Abstract
Although the social and economic resources necessary for human beings are available in sufficient amounts throughout the world, inequalities and injustices are observed in the distribution of these resources. Neoliberal policies and the globalisation process, which have focused on economic growth and productivity especially after 1980 and weakened the policies for the redistribution of these resources, lead to an increase in poverty and income inequalities. It does this by negatively affecting the free market economy and private property relations. The main problem here is the concentration of resources in certain segments and the deepening of inequalities to the disadvantage of other segments. The policies implemented to prevent income inequality and poverty, which cause socio-economic inequalities, are within the scope of the idea of social justice. In this context, Swedish social justice policies are a remarkable area of investigation in terms of the concretisation and evaluation of socioeconomic inequalities and the social justice approach aiming to reduce these inequalities as a whole. The aim of this study is to evaluate the concept of ‘social justice’, which aims to prevent socio-economic problems such as income inequality and poverty, and the effectiveness of policies in this direction in developed countries historically and comparatively through the example of Sweden. In the study, a comparative analysis is made between Sweden, Germany and the UK based on OECD and Eurostat data in order to understand whether Swedish social justice policies are effective on socioeconomic inequalities and to reach concrete conclusions about the policies implemented.
Keywords
Social Justice Socioeconomic Inequality Income Distribution Inequality Poverty Swedish Model
References
- Backman, O., & Bergmark, A. (2011). Escaping welfare? Social assistance dynamics in Sweden. Journal of European Social Policy, 21(5), 486-500.
- Bastani, S., & Lundberg, J. (2017). Political preferences for redistribution in Sweden. The Journal of Economic Inequality, 15(4), 345-367.
- Bengtsson, H. (2013). The Swedish model: Conflict or consensus?. International Policy Analysis. Berlin: Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, 1-17.
- Bengtsson, N., Holmlund, B., & Waldenström, D. (2016). Lifetime versus annual tax‐and‐transfer progressivity: Sweden, 1968–2009. The Scandinavian Journal of Economics, 118(4), 619-645.
- Bergh, A. (2007). The middle class and the Swedish welfare state: How not to measure redistribution. The Independent Review, 11(4), 533-546.
- Björklund, A. (1998). Income distribution in Sweden: what is the achievement of the welfare state?. Swedısh Economıc Policy Revıew, (5), 39-80.
- Björklund Larsen, L. (2018). A fair share of tax: a fiscal anthropology of contemporary Sweden (p. 136). Springer Nature.
- Burström, B. (2015). Sweden: Recent changes in welfare state arrangements. International Journal of Health Services, 45(1), 87-104.
- Edlund, J. (2000). Public attitudes towards taxation: Sweden 1981–1997. Scandinavian Political Studies, 23(1), 37-65.
- Eurostat. (2022). Eurostat Data. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/data/database.
- Freeman, R. B., Topel, R. & Svedenborg, B. (1997). Welfare State In Transition: Reforming The Swedish Model, Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
- Glenngard, A. H. (2020). The Swedish health care system. In R. Tikkanen, R. Osborn, E. Mossialos, A. Djordjevic, &
- G. Wharton (Eds.), International profiles of health care system (pp. 181-189). London: The Commonwealth Fund.
- Gökbunar, R., Özdemir, H., & Uğur, A. (2008). Küreselleşme Kıskacındaki Refah Devletinde Sosyal Refah Harcamaları. Journal of Dogus University, 9(2), 158-173.
- Gunnarsson, A., & Eriksson, M. (2017). Discussion paper on tax policy and tax principles in Sweden, 1902-2016. FairTax Working Paper, (8), 1-44.
- Gustafsson, B. (2004). Social Assistance in Sweden. In International Labour Office (Eds.), International International Experience with Social Assistance Schemes: Five Country Case Studies (pp. 29-50). International Labour Organization 2004, Moscow.
- Hussenius, K. (2021). Intersectional patterns of social assistance eligibility in Sweden. Nordic Social Work Research, 11(1), 19-33.
- Jansson, J. (2018). Creating Tax-Compliant Citizens in Sweden. In S. H. Steinmo (Eds.), The leap of faith: The fiscal foundations of successful government in Europe and America (pp. 56-78), Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Lindbeck, A. (1997). The Swedish experiment. Journal of Economic Literature, (35), 1271-1297.
- Magnusson, L. (2000). An economic history of Sweden. London: Routledge.
- Marttila, A., Whitehead, M., Canvin, K., & Burström, B. (2010). Controlled and dependent: experiences of living on social assistance in Sweden. International Journal of Social Welfare, 19(2), 142-151.
- Nistotskaya, M., & D’Arcy, M. (2018). Getting to Sweden. In S. H. Steinmo (Eds.), The leap of faith: The fiscal foundations of successful government in Europe and America (pp. 33-55), Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- OECD (1994), OECD economic surveys: Germany 1994. Paris: OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/eco_surveys-deu-1994-en.
- OECD (1996), OECD economic surveys: Sweden 1997. Paris: OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/eco_surveys-swe-1997-en.
