Introduction: three stages of welfare capitalism / Gertrude Schaffner Goldberg -- More than reluctant: the United States of America / Gertrude Schaffner Goldberg -- Downloading the welfare state, Canadian style / Patricia M. Evans -- Sweden: temporary detour or new directions? / Helen Lachs Ginsburg and Marguerite G. Rosenthal -- Diminishing welfare: the case of the United Kingdom / Jane Millar -- The triple exceptionalism of the French welfare state / Mark Kesselman -- The dismantling of welfare in Germany / Gehard Bäcker and Ute Klammer -- Diminishing welfare: the Italian case / Enrica Morlicchio, Enrico Pugliese, and Elena Spinelli / Hungary: retrenchment amid radical restructuring / Phineas Baxandall -- Is the Japanese-style welfare society sustainable? / Masami Nomura and Kimiko Kimoto -- Diminishing welfare: convergence toward a liberal model? / Gertrude Schaffner Goldberg.