Are ‘carrots’ better than ‘sticks’? New EU conditionality and social investment policies in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy and Spain
Sign Up to like & getrecommendations! Published in 2022 at "Comparative European Politics"
DOI: 10.1057/s41295-022-00281-w
Abstract: This article asks whether the novel EU approach to member states’ economic adjustment strategies constitutes a ‘social investment turn’ by the Italian and Spanish welfare states. The analytical framework combines insights from different strands of… read more here.
Keywords: better sticks; social investment; policy; investment ... See more keywords
Unveiling subnational social investment: a composite indicators approach
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DOI: 10.1080/00343404.2025.2527306
Abstract: ABSTRACT The social investment paradigm has gained traction in social policy discussions, particularly in Europe, as a strategy to improve welfare systems and economic resilience. Building on three policy functions – human capital stock, labour… read more here.
Keywords: unveiling subnational; subnational social; social investment; composite indicators ... See more keywords
Investing over the life course: The role of lifelong learning in a social investment strategy1
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DOI: 10.1080/02660830.2018.1550709
Abstract: Abstract In our contribution, we investigate the relationship between social investment (SI) and lifelong learning (LLL), discussing how LLL can be integrated theoretically within a SI approach, by focussing on the ideational principles and policy… read more here.
Keywords: social investment; investment; life course; role ... See more keywords
Impatient politics and social investment: the EU as ‘policy facilitator'
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DOI: 10.1080/13501763.2016.1189451
Abstract: ABSTRACT Reorienting the welfare state towards social investment (SI) constitutes a complex and multidimensional challenge of policy recalibration and raises daunting political problems. The temporal mismatch between SI reforms and their returns requires a degree… read more here.
Keywords: social investment; policy; politics social; impatient politics ... See more keywords
The future of the social investment state: politics, policies, and outcomes
Sign Up to like & getrecommendations! Published in 2018 at "Journal of European Public Policy"
DOI: 10.1080/13501763.2017.1402944
Abstract: ABSTRACT In all advanced democracies, policies related to the welfare state are the largest part of public policy activity. Cross-pressured by globalization, deindustrialization, rising public debts, demographic changes, permanent austerity and the rise of 'new… read more here.
Keywords: social investment; investment state; state politics; investment ... See more keywords
Dynamic persistence in UK policy making: the evolution of social investment ideas and policy instruments
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DOI: 10.1080/14719037.2019.1699948
Abstract: ABSTRACT Proponents of policy instruments often have to justify them to shifting political masters. This article explores the evolution of social investment, both as a policy solution and a set of policy instruments, during a… read more here.
Keywords: evolution social; social investment; policy; policy instruments ... See more keywords
The persuasion of evaluation: The argumentation for social investment fund evaluation in Swedish local government
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DOI: 10.1177/00016993251322878
Abstract: In recent years, measuring devices and movements, such as the social investment perspective, have gained traction, allowing organisations to show the impact and social value of their work. A common characteristic is the persuasive rhetoric… read more here.
Keywords: social investment; investment fund; argumentation social; evaluation ... See more keywords
Feeling like a bad investment: Exploring the lived experiences of being the object of social investment technologies in Danish public employment services
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DOI: 10.1177/00016993251348040
Abstract: How do young unemployed people experience being the object of social investment (SI) technologies in the public employment services (PES) in the Danish welfare state? Based on 39 in-depth interviews with young unemployment benefit recipients,… read more here.
Keywords: public employment; employment services; investment technologies; social investment ... See more keywords
Social investment—A (mis)leading paradigm? Why we need to distinguish different types of social investments
Sign Up to like & getrecommendations! Published in 2025 at "Acta Sociologica"
DOI: 10.1177/00016993251369992
Abstract: Social investment has become a buzzword among social policy-makers and welfare state scholars alike. Social investments seem to be the natural social policy response to the emergence of the skill-focused knowledge economy. Proponents advocate social… read more here.
Keywords: social investment; distinguish different; types social; investment ... See more keywords
Social investment in action: From policy vision to everyday realities
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DOI: 10.1177/00016993251388813
Abstract: Debates over which ideas should form the basis of welfare state reforms are as old as the welfare state itself. The debate is persistent, but it takes on distinct forms across different temporal and spatial… read more here.
Keywords: policy; social investment; state; welfare state ... See more keywords
A longitudinal study of intergenerational transmission of poverty in Hong Kong across the 2010s: Social investment, homeownership and mother’s education
Sign Up to like & getrecommendations! Published in 2022 at "International Social Work"
DOI: 10.1177/00208728211065741
Abstract: This study examines the extent to which poverty is passed from parents to children in Hong Kong based on the social investment thesis. Through tracking the educational and career trajectories of the second generation (aged… read more here.
Keywords: hong kong; mother; poverty; study ... See more keywords