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- OECD. (2022g). Poverty Rate [Data Set]. https://data.oecd.org/inequality/poverty-rate.htm.
- Palme, J. (2006). Income distribution in Sweden. The Japanese Journal of Social Security Policy, 5(1), 16-26.
- Pareliussen, J. K., André, C., Bourrousse, H., & Koen, V. (2017). Income, wealth and equal opportunities in Sweden. OECD Economic Department Working Papers, (1394). Paris: OECD Publishing, 1-34.
- Schraad-Tischler, D. (2011). Social justice in the OECD–How do the member states compare? Bertelsmann stiftung sustainable governance ındicators 2011. Gütersloh: Bertelsmann Stiftung.
- Steinmo, S. (2002). Globalization and taxation: Challenges to the Swedish welfare state. Comparative Political Studies, 35(7), 839-862.
- Steinmo, S. H. (2018). The leap of faith: the fiscal foundations of successful government in Europe and America (p. 336). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Taşçı, F. (2010). Yaşlılara yönelik sosyal politikalar: İsveç, Almanya, İngiltere ve İtalya örnekleri. Çalışma ve Toplum, 1, 175-202.
- Tepe, F. (2005). An ıntroduction to Swedish welfare state. Istanbul Commerce University Journal of Social Sciences, 7(4), 261-274.
- Trygged, S. (2020). Coping strategies among low-income families in Sweden. Social Work & Society, 18(2), 1-16. www.norden.org. (2022). https://www.norden.org. https://www.norden.org/en/info-norden/social-assistance-sweden.
Abstract
İnsanlar için gerekli olan sosyal ve ekonomik kaynaklar dünya genelinde yeterli miktarda bulunmasına rağmen bu kaynakların dağılımında eşitsizliklerin ve adaletsizliklerin ortaya çıktığı görülmektedir. Özellikle 1980 sonrasında ekonomik büyüme ve verimlilik üzerine yoğunlaşan ve bu kaynakların yeniden dağıtımına yönelik politikaları zayıflatan neoliberal politikalar ve küreselleşme süreci yoksulluğun ve gelir dağılımı eşitsizlerinin artmasına yol açmaktadır. Bunu serbest piyasa ekonomisini ve özel mülkiyet ilişkilerini olumsuz etkileyerek gerçekleştirmektedir. Burada temel problem, kaynakların belirli kesimlerde yoğunlaşması ve diğer kesimlerin dezavantajına olacak şekilde eşitsizliklerin derinleşmesidir. Sosyoekonomik eşitsizliklere sebep olan gelir dağımı eşitsizliği ve yoksulluk sorunlarının önlenmesi için uygulanan politikalar sosyal adalet düşüncesi kapsamında yer almaktadır. Bu bağlamda İsveç sosyal adalet politikaları, sosyoekonomik eşitsizliklerin ve bu eşitsizlikleri azaltmayı amaçlayan sosyal adalet anlayışının bir bütün olarak somutlaşması ve değerlendirme imkanı sunması açısından dikkat çekici bir inceleme alanı olarak karşımıza çeıkmaktadır. Çalışmanın amacı, gelir dağılımı eşitsizliği ve yoksulluk gibi sosyo-ekonomik sorunları önlemeyi amaçlayan "sosyal adalet" kavramının ve bu yöndeki politikaların gelişmiş ülkelerdeki etkinliğini İsveç örneği üzerinden tarihsel ve karşılaştırmalı olarak değerlendirmektir. Çalışmada, İsveç sosyal adalet politikalarının sosyoekonomik eşitsizlikler üzerinde etkili olup olmadığının anlaşılabilmesini sağlamak ve uygulanan politikalar hakkında somut sonuçlara ulaşabilmek amacıyla OECD ve Eurostat verileri baz alınarak İsveç, Almanya ve İngiltere arasında karşılaştırmalı bir analiz yapılmaktadır.
References
- Backman, O., & Bergmark, A. (2011). Escaping welfare? Social assistance dynamics in Sweden. Journal of European Social Policy, 21(5), 486-500.
- Bastani, S., & Lundberg, J. (2017). Political preferences for redistribution in Sweden. The Journal of Economic Inequality, 15(4), 345-367.
- Bengtsson, H. (2013). The Swedish model: Conflict or consensus?. International Policy Analysis. Berlin: Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, 1-17.
- Bengtsson, N., Holmlund, B., & Waldenström, D. (2016). Lifetime versus annual tax‐and‐transfer progressivity: Sweden, 1968–2009. The Scandinavian Journal of Economics, 118(4), 619-645.
- Bergh, A. (2007). The middle class and the Swedish welfare state: How not to measure redistribution. The Independent Review, 11(4), 533-546.
- Björklund, A. (1998). Income distribution in Sweden: what is the achievement of the welfare state?. Swedısh Economıc Policy Revıew, (5), 39-80.
- Björklund Larsen, L. (2018). A fair share of tax: a fiscal anthropology of contemporary Sweden (p. 136). Springer Nature.
- Burström, B. (2015). Sweden: Recent changes in welfare state arrangements. International Journal of Health Services, 45(1), 87-104.
