The Politics of Welfare State Reform in Continental Europe: Modernization in Hard TimesThis book challenges existing theories of welfare state change by analyzing pension reforms in France, Germany, and Switzerland between 1970 and 2004. It explains why all three countries were able to adopt far reaching reforms, adapting their pension regimes to both financial austerity and new social risks. In a radical departure from the neo institutionalist emphasis on policy stability, the book argues that socio structural change has led to a