Stein Ringen
Biographic Data
| ID | 172084 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Stein Ringen |
| GIVEN NAMES | Stein |
| FAMILY NAME | Ringen |
| SIGNATURE | RINGEN S |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Oxford |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 35 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 132 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 35 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1974 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2023 |
| H-INDEX | 5 |
Culture and Social Media
This commentary is part of Global Perspectives review symposium on democracy
How Democracies Live
Citizens, Families & Reform
"Modern families are economic institutions of great productivity. They contribute as much to a society's economic well-being as does worker productivity in formal markets. In Citizens, Families, and Reform, Stein Ringen shows how long-standing inequalities of income and class are flexible and changing in post-industrial societies. Such inequalities respond to structural changes such as social mobility and to public policies such as those of the w…
What Kind of Welfare State Is Emerging in China?
Through a survey of current social policy arrangements and historical trajectories, the emerging Chinese welfare state is positioned in relation to the main models in the literature on welfare state typologies. It is found that the emerging welfare state in China is developing in response to economic necessity rather than political-ideological drivers, a process which is not original, not socialist, and not developmental. China’s emerging welfare…
The perfect dictatorship
The Chinese system is like no other known to man, now or in history. This book explains how the system works and where it may be moving. Drawing on Chinese and international sources, on extensive collaboration with Chinese scholars, and on the political science of state analysis, the author concludes that under the new leadership of Xi Jinping, the system of government has been transformed into a new regime radically harder and more ideological t…
The Measurement of Democracy
What Democracy Is For
In this provocative book, Stein Ringen argues that the world's democracies are failing to live up to their ideals--the United States and Great Britain most especially. The core value of democracy, he contends, is freedom, the freedom to live a good life according to one's own choosing. Yet he shows that democracy's freedom is on the decline. Citizens are increasingly distrustful of political systems weighted by money, and they don't participate i…
Czech Society in Transition - Jiří Večerník, Czech Society in the 2000s
CzechSocietyinTransition - Jiří Večerník, Czech Society in the 2000s: A Report on Socio-Economic Policies and Structures (Prague, Academia, 2009) - Jiří Večerník and Petr Matějů (eds.), Ten Years of Rebuilding Capitalism: Czech Society after 1989 (Prague, Academia, 1999) - Jiří Večerník, Markets and People: The Czech Reform Experience in a Comparative Perspective (Aldershot, Avebury, 1996). - Volume 50 Issue 3
Robert A. Dahl
Pieter Vanhuysse
The Truth about Class Inequality
A strongly recommended conclusion in sociology about trends in class inequality has been summarised by Goldthorpe as a high degree of 'temporal constancy and cross-national communality'. This conclusion, here called 'the stability thesis', was first challenged by Ringen in 1987 and again, on more methodological grounds, by Ringen and Hellevik in two papers published in 1997. These challenges resulted in a process of debate and reassessment. It is…
Menos Gente
A maioria dos países industrializados já se acomodou ao padrão de aumento gradativo da expectativa de vida e à sub-reposição contínua da fecundidade.Nestes países, a perspectiva iminente do declínio da população e o crescimento acelerado dos grupos de idosos são motivos de calorosas discussões.O debate estende-se muito além dos limites da demografia e já atingiu as relações de raça, políticas de assistência social e a situação das relações matrim…
The Problem of Poverty - Some Recommendations on Definition and Measurement
Society needs believable information about poverty for its self-understanding and for rational political exchange and social policy. It is an ambition of poverty research to provide society with that information. In spite of decades of effort and volumes of excellent research, sociologists and economists have had only limited -if any -success in achieving this aim. There is a view that for this purpose poverty research needs to seek a methodology…
Force et décomposition de la démocratie représentative
The freedom of liberty
Liberty, freedom and real freedom
Two schools of freedom are considered and compared, 'the liberty school' and 'the real freedom school'.For the liberty school, freedom is freedom of choice.In the classical understanding, that is seen as a matter of rights.In the modern, revised understanding, it is seen as depending on rights, resources and arenas.For the real freedom school, freedom is a matter of being one's own master.This is viewed not as 'rational choice' but as being in co…
A distributional theory of economic democracy
