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The strategy of flexicurity was adopted as a model by the European Union and proposed to all the Member States as a solution for addressing the challenges connected with the competitiveness and instability of the markets, with a view to enhancing employment levels and maintaining social cohesion. The various contributions in this book analyse the concept of flexicurity and its effective feasibility in different institutional contexts, in particular Italy and Spain and – at regional level – in Tuscany and Catalonia. The consequence of the variety of employment and social security models is that the meanings and manifestations of flexicurity are highly divergent, even in cases as analogous as Spain and Italy, since the different contexts generate significant differences. The overall analysis demonstrates that the forms of regulation and organisation of the social institutions, and their complementary nature, have a major impact on the relations between forms of flexibility and security, and do not always give rise to the virtuous process of flexicurity.

This article addresses the issue of the legal expansion of citizenship in the context of increasing societal complexity. Social conflict has historically played a driving role in the enlargement of citizenship, but in the current phase it no longer seems to fulfil this function. The contribution aims to reflect on the conceptual tools needed to analyse social conflict related to the emergence of new forms of citizenship at a global scale. In the first part of this article, I focus on the inadequacy of classical analytical tools for the study of social conflict and the desirability of expanding the sociological canon with new concepts including its relation to social change. In the second part, I put forward the proposal to use some analytical tools – in particular the concepts of ius nexi, scale and lateral oscillation – to reconnect social conflict and the expansion of citizenship in social and legal terms.

Ralf Dahrendorf (1929 to 2009) has worked in sociology, political practice and political philosophy, and is associated with significant impulses in role theory and conflict theory. This book presents the first synthesis of his extensive oeuvre in English. Dahrendorf's political commitment was driven largely by his desire to maximize life chances, thus contributing to the further development of liberalism. In the tradition of Karl Popper, his work in all areas was aimed at defending the open society, and he saw conflicts, if they were settled, as being suitable in principle for contributing to social progress. This book provides insights into the various methodological and theoretical aspects and critiques of Ralf Dahrendorf's work, as well as his reflections on the position of sociology in the system of sciences and in relation to political practice. The current crisis of liberal politics has made Dahrendorf's work more relevant than ever, and this overview will be of great interest to students and researchers across sociology, political science, political ideologies and European integration.

1. Introductory Remarks -- 2. Biography Between Social Theory and Political Practice -- 3. Ralf Dahrendorf's Understanding of Science and the Position of Sociology in the Sciences -- 4. Conflict and Society -- 5. Dahrendorf and the Democracies in Germany and the United States -- 6. The 'Annoying Fact of Society': Norms and Roles in Homo Sociologicus -- 7. Individuals and Social Institutions: Contributions to Political Liberalism -- 8. Ligatures, Rights and Opportunities: The Development of Civil Society -- 9. Social Upheavals and the Precarious Conditions of Intellectuals and Domination -- 10. Dahrendorf's Critics and Parallels to Other Liberal Thinkers of the Present Day -- 11. The Topicality of Ralf Dahrendorf: A Conclusion -- 12. Literature. .

For the last few years a group of European historians, under the direction of Professor Robert Frank of the Sorbonne University of Paris, has been conducting an extensive research aimed at identifying the characteristics of an European "space" in the context of the integration process. As part of the group's activities the conference, whose the proceedings are collected here, was held in October 2003 in Florence. The meeting had as its objective a reflection on the emergence and development of a "European social space" beginning from the origins of the integration process, in which historians, sociologists, political scientists and some lead actors of this important community dynamic had the opportunity to meet.