Modern welfare policies are increasingly based on notions of reciprocity. Citizens on welfare benefits have to do something in return, e.g. volunteer work. Notwithstanding general public support, social philosophers have been critical on 'mandatory' activities in community programmes. So far,...

Most conceptualisations of the bottom billion assume that "the poor" are a minority group in a state of continuous dependency, identifiable by region and demographic. Using a flow analysis (inflow and outflow) of poverty, rather than a stock analysis, we explain why poverty is more appropriately...

In a given society, those who are least advantaged would allegedly benefit the most from receiving a basic income. However, the merits of such a policy are generally debated according to the effects on society as a whole, not specifically on the most marginalized; thus, the potential benefits of a...

Die Gesellschaft wandelt sich zu einer dienstleistenden Informationsgesellschaft. Die Ökonomie sprengt mit Hilfe der elektronischen Datenverarbeitung und digitalisierten Kommunikation die Grenzen des Nationalstaates. Angesichts dessen muß sich der Staat modernisieren. Der Sozialstaat, die...