Governing a Welfare Mix: Operation of Long-Term Care Policies in England and South Korea

Abstract

The changing balance in governing a welfare mix is crucial to a comparative cross-national study on social care services. This paper explores how legacies of governance in different countries differentiate the operational side of policy ("the operational policy domain"), especially regarding the coordination of various sectors in the welfare mix. Given that operational policy reforms have received relatively little attention in the literature, it examines the actual operation of long-term care policies in England and South Korea at three levels: the central, local, and between the central and local levels. Although the integrated operation of long-term care institutions is a difficult task in both countries, England has developed a relatively more holistic coordination and joined-up governance, whereas the hierarchical and centralized governance in Korea has paradoxically resulted in a fragmented operation of long-term care.