Inaugural lecture Robert Vonk: Exclusie, wederkerigheid en internationaliteit in sociale zekerheid

On Tuesday 8 October, Robert Vonk, Professor of History of Social Security at Utrecht University’s Faculty of Humanities, will give his inaugural lecture entitled ‘Grenzen stellen: Over exclusie, wederkerigheid en internationale verstrengeling in sociale zekerheid’ (‘Setting boundaries: On exclusion, reciprocity, and international intertwinement in social security’).

The boundaries of social security

Social security is inherently linked to boundaries, Vonk stresses. Boundaries simply need to be set regarding who is and who isn’t eligible for benefits or allowances, for example. In his inaugural lecture, he will discuss the importance of boundaries in the history of social security.

The way in which social security is organised not only marks social, political, and geographical boundaries, Vonk says. It also directs and limits human behaviour. By understanding how social security in the Netherlands was repeatedly redefined, we can better navigate the complex and often contradictory regulations. This applies to benefits, (fiscal) reductions, and allowances.

Shifting views and boundaries

Vonk argues that the examination of how social security was limited in the twentieth century provides insight into shifting views on social order. Social security not only dealt (and continues to deal) with issues concerning risk and insurance, or institutions and policy, but also with in- and exclusion, the tension between individual liberty and social equality, and the relationship between inequality and self-development.

This approach also demonstrates the lack of importance of boundaries. Although social security is often seen as a national phenomenon, limited to a national community, the focus on the interaction between political ideals, institutional arrangements, and social expectations shows that social security was also an international and transnational phenomenon.