The welfare state system commanded a social consensus for a certain period after the Second World War and is still regarded by some as an ideal model. Since the 1970s, however, it has been exposed to criticism due to fiscal crises, problems in everyday life, etc. As a consequence, the welfare state is surrendering its exalted position to a welfare society where people are at the center of management through local communities and nonprofit organizations (NPOs). In Japan, the welfare state and the welfare society are regarded as being antithetical in terms of the people who run them. The welfare state is considered to attach great importance to assisting the poverty-level/low-income group. However, because social insurance constitutes the core of its policies and the middle class has gradually come to enjoy substantial benefits through expanded coverage by welfare services and reductions in the burden of beneficiaries, this system is giving rise to the idea of gthe welfare state for the middle class.h On the other hand, NPOs, which are considered to be a key component of welfare society, are simultaneously organizations whose framework is supported by the middle class. The middle class, therefore, is becoming both the beneficiary of the welfare state and the backbone of welfare society. The aim of this paper is to reconsider the positions of the welfare state and the welfare society in the light of this new perspective of the middle class.
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