenzelburger7 Political institutions and the welfare state 79Johannes Lindvall8 Welfare state governance: Going beyond New PublicManagement? 91Tanja KlenkPART II METHODOLOGICAL APPROACHES9 Measuring welfare state change 107Jon Kvist10 From case-study designs to process-tracing 121Cyril Benoît and Marek Naczyk11 Comparing welfare states and their reforms 136Bernhard Ebbinghaus12 Pooled time-series and other macro-indicator analyses 150Carina Schmitt and Kathrin D. Fiedler13 Longitudinal and life course analyses with individual panel data 164Katja Möhring and Andreas P. Weiland14 Studying public attitudes to welfare state reform with surveyresearch 180Elias Naumann15 Computational social science approaches to studying welfare statereforms 195Sebastian Stier, Alexander Horn and Jan SchwalbachPART III REFORM POLICY AREAS16 Towards social investment in education and training 209Ilze Plavgo and Niccolo Durazzi17 Family policy and its reform in Europe 223Mary Daly18 Activation and flexibilization 235Moira Nelson and J. Timo Weishaupt19 Minimum income protection 249Sarah Marchal, Ive Marx and Alessandro Nardo20 Pension reforms in ageing societies 263Karen M. Anderson21 Healthcare and long-term care reforms 278Claus Wendt22 Housing policies for changing societies 293Lindsay B. Flynn and Paulette KurzerPART IV THE POLITICS OF REFORM23 The electoral politics of welfare state reforms 309Frank Bandau and Leo Ahrens24 Welfare state attitudes, knowledge and reform 321Tijs Laenen, Bart Meuleman and Femke Roosma25 Redistributive politics in contemporary welfare states 334Jonas Pontusson and Jérémie Poltier26 Ideational drivers of welfare reform in the European Union 348Amandine Crespy and Bastian Kenn27 Studying the reconfiguration of EU social policy 362Miriam Hartlapp and Jana Windwehr28 International organizations and welfare state reform 375John Berten and Alexandra Kaasch