Exploring the Extended Family of Mediterranean Welfare States, or: Did Beveridge and Bismarck Take a Mediterranean Cruise Together?

Does the association between children and happiness vary by level of religiosity? The evidence from Israel

“…Esping-Andersen (1999) omits Israel from his analysis. However, Gal (2010aGal ( , 2010b has argued that the welfare regime in Israel shows a close affinity to the Mediterranean category.…”

Care for older people in three Mediterranean countries: discourses, policies and realities of de-institutionalisation

“…Gal (2010) extended the Mediterranean regime to include the islands of Cyprus and Malta, as well as Turkey and Israel in the East (a cluster admittedly considered too broad by Guillén and León, 2011; see also Pace, 2009). While acknowledging differences among Mediterranean countries' social policies, religion, cultural heritage, social conditions and standards of living, Gal (2009; claimed that they shared enough common features to distinguish them from other European regimes. Common shaping factors were a history of late industrialisation linked to lingering non-democratic or colonialist regimes as well as strong influence of religion, family and clientelistic networks.…”

“…Common shaping factors were a history of late industrialisation linked to lingering non-democratic or colonialist regimes as well as strong influence of religion, family and clientelistic networks. All this contributed to a common pattern of a relatively weak welfare and economic system (Gal, 2009; and a family that is strongly relied upon for care, often involving resource pooling and soft budgeting by the household or extended family (Moreno, 2000;Petmesidou, 1996). Family care is thus prominent in Mediterranean countries, where women are expected to take responsibility for the care of older relatives.…”

The transition to adulthood around the Mediterranean: Contributions of the special issue

“…Moreover, the young people in this area, especially females, have difficulties in finding a stable job due to the absence of vocational training and to a strong protection of workers already employed (Buchmann & Kriesi, 2011). The existence of a southern European area has been not only affirmed in several sociological studies, but also was recently enlarged including other Mediterranean countries, such as Israel, Malta, Cyprus, and Turkey (Gal, 2010), all characterized by late industrialization, low stability or efficiency of the state, a central role of the family and religion, and a sort of “clientelistic relationships in the political arena” (Gal, 2010, p. 96). In this sense, a Mediterranean cluster of countries has been highlighted, not only generally considering the welfare of the countries, but also more specifically being linked with the transition to adulthood.…”