Universalism of the Nordic Welfare System: Focusing on the Relations between Party Politics and Social Policy in Finland

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K20532
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 80010:Area studies-related
• Research Institution: Tokai University
• Principal Investigator: Shibayama Yuriko 東海大学, 文化社会学部, 准教授 (40824868)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 社会民主主義レジーム / 農民政党 / 福祉国家フィンランド / 普遍主義 / 国民年金機構（Kela） / 経路依存 / 年金制度 / 健康保険制度

Outline of Final Research Achievements

One of the main results of this research is that it clarified the extent of the influence of the agrarian party in the process of building the welfare state in Finland. In research on the Nordic model of welfare states, with Sweden at the forefront, many studies have focused on the role of social democratic parties that mobilized the power of labor forces, but in Finland, the agrarian party, had a strong influence. The National Pension Act of 1937 was enacted and the National Pension Institute (Kela), which was established to implement the act, subsequently multiplied its role and became a major actor of social policy.
The country's pension system, health insurance system, and unemployment insurance system have seen a dual development of two systems: a flat-rate benefit system covering everyone across the country and a quasi-corporatist income-proportional system. Bismarckian-style social security was weaker, instead a Beveridge-style system embedded in its foundations in Finland.

Free Research Field

比較政治学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

スウェーデンを筆頭に福祉国家の北欧モデル（社会民主主義レジーム）建設の研究は労働勢力の動員が中心であったが、フィンランドの事例を通じて、農民勢力の影響が強い「社会民主主義レジーム」を示し、北欧モデルの理解に多様性をもたらした。また、年金制度、健康保険制度、失業保険制度など、フィンランドの社会政策の仕組みが複雑で独特の形態を持つ理由を、農民同盟と国民年金機構（Kela）の経路依存から説明することを可能とした。これまで福祉国家の制度は分野別に研究されていたが、政治との関係を明らかにするとともに、制度間のつながりを示した。