ARTICLES
PUBLISHED in JSSP
Journal of Societal & Social Policy
Prospective Special Issue Editors and Authors contact:
aspalter@aasw-asia.net, christian@uic.edu.hk, christian.aspalter@gmail.com
JSSP |
Family Policies in Europe - How Do They Work? The Situation of Mothers and Fathers in International and Interregional Comparison: Peter Strohmeir |
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| (Ruhr-Universitaet Bochum, Germany) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: National family policy profiles are parameters of individual biographic decisions. Based on comparative family research German family policy currently attempts to copy elements of other (Scandinavian, French) policy profiles in an attempt to increase birth rates. The article shows that integration of men into family life and creating family friendly environments on the local level are elements of successful family policies. It is argued that on the basis of declining and socially selective fertility supporting disadvantaged families in their specific local settings is an essential target of local family policy. |
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| Keywords:Family policy, population, policy profile, policy iImpact, fertility. | ||
| JSSP 2008 Vol. 7/3 |
Gender, Family and Work in the European Cultural and Social Model: Some Critical Aspects: Isabella Crespi |
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| (University of Macerata, Italy) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: The Lisbon Council invited the Commission and Member States to promote all aspects concerning equal opportunities in the field of employment policies, including the reduction of occupational segregation and the possibility to balance work and family life and to solve some of the increasing problems affecting several countries, such as lower and later fertility and the ensuing ageing of the population. Further, The basic idea of the ESM is that economic and social progress must go hand in hand; economic growth, in other words, is to be combined with social cohesion. Although some significant improvements have certainly been made¡ªespecially in terms of women's emancipation, gender equity and maternity policies¡ªit should however be noticed that some fundamental issues still remain unresolved and continue to cause problems. Such framework¡ªequal opportunities on the one hand and female emancipation on the other, in a competitive and little-regulated market¡ªseems to lead to a potential contraposition, or trade-off, between equal opportunity and family (or family-friendly) policies. |
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| Keywords: Family, gender equality, reconciliation policies, European policy. | ||
| JSSP 2008 Vol. 7/3 |
Family, Work, Care and Welfare Policies in the Southern
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| (Athenaeum Centre for Family Studies and Research / Catholic University of Milan, Italy) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: The couple is an area of mediation between the fundamental differences of the human being. The family relationship which emanates from the couple therefore bears in itself its own dramatic character, as the task of mediation is inherently difficult and potentially conflicting. This chapter will focus on the gendered relationship, thoroughly examining the assumptions and transformations of gender identity in relation to paid work, housework and care, as well as of changing gender roles. The world of work has been and continues to be subject to a profound change in structure and also a change in culture and values, thus requiring us to rethink the role and meaning of work vis-¨¤-vis other aspects of our existence. From a morphogenetic perspective, the influence between the two spheres of family and work and the varying levels of reality are of a reciprocal nature. Specifically, our chapter will be articulated as follows: first we will analyze occupational rates, on the basis of gender and throughout the various phases of a person's life cycle. Then we will examine the differences in doing housework and the number of hours spent weekly on housework by men and women across Europe. Finally, we will take into consideration the dominating trends in social policy in Southern Europe relating to care, examining specifically the prevailing measures to foster gender flexibility, the identity of the caregiver, and existing labor models. |
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| Keywords: Family relationship, gender identity, (paid) work, housework, care, welfare policies. | ||
| JSSP 2008 Vol. 7/3 |
Gender Roles, Family Policies and Dilemmas of the Work and Family Life Balance in Spain From a Comparative European Framework: Almudena Moreno Minguez |
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| (University of Valladolid, Spain) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: The paper analyzes the factors that could explain contradictory family life-styles and employment strategies in the Mediterranean countries such as Spain. In order to do this, the institutional context (welfare and childcare) and the family context (family strategies, conciliation dilemmas and gender roles) will be presented. With the objective of determining to what extent a transition process towards an egalitarian family model is being made in Spain, gender roles and attitudes towards family and employment are analyzed in different European countries with a very different tradition of labour and family culture. The paper contributes to this debate by focusing on the gender roles, family and labour dilemmas in the compared context of the Welfare States. |
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| Keywords: Gender roles, welfare state, family policies, work-life dilemmas. | ||
| JSSP 2008 Vol. 7/3 |
Mothers' and Fathers' Intergenerational Transmission of
Attitudes Towards Gender and Work-Family Role Reconciliation
to Their Adult Children
in Portugal:
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| (University of Porto, Portugal) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: Growing bodies of studies focusing on intergenerational transmission of attitudes from parents to their children indicate that mothers and fathers can have different influences on their offspring. This article reports on an investigation into intergenerational transmission of mothers' and fathers' attitudes towards gender roles, work and family and work-family roles reconciliation strategies to their adult children. Structural equation modelling was used to test the patterns of influence of parents' attitudes and work-family role reconciliation strategies to their offspring in a sample of 101 dual-earner families with a co-resident adult child. Results indicated that daughters received an influence from mothers' attitudes and work-family role reconciling strategies, but not from fathers'. Results offered support for the influence of both mother and father attitudes and work-family role reconciliation strategies for the sons. The results are cautiously interpreted in the line with gender socialization theories suggesting a possible gender differential influence of parents on the development of their children's attitudes and work-family role reconciliation strategies. Implications of the results are discussed and suggestions for future research are presented. |
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| Keywords: Intergenerational transmission, attitudes, gender, work-family reconciliation. | ||
| JSSP 2008 Vol. 7/3 |
Between Family and the Labor Market: Perception of Gender Roles in Luxembourg: Marie Valentova |
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| (CEPS/INSTEAD, Luxembourg) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: The paper deals with the issue of attitudes toward gender roles in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. Firstly, it examines to what extent the attitudes of Luxembourgish inhabitants reflect the remaining corporatist institutional setting of the country. Secondly, the paper explores whether the perception of gender roles varies among different age categories of Luxembourgish men and women and whether the young generation can be seen as a vehicle of attitudinal change in the country. The analyses are based on the data from the European Value Study survey from 1999. |
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| Keywords: Family and work reconciliation, gender roles, attitudes. | ||
| JSSP 2008 Vol. 7/3 |
Czech Family Policy: Refamilialization in the Face of Contradictory |
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| (Uppsala University, Sweden / Masaryk University, Czech Republic) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: In this paper we analyze the shift of family related policies (benefits, daycare services and labor market policies) from the state socialist model toward refamilialization in the Czech Republic after 1989. We demonstrate that the policies negatively influence the possibilities for parents¡ªand especially mothers¡ªto balance work and family life. We concentrate on the question of why the government implemented such policies, despite their negative consequences. Our analysis indicates that the communist ideological legacy (disadvantageous conditions for ideology of feminism, poor experiences with the quality of daycare) and the communist economic legacy (pressures on the public budget) have played a major role in shaping post-communist family policies. Our analysis also indicates that this legacy may be beginning to break down as the policies of refamilialization are coming into conflict with the needs and aspirations of the population and policy makers become increasingly confronted with the fertility problem. |
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| Keywords: Family policy, communist legacy, public attitudes, refamilization. | ||
| JSSP 2008 Vol. 7/3 |
Changing Gender Roles and Separation in Sweden: |
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| (Umea University, Sweden) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: The rise in divorce rates over the past decades has been correlated with women's significantly increased participation in paid employment. According to the prevalent specialization and trading model, female employment undermines the partners' interdependency and thereby marital stability. This paper argues for an alternative, role balance and gender equality model, as a better predictor of couple stability, at least within a Scandinavian context. The analysis of a ten-year longitudinal database of all Swedish cohabiting partners who had their first child in 1993 shows that fathers' participation in childcare, assessed with the help of paid parental leave and the partners' equality of income reduced separation hazards. |
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| Keywords: Specialization and trading, gender equality, divorce, Scandinavia, role balance. | ||
| JSSP 2008 Vol. 7/1-2 |
Ordinary Theorizing of Aging and Membership Categories: |
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| (Manchester Metropolitan University, UK) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: Drawing upon a corpus of the author's research, this paper demonstrates how membership categorization devices can explicate social aging. In particular it connects Schutz's notion of anonymous typifications with membership categorization analysis. Initially, Schutz's perspective and its development within ethnomethodological/interpretivist understanding of social life is outlined. The practical use of membership categorization devices is illustrated in three domains: firstly, professional texts of architectural design for special housing for older people to show how space utilization is accounted for, secondly, an ethnography of rehabilitation of older people to show how professional theorizing of care displays a dialectic between space/place and type of care received and thirdly material from a study on becoming and being older to outline changing identities of aging. Whilst these research studies ostensibly are discrete, they are linked with a theoretical/analytical concern to demonstrate how membership categorization analysis concretizes Schutz's rather abstract notion of typification in social situations and, thereby, displays the ongoing accomplishment and orderly production of aging. |
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| Keywords: Aging theory, housing, rehabilitation, membership categorization. | ||
| JSSP 2008 Vol. 7/1-2 |
Gerontological Imagination, Crime Policy and Older Prisoners: |
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| (Queens University Belfast, UK) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: This paper will discuss the needs of a group that more often than not has been ignored by criminologists and gerontologists: older offenders in prison. In relation to the discipline of criminology, I want to suggest that the gerontological and criminological imagination indeed are creative, resourceful, eclectic and can cross disciplinary boundaries. By drawing on the concept of the sociological imagination "which works between the personal troubles of milieu" and "the public issues of social structure" (Mills, 1959: 8): this paper will draw out the troubles and concerns of an aging prison population from a gerontological and criminological theoretical perspective. As the reader, you may be asking: why integrate the discipline of gerontology and criminology? |
