Social inclusion and collective skill formation systems: policy and politics

Niccolo Durazzi,Leonard Geyer

doi:10.1177/09589287211035699

Abstract

This thematic review essay focuses on the relationship between social inclusion and collective skill formation systems. It briefly surveys foundational literature in comparative political economy and comparative social policy that documented and explained the traditionally socially inclusive nature of these systems. It reviews how the literature conceptualized the current challenges faced by collective skill formation systems in upholding their inclusive nature in the context of the transition to post-industrial societies. It then discusses in detail a recent strand of literature that investigates the policy responses that have been deployed across countries to deal with these challenges. It concludes by providing heuristics that may be useful for researchers who seek to advance the study of the policy and politics of social inclusion in collective skill formation systems.

Highlights

The thematic review is motivated by a recent surge of interest in the relationship between social inclusion and collective skill formation systems1 in comparative political economy (CPE) and comparative social policy (CSP) research (Bonoli and Emmenegger, 2020; Bonoli and Wilson, 2019; Carstensen and Ibsen, 2019; Di Maio et al, 2019, 2020; Durazzi and Geyer, 2020; Ibsen and Thelen, 2020)
How exactly do the different policies identified in this literature deliver on their promise of furthering social inclusion? And under what circumstances are the various actors expected to matter in the underlying politics of policy change? At present, we lack appropriate theoretical tools to answer these questions because contributions to this fastgrowing body of literature have built on case studies of specific policies and episodes of reform, each highlighting distinct policy measures and underlying political dynamics
It focused on recent literature that placed social inclusion front and centre of the analysis, revealing wide variations in the policies that have been identified as socially inclusive and in the underlying politics that led to particular policy choices

Summary

Introduction

The thematic review is motivated by a recent surge of interest in the relationship between social inclusion and collective skill formation systems1 in comparative political economy (CPE) and comparative social policy (CSP) research (Bonoli and Emmenegger, 2020; Bonoli and Wilson, 2019; Carstensen and Ibsen, 2019; Di Maio et al, 2019, 2020; Durazzi and Geyer, 2020; Ibsen and Thelen, 2020). This literature provided crucial insights on the extent to which training systems deliver socially inclusive outcomes, but for the purposes of this review, we opt for an exclusive focus on the macro-policy and political level as per recent CPE/CSP contributions.

Results

Conclusion