Care and Discretion: Welfare States Revisited

This article analyses the consequences of using the concept of caregiving as a basis of extending social rights in the welfare state. By focusing on the administration of the right to a care allowance to a parent with a disabled child, the development of the concept of individualized justice and the use of discretion are examined. The article reveals how rights are differentially distributed through the use of two mechanisms - normal-relating and giving-voice and concludes by suggesting that the role of the welfare administrator is caught between the demands of a bureaucratic actor watching the purse strings of the organization and the development of a professional role charged with identifying the unique situation of every citizen under the collective umbrella of welfare legislation.