Understanding the Swedish Model

Originally published in 1991 this book examines the practical ‘Swedish Model’ which impressed an international audience because it seemed successful in terms of resolving social problems by means of public sector programmes, while at the same time stimulating a high rate of growth in the economy. From the mid-1970s the model met with uncertainty and hesitancy as it no longer gave guidance as to how several crucial problems were to be handled. During the 1980s the model was challenged by the increasing relevance of individualist and market-orientated values. The book interprets Swedish politics in the 1980s in the light of the status of the ‘Swedish Model’ at a time when the political landscape in Sweden was undergoing a transformation.