Change and Continuity in Welfare States: A qualitative approach to examine the German cash-benefit “Kosten der Heizung und Unterkunft“ from the perspective of Incremental Institutional Change

Sammanfattning: What drives change and continuity in welfare states? This master thesis contributes to the debate by examining the German cash-benefit “Kosten der Unterkunft und Heizung”. This cash-benefit is a component of the means-tested unemployment benefit II in Germany which was introduced by the Hartz-IV-Reform in 2005. 16 years later the case “Kosten der Unterkunft und Heizung” has undergone no major reforms. But is the cash-benefit really standing still? With the help of the theory of incremental institutional change and 10 expert interviews at the local level with the so called “rule takers”, two factors (“Institutions as Regimes” and “Third Parties”) driving change and continuity are examined in-depth in the case of the cash-benefit. The single-case study demonstrates shifts in the characteristics of the institution “Kosten der Heizung und Unterkunft”. These developments contribute to gradual change but at the same time to the continuity of the institution. In addition to this dual consideration of change and continuity, the study results challenge the dichotomy of endogenous and exogenous factors driving change in welfare states.