Exercise 1:
Choose either essay A or essay B
A: Outline the principal features of the ideal-type Nordic welfare model: universalism, comprehensiveness and equality. Discuss the extent to which this model reflects Nordic realities. What are the main challenges to this model today? In what ways could immigration undermine – or support – the Nordic welfare model?
B: The Nordic states had very different security policies after World War II. Describe these differences and the reasons behind them. To what extent has changes in their security situation impacted on these policies over the last decades. Discuss in particular the impact of changes in EU-affiliations and NATO policies since the end of the cold war.
Exercise 2:
Answer three of the following questions.
a) What is meant by parliamentarism? Outline some characteristic traits of the Nordic parliaments and Nordic parliamentarism.
b) What are the main differences between the “Scandinavian” and the “Finnish” models of local and regional government?
c) What does Jean-Pascal Daloz mean by “conspicuous modesty”? In what ways can this “conspicuous modesty” be expressed?
d) Outline Stein Rokkan’s triangular model of electoral fronts and describe main trends in the voting behaviour of various social classes in the Scandinavian countries. Discuss how relevant Rokkan’s model is for understanding class-based differences in electoral behaviour in the Nordic countries.