This article explores the role of frames about the future in policy reform, by analysing Dutch debates about population ageing and their impact on welfare policies in the period from 2000 until 2008 as a case study. Mapping the debates around ageing in the Netherlands, the article demonstrates that frames are a powerful force in the policy process. Diverging frames about the future enable fundamental changes of deeply embedded policy institutions. The case study shows the process of argumentation about the future that took place between 2000 and 2008, and reflects upon the frames about the future that were of crucial importance in bringing temporary closure to the controversy over the proper response to the demographic shift, which then lead to several important and rather strong changes in institutions of welfare state policies and fiscal policies. |
Artikel |
De kracht van grijs: Een analyse van de politieke framing van vergrijzing |
Tijdschrift | Bestuurskunde, Aflevering 4 2012 |
Trefwoorden | policy reform, future, framing, ageing |
Auteurs | Martijn van der Steen |
SamenvattingAuteursinformatie |
Artikel |
Herziening van sociale zekerheid: het perspectief van flexwerkers en zelfstandigen |
Tijdschrift | Beleid en Maatschappij, Aflevering 3 2012 |
Trefwoorden | social security, labour flexibility, policy preferences, risk, solidarity |
Auteurs | Dr. Fabian Dekker, Prof. dr. Romke van der Veen en Dr. Bram Peper |
SamenvattingAuteursinformatie |
The social security system provides some form of protection for its citizens. The social security system depends on public support in society. Support is crucial for legitimacy of the social system. To date, it remains unclear whether social policy preferences will be affected by changes on the labour market. In this article we aim to increase our understanding of individual reactions to increasing labour flexibility and the impact on social policy preferences. From the results of our study, we draw the general conclusion that employees with flexible labour contracts as well as the self-employed do not reject the idea of social security. |
Artikel |
Elite ethiekHoe politici en topambtenaren invulling geven aan publieke waarden |
Tijdschrift | Beleid en Maatschappij, Aflevering 3 2012 |
Trefwoorden | public values, government elites, political-administrative relations, elite interviewing, ethics, elites |
Auteurs | Dr. Zeger van der Wal |
SamenvattingAuteursinformatie |
This paper reports on a qualitative interview study into the prioritization and interpretation of public values government elites in the Netherlands, comparing value preferences between political and administrative elites. Based on 65 in-depth interviews with MPs, ministers and senior civil servants, statements on four public values (responsiveness, expertise, lawfulness, transparency) that have been deducted through a substantive literature review, are coded and categorized. Overall, political and administrative value preferences in the Netherlands turn out to be more similar than they are different. However, mutual perceptions emphasize differences and contrasts. Theoretical and practical implications of the results are offered and hypotheses are formulated for future studies. |
Artikel |
De inhoud van ‘burgerschap’ in de inburgeringscursus en burgerschapsonderwijs |
Tijdschrift | Beleid en Maatschappij, Aflevering 3 2012 |
Trefwoorden | citizenship, civic integration, civic education, text books |
Auteurs | Matthijs Lems MSc en Dr. Semin Suvarierol |
SamenvattingAuteursinformatie |
The recent scholarly debate on policies and discourses with regard to citizenship in the Netherlands point to a moralization or culturalization of citizenship. This article aims to contribute to this debate by zooming into the current contents of citizenship education. We make a comparative analysis of the contents of textbooks for citizenship education that are used for civic integration courses for migrants and for primary and secondary school students in the Netherlands. Our findings show that citizenship has indeed gained a moral content in both contexts but that the difference lies in the norms that are stressed and how they are conveyed to the target population of future citizens. Whereas civic integration books for migrants emphasize the importance of learning local procedures and habits in order to belong to the Dutch national community, primary and secondary school books underscore the importance of dealing with cultural diversity in the multicultural society. |
Artikel |
Wmo-raden, horizontaal tegenwicht of meewerkend voorwerp?Een verkennende casestudy naar de invloed van vijf Wmo-raden |
Tijdschrift | Bestuurskunde, Aflevering 3 2012 |
Trefwoorden | Social Support Act, Wet maatschappelijke ondersteuning, municipalities |
