Globalization, the State and Human Welfare

Abstract

Welfare states are experiments in politics, in the exercise of state power to manage the economy and to establish a range of services to meet social needs. The economic and political capacity of the state are, therefore, central to the success of the welfare state project. The impact of globalization on state capacity is an important area of enquiry because of the significance of state capacity to the promotion of human welfare. In this chapter, we explore the nature of the relationship between globalization and the nation state and the impact of economic globalization on national economic policy and on the state’s capacity to pursue nationally chosen economic and social policies.