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Marxism and Social Policy: a critique of the ‘contradictions of welfare’*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2009

Alec Pemberton
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Abstract

This paper looks critically at a central notion of the Marxist analysis of social policy – the contradictions of welfare. Two main variants of the argument are identified: the ‘paradox’ and ‘opposite effect’ contradictions respectively. Serious doubts are raised about the viability of a Marxist analysis of social policy which relies on the concept of the contradictions of the welfare state.

Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Social Policy , Volume 12 , Issue 3 , July 1983 , pp. 289 - 307
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1983

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