A state that takes responsibility for protecting citizens against major social risks — illness, old age, unemployment, poverty — through social insurance, public services and transfers, typically funded by taxation and contributions.
In more detail
Modern welfare states grew from Bismarck's social insurance of the 1880s and expanded after the Second World War. Gøsta Esping-Andersen distinguished liberal, conservative-corporatist and social-democratic regimes by how far they 'decommodify' citizens and how universal their benefits are. Supporters credit welfare states with reducing poverty and inequality; critics point to costs, work disincentives and demographic pressures. Debates on automation have revived proposals such as basic income and universal basic services.