Age, Class, Politics, and the Welfare State

Download or read book Age, Class, Politics, and the Welfare State written by Fred C. Pampel and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1989-08-25 with total page 215 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This analysis of the growth of welfare spending examines the relative impact of class and status groups versus demographic composition and political structures. Special attention is given to the role of the aged as representative of the importance of ascription and middle-class groups in welfare growth, and to the effect of welfare spending on income inequality. Aggregate cross-national data from the UN, ILO, and the World Bank are analyzed and the conclusion is drawn that a large aged population, especially in combination with democratic political processes, is a direct and crucial influence on the level of welfare spending.