
The Reformation of Welfare
The New Faith of the Labour Market
Bristol University Press
1st Edition
Published on 13. December 2022
Book
Paperback/Softback
218 pages
978-1-5292-1133-7 (ISBN)
Description
Western culture has 'faith' in the labour market as a test of the worth of each individual. For those who are out of work, welfare is now less of a support than a means of purification and redemption. Continuously reformed by the left and right in politics, the contemporary welfare state attempts to transform the unemployed into active jobseekers, punishing non-compliance.
Drawing on ideas from economic theology, this provocative book uncovers deep-rooted religious concepts and shows how they continue to influence contemporary views of work and unemployment: Jobcentres resemble purgatory where the unemployed attempt to redeem themselves, jobseeking is a form of pilgrimage in hope of salvation, and the economy appears as providence, whereby trials and tribulations test each individual. This book will be essential reading for those interested in the sociology and anthropology of modern economic life.
Chapters 1 and 3 are available Open Access via OAPEN under CC-BY-NC-ND licence.
Drawing on ideas from economic theology, this provocative book uncovers deep-rooted religious concepts and shows how they continue to influence contemporary views of work and unemployment: Jobcentres resemble purgatory where the unemployed attempt to redeem themselves, jobseeking is a form of pilgrimage in hope of salvation, and the economy appears as providence, whereby trials and tribulations test each individual. This book will be essential reading for those interested in the sociology and anthropology of modern economic life.
Chapters 1 and 3 are available Open Access via OAPEN under CC-BY-NC-ND licence.
More details
Edition
First Edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Bristol
United Kingdom
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Illustrations
Not illustrated
Dimensions
Height: 155 mm
Width: 233 mm
Thickness: 14 mm
Weight
340 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-5292-1133-7 (9781529211337)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Book
06/2021
1st Edition
Bristol University Press
€78.00
Shipment within 3-4 weeks

E-Book
06/2021
1st Edition
Bristol University Press
€35.99
Available for download
Persons
Tom Boland is Senior Lecturer in Sociology at University College Cork. His recent publications include articles in Anthropology, Philosophy, Sociology and Theology, and his 2019 book The Spectacle of Critique was published by Routledge.
Ray Griffin is Lecturer in Strategic Management at Waterford Institute of Technology. He is Principal Investigator of the HECAT 2020 Disruptive Technologies Supporting Labour Market Decision Making Project.
The authors are long-time collaborators, writing several publications together, and are co-directors of the Welfare Un/Employment Research Collaborative (WUERC) and Economy & Society Summer School.
Ray Griffin is Lecturer in Strategic Management at Waterford Institute of Technology. He is Principal Investigator of the HECAT 2020 Disruptive Technologies Supporting Labour Market Decision Making Project.
The authors are long-time collaborators, writing several publications together, and are co-directors of the Welfare Un/Employment Research Collaborative (WUERC) and Economy & Society Summer School.
Content
Introduction: Paradoxes of Welfare
Archaic Anthropology: The Presence of the Past in the Present
Reform: Policies and the Polity
Vocation: Doing God's Work
Purgatory: The Ideal of Purifying Suffering
Pilgrimage: The Interminable Ritual of Jobseeking
Curriculum Vitae: Confessions of Faith in the Labour Market
Conclusion: Parables of Welfare
Archaic Anthropology: The Presence of the Past in the Present
Reform: Policies and the Polity
Vocation: Doing God's Work
Purgatory: The Ideal of Purifying Suffering
Pilgrimage: The Interminable Ritual of Jobseeking
Curriculum Vitae: Confessions of Faith in the Labour Market
Conclusion: Parables of Welfare