Scandinavian Unexceptionalism : Culture, Markets and the Failure of Third-Way Socialism.

Intro -- The author -- Foreword -- Summary -- Editorial note -- Tables and figures -- 1 Understanding Nordic success -- The left's admiration for the Nordics -- Is it only welfare states that make Nordic countries different? -- Culture and welfare states -- The ebb and flow of free-market policies in Sweden -- 2 The Scandinavian free-market success story -- Early Scandinavian success -- The slow beginnings of social democracy -- Shifting policies -- 3 The failure of third-way policies - entrepreneurship -- The impact of taxes on business owners -- Capitalism without capitalists -- Employee funds and other forms of socialised ownership -- Poor Scandinavian economic performance -- 4 Job creation during free-market and third-way periods -- Public and private sector job growth -- The tale of two depressions -- 5 Hiding the rise of taxation -- Scandinavian countries would be even more prosperous with lower taxes -- 6 Admirable social outcomes and low levels of inequality before big welfare states -- Iceland has smaller government, but better social outcomes -- Egalitarian income distribution before big government -- Which countries have even income and wealth distributions? -- 7 Success of Scandinavian descendants in the US -- 8 Welfare dependency -- Dependence on benefits -- Welfare dependency and social poverty -- 9 The welfare state - social poverty and ethical values -- Sick of work -- The persistence of moral norms -- 10 Norway vs Sweden - a natural experiment in welfare state reform -- 11 The welfare state and the failure of immigration policy -- Outcomes for poorly educated immigrants -- Migration, social exclusion and reactionary political forces -- 12 Welfare states and the success of women -- Scandinavian culture of equality -- Gender equality where it matters? -- Inequality in Scandinavia and the nature of the welfare state.

Liberalisation and opportunities for women -- 13 Rock stars of free-market recovery -- The shifting sands of economic freedom -- Varying approaches to reform -- 14 Scandinavian unexceptionalism -- Scandinavian countries are not exempt from economic laws -- Culture came first -- Early Scandinavian free-market success -- The social democratic interlude, large welfare systems and social poverty -- A tentative return to free markets -- References -- About the IEA -- Table 1 Ranking in the 2014 edition of the OECD 'Better Life Index' -- Table 2 Development of tax take (percentage of GDP) -- Table 3 Effective marginal taxes per cent (after allowing for inflation and deductions) in Sweden in 1980 -- Table 4 OECD income league -- Table 5 Life expectancy at birth in 1960 -- Table 6 Life expectancy at birth in 2005 -- Table 7 Infant mortality in 1960 (per thousand) -- Table 8 Infant mortality in 2005 (per thousand) -- Table 9 Gini coefficient of disposable incomes -- Table 10 Gini coefficient of wealth distribution -- Table 11 Spending on disability and sickness programmes as a share of GDP -- Table 12 Total unemployment among natives and foreign-born (percentage) -- Table 13 Unemployment among immigrants in Scandinavian and Anglo-Saxon countries (percentage of labour force in age range 15-64) -- Table 14 Tax take (per cent of GDP) -- Table 15 Heritage/WSJ economic freedom score -- Table 16 Economic freedom score in 2015 and changes from 1996 to 2015 -- Figure 1 GDP per capita growth 1870-1970 -- Figure 2 GDP per capita growth 1970-2008 -- Figure 3 Public sector and private sector cumulative net job creation (thousands) from 1950 -- Figure 4 Employment in Sweden (thousands) before and after the Great Depression -- Figure 5 Unemployment in Nordic nations (per cent) before and after the Great Depression.

Figure 6 Employment in Sweden (thousands) before and after the 1990s crisis -- Figure 7 Hidden and visible taxes in Finland (percentage of GDP) -- Figure 8 Hidden and visible taxes in Denmark (percentage of GDP) -- Figure 9 Hidden and visible taxes in Norway (percentage of GDP) -- Figure 10 Hidden and visible taxes in Sweden (percentage of GDP) -- Figure 11 Employment rate of women aged 20-64 across the European Union (per cent) -- Figure 12 Share of women among directors and chief executives -- Figure 13 Heritage/WSJ Economic Freedom Index - average overall score.

This book is important to help an international audience understand the cultural peculiarities behind the Scandinavian "success story". It is also vital that Scandinavians themselves read this book to help them understand the market reforms that are essential for a successful future.

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Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, Michigan : ProQuest Ebook Central, 2024. Available via World Wide Web. Access may be limited to ProQuest Ebook Central affiliated libraries.