Mapping unequal security across rich OECD countries

Kaitlin Alper, Peter Starke, Queralt Tornafoch-Chirveches

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingBook chapterResearchpeer-review

1 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

This chapter maps the extent and ways in which subjective insecurity is unequally distributed in rich countries. Using data from the OECD's 2020 Risks That Matter Survey, covering more than 13, 000 individuals in 20 countries, we show, first, that average levels of insecurity vary massively between countries, with Nordic and Northern continental European countries typically exhibiting the lowest and Southern European countries the highest levels of insecurity. Second, concerns in different domains (health, income, job loss, housing and crime) are related in such ways that we can speak of an underlying latent kind of insecurity. Third, and most important for this book is the fact that insecurity is highly unequally distributed between (groups of) people. Individual differences in insecurity are strongly shaped by gender, income and education and, to some extent, age. While unequal security is more pronounced in some countries, it is present everywhere in some form or another. We explore this further but zooming in on national data from the ‘least likely case’ of Denmark which, despite its generous welfare policies and culture of equality, has seen a rise in unequal security in recent years. Finally, the chapter explores to what extent welfare state context shapes the distribution of subjective insecurity and finds that conventional measures of welfare state generosity surprisingly have no effect on the ‘security gap’ in rich OECD countries.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationUnequal Security : Welfare, Crime and Social Inequality
EditorsPeter Starke, Laust Lund Elbek, Georg Wenzelburger
PublisherRoutledge
Publication date2025
Pages24-50
Chapter2
ISBN (Print)9781032573168, 9781032611259
ISBN (Electronic)9781040182796, 9781003462132
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2025

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 Taylor & Francis.

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Mapping unequal security across rich OECD countries'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this