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| Keywords: Gerontology, criminology, crime policy, older prisoners. | ||
| JSSP 2008 Vol. 7/1-2 |
Redefining the Role of Older Adults in Society: Does the "Third Age" Promote a Successfull Alternative to the Tripartioned Life-Course?: Dawn Carr |
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| (Miami University, US) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: The ubiquity of active aging research, products, and messages demonstrates that what is expected from members of society when they reach old age has changed. Industrialized nations benefited from a growth in human capital which ultimately formed the now dominant tripartitioned life course (education, work, retirement). Over time, that partitioning has become economically unsustainable due to the shifting age structure associated with population aging and increased active life expectancy during post-retirement years. Older adults have been encouraged to participate in an active lifestyle that is purported to benefit both individuals and society through age-integrated, personally meaningful and productive activities. Being productive and active in old age have become ideals of a new, potentially more valued period of old age, the third age. This analysis suggests, however, that the active aging paradigm, as articulated by third age rhetoric, promotes expectations in later life which reflect a middle-class and a middle-age bias and significantly stratifies people along the lines of income security and physical health rather than just chronological age and life stage. This paper explores the ideological underpinnings and the social policy implications of third age rhetoric. |
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| Keywords: Social policy, aging, third age, tripartitioned life course. | ||
| JSSP 2008 Vol. 7/1-2 |
Grandparents Raising Grandchildren in the United States: |
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| (University of Southern California, US) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: As a consequence of increased divorce rates, the proliferation of single-parent families, and patterns of economic stagnation, parents are increasingly relying on extended family to care for children. In the past few decades, a substantial increase in the number of grandparents raising grandchildren has been observed within the United States. Grandparents who raise their grandchildren are particularly vulnerable, as are the grandchildren in their care; however, US policy currently presents many barriers, gaps, and unintended consequences for grandparent caregivers. In this paper, we use two theoretical paradigms (1) structural lag and (2) the political economy of aging perspective to argue that US policy has not kept pace with the reality of the family and, as a result, those families who are most vulnerable often receive the least support. We propose that as family forms become more diverse a redefinition of the family to one that is less bound by residence and biology, to one based more on function, will be required. |
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| Keywords: Social policy, United States, grandparents, grandchildren, changing family forms. | ||
| JSSP 2008 Vol. 7/1-2 |
Intergenerational Support and Retired People's Housing Decision in China: Li Bingqin |
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| (London School of Economics, UK) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: Younger people being less supportive to their elderly has been interpreted as shifting away from the traditional intergenerational relationship in the literature of aging on East Asian countries, including China (Vos and Lee, 1993; Chee, 2000; Leung, 2004; Zeng and Wang, 2004). However, this argument is largely based on the assumption that elderly people should be respected and cared for in the traditional societies. The author of this paper studies the changes in the patterns of intergenerational support with reference to housing in China and finds that the supportive relationship in elderly people's housing decisions responds to the ongoing social and economic changes. If we do not only focus on what the elderly have received, then family tie has actually been strengthened. |
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| Keywords: Social policy, China, housing, intergenerational support, socio-economic changes. | ||
| JSSP 2008 Vol. 7/1-2 |
God, Culture and Old Age: Social Constructions of Gerontological Experience in a Muslim Society: Ahmad Raza, Ashraf Khan Kayani, and Hasan Sohaib Murad |
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| (University of Punjab, Pakistan) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: The paper explores the social constructions of "gerontological experience" in the context of Muslim society, particularly Pakistan. Old-age occupies a socially significant mode of collective experience through which social continuity of tradition as well as practice is communicated to the posterity. It is predominantly associated with wisdom, self-poise and benevolence in the general social experience of the society. The "old" is looked upon as the cultural repositories of knowledge, experience and historical connectivity. The "gerontological experience" is deeply embedded in the social structure of the family, wherein the process of "aging" is taken as natural and social given to be revered by the young ones and joyfully lived by the "old." The social perception of being an ¡°oldman¡± as a meaningful construct in the society is derived from the unique spiritual, ontological and historical symbolism of the society and its continued traditions of such forms of social legitimization. Finally the paper concludes with a contemporary redefinition of the "gerontological experience" amidst the emerging "technological" transformation currently experienced by the society and future shape of social recontextualization of the "old-age" facing new social scenarios. |
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| Keywords: Gerontology, Pakistan, Islam, culture, old age. | ||
| JSSP 2007 Vol. 6/3 |
Globalization and Social Policy: A Parley With Anti-Reductionist Sociology: Jason Powell and Tim Owen |
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| (University of Liverpool/University of Central Lancashire, UK) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: This paper explores the relationship of globalisation and social policy through use of an anti-reductionist social theory drawing from the work of Sibeon. The paper begins by contextualising the main tenets of anti-reductionism. We then move to provide an historical analysis of globalisation and critically question whether the State loses its "power" in light of social and economic transformations. We move the attention to exploring inequalities such as unemployment and tease out the implications for sociological theorizing. We finally focus on the question of eurocentricism and caution that an anti-reductionist social theory of globalization must be adhere to an ontologically flexible analysis that encompasses sensitising tools for problematizing social policy. |
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| Keywords: Globalization, social policy, governance, anti-reductionist social theory. | ||
| JSSP 2007 Vol. 6/3 |
The Gender Dimension of the European Welfare State: |
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| (University of Nottingham, UK) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: How can we understand the varied ways in which gender assumptions underpin welfare states across Europe and how they are changing? One argument is of a shift in Western Europe towards women's increasing labour market participation, away from a male breadwinner model. Another sees post-state socialist countries "re-traditionalising" towards a male-breadwinner model. This paper argues that both theoretical approaches shed light on gender regimes in Europe, and on changes to them. Unpacking the male breadwinner model into component parts allows us to understand the way that gender has been at the heart of gender inequality in male breadwinner systems in Western Europe, and how, to different degrees, regimes have supported a move from the male breadwinner system towards gender equality in paid and unpaid work, income, time and power. In practice, the social democratic regimes have supported gender equality and the move away from the male breadwinner model much more positively than other regimes. Some countries of Central and Eastern Europe have retained social welfare systems which support gender equality, particularly through supports to motherhood, despite the move from state socialism, and through periods of social and economic turbulence. Systems of state support for gender equality, in particular through supporting the social costs of children and care, are at the heart of the success of the Scandinavian social democratic states as the most gender equal welfare states in the European Union, and¡ªto a lesser extent¡ªin some parts of Central and Eastern Europe which were formerly under state socialist domination. |
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| Keywords: European Union, social policy, women policy, gender model. | ||
| JSSP 2007 Vol. 6/3 |
Towards a New Paradigm in Welfare Provision: The Case of Pensions and Long-Term Care in Germany: Ingo Bode |
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| (University of Duisburg, Germany) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: The German welfare state has been undergoing creeping, but significant changes in the last decade. This article focuses on the changes in the areas of pensions and long-term care in particular. The author unravels the underlying concept of marketization that sheds of the government's responsibilities gradually over time. The future of the German welfare state, as it is concluded in this article, will be one in which the majority of the mainstream population will be much less able to rely on the welfare state in general and particular in times of need. |
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| Keywords: Germany, pensions, long-term care, marketization. | ||
| JSSP 2007 Vol. 6/3 |
Aging and Social Policy in Austria: |
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| (Austrian Chamber of Labor/University of Vienna, Austria) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: The aim of this paper is to analyze the current situation and policies related to the phenomenon of population aging and its related social welfare problems and policies. Of particular interest to the authors was the frequent overstatement of demographic problems. Hence, the authors have painstakingly taking into consideration the gap between perception and on-the-ground develop-ments. It has been also found that when it comes to reporting of unemployment, especially that of the aging workforce, it is a commonplace to underreport and put out of sight the real magnitude of the problem of unemployment and underemployment, as well as that of poverty. The study concludes that the responding measures with regard to pension policy, i.e. a higher labor force participation of the aging workforce, hitherto has not had an effect, while the health care system has yet to focus on a preventive rather than cost-containment strategy. |
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| Keywords: Aging, welfare state, social security, pensions, health care, unemployment, poverty. | ||
| JSSP 2007 Vol. 6/2 |
New Global Social Policy: Lessons From East Asia: |
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| (The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: This article depicts common and influential concepts of social welfare that have been constructed and applied in research and policymaking across the West and the East. It analysis, recent developments in the welfare state theory, particularly against the backdrop of the formation of the New Left and the New Right. The articles argues that in the past five or so years welfare state theory has found a way to transcend this dualistic concept of Neomarxism versus Neoliberalism, that is in form of the rise of theories and approaches that support the defense of the welfare state with all its institutions, policies and programs based on the rising needs of post-industrial societies that face new risks, and as a result have to extend and partially redesign established policies and policy strategies in the realm of social and societal policy, to maintain social quality and economic competitiveness in an evermore changing societal context. |
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| Keywords: Global social policy, East Asia, regime theory, welfare state theory, New Right, New Left, post-industrial welfare. | ||
| JSSP 2007 Vol. 6/2 |
Social Welfare Development in Hong Kong: Ernest Chiu |
