The literature dedicated to the birth of the welfare state is very extensive, and its study leads to the conclusion that there is not only one welfare state but various models of it that have been developed in different historical and political contexts.
The welfare state is undoubtedly an evolution of the state, a response to the growing demand for economic and social security. We can consider the welfare state as a social institution (typical of developed countries) that produces, organizes, distributes and regulates social goods and services (institutional dimension) and is responsible for providing people with agreed-upon goods and services to protect families and individuals against social contingencies and to stabilize the socio-economic environment (functional dimension). This responsibility can be based on the notion of citizenship (meaning that the state is responsible for the well-being of its citizens) or more broadly on ethical grounds (the state must provide, at least, a certain basic level of protection for all its citizens).
Social well-being is a state of equilibrium in which individuals and communities can satisfy their basic needs, live in a safe environment and have access to the resources necessary to develop their potential. Only through an integrated and comprehensive approach can an environment be created in which emotional health and social well-being support each other to ensure a high quality of life for all members of society.
The main objective of the welfare state is to achieve a standard of living (quality of life) at a level corresponding to the needs and aspirations of the community.
Quality of life is a concept that allows for a global assessment of the life of an individual, of social groups, communities, as well as an assessment of different conditions or spheres of life. Although the term quality of life first appeared in the 1960s, and research on quality of life dates back to the 1960s, the concept has a longer history. The concern for a better life is probably as old as civilization. We are observing a qualitative leap in contemporary scientific evolution. Technology advances, we observe how many of our tasks are taken over by robots, artificial intelligence "plays tricks on us", and yet we continue to ask ourselves: Is this the quality of life? The well-being of a people?
The robot... a predictable machine, no matter how well it imitates a human being, remains the same today and tomorrow... Only humanity has the quality of being unpredictable, of creating, of enjoying, of raising the quality of life to excellence.
Nina Stănescu