This title was first published in 2002. This multi-faceted account of the transformation of social democracy in Europe provides a unique critical discussion of the normative claims and the key policy initiatives that characterize Third Way politics. Designed to cover a broad range of aspects, this text provides fresh understanding of the transformation of social democratic politics in a globalizing world. Including accounts of the changes in the socio-political environment in which the New Social Democracy operates, the socio-cultural roots of Third Way politics and the underlying political and ideological shift of the contemporary established left, this text offers comparative insights into national case studies and an interpretative framework for the transformation that this political force has undergone in recent years. The reader will benefit from this book’s expert and easily accessible multi-faceted approach to one of the key political issues in contemporary Western societies.

This book examines the transformation of contemporary social democracy through the concept of "third way" reforms. It proposes a set of theories about the possibility for continuing social democratic ideological adaptation, for ideologies to overcome institutional constraints in triggering path-breaking innovations, and for social democracy to bridge the insider-outsider divide. Empirically, the book utilizes these theories to account for social democratic welfare state and labor market reforms in nine OECD countries after the end of the Golden Age. Based on the logic of "public evils," the book proposes that the ideologically contested nature of institutions provides incentives for institutional innovation. Social democratic ideology shapes the fundamental characteristics and content of the third way policy paradigm, and the paradigm's practical implementation continues to be path-dependent on historical institutional settings.

This title was first published in 2002. This multi-faceted account of the transformation of social democracy in Europe provides a unique critical discussion of the normative claims and the key policy initiatives that characterize Third Way politics. Designed to cover a broad range of aspects, this text provides fresh understanding of the transformation of social democratic politics in a globalizing world. Including accounts of the changes in the socio-political environment in which the New Social Democracy operates, the socio-cultural roots of Third Way politics and the underlying political an.

The idea of finding a 'third way' in politics has been widely discussed over recent months - not only in the UK, but in the US, Continental Europe and Latin America. But what is the third way? Supporters of the notion haven't been able to agree, and critics deny the possibility altogether. Anthony Giddens shows that developing a third way is not only a possibility but a necessity in modern politics.

This book examines the transformation of contemporary social democracy through the concept of 'third way' reforms in nine OECD countries.

The Third Way enjoyed a dramatic success when it first appeared in the late 1990s. The book helped to provide inspiration for left-of-centre parties in a variety of different countries around the world, and many incorporated elements from it into their political programmes. Its influence in Britain was particularly strong and the author worked closely with successive Blair governments in the formulation of social and economic policy. But all governments have their own agendas, and they interpreted and adapted the ideas of The Third Way for their own purposes. In some circles the third way came to be seen as an endorsement of a market-driven approach to politics. The new edition of this classic text includes an extended Preface in which Giddens clarifies the original intent of The Third Way and analyses some of the major developments in political and economic life in the decade since the book first appeared. 'The third way' was always a label for the renewal of social democracy: the point was to update social democracy in the face of far-reaching social and economic change, especially transformations brought about by the intensifying of globalization. Giddens argued that we need to go beyond the two main traditions which dominated post-War thinking in the industrial countries - the 'Old Left', on the one hand, and market fundamentalism, on the other. The Preface assesses the impact of New Labour and of parallel innovations in other countries, analyses the implications of the financial crisis for the further development of social democratic thought and considers how far the arguments of the Third Way retain their relevance today. 'What's left?' - the question is as pressing today, and as difficult to answer, as it was a decade or more ago.

This electronic version has been made available under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-ND) open access license. The search for social democracy has not been an easy one over the last three decades. The economic crisis of the 1970s, and the consequent rise of neo-liberalism, confronted social democrats with difficult new circumstances: tax-resistant electorates, the globalisation of capital and Western deindustrialisation. In response, a new bout of ideological revisionism consumed social democratic parties. But did this revisionism simply amount to a neo-liberalisation of the Left or did it propose a recognisably social democratic agenda? Were these ideological adaptations the only feasible ones or were there other forms of modernisation that might have yielded greater strategic dividends for the Left? Why did some social democratic parties feel it necessary to take their revisionism much further than others? In search of social democracy brings together prominent scholars of social democracy to address these questions. Focusing on the social democratic heartland of Western Europe (although Australia and the United States also figure in the analysis), it gives the first detailed assessment of how the new social democratic revisionism has fared in government. The book begins by considering the underlying causes of the end of social democracy’s golden age and the magnitude of the challenges faced by social democratic parties after the 1970s. It then proceeds to examine detailed case studies of how particular social democratic parties responded to this changed political terrain. Finally, it contributes to a broader conversation about the future of social democracy by considering ways in which the political thought of ‘third way’ social democracy might be radicalised for the twenty-first century. The contributors offer a variety of perspectives – some are sceptical of social democracy’s prospects, others more sanguine; some supportive of the performance of social democratic parties in government, others bitingly critical. But they are united by the conviction that the themes addressed in this book are crucial to understanding the current politics of the industrialised world and, in particular, to determining the feasibility of more egalitarian and democratic social outcomes than have been possible so far in the era of neo-liberalism.