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| (The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: In this study, the author will provide a brief review of the evolution of these five domains of welfare in Hong Kong, as well as a critical analysis of the pertinent issues related to welfare development in Hong Kong. Such issues include the welfare ideology upheld by the State and the general public at large, the historic changeover of sovereignty from a British colony to a Special Administrative Region under the People's Republic of China, as well as the upcoming challenges facing welfare development in the near future. The article begins with a brief historical review of the development of various domains of welfare and the scope of services. It follows with a discussion about the possible characterization of Hong Kong as being a mixture of a residual and universal model of welfare. Finally, the challenges of an aging population, the increasingly intensified Hong Kong-China interface and the possible reshuffling of State-individual responsibilities will be highlighted. |
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| Keywords: Hong Kong, social policy, social welfare, social services, social security, housing, family, ideology. | ||
| JSSP 2007 Vol. 6/2 |
Social Welfare System in Macau: Samuel Hui and Dicky Lai |
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| (Beijing Normal University-Hong Kong Baptist University / Macau Politechnic Institute) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: This paper investigates the elsewhere neglected, but yet very interesting and theoretically important case of Macau. In comparative social welfare policy, not many studies have integrated a full-fledged case study of Macau. In this article, the authors put forward a detailed account of the history, the current situation and future development of the welfare state system in Macau. It is concluded that the system of social welfare provision in Macau needs to be upgraded in order to meet the current and future needs and expectations of Macau citizens in the fast-changing context of contemporary social development. |
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| Keywords: Macau, welfare state, social policy, social security, health care, social work, education, housing. | ||
| JSSP 2007 Vol. 6/2 |
The Swedish Health Care System in International Comparison: Dominique Wang and Christian Aspalter |
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| (Beijing Normal University-Hong Kong Baptist University, China) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: An area of study that is relatively neglected by comparative welfare state experts is the comparison of health care systems. Since the early 1990s, health care systems in Europe have experienced a myriad of changes, just like pensions systems, their counterpart. The systems of health care provision applied in Europe are varied a great deal. The Swedish system follows for the most part the ideal-typical model as set by Esping-Andersen, yet the overall change of paradigms in the international arena has also altered the Swedish health care system. This study focuses in detail on the comparative advantages of the Swedish health care system, while also focusing on the new shortcomings on the operational level. Sweden, it is concluded, has survived the turbulent times of the past two decades. The negative experience of quasi-market-based solutions did not put an end to public dominance in health care provision in Sweden. In long-term, international comparison, Sweden constitutes one out of a number of strong examples of the success in public health care delivery. |
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| Keywords: Sweden, social security, social insurance, health care system, finance, quasi markets. |
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| JSSP 2007 Vol. 6/1 |
Towards a Human-Capital Welfare State? |
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| (The University of Hong Kong / Beijing Normal University-Hong Kong Baptist University) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: This paper sets out to discuss the new organizing concept of the human capital welfare state (a special type of a social investment welfare state). It starts with the beginning of new organizing principles for the welfare state of the last one or two decades, such as the Third Way in the United Kingdom and other salient advances in this direction. Then, the paper painstakingly constructs, while building on sociological theories of particularly Anthony Giddens, Ulrich Beck, Niklas Luhmann, and Pierre Bourdieu, a new theoretical console for welfare state theory and policy, that is, the human capital welfare state. The new organizing concept of societal human capital/capabilities, as advanced in this paper, includes three dimensions, individual human capabilities, social capabilities, and cultural capabilities. At last six guiding principles of the human capital (capabilities) welfare state are outlined in greater detail: (a) a focus on prevention, effectiveness, and sustainability; (b) a mutual beneficial relationship between welfare state and economy; (c) the defense and development of societal human capital on individual, family, community and societal level; (d) empowerment and activation of the weak and disadvantaged; (e) social inclusion and social integration; (f) "environmental social policy." |
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| Keywords: Human capabilities, human capital, welfare state theory, welfare state principles. | ||
| JSSP 2007 Vol. 6/1 |
The European Dream of a Social Europe: Josef Weidenholzer |
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| (University of Linz, Austria) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: This paper sets out to compare and evaluate the American versus the European social model, in the context of globalization of neoliberal ideas and policy discourse. The article depicts in both cases the key essence of the welfare state and dominant social policy paradigm, by focusing on the dichotomy of social policy versus penal policy, as exemplified in the cases of the European Union and the United States respectively. The paper also goes on to discuss the current mainstream welfare state models within the European Union, and concludes with drawing a picture for the immediate future of the welfare state in Europe, especially the prospects of the Lisbon process. |
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| Keywords: European model, American model, welfare state, social policy, penal policy, neoliberalism, Lisbon process. | ||
| JSSP 2007 Vol. 6/1 |
New Boundaries for Social Citizenship: The Social Dimension of the European Union: Peter Abrahamson |
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| (University of Copenhagen, Denmark) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: The European Union has undergone manifold changes in the last decade. This article highlights the implementation and extension of the social dimension of the European Union, in particular the Open Method of Coordination (OMC). In depicting the most recent developments and trends of social citizenship in the European Union, this study emphasizes the role of "hard" and "soft" law in the development of the European social dimension, and hence social citizenship. The paper arrives at the conclusion that, for the time being, social citizenship rights are being both Europeanized and localized at the same time, which, thus, rivals the social rights instituted and embedded at nation state level. |
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| Keywords: European Union, social dimension, Open Method of Coordination, social citizenship, hard law, soft law. | ||
| JSSP 2007 Vol. 6/1 |
Social Development in Bangladesh: The State of Art: |
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| (Beijing Normal University-Hong Kong Baptist University UIC, China) -- (download article) | ||
Abstract: This paper is an attempt to discuss the social development in Bangladesh in connection with poverty alleviation, reduction of illiteracy, improvement of health care and sanitation services, reproductive health and population control, social services for the children, youths, and disadvantaged people, reduction of gender inequality, capacity building section of people in gender perspective. The effort of social development through training for the creation of employment opportunity for the poorer may be either individually or jointly effort by the involvement of the GOs, NGOs, VOs, INGOs, and UNOs. This paper also discusses the old age pension scheme for the poorer section of elderly people for the well-being of their late life. The main focus of this paper is to examine to what extent the different organizations are involved in social development activities for the well-being of the weaker and disadvantaged section of children, youths, adult, and elderly and how the poor people are being empowered to change their fate in order to stand on their own. |
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| Keywords: Bangladesh, social development, poverty alleviation, illiteracy, health, social services, gender. | ||
| JSSP 2006 Vol. 5/3 |
Conceptualizing Governance: A Review: Amornsak Kitthananan | |
| (University of Bristol, UK) -- (download article) | ||
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Abstract: Governance has become a term in vogue of the
1990s, however it is often used with quite different meanings and
implications. This article aims to review the notion of governance being
used in the academic literature, and conceptualize the way it can be used
for the purpose of analytical framework. It first looks at the definition
of governance in international perspective and discusses major types of
governance. The article then goes on to evaluate the importance of that
State as the key explanatory variable in the study of governance. The
author concludes that the notion of governance serves as a useful tool to
better understand the changing roles, powers, functions and activities of
the State in both the economy and society. | ||
| Keywords: Governance, government, Weberian State, Postmodern State. | ||
| JSSP 2006 Vol. 5/3 |
Public-Private
Partnership as an Instrument for Organizational Design and Innovation: The
Zone Plan Case in Italy: Andrea Resca |
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| (Luis Guido Carli University, Rome, Italy) -- (download article) | ||
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Abstract: Throughout much of Western Europe,
socio-medical services develop in a particularly challenging context. This
is a context in which an increasingly high demand for care services
corresponds directly to public budget constraints. The introduction of the
zone plan in Italy can be seen in this perspective as a planning tool for
mobilizing local social and economic forces through the coordination of
local governments and health agencies, in order to successfully provide
larger quantity, and better quality services, in a situation of limited
resources. The object of the present work is to investigate the
organizational nature of zone plans. That is, which organizational
mechanisms are set in motion by the zone plan for mobilizing resources of
a specific territory? Which organizational structure can represent an
entity in which municipalities, health agencies, trade unions, the third
sector, and foundations collaborate with each other, in order to plan and
provide social services? For this proposal, different theoretical
approaches have been introduced, revealing the difficulty in interpreting
an organizational form of this kind. The term organization itself seems
inadequate for representing the zone plan entity as the combination of
different organizational bodies driven by diverse functioning logics. A
solution emerged turning to meta-organizational concepts like
"implementation structure" and "crane." | ||
| Keywords: administrative rationality, crane model, implementation structure, planning, social services, welfare community. | ||
| JSSP 2006 Vol. 5/3 |
Christianization and Its Impact on Community
Development Among the Indigenous People in North-Western Bangladesh: Profulla Sarker, Zannatul Ferdous, Srabonee Roy |
|
| (Beijing Normal University-Hong Kong Baptist University / University of Rajshahi, Bangladesh) -- (download article) | ||
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Abstract: The total population of indigenous people in
North-Western part of Bangladesh is about 3 millions. About two-third of population are landless and land poor and as a result
most of the people depend on hired labor specially in agricultural fields
and construction works irrespective of gender. The Christian priests both
from Catholic and Protestant have started to introduce Christianity in
early 20th century in some specific poverty sticking areas where the
indigenous people would live. The main incentives for conversion into
Christianity were to get definite way to perform religious activities,
education for the children, employment opportunity, health care facilities
and to involve in income generating activities. About 58 percent
indigenous people have converted to Christianity in order to get
systematic religious life and also to improve the quality of life. This
paper is based on both primary and secondary information. To collect the
primary information, survey, observation, Focus Group Discussion,
case study methods have been applied, including the use of key informants.
