Sustainable Well-Being Through INvestment in Social Services
SWINS aims to trigger a structural rethinking of the role of social services in European societies in order to make them an asset within the transition toward an inclusive and sustainable well-being economy by generating new insights and evidence on the relationship between investment in social services, inclusive and sustainable well-being, and economic growth.
SWINS aims to understand and measure how investing in social services can help people have better opportunities, find better jobs, stay healthier, and live with more security, while also strengthening the economy.
Objectives
Conceptual framework
Develop a theoretical-operational framework that conceptualises the link between social services and investigates their potential role in the transition to inclusive and sustainable well-being from a rights-based perspective.
Macro impact
Define the relationship between investments in social services and economic and social performance at an aggregate level. This helps to understand how different spending scenarios in social services influence the overall economic and social well-being of a society.
Micro mechanisms
Identify micro-level mechanisms by examining how investments in social services drive aggregate social and economic performance, considering the actions, decisions, and interactions of individuals, families, businesses, etc..
Long-term projections
Develop long-term projections to predict how these investments will impact growth, macroeconomic stability, and the transition to inclusive and sustainable well-being, identifying which types of social investments are most effective.
Policy integration
Develop new strategies to integrate research results into institutional, legal, and policy frameworks, examining the implications of measuring investments in social services within the EU’s economic governance framework and exploring the political feasibility of these strategies.
How can we measure and foster the complementary and multifaceted impacts of social services investment along the life-course to drive the transition towards inclusive and sustainable well-being in Europe?
Research methods
- Mapping legal frameworks and policies illuminate how social services can shape inclusive and sustainable well-being
- Literature reviews and panel data analysis (e.g., SOCX) uncover correlations between spending and relevant investment outcomes
- Microsimulations, synthetic panels, and machine learning reveal how investments alter individual life trajectories
- Macroeconomic Agent-Based Models (MABMs) forecast macro-level impacts on growth, stability, and sustainability
- An online experiment and stakeholder engagement ensure evidence-based, actionable policy guidance