Студената война и развитието на социалната политика в Източния и Западния блок
The Cold War and the Development of Social Policy in East and West
Author(s): Klaus Petersen, Herbert Obinger, Michele Mioni, Maria Ignatova-PfarrSubject(s): History, Political history, Social history, Modern Age, Recent History (1900 till today), Special Historiographies:, WW II and following years (1939 - 1949), Post-War period (1950 - 1989), Cold-War History
Published by: Институт за исторически изследвания - Българска академия на науките
Keywords: Cold War; welfare state; causal mechanisms; policy diffusion; guns-and-butter; social policy expansion;
Summary/Abstract: This article examines the influence of the Cold War on the development of social policy and the underlying causal mechanisms. The analysis highlights systemic competition and the associated contest for legitimacy, the fiscal trade-off between military and social spending, and policy innovation and diffusion as key factors shaping welfare-state development in the two opposing blocs. It also addresses blocspecific dynamics, including the role of communist parties in Western democracies and the effects of Cold War confrontation on processes of political coalition-building. The article concludes by showing how Cold War dynamics shaped the trajectories of welfare states in both blocs, thereby contributing to a deeper understanding of the interplay between international politics and domestic policy-making in the second half of the twentieth century.
Journal: Исторически преглед
- Issue Year: 2026
- Issue No: 3
- Page Range: 78-119
- Page Count: 42
- Language: Bulgarian
- Content File-PDF