Main focus of this paper is to examine to what extent the Christianization
affects the improvement of the quality of life and society and wellbeing
of the indigenous through using the methods and techniques of community
development. | ||
| Keywords: Christianization, Bangladesh, community, development, network. | ||
| JSSP 2006 Vol. 5/3 |
Christianization and Its Impact on De-Indigenization Among the
People of Different Ethnic Groups
in North-Western Bangladesh: Profulla Sarker |
|
| (Beijing Normal University-Hong Kong Baptist University, China) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The total population of indigenous people in
North-Western part of Bangladesh is about 297,373, they have migrated from Jharkhand, India, at the time of the British administration. About two-thirds of population are landless
and land poor and as a result most of the people depend on hired labor
specially in agricultural fields and construction works irrespective of
gender. The Christian priests both from Catholic and Protestant have
started to introduce Christianity in early 20th century in some specific
poverty sticking areas where the indigenous people would live. The main
incentives for conversion into Christianity were to get definite way to
perform religious activities, education for the children, employment
opportunity, health care facilities and to involve in income generating
activities. About 52 percent indigenous people are converted into
Christianity in order to get systematic religious life and also to improve
the quality of life. This paper is based on both primary and secondary
information. To collect the primary information, survey, observation, FGD,
case study methods have been applied including the use of key informants.
Main focus of this paper is to examine to what extent the Christianization
affects the life and society of the indigenous people to make them
de-indigenization in avoiding the concept of multiculturalism in a
pluralistic society of Bangladesh. | ||
| Keywords: Christianization, de-indigenization, ethnic groups, North-Western Bangladesh. | ||
| JSSP 2006 Vol. 5/2 |
Perceived Stress in Kinship Network System
Among the | |
| (BNU-HKBU UIC, China / University of Rajshahi, Bangladesh / City University of Hong Kong) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The study examined the link between kinship interaction and perceived stress level of adult individuals in Bangladesh. The main objective of this study was to explore the relationship between the level of interaction among overall kinship networks and perceived stress as well as to assess the relation between five different dimensions of kinship interaction with perceived stress. Using the random sampling method 114 people was selected for the study. Kinship Interactions Scale (KIS) and Perceived Stress Questionnaire (PSQ) were used for data collection. The results of this study substantiated that the high frequency of kinship interaction reduces the perceived stress level and at the same time high frequency of interaction between husband and wife decreases the stress level. Regression analysis depicted overall interaction level among kinship networks that plays an emergent role in producing stress. Furthermore, interaction with spouse is also found to be an important predictor of the perceived stress. | ||
| Keywords: Kinship, social interaction, network systems, stress, Bangladesh. | ||
| JSSP 2006 Vol. 5/2 |
Health Sector Reform in Bangladesh: Policy, Package and Politics: Muhammad Hasan Imam | |
| (University of Rajshahi, Bangladesh) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: Health sector, population control and family
welfare policies have always been big issues in the welfare state of
Bangladesh. However, if population control and family planning sectors
have deserved a great interest from the government, the same cannot be
said for areas like maternal health and mortality, child healthcare,
contagious diseases and general diseases control. The next step must be
ensuring primary healthcare for the entire population of the nation. In
ensuring this, the government of Bangladesh is flanked by NGOs, playing an
important role in population control and family welfare state, especially
in rural areas. Beyond taking into account the general situation of health
care in Bangladesh, this article also identifies one of the most important
policy shifts in structural and functional aspects in the change of the
government in 1996. | ||
| Keywords: Bangladesh, health sector, population, NGOs, politics of reform. | ||
| JSSP 2006 Vol. 5/2 |
The Austrian and the Swiss Welfare State System in International Comparison: Dominique Wang and Christian Aspalter | |
| (Beijing Normal University-Hong Kong Baptist University, China) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: Today, we understand that the comparative
study of welfare state systems, and in particular social security systems,
is not developed a great deal in global perspective. But it is also true
that the existing body of knowledge on comparative study of welfare state
systems is out of date, even in the heartlands of Europe. This study
evaluates, first and foremost, the system structure of two leading welfare
state systems in Europe: Switzerland and Austria. The authors of this
paper come to the conclusion that the Swiss welfare state while being
stable with regard to its institutional structures continuously increased
social spending to become a leading welfare state in Europe. Austria,
conversely, made through a different development, it reshaped its
institutions, particularly in pensions and general universal
welfare¡ªhence, emerging as a new leader in terms of universalism in social
security in the Continental regime of welfare state systems. | ||
| Keywords: Austria, Switzerland, welfare state, social security, institutional structures, welfare regime theory. | ||
| JSSP 2006 Vol. 5/2 |
Territorial Justice in China: Christian Aspalter | |
| (Beijing Normal University-Hong Kong Baptist University / The University of Hong Kong) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The study of social development in China is
yet to emerge from the backwaters of international development studies.
While China as a whole is highly integrated and understood in the body of
international research, the differences between rural, semi-urban, urban
areas, and importantly the differences between different regions and
provinces within China. China¡ªlike India¡ªis a continent rather than a
country. There are vast geographic, climatic, economic and cultural
differences. Also, the sheer size of the country mandates a closer look at
each province, and within each province. This study has undertaken a first
closer look at the issue of territorial justice in China, based on
empirical results. It is concluded that economy alone cannot ensure equal
development across the many different provinces and regions of China,
social development policies need to be devised, executed, and evaluated
also for each different province, as well as for rural, semi-urban, and
urban areas alike. | ||
| Keywords: China, territorial justice, unequal development, social development, urban and rural development, social policy. | ||
| JSSP 2006 Vol. 5/1 |
Social Development in Japan: A Focus on Social Welfare Issues: Rajendran Muthu | |
| (Iwate Prefectural University, Japan) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: Although being famous for its economic
performances, Japan has built¡ªsince the Second World War¡ªa relevant
welfare state system. Nonetheless, the Japanese welfare state has its
lights and shades. In this article social welfare issues are taken into
consideration, focusing in particular on elderly, children and women
minority groups. These groups, as well as migrant workers, are
particularly subjected to discrimination in the Japanese society. The
article also analyses the role of civil society in Japanese social
welfare. | ||
| Keywords: Japan, social development, social welfare, ageing, social security, minorities. | ||
| JSSP 2006 Vol. 5/1 |
From Developmentalism to Productivism: The Pathway of Korean Welfare State Development: Antonio Fiori and Christian Aspalter | |
| (University of Bologna, Italy / Beijing Normal University-Hong Kong Baptist University, China) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The pathway followed by the Korean welfare
state is particularly interesting: some forms of welfare provision
originated during the authoritarian period, but mostly aiming at obtaining
political legitimation and public support. However, the situation began to
change with the end of the military regime and the restoration of a
parliamentary republic in 1987. The beginning of the democratization
process¡ªand the election of Kim Young Sam, the first civilian President
of the country¡ªmarked a significant point in the expansion of the Korean
welfare state. This expansion, and possible consolidation, was¡ªstrangely
enough¡ªnurtured immediately in the wake of the Asian economic crisis,
under the new Presidency of Kim Dae Jung. In this paper, the authors give
an account of the development of Korean welfare state focusing in
particular on the post-crisis period, and demonstrate how the financial
crisis has been indeed an opportunity to improve welfare state's
conditions as direct outcome of democratization and globalization
processes. | ||
| Keywords: Korea, globalization, democratization, developmentalism, Kim Dae Jung, productivism, pension system, health care system, public assistance. | ||
| JSSP 2006 Vol. 5/1 |
Social Development Policy in Asia: With Special Reference to India, China, Malaysia and Japan: Surendra Singh | |
| (Lucknow University, Uttar Pradesh, India) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: Every country evolves its policy keeping in
view its political priorities, level of economic development, cultural
values and practices and social conditions, and uses it to administer and
manage its affairs in such a manner that at least a minimum desirable
standard of living is ensured to each and every section of its population.
