ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the implications of the activation paradigm in social assistance and labour market policies. Economic crisis and recession periods have historically been path-breaking moments bringing social and labour market policies into public debate, followed by varying degrees of reform implementation in practice. The chapter highlights some of the main driving forces that, with different timing and to different extents, triggered two parallel processes: the emerging of activation and the rescaling process. As activation measures are provided by employment and social assistance authorities, the collaboration of local actors becomes a crucial issue in the implementation of activation policies. The chapter addresses the links with the parallel ongoing rescaling process, and the implications for social policy contents. The introduction of conditionality raises questions of a possible paradigmatic shift taking place in Nordic social policy, traditionally based on universalistic citizenship rights.
