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Social Security System And Its Political Values And Principles

Posted on:2006-11-24Degree:DoctorType:Dissertation
Country:ChinaCandidate:W HuFull Text:PDF
GTID:1116360155454619Subject:Political Theory
Abstract/Summary:PDF Full Text Request
Social security system is a subject that has significant theoretical value. Taking Marxism as guidance, this paper analyses the social security system from the perspective of social justice. By building the analysis frame of "principle-system-policy", this paper tries to combine the pattern and policy with their principle. The purpose is both to widen the theoretical horizon of the study on the social security system and to give some useful reference to the construction of social security system in China. The viewpoint of this paper is that social security system not only is the economic and social product of the industrialization, but also has its profound political values and principles. That is to eliminating poverty, protecting civil rights, reducing social inequality and promoting social welfare. Adhering to social justice is helpful for not only the entire social security system but also the political and social development in the society. The whole paper consists six chapters. Chapter I. The Development and Values of Social Security System Social justice is not only the merit basis of social security system but also its ultimate end. The chapter analyses the developing process and the values and principles of social security system. Social security system is such a system that government should provide public services to prevent the citizen from suffering varies of risks. It began with the old "Poor Law"as social relief in Britain in 1601, but as a system, the social security system appeared in Germany in the style of social insurance. After the World War Two, with the establishment of welfare states, social security system began to develop. As a social security project, social security system has its theoretical basis. One is welfare economics, and the other is social justice. Market-distribution is the important distributive mode of market economy and it has the justness of original distribution. But on the contrary, it can't resolve the equality of the result. So social-distribution must be used to limit the unfair and inequality. The values of social security are to provide justice principles and build system of social distribution from politics and moral. The meaning of social justice experiences from abstract to concrete as time goes by. In modern time, most people agree social justice means distributing right and obligation equally. But when it comes to the question "how to distribute right and obligation", people insist on different justice principles. Chapter II. Differences in Social Security Principles and System Choices Different theory of social justice forms different kinds of welfare system, and different kinds of welfare system shape the relationship ofmarket and state. It is the mutual action between the social justice and on the basic of theoretical analysis, this chapter takes Sweden, United States and Germany as demonstration. The typical feature of liberalism pattern of social security is that market field is the main field in social life. There forms a relationship of a low right, low duty with limited exchange. Under it, the main part of social welfare system is the compensative welfare system which takes the market as the last end of citizens'welfare coming from the old "Poor law". Based on social democratic theory, social democratic pattern has overall exchange with high right and high duty between citizen and state. Its social welfare system makes great effort on the equality in society, and belongs to institutional welfare system. Attaching importance to equity is the welfare principle of social democracy, and we also can call it institutional redistribute model. The character of liberalism welfare principle is advocating market freedom, and we can call it residual model. Compelling social insurance is the welfare principal of consortium, and we also call it industrial achievement-performance model. The three kinds of mode have different policies on social welfare. Chapter III. The Crisis of Welfare States and Debate of Social Justice Principle This chapter firstly sums up the character of the Welfare States that are in crisis and then analyses the drastic debate of social justice. With the crisis of welfare state, different political and moral theoriesare put forward and scholars are having drastic debate on this topic. Of all the scholars, Rawls and Nozik are the representatives. By introducing their justice principles, we can see that the focus of their debate is to choose individual freedom or state security. Rawls demonstrates that helping the poor by state redistribution has its rationality. Nozik insist on protecting individual by market freedom. Libertarianism is one of the most prominent theories on social welfare in the west countries. On the arguments between negative liberty and positive liberty, market freedom and state distribution, the social justice and equality with communitarianism and other theories, "The New Right"scholars provide their own welfare principles. Returning to the individualist tradition, they treasure negative liberty and believe that only by market economy and competition can human rights and liberty be protected, can social justice and equality be fulfilled. Chapter IV. "The Third Way"and Its Welfare Policy Practice Firstly, this chapter sums up the content of "The Third Way". Then this chapter analyses the essence of "The Third Way". "The Third Way"is a middle-left policy to the Welfare States'trouble. It establishes a new view of equity, advocates the transformation from the passive welfare to active welfare, from the welfare state to investing state, from the welfare state to welfare society. The viewpoint of this paper is that "The Third Way"has seen both the limit of classic social democracy and the advantages of market free. It has taken positive measure to rebuild social justice principles and social security system, reformed public power field to...
Keywords/Search Tags:social security system, social justice, Welfare states
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