歐洲國家自二戰後實施福利政策法案，經歷無數的變革與政治理念（或意識型態）的爭論，直至今日面臨最嚴重危機，如國債高築、失業率居高不下、經濟成長遲緩。針對福利國家的這段經歷，本文闡明歐洲福利國家的形態及其正當性的論據。依此脈絡，闡釋當代法國政治思想家比爾．霍尚維隆（Pierre Rosanvallon）如何援引羅爾斯的「差異原則」，證成福利國家的正當性論證，並透過法國福利政策的分析，說明福利國家面臨的困境。依如上的解釋，本文論證如下的主題：福利國家雖具正當性，但其維繫必須依賴高度的經濟成長、高的稅率以及政府有效的行政能力，一旦這些條件減弱或消失，國家必須縮小福利措施的範圍，減輕個人福祉對國家的依賴，福利國家所具有的社會主義的傾向必須受古典自由主義的調節。

Since 1945, European states have been transformed into welfare states through an effort to realize social justice. However, these states have also encountered a series of economic, social and political problems, leading to the so-called contemporary ”crisis of the European welfare state.” The present article tries to interpret Rosanvallon's theory of the welfare state in the light of this crisis, focusing on two areas. The first is Rosanvallon's analysis of the present crisis of European welfare states, the second is the arguments he elaborates for the legitimacy of the welfare state. Rosanvallon's major contribution to the understanding of the welfare state, as the present article argues, lies in his endeavor to reconcile the manifold conflicts between different ideals of social justice, for example, the conflict between justice as impartiality and justice as caring for the differences in individual basic needs, through the principle of insurance, which he considers one of the basic characteristics of the welfare state. As regards to question of how to resolve the present crisis facing European states, the article explains Rosanvallon's ideas concerning the decentralization of the state's social welfare and services and the re-embedment of solidarity in civil society.