The harsh winter of 2011 may have cooled down man and beast, but it also brought with it a bit unexpected renaissance for the long since frozen Swedish model. It was said and written about the Nordic tiger economies that they were as strong as Pippi Longstocking, and "The Nordic Way" was the subject of special seminars at the World Economic Forum in Davos. For those of us who grew up surrounded by talk of the Swedish model as a national brand closely associated with the social democratic welfare state - not to mention lax socialism, suicide, sex, drinking and sin in general - version 2.0 of the Swedish model certainly requires some analysis.

Is Sweden changing fundamentally? Or is it just Sweden’s image that is about to be updated?

On a superficial level at least, the current emphasis on ‘Nordic capitalism’ suggests that something fundamental has happened. When Sweden and other Nordic countries are praised by the Financial...