Table Of ContentSozialstrukturanalyse
Katharina Kunißen
The Independent
Variable Problem
Welfare Stateness as an Explanatory
Concept
Sozialstrukturanalyse
Reiheherausgegebenvon
RasmusHoffmann,UniversitätBamberg,Bamberg,Germany
AndréKnabe,RostockerInstitutfürSozialforschungundgesellschaftlichePraxis
e.V.,Rostock,Germany
ChristianSchmitt,UniversitätRostock,Rostock,Germany
In der Reihe Sozialstrukturanalyse erscheinen Beiträge, die die Forschung zu
sozialer Ungleichheit reflektieren oder neue Sichtweisen aufzeigen. Dazu zählen
insbesondere qualitative sowie quantifizierende Analysen zur Verteilung von
Ressourcen und Lebenschancen auf regionaler, nationaler und globaler Ebene
sowie zur Wahrnehmung und Deutung von Ungleichheiten. Neben klassis-
chen Dimensionen sozialer Ungleichheit werden dabei auch neuere Dimensio-
nen wie Kultur, sozialräumliche Positionierung und die Einbindung in soziale
Beziehungsnetzwerke betrachtet.
Die Reihe wurde von 2006 bis 2018 von Peter A. Berger (†) herausgegeben und
1994 von Stefan Hradil gegründet.
Katharina Kunißen
The Independent
Variable Problem
Welfare Stateness as an Explanatory
Concept
KatharinaKunißen
Mainz,Germany
Dissertation,Fachbereich02,Sozialwissenschaften,Medien,Sport,JohannesGutenberg
UniversityMainz,2021(D77)
ISSN2662-2947 ISSN2662-2955 (electronic)
Sozialstrukturanalyse
ISBN978-3-658-39421-9 ISBN978-3-658-39422-6 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-39422-6
©TheEditor(s)(ifapplicable)andTheAuthor(s)2023.Thisbookisanopenaccesspublication.
Open Access This book is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
InternationalLicense(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), whichpermitsuse,sharing,
adaptation,distributionandreproductioninanymediumorformat,aslongasyougiveappropriate
credittotheoriginalauthor(s)andthesource,providealinktotheCreativeCommonslicenseand
indicateifchangesweremade.
Theimagesorotherthirdpartymaterialinthisbookareincludedinthebook’sCreativeCommons
license,unlessindicatedotherwiseinacreditlinetothematerial.Ifmaterialisnotincludedinthe
book’sCreativeCommonslicenseandyourintendeduseisnotpermittedbystatutoryregulationor
exceedsthepermitteduse,youwillneedtoobtainpermissiondirectlyfromthecopyrightholder.
Theuseofgeneraldescriptivenames,registerednames,trademarks,servicemarks,etc.inthis
publicationdoesnotimply,evenintheabsenceofaspecificstatement,thatsuchnamesareexempt
fromtherelevantprotectivelawsandregulationsandthereforefreeforgeneraluse.
Thepublisher,theauthors,andtheeditorsaresafetoassumethattheadviceandinformationinthis
bookarebelievedtobetrueandaccurateatthedateofpublication.Neitherthepublishernorthe
authorsortheeditorsgiveawarranty,expressedorimplied,withrespecttothematerialcontained
hereinorforanyerrorsoromissionsthatmayhavebeenmade.Thepublisherremainsneutralwith
regardtojurisdictionalclaimsinpublishedmapsandinstitutionalaffiliations.
ResponsibleEditor:StefanieProbst
ThisSpringerVSimprintispublishedbytheregisteredcompanySpringerFachmedienWiesbaden
GmbH,partofSpringerNature.
Theregisteredcompanyaddressis:Abraham-Lincoln-Str.46,65189Wiesbaden,Germany
Acknowledgements
I am deeply grateful for the great support and encouragement I have received
from family, friends, colleagues, and institutions while working on this project.
First and foremost, I would like to thank my supervisors. Gunnar Otte,
my main supervisor and head of the Social Stratification Research Group at
Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, has guided and supported me through-
out the project. Patrick Sachweh from the University of Bremen has brought a
valuable and enriching additional perspective as co-supervisor.
This project has benefited immensely from the academic exchange and finan-
cial support I have received as a member of the interdisciplinary Gutenberg
Academy. In addition, research that led to these results was supported by the
EuropeanUnion’sHorizon2020researchandinnovationprogrammeundergrant
agreementNo.730998,InGRID-2—IntegratingResearchInfrastructureforEuro-
pean expertise on Inclusive Growth from data to policy. This has allowed me
to spend time at the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) at Stockholm
University. I would like to thank the team at SOFI for their great input. The
Open Access publication of this manuscript received funding by the Deutsche
Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation; No. 499033181).
