Digitalization and the Welfare State

This volume explores how digitalization affects the welfare state, including social risks in health, education, and the labor market. It brings together scholars to identify challenges, political conflicts, and responses to these changes, and considers the potential for a new paradigm of welfare state policy-making.

Format: Hardback
Length: 420 pages
Publication date: 14 March 2022
Publisher: Oxford University Press

This comprehensive volume delves into the multifaceted effects of digitalization on the welfare state, encompassing various manifestations of this transformative process. It is anticipated that digitalization will exert a profound and enduring influence on employment, welfare, and income distribution. Not only will it reshape the nature and magnitude of social risks in health, education, and the labor market, but also the strategies employed to mitigate these risks. The volume explores the intricate interplay between digitalization and policies, shedding light on the power dynamics between different actors within the welfare state. By bringing together esteemed scholars from around the world, the book identifies the socio-economic challenges arising from rapid technological change, examines the political conflicts and struggles associated with welfare state reform, and assesses how these changes challenge and shape existing labor market and welfare state arrangements.

Overall, this volume serves as a valuable resource for understanding the potential and actual political and policy responses to the challenges posed by the digital revolution. It provides insights into future developments, evaluates the prospects for a new paradigm of welfare state policy-making, and offers a theoretically informed empirical foundation for social science and public discussions about the long-term implications of the digital revolution for the welfare state.

Given the rapid and accelerating pace of technological change, it is imperative to engage with potential future scenarios to fully comprehend the ramifications for the welfare state. The authors of this volume adopt a forward-looking perspective, providing a theoretical framework for empirical analysis and contributing to social science and public debates about the long-term implications of the digital revolution for the welfare state. The book covers a wide range of policy areas, including education, pensions, labor market policies, tax policy, and health care, offering a comprehensive examination of the digital revolution's impact on these critical domains.

In conclusion, this volume is a vital contribution to the study of digitalization and the welfare state. It offers a comprehensive and insightful exploration of the complex interplay between digitalization, policies, and power dynamics within the welfare state. By providing a forward-looking perspective and a theoretical framework for empirical analysis, the book contributes to our understanding of the potential and actual consequences of the digital revolution for the welfare state and serves as a valuable resource for policymakers, scholars, and interested individuals.

Weight: 798g
Dimension: 322 x 241 x 33 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780192848369