Auteurs | Lotte Penning en Tamara Metze |
SamenvattingAuteursinformatie |
In 2010 the Netherlands Institute for Social Research (SCP) concluded that the Social Support Act (Wet maatschappelijke ondersteuning, Wmo) is successful as it leads to greater coherence in policies, and because the public Wmo-advisory councils are satisfied with the role they play. Wmo councils provide solicited and unsolicited advice to municipalities. They defend citizens’ interests against those of health care providers and insurance companies. Despite the positive results of the SCP study, there is an ongoing debate about the restyling of the Wmo-councils to increase their influence on local policy making. Some studies even call for a national council to prevent bargaining between the Associations of Dutch Municipalities (VNG) and the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sports (VWS). In this exploratory article, the authors analyse the influence of five local Wmo-councils - Alkmaar, Delft, Kerkrade, Tilburg and Utrecht - on local policy making. They examined the recognition and authority of these five councils and studied if municipalities heeded their advice. The article shows, that Wmo-councils themselves are dissatisfied with the influence they have. Subsequently, it demonstrates that municipalities anticipated the actions of Wmo-councils but hardly ever changed their policies accordingly. Wmo-councils are meant as a horizontal counterweight but are in danger of not being taken seriously. |
Artikel |
Politiek en samenleving in het post-Fortuyn tijdperk |
Tijdschrift | Beleid en Maatschappij, Aflevering 2 2012 |
Auteurs | Sarah de Lange |
SamenvattingAuteursinformatie |
The assassination of Pim Fortuyn and the electoral breakthrough of his Lijst Pim Fortuyn sent shockwaves through the Netherlands in May 2002. This article assesses the influence Fortuyn has had on Dutch politics and society. It provides an overview of the research that has been conducted on this topic over the past decade and relates the findings of previous studies to research on the consequences of the emergence of radical right-wing populist parties on West European party systems. |
Artikel |
De wedergeboorte van de fact-free politicsPim Fortuyn en de nieuwe tegencultuur (2002-2012) |
Tijdschrift | Beleid en Maatschappij, Aflevering 2 2012 |
Trefwoorden | politieke cultuur, Pim Fortuyn, fact-free politics, personalisering, anti-establishment ressentiment |
Auteurs | Prof. dr. Dick Houtman, Dr. Peter Achterberg en Roy Kemmers Msc. |
SamenvattingAuteursinformatie |
In this paper we analyze Fortuyn’s political inheritance in the Netherlands. Going beyond the mere electoral popularity of his neo-rightist successors, we analyze the changing political culture since Fortuyn entered the political stage. More specifically we show that his ideological beliefs – Fortuyn voiced an unprecedented combination of liberal views towards homosexuals and gender equality with critical views pertaining to immigration, and he was critical of political and administrative elites – caught on in current Dutch politics. Moreover, his highly personal communicative style, placing him outside the inner circle of Dutch politics underscoring his adversity to these political elites, also caught on in mainstream political campaigning. This new personal style, however, did not mean a demise of ideology. On the contrary, Fortuyn actively tried to appeal to the electorate with ideals and ideology – hence marking the rebirth of the so-called ‘fact-free politics’ after the de-ideologized purple governments in the Netherlands. Since Fortuyn, mainly parties on the right side of the political spectrum have followed this path of re-ideologization. The paper ends with a comparison of the counterculture originating in the 1960s and post-Fortuyn right-wing politics, which surprisingly shows great continuity. We therefore argue that we are currently witnessing a veritable counterculture 2.0. |
Artikel |
Voor en na Fortuyn. Veranderingen en continuïteiten in het burgeroordeel over het democratisch bestuur in Nederland |
Tijdschrift | Beleid en Maatschappij, Aflevering 2 2012 |
Trefwoorden | Fortuyn, democratic governance, legitimacy, support, satisfaction |
Auteurs | Prof. dr. Frank Hendriks, Dr. Julien van Ostaaijen en Marcel Boogers |
SamenvattingAuteursinformatie |