With increasing globalization and easy access to information relating to
any important happening in any part of the globe mainly because of rapid
advancements in the field of information technology, all countries are
making efforts to benefit from the healthy and positive lessons of
policies followed in various countries. If we look at the general economic
scenario, we find that there are four distinct categories of countries:
low income countries, lower middle income countries, upper middle income
countries and high income countries. In Asian continent in which the two
most populous countries viz., China and India both are located, we find
that in terms of income all the four categories of countries are in
existence in this region also; and it is precisely for this reason that
one country from each of the four categories, India from low income group,
China from lower middle income group, Malaysia from upper middle income
group and Japan from high income group of Asian continent has been
selected for purposes of this paper. | ||
| Keywords: Social development in Asia, India, China, Malaysia, Japan, social development policy, social policies, globalization. | ||
| JSSP 2006 Vol. 5/1 |
Recent Social Change and Social Policy in Korea: Kim Jinsoo | |
| (Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: In the last two decades the Korean approach
to social policy has completely changed, shifting from a model based on
the rapid development of economy to a more redistributive one. However,
this new model is not exempt from serious threats, one of which is the
growing fiscal burden if compared to other industrialized countries due to
phenomena like extremely low birthrate, progressive ageing of the
population, and the collapse of traditional family structures. For this
reason, a new national philosophy for the Korean social security system is
needed a great deal. In this study, changes in Korean social welfare are
analyzed in depth and put into comparison with other industrialized
countries. | ||
| Keywords: Korea, social change, social policy, redistribution, fiscal burden, industrialization. | ||
| JSSP 2005 Vol. 4/3 |
Research for
Policy: Mapping Poverty
in Hong Kong | |
| (The City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: There is no official poverty line in Hong
Kong. The government has never attempted to formulate an official
definition of poverty. It was argued that it was difficult to have an
agreed definition of poverty or of who is poor and that any definition of
poverty would involve the exercise of subjective value judgment. However,
establishing a poverty line is important to evaluate the effectiveness of
any current policy to surmount poverty. This article is set in the context
of a discussion of how poverty research (i.e., research methodology and
research findings) can aid policy formation. It first briefly summarizes
where past research on poverty in Hong Kong has got to, its achievements
and limitations. Second, it uses a secondary data analysis of the 1
percent sample of the Hong Kong 2001 Population Census to provide an
updated profile of low-income households, using the conventional income
threshold measurement of poverty, which is measured in term of households
with income below 60 percent of the median for the whole equivalized
distribution. Third, it illustrates the contributions and limitations of
only using conventional income threshold measurement of poverty. Finally,
it suggests relevant implications for policy makers drawn from the
findings of this study. | ||
| Keywords: Poverty, Hong Kong, population census, conventional income threshold measure-ment, low-income households, equivalization. | ||
| JSSP 2005 Vol. 4/3 |
Policy
Deficiencies and Hong Kong¡¯s Mandatory Provident Fund: Security for
Retirement or Road Map to Disaster?: Tang Kwong-Leung |
|
| (The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: This paper looks at the history of social
policy making for retirement in the city-state of Hong Kong and argues
that the current Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) is inadequate to provide
for retirement protection for all citizens. In the past, various options
such as central provident fund, social insurance, and a semi social
insurance plan were examined. By choosing the MPF, the interests of
businesses and industrialists were protected and enhanced. China
implicitly endorsed this plan when pro-Beijing trade unions in Hong Kong
threw their support behind the plan. Since the state was a strong one and
the labor movement was weak, its passage was guaranteed. The introduction
of the MPF signified a learning process on the part of the post-colonial
state whereby important political players such as the state, businesses,
and Communist China dominated the agenda. After some five years of
implementation, the MPF program is now deemed as inadequate and there have
been discussions about how to introduce further reforms in this area. | ||
| Keywords: Hong Kong, social security, old-age pensions, poverty, welfare needs, social rights, Mandatory Provident Fund. | ||
| JSSP 2005 Vol. 4/3 |
Legislating Parent Support in Singapore: Ngoh-Tiong Tan | |
| (National University of Singapore, Singapore) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: Singapore has long been an inspiration for
many countries in the world¡ªeven the United States¡ªespecially when it
comes to social security and social policy, such as, extensive provident
fund systems, asset-building schemes in anti-poverty policy, and, last but
not least, legislating parent support. This paper sets out to depict
latest developments in Singapore with regard to establishing a legal
system that ensures parent support. In so doing the law text, the
procedures, and the policy rationale will be discussed in greater detail,
while also emphasizing the special role of mediation in the new system of
parent support. The paper concludes that in the light of the aged society
Singapore the legislation of parent support can help to alleviate the
problem of elderly persons being neglected and abandoned by their
families, but this is far from being a panacea. It is noted that there are
also other, alternative ways of addressing this problem, such as, private
agency and government intervention. It is suggested that the tool of
legislation may be paired with other intervention methods of working with
families. | ||
| Keywords: Singapore, social policy, parent support, social legislation, tribunal for maintenance of parents. | ||
| JSSP 2005 Vol. 4/3 |
Between China's Overseas Chinese Policy and Malaysia's Ethnic Policies: Cultural Identity of Malaysian-Chinese Students in Mainland China: Kam-yee Law and Kim-ming Lee | |
| (The City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: This article focuses on the politics of
cultural identity, with special reference on the younger generation of
Malaysian-Chinese, particularly those studying in Mainland China. The
respective policies of Malaysia and Mainland China are discussed in
greater detail, while also drawing attention to the socio-cultural aspect
of those policies. Then, the paper discusses the development, limitations,
and possible changes on China's overseas Chinese policy over the years by
using the case study on a specific group of young Malaysian-Chinese who
are pursuing their higher education studies in Mainland China. | ||
| Keywords: Overseas Chinese, Malaysia, Mainland China, identity politics, ethnic policies, tertiary education. | ||
| JSSP 2005 Vol. 4/2 |
An Integrated Approach to Combat
Unemployment in the | |
| (King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is accelerating
its development in both public and private sectors. Unfortunately, those
development processes fall short of solving the distressing problem of
high Saudi unemployment. This paper introduces and critically reviews
Saudi unemployment and identifies the deep-rooted causes behind it. It
deals with special issues regarding unemployment that are not common in
other countries. Apparently, the increased reliance on foreign workforce
in the private-sector economy is aggravating unemployment among the
domestic, Saudi workforce. It is due to the unique socioeconomic and
cultural traits of Saudi Arabia along with political, educational,
managerial and externally influenced factors that the problem of Saudi
unemployment persists and aggravates over time. Putting forward a set of
normative policy recommendations, this paper asks for an integrated
approach to enhance coordination among governmental agencies and to
encourage participation from the private-sector economy in enabling and
increasing the effectiveness of the government's response to Saudi
unemployment. | ||
| Keywords: Saudi Arabia, unemployment, youth unemployment, gender differences, public policy, employment policy, education policy. | ||
| JSSP 2005 Vol. 4/2 |
Affordable Housing in Saudi Arabia: A
Comparative Analysis: Adel S. Aldosary, Syed Masiur Rahman, and Syed Munawer |
|
| (King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: There is a growing demand for housing in the
developing countries. Prevalent conditions of global and national economy
and the enormous demand for housing due to the rapidly growing population
of Saudi Arabia, calls for a look at the affordability of this basic
necessity. This paper is an attempt to define the concept of housing
affordability in the Saudi Arabian context and arrive at broad directions
for the provision of affordable housing. The study of the affordable
housing initiatives in the developed and developing world will help in
providing insights into successful affordable housing programs. For the
purpose of this study the aspect of affordability will be limited to house
ownership and housing finance. The parameters considered will be ability
of households to acquire and repay finance for housing. The institutions
and sectors that are playing a part in housing finance, housing-stock
acquisition and distribution will be looked at. Concepts such as
self-help, mortgage-loans, etc. need to be implemented even if at an
experimental scale to find new avenues for making housing
affordable. | ||
| Keywords: Affordable housing, housing analysis, housing policy, Saudi Arabia. | ||
| JSSP 2005 Vol. 4/2 |
The Mandatory Provident Fund in Hong Kong: A Preliminary Study of People¡¯s Attitude: C.W. Lam, Yeung Sum, and Tony S.K. Tam | |
| (The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: Since its inception in December 2000, the
Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) has been institutionalized as a private
pension scheme and become the basic structure of Hong Kong¡¯s retirement
protection system. The results of this paper indicate that Hong Kong
people do not seem to be supportive of such a scheme primarily because of
the lack of government's contribution in financing the retirement fund and
in the protection against loss due to investment failure. Most of the
respondents did not feel that they could rely on the Mandatory Provident
Fund as a dependable source of retirement income. | ||
| Keywords: Public Attitude and Opinion, Mandatory
Provident Fund, Social Security, Public Policy, Hong Kong. | ||
| JSSP 2005 Vol. 4/2 |
The Development of Long-Term Care Services in Taiwan: Chen Yen-Jen and Mar Chun-Lin |
|
| (Yuan Ze University / Se-Te University of Technology, Taiwan) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The "aging" population forced all developed
countries to modify their "long-term care" policies. Taiwan has become an
aging country. The National Health Care Insurance was implemented in
March, 1995 and in-home nursing services were covered. Nursing home
services were covered in November 1996. In 1997, licensed nursing
institutions and long-term care institution services were included. From
then on, in-home nursing services have become the most important resources
in home and community care in Taiwan. The goals of the long-term care
program are designed to be (1) integration of health and social resources;
(2) service diversity; (3) development of the community long-term care
resources; (4) priorityzation home-supporting services; (5) efficient
management; (6) accessibility to long-term care financial mechanism. In
addition to combining resources from health, social welfare and other
agencies, it is important to form a partnership between governmental and
private agencies so as to provide integrated services with a whole model
of medical health and social welfare. | ||
| Keywords: Long-term care; elderly people; caregiver; nursing home; medicating institutions. | ||
| JSSP 2005 Vol. 4/2 |
China, Aging, and Social Policy:
The Influences and Limitations
of the Biomedical Paradigm: Ian Cook and Jason L. Powell |
|
| (Liverpool John Moores University / University of Liverpool, UK) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: Policymakers, economists, and other analysts
around the globe are increasingly concerned about the rising numbers of
older people in their society. There are worries about the inadequacy of
pension funds, of growing pressures on welfare systems, and on the
inability of shrinking numbers of younger people to carry the burden of
their elders. This paper focuses on such issues in China, where the older
people have become a rapidly expanding proportion of the population.
