Focusing on an array of European and North American welfare states between 1985 and 2005, we consider how welfare state policies are related to households' relative incomes, taking into account cross-national and temporal differences in income distributions. At the same time, we consider how two...

In most OECD countries the gap between rich and poor has widened over the past decades. This paper analyzes whether and to what extent taxes and social transfers have contributed to this trend. Has the redistributive power of different social programs changed over time? The paper contributes to...

This paper assesses women's poverty in 26 diverse LIS countries - five Anglophone countries, six Continental European countries, four Nordic countries, two Eastern European countries, three Southern European countries, and six Latin American countries. Our analyses are organized around four...

This paper provides an overview of the development of the conceptual framework underlying social protection programming and policy among the key international development institutions active in this sector. It sets out the historical, institutional and political factors underlying the current...

The achievements of social-welfare arrangements in Western Europe are well known: considerable income security, relatively little poverty and, in some countries, ample supply of social services. But there are also well-known weaknesses and hence considerable scope for improvement. Three types of...

This paper analyses the impact of a set of gender-role attitudes on the labour market situation of women with and without young children. These attitudes are used as a proxy for stated preferences. Our study covers 23 European countries, using an original up-to-date micro data-set, the European...