In the twentieth century, while political democracy triumphed economic democracy failed both as an idea and in practice. A case for reviving the idea of economic democracy is made in terms of protecting political democracy. Economic democracy has conventionally been understood as a matter of bringing economic power under the control of collective political power. The idea is here reformulated as a matter of redistributing economic power between p…
Inequality and Its Measurement
Citizens, Families, and Reform
Children, Standard of Living and Distributions in the Family
The standard of living of children depends on (i) family income; (ii) production within the family; (iii) economies of scale within the family; and (iv) distributions within the family. We use 1976 and 1986 Family Expenditure Survey information on (i), models of housework time based on time-budget surveys to estimate (ii), and equivalence scales to take account of (iii)
Can Inequality Be Reformed
Three limitations in standard method measurement of income redistribution are considered: (1) redistribution is seen as a matter of global rather than marginal effects, (2) structural effects on the distribution of factor income are not accounted for, & (3) cross-section & life-cycle effects are conflated. Evidence from recent research is introduced, & it is argued that standard method results are reasonably robust in spite of limitations in the …
Well-being, Measurement, and Preferences
Non-welfarist approaches to well-being are often criticized for ignoring personal pref erences and suffering from a dictatorial logic. This paper argues that welfarist approaches do not have a special quality of preference neutrality and that non-welfarist/non dictatorial approaches to well-being and interpersonal comparison are possible. Utility is a function not of goods and preferences, but of goods and tastes, and the latter are decomposed in…
Welfare Trends in the Scandinavian Countries
Discusses important aspects of the development of the welfare state in the Scandinavian countries and Iceland since the mid-1970s. It focuses on societal changes during a period of modest economic growth. Topics include labour market benefits, education and social mobility, class and inequality, income distribution and trajectories and health
Inequality Reexamined.Amartya Sen
Income Dependency in Norway
(1993). Income Dependency in Norway. International Journal of Sociology: Vol. 23, Welfare Trends in the Scandinavian Countries, pp. 1-16
Direct and Indirect Measures of Poverty
Poverty can be defined and measured either directly (in terms of consumption) or indirectly (in terms of income). The relative deprivation concept of poverty is a direct concept; poverty is understood as visible poverty, that is, a low standard of consumption. The income poverty line is an indirect measure; poverty is established as low income. It is argued that recent mainstream poverty research combines a direct definition and an indirect measu…
Well-being, Measurement, and Preferences
Non-welfarist approaches to well-being are often criticized for ignoring personal pref erences and suffering from a dictatorial logic. This paper argues that welfarist approaches do not have a special quality of preference neutrality and that non-welfarist/non dictatorial approaches to well-being and interpersonal comparison are possible. Utility is a function not of goods and preferences, but of goods and tastes, and the latter are decomposed in…
Age and Income in Contemporary Society
This research note describes the distribution of family income in seven industrial nations, using data from the Luxembourg Income Study. Significant differences between the countries are identified. A 'poverty cycle' of the type identified by Rowntree still describes the distribution of income over age groups, but it is neither strong nor universal. Elderly families are found to be a key group for understanding the degree of income inequality in …
Toward a Third Stage in the Measurement of Poverty
While there has been considerable development in the concept of poverty during this century, and in particular during the last couple of decades, the method of measurement remains essentially unchanged. On the theoretical side, a relative deprivation concept of poverty has been developed in addition to or as an alternative to the conventional subsistence minimum concept, but on the measurement side, the most important tool is the income poverty l…
Inequality and Its Measurement
Income Distribution and Redistribution in the Nordic Welfare States
Classical theorists sought the causes of inequality primarily in the economy: the market place, the structure of ownership, and wage de pendency. In modern political economy, inequalities are commonly seen as the outcome of interacting processes in several arenas: The most important ones, in addition to the economy, are politics and fam ily. One of the major issues in contemporary theoretical controversy is the relative importance of these arenas…
The Truth about Class Inequality
A strongly recommended conclusion in sociology about trends in class inequality has been summarised by Goldthorpe as a high degree of 'temporal constancy and cross-national communality'. This conclusion, here called 'the stability thesis', was first challenged by Ringen in 1987 and again, on more methodological grounds, by Ringen and Hellevik in two papers published in 1997. These challenges resulted in a process of debate and reassessment. It is…
