Study title

Cross-national Survey on the Future of the Welfare State 2015

Dataset ID Number

FSD3077

Persistent identifier

urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3077

Data Type

Quantitative

Authors

• Vision Europe Summit 2015, c/o Bertelsmann Stiftung

Other Identification/Acknowledgements

• Barié, Katharina (Bertelsmann Stiftung, Gütersloh)
• Huxoll, Johannes (TNS Emnid, Bielefeld)
• Hellström, Eeva (Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra)
• Nissinen, Heli (Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra)

Abstract

The cross-national survey studied public confidence in the future of the welfare state, individual readiness to contribute, the aims of the welfare state, and the role the EU should play with regard to national welfare systems. The survey was fielded in eight European states: Finland, Belgium, France, Italy, Poland, Portugal and the UK. It was commissioned by the Vision Europe Summit, a consortium of European foundations and think tanks, including Bertelsmann Stiftung (Gütersloh), Bruegel (Brussels), Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation (Lisbon), Chatham House (London), Compagnia di San Paolo (Turin), Jacques Delors Institute (Paris) and the Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra (Helsinki).

First, the respondents were asked whether they thought that in the year 2050, the welfare system in their country would cover the needs of citizens in health care, pensions, support for the unemployed, child care, care for the elderly, and education and training. They were asked whether in the case that taxes and social security contributions were not sufficient to maintain the current level of public welfare, they would prefer to increase taxes and contributions to maintain the level, or to keep the taxes and contributions at the current level and reduce the level of public welfare. Opinions were charted on the importance of different fields of the welfare system, for example, guaranteeing health care for all citizens or guaranteeing income and appropriate living standards. One theme pertained to how welfare services and benefits were governed. Finally, views were probed on what kind of role the EU should play, for instance, should the EU set minimum standards for social protections in all EU member states.

Background variables included the respondent's gender, age, self-placement on the left-right scale, and net monthly income of the household.

Keywords

European Union; social welfare; taxation; welfare economics; welfare policy

Topic Classification

• Social sciences (Fields of Science Classification)
• Social welfare systems/structures (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Specific social services: use and availability (CESSDA Topic Classification)

Series

Individual datasets

Distributor

Finnish Social Science Data Archive

Access

The dataset is (A) openly available for all users without registration (CC BY 4.0).

Data Collector

• TNS Emnid, Bielefeld

Time Period Covered

2015

Collection Dates

2015-07-13 – 2015-08-21

Nation

Finland, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal, United Kingdom

Geographical Coverage

Finland, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Polan, Portugal, United Kingdom

Analysis/Observation Unit Type

Individual

Universe

People aged 18 and over living in Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal and United Kingdom

Time Method

Cross-section

Sampling Procedure

Probability: Simple random

The samples were drawn from among inhabitants aged 18 or over who had either a fixed line phone number or a mobile phone number.

Collection Mode

Telephone interview: Computer-assisted (CATI)

Research Instrument

Structured questionnaire

Data File Language

Downloaded data package may contain different language versions of the same files.

The data files of this dataset are available in the following languages: English and Finnish.

FSD translates quantitative data into English on request, free of charge. More information on ordering data translation.

Number of Cases and Variables

37 variables and 8007 cases.

Data Version

2.0

Weighting

The data contain a weight variable which weights to target population distribution by age and gender.

Citation Requirement

The data and its creators shall be cited in all publications and presentations for which the data have been used. The bibliographic citation may be in the form suggested by the archive or in the form required by the publication.

Bibliographical Citation

Vision Europe Summit 2015, c/o Bertelsmann Stiftung: Cross-national Survey on the Future of the Welfare State 2015 [dataset]. Version 2.0 (2018-07-17). Finnish Social Science Data Archive [distributor]. https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3077

Deposit Requirement

Notify FSD of all publications where you have used the data by sending the citation information to user-services.fsd@tuni.fi.

Disclaimer

The original data creators and the archive bear no responsibility for any results or interpretations arising from the reuse of the data.

Related Publications

Hellström, Eeva & Kosonen, Mikko (2015). Governing the welfare state and beyond - Solutions for a complex world and uncertain future. In: Vision Europe Summit Consortium (eds.): Redesigning European welfare states - Ways forward, Gütersloh. http://static1.squarespace.com/static/54c95cbee4b03749141be705/t/564c4410e4b008db72f7465d/1447838736065/Redesigning+European+welfare+states+-+ways+forward.pdf [cited 8.1.2016].

Heikkinen, Joonas (2016). Pessimismi eurooppalaisen integraation esteenä? Kvantitatiivinen tutkimus eurooppalaisten tulonjakoasenteista. Helsinki. Helsingin yliopisto. Politiikan ja talouden tutkimuksen laitos. Yleinen valtio-oppi. Hallinnon ja organisaatioiden tutkimuksen linja. Kandidaatintutkielma.