Nordic welfare states in the 1990s: institutional stability, signs of divergence

Since the 1960s all of the Nordic countries-Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden-have made up a distinct type of welfare state sharing the following characteristics (Esping-Andersen 1990; Kuhnle 1990):

• Comprehensive in terms of welfare needs covered and services offered. • Universal population coverage. • High degree of redistribution. • General taxation as major source of financing. • Large share of public sector employment in general and in the broadly

defined welfare sector in particular (social security, health, social services, education).