The WellSIre research project studies SI provision in two parts across five layers. Part I, concerned with SI policy returns, studies macroeconomic returns at the country level (layer 1); micro-level (material) returns at the individual level with respect to employment and poverty (layer 2); and micro-level returns with respect to subjective wellbeing across critical life-course transitions (layer 3). Part II, concerned with the political drivers and institutional mechanisms behind SI reform and delivery, traces national-level social stock, flow, and buffer reform pathways (layer 4), and subnational capacitating services delivery.
Until now, research has focused on the first four layers by a team of four post-docs and three doctoral researchers. Two postdocs, one doctoral researcher, together with the PI, have worked on layers 1, 2, and 3, using large datasets (Eurostat, OECD, EU-SILC, Eurofound, ESS, and country-specific data). The two other post-docs and two doctoral researchers, with the PI, have worked on layer 4. Results have been published in various articles and book-publications.
Work on layers 1, 2, and 3 reveals positive material and subjective wellbeing returns on social investment at the micro-level. Findings show reinforcing employment promoting effects between education and activating policy, together with a positive influence in individual poverty mitigation across one’s life course. In terms of subjective wellbeing, we show that higher life satisfaction is achieved in countries with SI family and lifelong learning policies.
On layer 4, the project identifies political drivers and institutional conditions, and particular reform sequences in the diffusion of SI policy across ten countries coming from different welfare regime legacies. We observe relatively coherent trend of increasing spending on capacitating services in combination with social protection cost-containment, without undermining inclusive income protection.
Alongside research, the team has attended conferences, published in media outlets, and organized a bi-weekly Social Investment Working Group (SIWG) seminar series with invited speakers. Publications for layer 1, 2, and 3, articles and book chapters. The Layer 4 publication of comparative qualitative analysis of SI reform pathways will be a book with a major university press, for which the country authors have already been selected. First drafts were presented at a workshop in September 2022. The final draft chapter workshop is planned in June 2023.
