ABSTRACT
THE ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK In the preceding chapter Chandler’s framework was used to analyse the rise of the managerial entreprise. Unfortunately, a comparable ‘classic’ study covering the growth of the state, in particular the rise of the welfare state, is not at hand. The relevant literature offers an enormous array of explanations, which means that almost every attempt at interpretation has to be eclectic (see, for example, Wilensky 1975; Flora 1981; Kaelble 1990; a recent review in Lindert 1994). In this brief sketch of the increasing role of the state in social and economic development during the twentieth century, the focus is on factors that seem to be particularly relevant for understanding the Dutch case.