For several years, Dutch and international survey research programmes, such as the European Values Studies, the Eurobarometer, and the Dutch Parliamentary Elections Studies, have registered the judgements of (Dutch) citizens regarding a wide variety of topics. The Legitimacy-monitor Democratic Governance (Hendriks, Van Ostaaijen & Boogers, 2011) assembles those statistics that together present a layered picture of the legitimacy of democratic governance in the eyes of Dutch citizens. For this article, we review those statistics and take the ‘Fortuyn-year 2002’, the year in which Fortuyn shook up Dutch politics, as a demarcation point. Among the many continuities in pre- and post-Fortuyn statistics, we register a number of marked changes in the judgements of citizens regarding democratic governance in the Netherlands. The most salient, we conclude, is the growing thirst for vigorous ‘leadership’, which not only breaks with the trend of several decades (ever weaker preference for strong leadership), but also the logic of Dutch consensus democracy (many hands and not one head). |
Artikel |
Kieskeurige kiezersEen panelstudie naar de veranderlijkheid van partijvoorkeuren |
Tijdschrift | Beleid en Maatschappij, Aflevering 2 2012 |
Trefwoorden | electoral volatility, party preference, voters, party system, consistency |
Auteurs | Dr. Tom van der Meer, E.J. Erika van Elsas MA MSc, Rozemarijn Lubbe BA e.a. |
SamenvattingAuteursinformatie |
The Dutch electorate is the most volatile of Western Europe. At its height in 2002 more than 30 percent of the seats in the Dutch Lower House changed to another party. But what does the increased electoral volatility mean? Are volatile voters whimsical, behaving randomly like drift-sand? Or are volatile voters emancipated, no longer committed to a single political party but still loyal to their own preferences?We answer these questions by analysing the 1VOP panel data set, which covers 55.847 adult respondents who participated in at least 2 of the 58 waves between November 2006 and June 2010.First, we assess the presence, frequency, and direction of changes in voters’ party preferences. More than half of the respondents (52 percent) changed party preference at least once. However, they mostly stick to one of two ideologically coherent party blocks.Second, we explain why some voters are more likely to change party preference than others. Especially middle groups are volatile: people with modal income and average levels of education, and people who position themselves in the political center. However, the lower educated are more likely to switch between dissimilar parties. These findings support the view that increased volatility reflects voter emancipation. |
Artikel |
Stadsbestuur met veerkracht: Goede argumenten voor meer experimenten |
Tijdschrift | Bestuurskunde, Aflevering 1 2012 |
Auteurs | Frank Hendriks |
SamenvattingAuteursinformatie |
Urban government is expected to contribute to the solution of major urban problems. At the same time, urban government is riddled with problems itself, often denoted in terms of governing and democratic deficits. In this article, options for governance reform in the urban realm are being explored along five lines, following up on recent research in the Netherlands and abroad. Both more aggregative arrangements (electronic ‘straw polls’, knowledge polls, prediction markets, ‘dot gov’ competitions for ‘best solutions’) and more collaborative arrangements (electronic co-creation, wiki governance, vital coalitions, urban regimes) are being assessed. The conclusions is that there are good arguments for, at least, more experimentation along these lines - not only from a functionalistic, but also from a democratic and social-psychological point of view. |
Artikel |
Het falen van deliberatie |
Tijdschrift | Bestuurskunde, Aflevering 1 2012 |
Auteurs | Sonja van der Arend en Jelle Behagel |
SamenvattingAuteursinformatie |
Deliberative democracy is a topic of fierce debate in political philosophy, democratic theory and other disciplines. Over the last two decades, the notion of deliberation - or dialogue - as a key democratic asset has also pervaded practices and empirical studies of public policy and governance. Although avid advocates and critics of deliberative governing and policy making may be found, the majority of scholars and professionals in this field take on a pragmatic, agnostic stance, and a public debate between them remains largely absent. Thus, deliberation is hardly contested or questioned, while in practice, it regularly leads to failure and disappointment. The article introduces and transcribes a dialogue on the failing of deliberation that was performed at a symposium on ‘Contested democracy’ by The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) (Jan. 2011, The Hague). An optimist and a cynic deliberate the role of deliberation, accompanied by a chorus of administration scientists. |
Artikel |
Leegstand, braakliggende terreinen en ontwikkelingsluchtbellen: Een nieuw hoofdstuk in de stedelijke ruimtelijke ordening |
Tijdschrift | Bestuurskunde, Aflevering 1 2012 |
Auteurs | Leonie Janssen-Jansen en Merel Mulders |