While resources do need to be targeted on the vulnerable older people, the
presumption that older people as a whole are an economic and social burden
must be questioned. This is an agist view that needs to be combated by
locating how bio-medical views on aging seep into policy spaces in China
that position negative perceptions of aging as both individual and
populational problems. We then move to observe the implications of
bio-medicine for older people in China in terms of "vulnerable" aging but
deconstruct such "fixed" explanations by juxtaposing active aging as key
narrative that epitomizes "declining to decline" as espoused by
bio-medical sciences. | ||
| Keywords: China, demography, bio-medical model, aging and social policy. | ||
| JSSP 2005 Vol. 4/1 |
The Welfare State in East Asia: An Ideal-Typical Welfare Regime: Christian Aspalter | |
| (Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: This article set out to broaden our
understanding of the East Asian welfare state by looking onto the existing
welfare state systems from the perspective of comparative
political-historical analysis, while also exploring the possibility of
classifying a distinct, ideal-typical model of the welfare state in the
region. The key for doing so is to look at both the existing functional
equivalence of institutional systems, as well as the logic behind social
policy making, i.e. the strategy of welfare. In East Asia, real-typical
systems do vary¡ªbut their welfare effects, as well as their overall
policy approach fall in line a great deal with that of the ideal-typical
model. Hence, this article stresses the importance of the principle of
functional equivalence and that of overall welfare strategies in the study
of comparative social policy. | ||
| Keywords: East Asia, welfare state, ideal-typical model, functional equivalence, regime theory, political rationale of welfare. | ||
| JSSP 2005 Vol. 4/1 |
A Comparative Study of Welfare State Transition: Ahn Sang-Hoon | |
| (Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: This study puts forth an empirical analysis
of welfare state transition between 1960 and 1989, building on the
argument that different periods in the political economy of the welfare
state¡ª especially before and after the economic crisis of the 1970s¡ªwill set forth a distinct logic of policy making. Hence, they impact of
internal and external, or socioeconomic and political determinants of the
welfare state may change from period to period. The study concludes that
welfare-internal driving forces are strongly dependent on political
factors, while the dominance of different political actors gives rise to
changes in the welfare politics¡ªas embodied in the new inter-class
politics that is based on status groups. | ||
| Keywords: Welfare state theory, political determinants, logic of welfare, class politics, political actors, welfare statuses. | ||
| JSSP 2005 Vol. 4/1 |
Inequalities in Accessing Community
Services in China: Kim-Ming Lee, Kwok-Kin Fung, Kam-Yee Law, and Agnes Yeung |
|
| (City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: In this paper, the authors pay special
attention to the transition from welfare under the Chinese planned economy
up to the late 1970s to the new welfare regime under the reform and open
policy since the early 1980s and its effects on inequality of welfare,
particularly inequalities in accessing community services. The study finds
that the discrepancy between low-income and middle-income communities are
less significant pointing to the positive effects of new community service
policies, but it also finds new rising inequalities between the
high-income communities and the rest of the population. | ||
| Keywords: Chinese welfare state, inequality in service provision, work-based welfare services, community service policy. | ||
| JSSP 2005 Vol. 4/1 |
Health Care Reforms in the
Ex-Socialist South-Eastern
European Countries: Kyriakos Souliotis,
Charlambos
Economou, and Yannis Tountas |
|
| (National School of Public Health / Panteion Universtiy / University of Athens, Greece) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The aim of this paper is to reexamine the
welfare state model applied in ex-socialist countries of Southeastern
Europe, and particularly its key element, the health care system. The
transition from socialist economy to market-based economy brought
wide-ranging changes within the countries' health care sector. Lessons
from the Western European countries have not been learned, as too much
emphasis has been given to new forms of efficient management systems and
the expansion of financing resources, neglecting the equity in access and
the improvement of the population's health status. | ||
| Keywords: Welfare state, health care system, health care reform, Southeastern Europe, public health challenges. | ||
| JSSP 2004 Vol. 3/3 |
Aging, Family
Policy and Narrative:
A British Perspective: | |
| (Manchester Metropolitan University, UK) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: Due to the rising importance of recent
research in the areas of family and aging, the author investigates the
particular relationship between old age and family life by means of
studying the role of grandparenting and the way it is perceived by the
elderly, the family, and the public at large. The study applies a
narrative approach; hence, telling the meaning of the family and
grandparenting through personal stories and public discourse, based on the
theory of Michel Foucault. The findings put forth suggest that identities
of family and grandparenting are built on multiple grounds, and that
therefore theory should be sensitized accordingly, as identities are
managed at different levels, for different audiences and at different
levels of awareness. | ||
| Keywords: Narrative approach, old age, family, social policy, family policy, neoliberalism, Social Democracy. | ||
| JSSP 2004 Vol. 3/3 |
The Korean Pension Reform: Struggle Between Restructuring and Renovation: Kim Sang-Kyun and Lee Euna | |
| (Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: This study applies a historical,
sociopolitical approach in sketching the development of Korean pension
reform from 1997 to present. It is shown that in the case of Korea
decision-making with regard to pension reform processes follow an
incremental model rather than a rational model. It is for this reason that
policy outcomes are, for the most part, of a temporary alleviative nature.
Genuine reforms with long-lasting effects, on the contrary, as a rule do
not materialize. In Korea, there are a multitude of competing interest and
pressure groups within and outside the government. As a result, outcomes
of pension reform efforts are greatly dependent on the dominance of a
particular constellation of power groups, as well as their different
values and conceptions of pension problems. | ||
| Keywords: Korea, pension reform, policy processes, policy environment, policy agenda, reform models, reform outcomes. | ||
| JSSP 2004 Vol. 3/3 |
Europe in Transition: Welfare State Reform in Germany, Italy, Sweden, and the United Kingdom: Christian Aspalter | |
| (Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: This study sheds light onto the changed
nature of European welfare states, the new reality of welfare state
systems, by applying a historical case study approach. The author
investigates four leading welfare state systems, that of Germany, Italy,
Sweden and the United Kingdom. He finds that all in all there are four
major dimensions of welfare state reform: parametric changes inside the
old system, privatization and individualization of the old system, and
implementation of a new logic within the welfare state system altogether.
Germany, so the author, is expected to be on the brink of a substantial
system change, as it resisted both major reforms of its social insurance
system in the direction of privatization and individualization, while it
faces high constraints in public finance and a challenging population
development, with both a decline in its young and active
population. | ||
| Keywords: Dimensions of welfare state reform, future of the welfare state, social insurance systems, social benefits, Germany, Italy, Sweden, United Kingdom. | ||
| JSSP 2004 Vol. 3/3 |
Social Welfare in Hong Kong Post 1997: Opportunities in the | |
| (The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The Welfare State in Hong Kong and particularly its post-colonial development are subject of this study. The author paints a mixed positive picture of opportunities amidst constraints, pertaining to mounting fiscal pressures due to an ever-expanding share of the population entitled to public assistance and the newly perceived duty of the state to cater to social needs to a greater extent. It is argued that the current standing in social welfare policy represents a compromise between the government and social welfare NGOs, and that the government has yet to walk quite a distance to meet the goal of safeguarding the welfare of the people and turning Hong Kong into a truly caring society. | ||
| Keywords: Hong Kong, welfare state, integration and sustainability of welfare, social assistance, welfare services, fiscal deficits, social needs, unemployment, low wages. | ||
| JSSP 2004 Vol. 3/2 |
Restorative Justice: An Alternative Approach to Fairness: | |
| (University of Northern Iowa, US) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The article gives an introduction to this special issue of the Journal of Societal and Social Policy, pointing out the importance of the new approach of restorative justice as a means to achieve global peace and welfare. The new therapeutic approach of restorative justice replaces age-old practices of retribution and punishment. | ||
| Keywords: Restorative justice, vengeance and retribution, healing and reconciliation. | ||
| JSSP 2004 Vol. 3/2 |
Restorative Justice: An International Model of Empowerment:
| |
| (University of Northern Iowa, US) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The study presents a full-out discussion of the current trends in applying progressive forms of restorative justice. The model of restorative justice is juxtaposed to the existing model of guilt that focuses on the offender, whereas the victim and the community rarely enter the picture. Restorative justice is introduced as a distinct method to bring about justice and healing for all parties involved. The new method centers on face-to-face communication, truth telling, and personal empowerment. The author pays particular attention to family-group conferencing, victim-offender mediation and reparations, as well as the development of social work values through restorative justice. | ||
| Keywords: Restorative justice, empowerment, family-group conferencing, victim-offender mediation, reparations. | ||
| JSSP 2004 Vol. 3/2 |
Afrocentric Theory and the Restorative Justice Process: | |
| (University of Toledo, US) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: This article offers a full-fledged overview of the meaning of the restorative justice theory for Afrocentric theory and vice versa. The author supports the positive effects of the restorative justice method, while bringing in new insights from Afrocentric theory. He notes that both theories are not representing a panacea for the crime issue in America, but stresses that they do in fact represent a viable alternative to the existing punitive approach in current crime prevention and intervention policy. A respective change of policy would be in line with the current international trend away from retributive towards restorative modes of crime policies. | ||
| Keywords: Restorative justice model, Afrocentric approach, traditional justice models, Eurocentric approach. | ||
| JSSP 2004 Vol. 3/2 |
Restorative Justice and Environmental Restoration: Twin Pillars | |
| (University of Northern Iowa, US) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The concept of restorative justice is carried further in this article to include its vital application in the field of environmental justice. The new method of environmental justice stands for a mixed array of ecological, ethical and moral premises positing how humans could live in peace with the rest of the natural world. The paper suggests that the way we treat the non-human world is reflected in the way we treat the human world, and concludes that we ought to hear the voices of nature first before devising environmental policies. Environmental policy needs to reflect the needs of the environment first and cannot be based on the believe that human inventiveness can fully restore degraded ecosystems. Arguments for reclamation founded on human benefits and interests alone are not apt to provide adequate protection for the environment. Nature needs, instead, to be perceived and understood as being intrinsically valuable by itself. | ||
| Keywords: Restorative justice, environmental justice, environmental protection and reclamation, environmental policy. | ||
| JSSP 2004 Vol. 3/2 |
The Moral Discourse of Healing: Victims
