Ph.d course: Welfare – Concepts and Measurements

The concept of welfare is associated with ideas about the good life. Welfare is a key concept in debates about the design and future of the welfare state, and welfare is believed to be an out-come from direct and deliberate political actions. Welfare, however, is a vague and diffuse concept. The concept of welfare seems to have a multiple meanings, and different conceptions of welfare seem to be anchored in different political and scientific understandings of the social world. Accordingly, it is very difficult to come to an overall agreement as to how welfare should be operationalised and analysed empirically.

The purpose of this Ph.d.-course is to shed light on the concept and measurements of welfare. The course focuses on the following questions: Has the transition from the industrial to the post-industrial society changed our ideas and conceptions about welfare? What is the relationship between citizenship and welfare? How may welfare be perceived in a gender perspective? How has welfare been conceptualised and measured in the Nordic living condition studies? How does EU benchmark welfare? How can we compare and measure welfare on a European wide level?

Invited speakers:
Prof. Bjørn Hvinden (NOVA/Reassess, Norway)
Prof. Jørgen Elm Larsen (University of Copenhagen, Denmark)
Prof. Wim van Oorschot (Tilburg University, the Netherlands)

Organisers:
Prof. John Andersen (Roskilde University, Denmark)
Prof. Anette Borchorst (Aalborg University, Denmark)
Prof. Per H. Jensen (Aalborg University, Denmark)

Paper sessions:
Participants are expected to comment upon each others papers, before a senior gives his/her views.

Time: 20-22 January 2010
Venue: Aalborg University, Fibigerstræde 1, 9220 Aalborg, Denmark

Fee: DKK 600,- (€ 80,-). The fee covers coffee/tea, lunch and a conference dinner. Participants must themselves pay for travel costs, accommodation etc.

ECTS:Participation in the course: 3 ECTS
Presentation of paper: 2 ECTS (when the paper has been accepted)

Deadlines:
Registration and abstract: Not later than 20 December 2009
Paper: Not later than 8 January 2010

Registration:
http://www.soc.aau.dk/forskerprogram/seminarer-og-kurser/registration/

Participants with paper must send abstract with registration to kbm@socsci.aau.dk  
Paper must be send to kbm@socsci.aau.dk  
Further information: prof. Per H. Jensen, perh@epa.aau.dk or (+45) 99 40 81 70

Programme:

Wedensday, 20th January
10.00 - 10.15: Registration
10.15 - 10.30: Welcome
10.30 - 11.15: Welfare in the industrial society, by Per H. Jensen, Aalborg
11.15 - 12.00: Welfare in the postindustrial society, by John Andersen, Roskilde
12.00 - 13.00: Lunch
13.00 - 15.00: Ph.D. presentations
15.15 - 16.00: Citizenship and welfare, by Bjørn Hvinden, Oslo

Thursday, 21st January
09.00 - 11.00: Ph.D. presentations
11.15 - 12.00: Gender and welfare, by Anette Borchorst, Aalborg University
12.00 - 13.00: Lunch
13.00 - 15.00: Ph.D. presentations
15.15 - 16.30: Welfare: Concepts and measurements in the Nordic living conditions studies, by Jørgen Elm Larsen, Copenhagen
19.00 - : Conference dinner

Friday, 22nd January
09.30 - 10.00: Initiatives of the EU CIe. to measure and benchmark welfare, by Wim van Oorschot, Tilburg
10.00 - 10.15: Introduction to the structure and content of EDACwowe data, which may enable us to measure welfare in Europe, by Wim van Oorschot, Tilburg
10.15 - 12.00: In the computer room. Ph.D-students will in practice learn to use the EDACwowe data
12.00 - 13.00: Lunch
13.00 - 15.00: Ph.D. presentation

Changes in the programme may occur - dependent on the number of participants and Ph.D. presentations