The ‘logic of capitalism’ perspective help invites difficult questions. As if Przeworski (1980) has argued, working-class consent is assured on the basis of material hegemony, that is, self-willed subordination to the system, it is difficult to see why up to 40 percent of the national product must be allocated to the legitimating activities of a welfare state. A second problem is to derive state activities from a ‘mode of production’ analysis. Eastern Europe may perhaps not qualify as socialist, but neither is it capitalist. Yet there we find ‘welfare states too. Perhaps accumulation has functional requirements no matter how it proceeds? (Skocpol and Amenta, 1986; Bell, 1978).
The welfare state was almost made possible by the rise of modern bureaucracy as a rational, universalist, and efficient form of organisation. This meant that managing collective goods would be the centre of power in its own right. It would then be inclined to help promote its own growth. This kind of reasoning had formed the so-called ‘logic of industrialism’ perspective. Though according to the welfare stateit seem to emerge as the modern industrial economy destroys traditional social institutions (Flora and Alber, 1981; Pryor, 1969). From the thesis it had difficulties try to explain why