The Logic of Welfare
Religious and Sociological Foundations of Social Policy Rationality
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 7299154 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Elmar Rieger (0000-0002-8865-5831, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2013 |
| Volume | 3 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Publication date | 2013-01-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | International Journal of Social Quality (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1757-0344 • E-ISSN: 1757-0352 |
| Publisher | Berghahn Books (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.3167/ijsq.2013.030207 |
| OpenAlex | W2317623681 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
The article aims to contribute to the sociological theory of the welfare state by addressing a fundamental puzzle of social policy, namely, the weakness of its claim to be a rational effort of society dealing with problems of social integration. Drawing on the work of Franz-Xaver Kaufmann, I distinguish between the cultural or ideational side of the welfare state and the social engineering or outcome side, arguing to take the rhetoric and symbolism of social policy more seriously. The integration of society is more due to the communicative action of social policy than to its organizational quality. As early as the axial age civilizations, symbolism and ideology emerged as an autonomous field of social conflict and societal union. Taking ancient Israel as an example, I argue that societal integration may take place even in the absence of strong institutional correlates of social politics. This can help to explain why the welfare state in modern society is compatible with ever-increasing economic and social inequality
Economics · Ideology · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Positive economics · Rationality · Social philosophy · Social policy · Social relation · Social science · Social Welfare · Sociological theory · Sociology · Welfare state · Law · Religion and Society Interactions
| Citations per year | 0.13 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2018 - 2018 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |