Putting Federalism in Its Place: The Territorial Politics of Social Policy Revisited

Federalism affects welfare states in various ways, and the diffuse federalism literature has not provided compelling answers to basic questions. Scott L. Greer, Daniel Béland, André Lecours, and Kenneth A. Dubin propose a new approach that focuses on configurations of variables within cases and identifies key elements in configurations. Their book, Federalism and Social Policy: Patterns of Redistribution in Eleven Countries, published by the University of Michigan Press in 2019, offers a methodological and substantive agenda for understanding the impact of federalism on social policy.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 252 pages
Publication date: 17 January 2023
Publisher: The University of Michigan Press

Federalism has been a topic of debate in scholarly discussions regarding policy design and the appropriate political institutions for a country. It has been observed to have a significant impact on various issues, including nationalism, racism, and intergovernmental competition. However, the diffuse federalism literature has not provided compelling answers to basic questions. Scott L. Greer, Daniel Béland, André Lecours, and Kenneth A. Dubin propose a new approach to studying federalism that focuses on configurations of variables within cases rather than isolating the "effect" of federalism. Their approach is both methodologically focused and substantively engaged with identifying key elements in configurations and when and how their interactions matter. This book, published by the University of Michigan Press in 2019, is the result of a multi-year, eleven-country project. Methodologically, the authors shift to studies that embrace and understand the complexity within which federal political institutions operate. Substantively, they argue for the importance of plurinationalism, changing economic interests, and institutional legacies.

Weight: 408g
Dimension: 151 x 228 x 19 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780472055548