This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Svallfors, S. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                   What's this?

The End of Class Politics? Structural Cleavages and Attitudes to Swedish Welfare Policies

Department of Sociology, University of Umea, Sweden

Sweden, by many regarded as the archetypal welfare state, has recently experienced severe problems of weak economic performance, sharply rising unemployment and cutbacks in social pohcies. In this paper, data from national surveys over the last decade are analysed in order to assess whether recent changes in the political arena point to more long-term problems of legitimacy for Swedish welfare policies. The purposes are (a) to track the overall attitudes to various aspects of Swedish welfare policies in order to assess which, if any, parts and aspects of the welfare state have experienced a fall in public support, and (b) to analyse what changes have taken place in how various structural cleavages are linked to attitudes It has been argued, from a variety of theoretical perspectives, that the former class-based conflicts around welfare policies are increasingly diluted, or superseded, by other conflicts emanating from gender, sector employment, client status, housing conditions or other possible sources of identity and interests. The results in this paper indicate that such claims are exaggerated, and that stability, in aggregate responses, attitudinal patterns and social cleavages, characterizes attitudes to Swedish welfare policies.

Acta Sociologica, Vol. 38, No. 1, 53-74 (1995)
DOI: 10.1177/000169939503800105


CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				I. Calzada and E. del Pino Perceived efficacy and citizens' attitudes toward welfare state reform International Review of Administrative Sciences, December 1, 2008; 74(4): 555 - 574. [Abstract] [PDF]

				B. Vis and K. van Kersbergen Why and how do Political Actors Pursue Risky Reforms? Journal of Theoretical Politics, April 1, 2007; 19(2): 153 - 172. [Abstract] [PDF]

				J. Edlund Trust in the Capability of the Welfare State and General Welfare State Support: Sweden 1997-2002 Acta Sociologica, December 1, 2006; 49(4): 395 - 417. [Abstract] [PDF]

				H. Ervasti Class, individualism and the Finnish welfare state Journal of European Social Policy, February 1, 2001; 11(1): 9 - 23. [Abstract] [PDF]