ABSTRACT
At least since the turn of the 21st century, the high dynamics of European welfare systems have come to the forefront of comparative welfare state research, sounding the bell for a new phase of the discipline, which had previously focused more on continuity than change. Welfare landscapes of European countries are not set in stone: They follow complex, sometimes inconsistent, but always quite particular reform paths that are shaped by a variety of factors. This chapter sketches the main trends in comparative welfare state literature since the 1950s, and then develops a three-dimensional analytical framework capturing the recent changes in European welfare systems. The framework focuses on (1) changes in regulations (and corresponding reform directions), (2) changes of underlying social policy ideas, and (3) different types of change, with regard to both processes and outputs of change. This analytical framework serves as common basis for all country chapters of the edited volume, as well as the comparative analysis.