SamenvattingAuteursinformatie |
Real estate vacancies, undeveloped land within cities and exhausted financial resources of governments are currently high on the agendas of urban decision makers. The financial-economic crisis is often blamed for this. In the Netherlands, overoptimistic development strategies from market players and city governments also contributed to this problem of oversupply, in their pursuit for profit, people and jobs. Research has shown the existence of two coordination dilemmas; at the local and regional level. What solutions to these dilemmas are possible? This article argues that recognition of the problem by local parties is a first and necessary step to be taken. Evidence shows this is difficult due to conflicting interests. Step two will be to decide for the feasible projects within the local development arena partners. Regional coordination is needed to determine conditions that the assumption underlying these projects should be based on. Only after this third step regional cooperation to prevent future tragedies development will be possible. |
Artikel |
Lokaal bestuur en de itbreiding van EuropaDe bestuurlijke aanpak van de arbeidsmigratie uit Midden- en Oost-Europa |
Tijdschrift | Bestuurskunde, Aflevering 1 2012 |
Trefwoorden | EU Enlargement, Europeanization, Local Governance, Labour Migration, Migrant Integration Policies |
Auteurs | Godfried Engbersen en Erik Snel |
SamenvattingAuteursinformatie |
This article presents an empirically grounded typology of labour migration patterns among migrants from Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and analyses the ways in which large cities and small towns cope with the diverse inflows of new EU citizens in their municipalities. Our analysis is based on a survey (N=654) among labour migrants from Poland, Bulgaria and Romania in 11 municipalities in the Netherlands, including Rotterdam and The Hague. Next, we make use of the results of six discussion meetings with local stakeholders and housing and labour recruitment agencies. The inflow of new EU citizens shows the local limits of urban governance. In order to cope with the negative aspects of the new labour migration Dutch cities try to influence national and European policy agenda's and develop local programs that counteract the shadow sides of the new labour migration. |
Artikel |
Weinig vreemde handen aan de Nederlandse beddenArbeidsmigranten in de ouderenzorg in vergelijkend perspectief |
Tijdschrift | Beleid en Maatschappij, Aflevering 1 2012 |
Trefwoorden | migrant care work, The Netherlands, elderly care, labour migration, care policy |
Auteurs | Dr. Franca van Hooren |
SamenvattingAuteursinformatie |
In many European countries immigrants play an important role as employees in the elderly care sector. They are employed by a care providing organisation, or directly by a family as private care assistant. By contrast, in the Netherlands such a development is hardly visible. This article investigates why relatively few migrant workers are employed in Dutch elderly care. The Dutch situation is compared with developments in Italy, Great Britain and Austria. I assess explanations based on demand side, supply side and cultural factors and conclude that especially the large public investments in Dutch elderly care can explain the limited demand for migrant workers. A restrictive immigration policy and language and historical factors play only a minor role. Whether a larger demand for migrant workers will emerge in the future, therefore depends on developments in public elderly care policy. |
Artikel |
Overlappende waarden, wederzijdse vooroordelenEmpirisch onderzoek naar de mores van politieagenten en particuliere beveiligers |
Tijdschrift | Beleid en Maatschappij, Aflevering 1 2012 |
Trefwoorden | policing, security, public-private values, professional motivation |
Auteurs | Dr. Zeger van der Wal, Dr. Ronald van Steden en Dr. Karin Lasthuizen |
SamenvattingAuteursinformatie |
The private security sector is rapidly growing and their operations more and more comprise policing and public order maintenance, tasks which to date have been government’s primary responsibility. Some fear this development because the private sector is characterized by market values as profitability and efficiency instead of public sector values such as lawfulness and impartiality, putting the quality of public safety at risk. In this article the professional values, norms and motivations of police officers and private security employees in the Netherlands are compared on the basis of a standardized survey. The main conclusion is that there are large differences in how both groups perceive each other, however the underlying professional morale is actually more similar than different. |