Welfare reforms in post-communist countries are determined by economic and social hardship, democratization of the political systems and rapid structural change. This groundbreaking book provides a comprehensive and systematic empirical assessment of the Central and Eastern European post-communist welfare states in the context of their Western European counterparts.Basing the study on new data on welfare entitlements and cluster analysis, Kati Kuitto systematically compares 26 European welfare states across three empirical dimensions. The author employs a multidimensional framework to analyse patterns of welfare policies and highlight spending priorities, financing and the generosity of welfare entitlements. Kati Kuitto thus sheds light on the hybrid patterns of welfare policies in post-communist countries as they have emerged after the period of transformation and discusses their future challenges. Unique and comprehensive, this is essential reading for researchers in the fields of comparative welfare state research and Central and Eastern European studies, as well as students and practitioners of social policy, social security and political economy.
Contents: 1. Introduction PART I THEORETICAL UNDERPINNINGS 2. Welfare State Development in the Post-communist Transition 3. Welfare Systems in Comparison - A Theoretical Framework PART II EMPIRICAL PATTERNS OF WELFARE POLICIES IN CEE AND WESTERN EUROPEAN WELFARE STATES 4. Research Design 5. Empirical Analysis: Emerging Patterns of Welfare Policies in the CEE Countries 6. Conclusion - From Makeshift Social Security to Sustainable Welfare Policies? Index