Investigating Welfare State Change: The 'Dependent Variable Problem' in Comparative Analysis

Contemporary accounts of welfare state change have produced conflicting findings and incompatible theoretical explanations. To a large extent this is due to a 'dependent variable problem' within comparative research, whereby there is insufficient consideration of how to conceptualize, operationalize and measure change.

With contributions from leading international scholars, this important book presents a comprehensive examination of conventional indicators (such as social spending), availab...