Comparison the U.S. and Netherlands’ Social Policies: Influence of Social Democratic and Liberal Models of Social Policy

Comparison the U.S. and Netherlands’ Social Policies: Influence of Social Democratic and Liberal Models of Social Policy

Social policy is described as a field of study that focuses on practices and policies on the provision of basic health and social services for a specific country or region (Deacon, 2007). The study of social policy began in highly developed countries and is used to understand how healthcare policies influence the health and wellbeing of the population. It also focuses on whether social policies provide protection, shelter and education to its citizens. In the past, the field of study on social policy has focused on advanced welfare states.

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This brief aims to compare and contrast the liberal and social democratic models of social policy by citing the examples of Netherlands and the U.S. The first part of this brief describes the key characteristics of social policies in these countries whereas the second part compares one policy area in the two countries. In this brief, a focus on healthcare policy between the two countries will be explored. Finally, the third part provides a critical analysis on how globalisation influences the health social policies of these countries.

Key Characteristics of Social Policies in these Countries

There are three types of welfare states in developed countries. These are the liberal, corporatist and social democratic (Castles et al., 2010). The succeeding table summarises the characteristics of these welfare states:

Table 1. Welfare Regimes in the Developed World

Type of Welfare State Organising Principle Decommodification Index Impact Upon Inequality
Liberal Market Low Low
Corporatist Workplace Semi: notional insurance Reflects inequalities at work
Social Democratic Citizenship High: Free at point of use High
Source: Deacon (2007, p. 6)

Deacon (2007) explains that social democratic countries are associated with a high representation of political parties and mobilisation of the working class. Notably, these factors are absent in a Liberal welfare state. In liberalism, there is emphasis on individual freedom and democracy, which makes it difficult to impose social control (Deacon, 2007). A significant feature of liberalism is free trade. When applied to healthcare, this means that healthcare provision is market-driven. In the US, health and social care policy is largely market-driven. Individuals have the right to choose their own health insurers and healthcare providers. Currently, employers are required through the Affordable Care Act (Van der Wees et al., 2013) to provide for the health insurance of the individuals. This is a cause of concern since those who are unemployed might not have the purchasing power for health insurance policies and hence, could not access the needed healthcare services. Hence, the impact of social policies in reducing inequality is high in social democratic welfare states compared to those practicing the liberal form. Social policies of the USA and Netherlands are also defined by how it view and uphold the rights of women and those of different ethnic origins.

US Social Policy

In the US, policies of the marketplace are strong factors in determining whether women get appropriate support in childcare and access to employment after giving birth (Pettit and Hook, 2005). Labour force participation rates of mothers are as high as 70% (United States Department of Labor, 2013). This high percentage of participation in the labour force might be attributed to the policies present in the US. Pettit and Hook (2005) noted that “federally supported childcare is positively related to the probability of employment of married women and women with young children” (p. 779).

Netherlands Social Policy

In the Netherlands, majority of the women with children in the workforce work on part-time basis. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) (2013a) reports that 70% of Dutch women are gainfully employed. This average rate is higher compared to other OECD countries. The same organisation also observes that women in this country have successfully addressed the barriers that often serve as constraints to employment or accessing work. However, much of the increase in the women workforce is attributed to female employment that is on part-time basis. The OECD (2013a) notes that 55% of the employed women work part-time.

This difference on the working status between women in the US and Netherlands could be attributed to their attitudes towards working. In the How’s Life 2013 Measuring Well-being (OECD, 2013b), only a quarter of the women in the Netherlands express a desire to work full-time. This is in contrast with other wom………………………………