Welfare and Social Justice

The term justice has many applications and is used with many different meanings. Social justice concerns justice as it refers to the societal distribution of scarce goods and necessary burdens. One of the most important aspects of social justice is the way in which societies deal with the collective provision of welfare for, and the redistribution of resources among, their members. Following a brief introduction to some of the most influential contemporary theories of justice, this course will look at the historical roots of the welfare state as it first emerged in Europe and at the central features of various presently existing welfare regimes. A main concern will be to lay out some of the key sociological issues surrounding income (re)distribution, health care, public housing, education, and care for the elderly and poor. What solutions have different societies found to these problems, what sorts of ethical, political, and economic considerations underlie them, how viable are different welfare policies in the face of growing market pressures and in the context of an increasingly globalized economy, what are some of the criticisms brought forward against different welfare regimes, and what are the prospects and reform perspectives for their future? Cases are drawn from several sources, from Europe, the United States, and East Asia (including Singapore), to frame the central issues in the course.