Poverty in the Welfare State
Poverty prevails in present-day Scandinavian society. It is visible in the streets of our cities, as it is throughout Europe and North America (and, of course, the ' 'third world''). But the mere existence of poverty does not tell us on what scale it exists. There is a long tradition in social science of measuring the problem of poverty by counting the poor. This paper follows that tradition. Our empirical question is: The poor in Norway today, a…
The Measurement of Democracy
Czech Society in Transition - Jiří Večerník, Czech Society in the 2000s
CzechSocietyinTransition - Jiří Večerník, Czech Society in the 2000s: A Report on Socio-Economic Policies and Structures (Prague, Academia, 2009) - Jiří Večerník and Petr Matějů (eds.), Ten Years of Rebuilding Capitalism: Czech Society after 1989 (Prague, Academia, 1999) - Jiří Večerník, Markets and People: The Czech Reform Experience in a Comparative Perspective (Aldershot, Avebury, 1996). - Volume 50 Issue 3
The Problem of Poverty - Some Recommendations on Definition and Measurement
Society needs believable information about poverty for its self-understanding and for rational political exchange and social policy. It is an ambition of poverty research to provide society with that information. In spite of decades of effort and volumes of excellent research, sociologists and economists have had only limited -if any -success in achieving this aim. There is a view that for this purpose poverty research needs to seek a methodology…
A distributional theory of economic democracy
In the twentieth century, while political democracy triumphed economic democracy failed both as an idea and in practice. A case for reviving the idea of economic democracy is made in terms of protecting political democracy. Economic democracy has conventionally been understood as a matter of bringing economic power under the control of collective political power. The idea is here reformulated as a matter of redistributing economic power between p…
Income Dependency in Norway
(1993). Income Dependency in Norway. International Journal of Sociology: Vol. 23, Welfare Trends in the Scandinavian Countries, pp. 1-16
Fruits of the United Nations
Fruits of the United Nations
Toward a Third Stage in the Measurement of Poverty
While there has been considerable development in the concept of poverty during this century, and in particular during the last couple of decades, the method of measurement remains essentially unchanged. On the theoretical side, a relative deprivation concept of poverty has been developed in addition to or as an alternative to the conventional subsistence minimum concept, but on the measurement side, the most important tool is the income poverty l…
Women in the Welfare State
(1986). 7 Women in the Welfare State: The Case of Formal and Informal Old-Age Care. International Journal of Sociology: Vol. 16, No. 3-4, pp. 161-173
Poverty in the Welfare State
Poverty prevails in present-day Scandinavian society. It is visible in the streets of our cities, as it is throughout Europe and North America (and, of course, the ' 'third world''). But the mere existence of poverty does not tell us on what scale it exists. There is a long tradition in social science of measuring the problem of poverty by counting the poor. This paper follows that tradition. Our empirical question is: The poor in Norway today, a…
Age and Income in Contemporary Society
This research note describes the distribution of family income in seven industrial nations, using data from the Luxembourg Income Study. Significant differences between the countries are identified. A 'poverty cycle' of the type identified by Rowntree still describes the distribution of income over age groups, but it is neither strong nor universal. Elderly families are found to be a key group for understanding the degree of income inequality in …
Direct and Indirect Measures of Poverty
Poverty can be defined and measured either directly (in terms of consumption) or indirectly (in terms of income). The relative deprivation concept of poverty is a direct concept; poverty is understood as visible poverty, that is, a low standard of consumption. The income poverty line is an indirect measure; poverty is established as low income. It is argued that recent mainstream poverty research combines a direct definition and an indirect measu…
The possibility of politics
The Possibility of Politics
In this study of the welfare state the author asks whether it works and, depending on the answer, goes on to consider what this says about the success of political reform. The basic concepts of poverty and economic efficiency are considered in the light of political science, sociology and economics. The methodology of income redistribution research is restated and reconsidered, and approaches which are often regarded as alternatives are examined.…
Income Distribution and Redistribution in the Nordic Welfare States
