Gøsta Esping-Andersen

About the Author

Gøsta Esping-Andersen is a renowned Danish sociologist and political economist whose groundbreaking work has profoundly shaped the study of welfare states and social policy worldwide. Born in 1947, he earned his PhD from the University of Copenhagen and has held prestigious positions at institutions such as Harvard University, the European University Institute, and Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona. Esping-Andersen's research explores the interplay between class structures, politics, and social inequality, offering critical insights into how welfare regimes influence economic outcomes and social cohesion. His seminal book, The Three Worlds of Welfare Capitalism, introduced a influential typology classifying welfare systems into liberal, conservative, and social-democratic models, sparking decades of debate and further scholarship in comparative social policy.