and Offenders | |
| (Pennsylvania State University / William Parsonage / Seattle University, US) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The study below deals with the experiences of healing and reconciliation of inmates, victims, and citizens based on five seminars on restorative justice at the Washington State Reformatory, a close custody facility for men in Washington. The research centers on the formation of a moral community that links victims and offenders, that is, on the way victims and their relatives articulate their suffering and on the way offenders could be asked to take responsibility for their crimes and address the harms they had caused. The goal of the seminars was to discuss a new way of achieving justice through the restoration of harms caused, rather than the achievement of healing itself. The initial recognition of one another as persons who are capable of being harmed or of suffering was achieved by letting each side tell their story. These stories formed the core and the basis of healing for victims, the offenders, and community representatives alike. This highlights the important role restorative justice approach could play within the correctional environment. | ||
| Keywords: Restorative justice, correctional facilities, storytelling, moral community, healing and reconciliation, taking responsibility. | ||
| JSSP 2004 Vol. 3/2 |
Family Group Conferencing and Family Violence: | |
| (University of Northern British Columbia, Canada) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: This article examines the use of one particular alternative justice model, the family group conferencing method, in cases of violence against women. The author examines the success and problems of the family group conferencing method, as exemplified in the case of a rural community in British Columbia, Canada. The study identifies restorative justice as a viable option for correction system, while also pointing to the fact that one single method does not fit all circumstances and cases. Different models of restorative justice prove to work more effectively in different situations. In this light, it is cautioned not to overreact and, as a consequence, to endanger past and future victims of crime in any given situation or at any given moment. | ||
| Keywords: Canada, correction system, restorative justice method, violence against women, family group conferencing. | ||
| JSSP 2004 Vol. 3/1 |
Welfare State Retrenchement in Austria:
| |
| (University of Vienna, Austria) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The theme of this study is the period of
welfare state retrenchment in Austria since the late 1990s, where a
center-right coalition government has widely ignored the logic of ¡°blame
avoidance¡± as proposed by welfare state experts, such as Paul Pierson. The
unusual situation was that a non-left government has swept through painful
social policy reforms since the year 2000 in a rapid manner without having
to face stiff resistance from all sides. In the case of Austria, this is
to be explained by the content of reform policies conducted under former
participation of left-wing parties in government, i.e. the Social
Democrats at the end of the 1990s. The Social Democrats had dominated the
coalition government and has at that point already pushed for extensive
cuts in social welfare programs, which elucidates that Austria only partly
contradicted the thesis that strong welfare cuts are less likely under
right-wing governments. At last, the authors call for further research
into the significance and application of the blame avoidance
thesis. | ||
| Keywords: Welfare state retrenchment, Austria, Christian Democracy, Social Democracy, neoliberalism, impact of political parties, blame avoidance thesis. | ||
| JSSP 2004 Vol. 3/1 |
Rethinking the Redistribution Paradigm: Gerard Bellefeuille | |
| (University of Northern British Columbia, Canada) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The Canadian welfare state and the dominance of the traditional needs-based distributive paradigm is being challenged by this article. The author makes the case for an alternative or complementary distributive paradigm, which ought to broaden the deliberation and vision of social welfare beyond existing ideological borders of the needs-based distributive paradigm. The author notes that the imperative of meeting social needs has failed its mission, and proven in the past to be ineffective, as child and family poverty are infinitely on the increase. A new wider paradigm that would really improve people's living conditions would also include themes like community and social wellness. Such a new approach would be based on diversity, cultural relativity, and difference rooted in the possibilities, capacities, and visions that emerge in response to the current, less encouraging, situation. | ||
| Keywords: Welfare state, Canada, distributive paradigm, individualism, collectivism, needs-based social policies, child and family poverty, social wellness. | ||
| JSSP 2004 Vol. 3/1 |
Corporate Crime, Aging, and Pensions:
| |
| (Manchester Metropolitan University / University of Kent, UK) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: This study takes up the issue of private pension plans in Great Britain providing a critical analysis of the lack of regulation and safety of such pension plans and the consequent surfacing of a number of corporate scandals involving illegalities and the mis-selling of pensions. In the case of the United Kingdom, private pension companies provided false and misleading information to its customers, incurring great losses with regard to their pension entitlements. Successive governments have underscored the hypothetical necessity to change from a public to a private system based their claims on overrated projections of a demographic time bomb in the United Kingdom. This article reveals how both social democratic and conservative governments have endorsed the replacement of public with private pension plans, but failed to prevent or adequately punish corporate crime associated with ill-fated pension provision by the private market economy. | ||
| Keywords: United Kingdom, pension reform, privatization, neoliberalism, social democracy, corporate crime, aging of society. | ||
| JSSP 2004 Vol. 3/1 |
Redistributive Justice and Housing Benefits in China: | |
| (City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: This article investigates the cornerstone of recent welfare state reform in the People¡¯s Republic of China, namely housing reform. The authors show how the new housing reforms have aggravated social inequalities rooted in the old socialism, as the better off, urban citizens are those who gain most from recent housing reforms. This paper in particular examines one reform experience in the less-developed Province of Guizhou. After discussing housing reform strategies and different models applied in China, the authors go on to elaborate the uniqueness of the Guiyang housing model, and its particular importance for making housing reform more equitable throughout the country. | ||
| Keywords: Housing policy, China, reform models, housing monetarization, social equity, distribution, Guiyang model. | ||
| JSSP 2003 Vol. 2/3 |
Gendering the Welfare State: The Issue of Carework Salaries: | |
| (Jena College, Germany) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The German social policy arena of the recent years has undergone fundamental changes by which new options that only seemed out of reach a few years ago have become a vital cornerstone of current and possible future social policy paradigms. The case in point is the introduction of carework salaries and the headway this issue has made into the heartland of party politics and the overall governmental welfare strategy. The study below applied a historical case study approach in depicting and explaining the development and the current role of carework salary in social welfare policy. The author will conclude that the current reorientation of German social welfare policy points toward the direction of the State taking on a new role as a "guarantor" of people¡¯s well-being and livelihood. | ||
| Keywords: Germany, family policy, gender policy, employment integration, childcare allowances, carework salaries, guaranteed minimum income. | ||
| JSSP 2003 Vol. 2/3 |
Children Leaving Care in the United Kingdom: | |
| (University of Bradford, UK) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: This article investigates the concept of parenting as used by local and central authorities in the United Kingdom, the expansion of the state's direct parenting responsibilities over time, the institutional conflict between central government power and local government responsibilities, and the impact of recent policy reforms. The study furthermore examines the strong relationship between care leavers, most of them at age 18, and a high incidence of social exclusion. The study suggests that for children leaving care to be the same successful in education and their subsequent professional lives as their non-care peers they would have to rely on continued support throughout their young adulthood. It also concludes that the lack of trust between central and local authorities in this regard makes a successful implementation of reforms in UK child-care policies difficult to accomplish. | ||
|
Keywords: United Kingdom, child-care policy, institutional determinants, education and employment of young adults, social exclusion. | ||
| JSSP 2003 Vol. 2/3 |
Feminization of Poverty: The Case of Albania: Enkeleida Tahiraj |
|
| (University College London, UK) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: In this study the problem of increased feminization of poverty in one of the poorest countries in the world is examined, namely Albania. It constitutes a genuine attempt to suggest a broader consideration of the way poverty can be measured and be reflected in the policy agenda of any government. In the Albanian context, there is a huge gap between what official data shows and what the reality is pertaining to the feminization of poverty. The author stresses that poverty means a failure of our welfare state and social policies and until official data matches realities social policies are not likely to increase the welfare or avert, reduce the suffering of the most vulnerable population groups, and above all women. She concludes that the status, experiences and visibility of women in relation to poverty is inadequately researched, little acknowledged, and poorly understood. Until then, the consequences of women in dire poverty will continue to include problems like bad health, prostitution, and lack of education. | ||
|
Keywords: Albania, measuring poverty, hidden poverty, feminization of poverty, social policy, society in transition, changing needs. | ||
| JSSP 2003 Vol. 2/3 |
After the Handover: Economic Downturn, Social Crisis, and Sagging Political Popularity: Mark Li and Raymond Ngan | |
| (Hong Kong Baptist University / City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The new situation Hong Kong finds itself after the Handover to Chinese authorities has been rather challenging to all sides, the economy, the society, and the new government. This paper sets out to investigate the economic and social performances of Hong Kong, with special reference to the new governance in the changed socioeconomic environment of the post-Colonial period. The authors hold up the argument that the absence of unemployment insurance and the lack of a general social development plan are increasing the suffering of the population in most need of welfare, the unemployed and the poor. It is concluded that a slow, reactive government with an acute lack in long-term planning has no means to solve deep-rooted economic and social problems. Any ruling government needs to be receptive to worries of the people and the economy at the same time, as inefficiency and unpopular policies may not be sustained for long. | ||
| Keywords: Hong Kong, governance, social policy, economic policy, social and economic development, democracy, legitimacy. | ||
| JSSP 2003 Vol. 2/2 |
Economic Globalization and Policies on Aging:
| |
| (University of Sheffield, UK) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: Since the onset of economic globalization, some authors suggest a universality of straightforward policy implications, with regard to the welfare state in general and pension policy, the mainstay of the welfare state, in particular. The authors of this article reject any oversimplification of the issue of economic globalization in the context of social policy reform. Conversely to some observers, they conclude that nation states have vital options of how to respond to the challenge of economic globalization, highlighting the contrasting experience of the US and Continental European responses to economic globalization. The social quality concept of the European Union is being introduced as a possible win-win solution to the problem of economic globalization. | ||