- Edlund, J. (2000). Public attitudes towards taxation: Sweden 1981–1997. Scandinavian Political Studies, 23(1), 37-65.
- Eurostat. (2022). Eurostat Data. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/data/database.
- Freeman, R. B., Topel, R. & Svedenborg, B. (1997). Welfare State In Transition: Reforming The Swedish Model, Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
- Glenngard, A. H. (2020). The Swedish health care system. In R. Tikkanen, R. Osborn, E. Mossialos, A. Djordjevic, &
- G. Wharton (Eds.), International profiles of health care system (pp. 181-189). London: The Commonwealth Fund.
- Gökbunar, R., Özdemir, H., & Uğur, A. (2008). Küreselleşme Kıskacındaki Refah Devletinde Sosyal Refah Harcamaları. Journal of Dogus University, 9(2), 158-173.
- Gunnarsson, A., & Eriksson, M. (2017). Discussion paper on tax policy and tax principles in Sweden, 1902-2016. FairTax Working Paper, (8), 1-44.
- Gustafsson, B. (2004). Social Assistance in Sweden. In International Labour Office (Eds.), International International Experience with Social Assistance Schemes: Five Country Case Studies (pp. 29-50). International Labour Organization 2004, Moscow.
- Hussenius, K. (2021). Intersectional patterns of social assistance eligibility in Sweden. Nordic Social Work Research, 11(1), 19-33.
- Jansson, J. (2018). Creating Tax-Compliant Citizens in Sweden. In S. H. Steinmo (Eds.), The leap of faith: The fiscal foundations of successful government in Europe and America (pp. 56-78), Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Lindbeck, A. (1997). The Swedish experiment. Journal of Economic Literature, (35), 1271-1297.
- Magnusson, L. (2000). An economic history of Sweden. London: Routledge.
- Marttila, A., Whitehead, M., Canvin, K., & Burström, B. (2010). Controlled and dependent: experiences of living on social assistance in Sweden. International Journal of Social Welfare, 19(2), 142-151.
- Nistotskaya, M., & D’Arcy, M. (2018). Getting to Sweden. In S. H. Steinmo (Eds.), The leap of faith: The fiscal foundations of successful government in Europe and America (pp. 33-55), Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- OECD (1994), OECD economic surveys: Germany 1994. Paris: OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/eco_surveys-deu-1994-en.
- OECD (1996), OECD economic surveys: Sweden 1997. Paris: OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/eco_surveys-swe-1997-en.
- OECD. (2022a). OECD Data. https://data.oecd.org/.
- OECD. (2022b). Tax on Personal Income [Data Set]. https://data.oecd.org/tax/tax-on-personal-income.htm.
- OECD. (2022c). Total Public Social Spending [Data Set]. Access Address: https://data.oecd.org/socialexp/social-spending.htm.
- OECD. (2022d). Family Benefits Public Spending [Data Set]. https://data.oecd.org/socialexp/family-benefits-public-spending.htm.
- OECD. (2022e). Household Disposable Income [Data Set]. https://data.oecd.org/hha/household-disposable-income.htm.
- OECD. (2022f). Gini Coefficient [Data Set]. https://data.oecd.org/inequality/income-inequality.htm.
- OECD. (2022g). Poverty Rate [Data Set]. https://data.oecd.org/inequality/poverty-rate.htm.
- Palme, J. (2006). Income distribution in Sweden. The Japanese Journal of Social Security Policy, 5(1), 16-26.
- Pareliussen, J. K., André, C., Bourrousse, H., & Koen, V. (2017). Income, wealth and equal opportunities in Sweden. OECD Economic Department Working Papers, (1394). Paris: OECD Publishing, 1-34.
- Schraad-Tischler, D. (2011). Social justice in the OECD–How do the member states compare? Bertelsmann stiftung sustainable governance ındicators 2011. Gütersloh: Bertelsmann Stiftung.
- Steinmo, S. (2002). Globalization and taxation: Challenges to the Swedish welfare state. Comparative Political Studies, 35(7), 839-862.
- Steinmo, S. H. (2018). The leap of faith: the fiscal foundations of successful government in Europe and America (p. 336). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Taşçı, F. (2010). Yaşlılara yönelik sosyal politikalar: İsveç, Almanya, İngiltere ve İtalya örnekleri. Çalışma ve Toplum, 1, 175-202.
- Tepe, F. (2005). An ıntroduction to Swedish welfare state. Istanbul Commerce University Journal of Social Sciences, 7(4), 261-274.
- Trygged, S. (2020). Coping strategies among low-income families in Sweden. Social Work & Society, 18(2), 1-16. www.norden.org. (2022). https://www.norden.org. https://www.norden.org/en/info-norden/social-assistance-sweden.
Details
| Primary Language | English |
|---|---|
| Subjects | Public Administration |
| Journal Section | Articles |
| Authors | |
| Publication Date | May 31, 2025 |
| Submission Date | November 22, 2024 |
| Acceptance Date | May 30, 2025 |
| Published in Issue | Year 2025 Volume: 16 Issue: 2 |
