Theorizing the Relationship between the Welfare State and the Life Course

Abstract

Abstract In this chapter, I argue that the causal relationship between the welfare state and the life course works in both directions: The life course as a social institution challenges the welfare state by creating age-specific needs and risks, and through them, potential or actual client groups of various sizes and compositions. The welfare state is thus shaped by the institutionalized life course with its tripartition of life into periods of preparation, active work, and retirement. On the other hand, the welfare state shapes the life course by differentially addressing the periods of life and by patterning the transitions between them. The chapter first shows how the welfare state and the life course may be conceptualized as social institutions. It then discusses the mediating step between the two, the problems of constructing welfare and life course regimes, and their differentiations in terms of gender and social class.