Social investment welfare state in a least-likely case: policy development in family policy in Turkey

Abstract

This thesis aims to examine similarities between family policy in Turkey and the Social Investment policies implemented in the European Union members. This research agenda will be explored through examining the extent to which family policy in Turkey has moved towards Social Investment. The relevance of Turkey as a crucial case for the development of Social Investment perspective lies in the fact that Turkey, among Southern European welfare states, is a least-likely case with stronger familialism with an especially lower probability of developing Social Investment state. Thus, the thesis answers the question of how much change has happened in Social Investment welfare structure in Turkey. The empirical analysis of Social Investment welfare structure in Turkey is twofold. First, the thesis analyses Social Investment effort by incorporating and adapting the SIWE data set to the case of Turkey. Second, the thesis examines an ensemble of Social Investment policies with a particular focus on family policy in Turkey, using the policy structure approach. On the basis of the empirical evidence, the thesis reports a development of Social Investment perspective at policy level even in a least-likely case of Turkey. Furthermore, IPA funds, as a financial instrument, facilitates the development of Social Investment perspective in Turkey at expenditure level. This conclusion demonstrates the possibility of the development of Social Investment in a least-likely case. In addition, the confirmatory evidence from the case of Turkey increases our confidence in the generalizability of the thesis’ findings across other highly familial countries. The study provides insights for further research in terms of accounting for the nature of Social Investment state development in highly familial countries in general and in Turkey in particular.