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On Worlds of Welfare

This book analyses the insitutions and effects of eleven modern welfare states (USA, UK, Canada, Australia, Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark and Norway). Using quantitative data the authors first show that the institutional variety among these countries can be reduced to three main types. Next, they examine the impact of these three 'worlds of welfare': the effects on income redistribution, inequality, poverty and social welfare. The study makes clear that institutions matter, but also that the distributive results of welfare state types are not as straightforward as one might expect. Above all, it provides an empirical basis for the policy debate on the strong and weak points of welfare states.