Classical theorists sought the causes of inequality primarily in the economy: the market place, the structure of ownership, and wage de pendency. In modern political economy, inequalities are commonly seen as the outcome of interacting processes in several arenas: The most important ones, in addition to the economy, are politics and fam ily. One of the major issues in contemporary theoretical controversy is the relative importance of these arenas…
The Possibility of Politics
Income Dependency in Norway
(1993). Income Dependency in Norway. International Journal of Sociology: Vol. 23, Welfare Trends in the Scandinavian Countries, pp. 1-16
Welfare Trends in the Scandinavian Countries
Discusses important aspects of the development of the welfare state in the Scandinavian countries and Iceland since the mid-1970s. It focuses on societal changes during a period of modest economic growth. Topics include labour market benefits, education and social mobility, class and inequality, income distribution and trajectories and health
Inequality Reexamined.Amartya Sen
Well-being, Measurement, and Preferences
Non-welfarist approaches to well-being are often criticized for ignoring personal pref erences and suffering from a dictatorial logic. This paper argues that welfarist approaches do not have a special quality of preference neutrality and that non-welfarist/non dictatorial approaches to well-being and interpersonal comparison are possible. Utility is a function not of goods and preferences, but of goods and tastes, and the latter are decomposed in…
Can Inequality Be Reformed
Three limitations in standard method measurement of income redistribution are considered: (1) redistribution is seen as a matter of global rather than marginal effects, (2) structural effects on the distribution of factor income are not accounted for, & (3) cross-section & life-cycle effects are conflated. Evidence from recent research is introduced, & it is argued that standard method results are reasonably robust in spite of limitations in the …
Children, Standard of Living and Distributions in the Family
The standard of living of children depends on (i) family income; (ii) production within the family; (iii) economies of scale within the family; and (iv) distributions within the family. We use 1976 and 1986 Family Expenditure Survey information on (i), models of housework time based on time-budget surveys to estimate (ii), and equivalence scales to take account of (iii)
Citizens, Families, and Reform
Inequality and Its Measurement
A distributional theory of economic democracy
In the twentieth century, while political democracy triumphed economic democracy failed both as an idea and in practice. A case for reviving the idea of economic democracy is made in terms of protecting political democracy. Economic democracy has conventionally been understood as a matter of bringing economic power under the control of collective political power. The idea is here reformulated as a matter of redistributing economic power between p…
The Problem of Poverty - Some Recommendations on Definition and Measurement
Society needs believable information about poverty for its self-understanding and for rational political exchange and social policy. It is an ambition of poverty research to provide society with that information. In spite of decades of effort and volumes of excellent research, sociologists and economists have had only limited -if any -success in achieving this aim. There is a view that for this purpose poverty research needs to seek a methodology…
Force et décomposition de la démocratie représentative
The freedom of liberty
Liberty, freedom and real freedom
Two schools of freedom are considered and compared, 'the liberty school' and 'the real freedom school'.For the liberty school, freedom is freedom of choice.In the classical understanding, that is seen as a matter of rights.In the modern, revised understanding, it is seen as depending on rights, resources and arenas.For the real freedom school, freedom is a matter of being one's own master.This is viewed not as 'rational choice' but as being in co…
The Truth about Class Inequality
A strongly recommended conclusion in sociology about trends in class inequality has been summarised by Goldthorpe as a high degree of 'temporal constancy and cross-national communality'. This conclusion, here called 'the stability thesis', was first challenged by Ringen in 1987 and again, on more methodological grounds, by Ringen and Hellevik in two papers published in 1997. These challenges resulted in a process of debate and reassessment. It is…
Menos Gente
A maioria dos países industrializados já se acomodou ao padrão de aumento gradativo da expectativa de vida e à sub-reposição contínua da fecundidade.Nestes países, a perspectiva iminente do declínio da população e o crescimento acelerado dos grupos de idosos são motivos de calorosas discussões.O debate estende-se muito além dos limites da demografia e já atingiu as relações de raça, políticas de assistência social e a situação das relações matrim…
Political science (25 works) · Economics (22 works) · Sociology (20 works) · Law (16 works) · Mathematics (13 works) · Politics (13 works) · Social Policy and Reform Studies (12 works) · Welfare (10 works) · Political economy (9 works) · Income, Poverty, and Inequality (8 works)