Since I started this project, many people have supported me greatly. I would
like to thank my colleagues at the Institute of Sociology at Johannes Guten-
bergUniversity.Inparticular,TheresaWieland,DaveBalzer,DeboraEicher,and
Matthias Lehmann. I am deeply grateful to Lena Zimmer and Julian Hamann
who have been by my side throughout the entire process—as wonderful friends
and as academic peers. The same goes for Jasmin Fitzpatrick, who always had
an open ear and great advice.
v
vi Acknowledgements
Finally, I would like to thank my family and friends for their unconditional
support and my husband, Matthias, who was and is my rock.
Mainz Katharina Kunißen
2021
Contents
1 Introduction .................................................. 1
1.1 Aim of the Study and Research Questions ................... 2
1.2 Remarks on the Analytical Perspective ...................... 5
1.3 Structure of the Book ..................................... 9
2 Premises:PerspectivesontheWelfareState ...................... 11
2.1 A Short History of Welfare State Research ................... 13
2.1.1 First Phase: Exploration and Description .............. 14
2.1.2 Second Phase: Similarities and Classifications .......... 17
2.1.3 Third Phase: New Risks and Retrenchment ............ 21
2.1.4 Summary: Influential Debates ........................ 27
2.2 Functions of Welfare States ................................ 28
2.2.1 Security: the Welfare State as a Safety Net ............ 29
2.2.2 Redistribution: Robin Hood, Piggy Bank and More ..... 32
2.2.3 Social Stratification: the Welfare State and Social
Inequality ......................................... 34
2.2.4 Activation: an Enabling and Incentivising Institution .... 35
2.2.5 Socialisation: the Welfare State, EndogenousNorms
and Values ......................................... 38
2.2.6 Summary: Functions and Variations of Welfare
States ............................................. 40
2.3 From Dependent to Independent Variable .................... 41
vii
viii Contents
3 TheWelfareStateasanIndependentVariable:Debates,
Pitfalls,Potentials ............................................. 43
3.1 Approaches and Debates ................................... 44
3.1.1 The Single Indicator Approach ....................... 44
3.1.2 The Regime Typology Approach ..................... 47
3.1.3 The Composite Index Approach ...................... 51
3.2 An Empirical Confrontation ................................ 53
3.2.1 Data, Operationalisation and Method .................. 54
3.2.2 Results and Interpretation ........................... 57
3.3 Summary: an Independent Variable Problem ................. 65
4 LiteratureReview:MechanismsandHypotheses ................. 71
4.1 The Mechanisms Matter: a Short Introduction ................ 72
4.2 Summary of Popular Hypotheses ........................... 76
4.2.1 The Impact of the Welfare State on Well-Being ........ 78
4.2.2 The Impact of the Welfare State on Risks and Needs ... 90
4.2.3 The Impact of the Welfare State on Attitudes .......... 97
4.2.4 The Impact of the Welfare State on Behaviour ......... 104
4.3 Summary: Analytical Perspectives and Mechanisms ........... 109
5 WelfareStatenessasanExplanatoryConcept .................... 113
5.1 From Background Concept to Systematised Concepts ......... 115
5.2 Indicators and Scores for Cases: Criteria and Measurement
Validity .................................................. 119
5.2.1 Criteria for the Selection of Indicators ................ 119
5.2.2 Determining Measurement Validity ................... 122
5.3 Measurement of the Systematised Concepts .................. 124
5.3.1 The Responsive Welfare State ........................ 126
5.3.2 The Enabling Welfare State .......................... 127
5.3.3 The Normative Welfare State ........................ 127
5.3.4 The Assessed Welfare State .......................... 129
5.4 Data Sources ............................................. 131
5.5 Discussion ............................................... 132
6 WelfareStatenessasanExplanatoryVariable:Empirical
Illustration ................................................... 137
6.1 Remarks on the Following Analyses ......................... 138
6.1.1 Data Sources for Individual-Level Survey Data ......... 138
6.1.2 Data Sources for Macro-Level Data and Country
Sample ............................................ 140
6.1.3 Indicators of Welfare Stateness ....................... 141
Contents ix
6.2 The Welfare State and the Risk of Poverty ................... 151
6.2.1 Conceptualisation of the Welfare State ................ 151
6.2.2 Operationalisation of the Welfare State ................ 153
6.2.3 Additional Variables and Analytical Strategy ........... 154
6.2.4 Results of Bi- and Multivariate Analyses .............. 158
6.2.5 Summary and Discussion ............................ 167
6.3 The Welfare State and Welfare State Attitudes ................ 171
6.3.1 Conceptualisation of the Welfare State ................ 171
6.3.2 Operationalisation of the Welfare State ................ 175
6.3.3 Additional Variables and Analytical Strategy ........... 176
6.3.4 Results of Bi- and Multivariate Analyses .............. 179
6.3.5 Summary and Discussion ............................ 188
6.4 Concluding Remarks ...................................... 192
7 TowardsSolvingtheIndependentVariableProblem .............. 195
7.1 Summary and Main Findings ............................... 195
7.2 Implications for Further Research ........................... 200
References ....................................................... 205