| Keywords: Economic globalization, neoliberalism, social development, international social standards, social quality, social inclusion, empowerment. | ||
| JSSP 2003 Vol. 2/2 |
The End of the Scandinavian Model? Welfare Reform | |
| (University of Copenhagen, Denmark) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: This study looks closer at the Scandinavian welfare state model from the perspective of an ideal-typical type and the fundamental transitions in welfare state policies since the early 1990s. The author depicts the diminishing degree of congruence between the reality of Scandinavian welfare state and their ideal-typical type. The author notes that benefits in Scandinavian welfare states have become less generous since the mid-1990s. The continuing leadership of the welfare state in Northern Europe in terms of achieved egalitarian outcomes is due more due to the working of the tax system and the organization of the labor market than it is because of social policies. It is concluded that the Scandinavian welfare state is still distinct, but less so, since it is subject to a new process of "Europeanization," acquiring new characteristics of nearby European welfare states. | ||
| Keywords: European Union, Scandinavia, welfare state restructuring, welfare state models, equity, labor market, Europeanization of social policy. | ||
| JSSP 2003 Vol. 2/2 |
The Australian Welfare State Model in Transition: Integrating | |
| (Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The Australian welfare state model itself is yet little understood in theoretical and real-life terms. This article summarizes and offers a critique to recent developments in theory, be it from the perspective of the so-called wage-earners' welfare state or the gender dimension of social welfare policy. Applying a historical case study approach, the author shows that Australia represents indeed a unique welfare model that was established, and revamped since the introduction of the 1994 Working Nation program, in tandem by both the Labour Party and the Liberal Party. With regard to the gender dimension, the author finds that the Australian welfare state has, in the long run, come to integrate more gender-sensitive social welfare programs. The author stresses that the past success of the feminist movement points toward a future continuation of some sort of mixed model on the subject of the gender dimension of the Australian welfare state. | ||
| Keywords: Australia, welfare model, male breadwinner model, gender dimension of social policy, mutual obligations, future of welfare. | ||
| JSSP 2003 Vol. 2/2 |
Market Transition and the Development of the Chinese Labor Law: Ngok Kinglun | |
| (The City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: This article focuses on the reform of the Chinese labor system, with special emphasis on the labor law introduced in 1994. The authors gives a detailed historical as well as normative account of the transition to the new era in Chinese labor legislation after 1994. The author concludes that labor law policies in China follow an incremental approach. Over time, the traditional labor system of the state-owned enterprises is making way for new labor institutions and relations that follow more closely international practices in market economies. It is concluded that the new labor law will enhance the role of law in labor relations and finally also open the way for collective bargaining and a collective contract system with the further retreat of the government in direct labor policy intervention. | ||
| Keywords: China, labor relations, labor law, transition to market economy, labor unions, collective bargaining, collective contract system. | ||
| JSSP 2003 Vol. 2/1 |
Drugs, Prostitution, and the Swedish Welfare State: Modernist Morality in a Postmodern World: Arthur Gould | |
| (University of Loughborough, UK) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: In studying the "side issues" of the welfare state in Sweden, the author unveils the nature of the welfare state system as a whole, thus stepping in the footsteps of Richard Titmuss who pioneered this particular approach of studying welfare state systems. Though being renowned as a liberal country in terms of social welfare policy in general, Sweden has chosen in the past to be rather restrictive, especially with regard to prostitution and drugs. The author advances a thorough explanation of this seeming contradiction, as he puts forward that the postmodern Swedish mind is caught between its own orderly past and the onset of the disorderly postmodern, globalized world ¨C in other words, between order, rationality, and morality (Apollonian values) on the one side and disorder, irrationality, excess, and spontaneity (Dionysian values) on the other. | ||
| Keywords: Sweden, social policy, welfare state, postmodernity, globalization, prostitution policy, drug policy, moral panic. | ||
| JSSP 2003 Vol. 2/1 |
Securing the Future for Old Age in Europe: Alan Walker | |
| (University of Sheffield, UK) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: In the light of raising concerns about the sustainability of pensions systems in the European Union, the article puts forth an in-depth analysis about the crisis of old-age social security, as well as the subsequent reforms of pensions systems. Building on the overall threat imposed by population aging and recent efforts of harmonizing pension systems within the EU, the author proposes a practical strategy of active aging. It is hold that only long-term, proactive policy strategies will enable governments to sustain the prevailing model of pension provision based on organized solidarity. The author arrives at the conclusion that the choice between privatization and existing models of social solidarity is not a question of solving technical matters of pension system design, but instead forms the core of the European socio-economic model. | ||
|
Keywords: European Union, United Kingdom, old age pensions, pension reform, employment policies, health and social care, active citizenship, active aging. | ||
| JSSP 2003 Vol. 2/1 |
The Neoliberal Era in Politics and Social Policy: | |
| (Murdoch University, Australia) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The following study investigates the neoliberalism from the inside by means of comparing its recent legacy with the predecessors of welfare liberal and classical liberal governance. Stretching her analysis from the perspective of society and economy to the human nature and principles of government intervention, the author leaves no doubt about the wretched contradiction of neoliberalism. It is noted that the upheld notions of community and freedom camouflages the extent to which the costs of readjustment are primarily borne by the most vulnerable and miserable members of society, giving rise to a continuous immiseration of society. Hence, the author concludes that the current neoliberal era clearly carries within it the seeds of its own destruction, as neoliberalism by the logic of its own position cannot silence popular dissent. | ||
| Keywords: Neoliberalism, economy and society, welfare liberal thought, classical liberal thought, immiseration thesis, popular dissent. | ||
| JSSP 2003 Vol. 2/1 |
Strengthening Families: The Restructuring of Family Services in Hong Kong: Joe C.B. Leung | |
| (The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: This chiefly normative study gives an extensive account of ongoing changes in the demography and family structure of Hong Kong, and the ways to confront these changes by means of a new integrative model of community-based family service centers. Whereas traditional family services are passive, remedial, casework dominated, and segmented, the new approach put forward instead is proactive, preventative, community-oriented, and integrative, while also more cost-effective and less time-consuming. Family-centered social welfare services are here to stay in Hong Kong, as the government acknowledges the vital role of family services in preventing and reducing in particular child poverty and family breakdown. | ||
| Keywords: Hong Kong, social policy, community-centered welfare services, child welfare, family welfare. | ||
| JSSP 2003 Vol. 2/1 |
Confronting Oppression in the Social Welfare State: | |
| (University of Northern Iowa, US) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: This article studies the special role of social work in fighting oppression and injustice on a world¡¯s scale. The dual role of helping people through providing services and steering national policies is analyzed from various angles, particularly cultural values and the impact of globalization. This work focuses on structural violence in a highly competitive market economy. It is noted that while Scandinavian countries are following a distinct path of fighting oppression and restoring justice on a national scale, other countries, such as the United States, Japan, or Korea have chosen to implement harsh education and labor regimes that are based on punishment, competition and social exclusion. The study concludes that social workers and welfare professionals share a global mission in the movement for restorative justice to prevent and fight oppression and injustice on local, national, and international level. | ||
| Keywords: Global oppression and injustice, cultural values, globalization, welfare state, restorative justice. | ||
| JSSP 2002 Vol. 1/1 |
Indigenous Welfare in Australia: Eileen Baldry and Sue Green | |
| (University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The history of Australian government policies towards indigenous populations is marked by a long tradition of protectionist policies that aimed at segregating Aboriginal peoples from other Australians. The fact that these policies were applied to all Indigenous Australians marked them as being racist at their very core. This article reviews the history of oppression, segregation, and exclusion of Australia¡¯s indigenous peoples from mainstream public live, that is, in political, economic and social regards. Today's extremely low levels of welfare of Aboriginal citizens, so the authors note, is the direct outcome of the long history of racist "welfare" policies, as well as their contemporary manifestations. The article concludes that the Australian government cannot expect Aboriginal citizens to have the capacity to lift themselves out of poverty and despair, after having been treated disrespectfully and patronizingly, after having been disinherited and incarcerated, for centuries. | ||
|
Keywords: Australia, indigenous populations, protection acts, racist "welfare" policies, indigenous rights, social welfare. | ||
| JSSP 2002 Vol. 1/1 |
Social Policy and Nationbuilding: The Dynamics of the Israeli Welfare State: Zeev Rosenhek | |
| (The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The Israeli welfare state is often presented in a rather positive, universalistic view. This study, however, brings to light also the less favorable side of the welfare state system in Israel, that is, the systematic social exclusion based on the specific immigration history and ethnic background of Israeli citizens. The author concludes that the Israeli welfare state still functions rather effectively with regard to redistribution and anti-poverty policies. All in all, the increasing polarization and marginalization of population groups in the Israeli welfare state is ascribed to a changing labor market, with higher rates of unemployment, the ongoing peripheralization of certain occupational sectors, and growing wage inequality. The growing neoliberal rhetoric and ideology of policy makers, so far, has been offset by electoral considerations. | ||
| Keywords: Israel, welfare state, nation building, labor unions, social exclusion, neoliberalism, social policy, labor market, political economy of welfare. | ||
| JSSP 2002 Vol. 1/1 |
The Welfare State System in Malaysia :
| |
| (University of Birmingham, UK / University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: The aim of this study is to analyze the history of the Malaysian welfare state, and to outline the main feature of contemporary welfare state institutions. In the first part of the study, the authors examine the special role of the political, religious and cultural determinants in shaping today's welfare state. The British welfare legacy has led later on to the establishment of the Employee'¡¯s Provident Fund system. Both Islamic and Confucian values manifested themselves in a belief system that locates the primary responsibility for the well-being of the individual within the family and the group rather than the state. The authors note that welfare state system of Malaysia offers limited social welfare services run by the state, while social security is based on individual contributions. Particular emphasis is placed on the family and the community in guaranteeing individual welfare. | ||
| Keywords: Malaysia, welfare state, social policy, social security, Colonial legacy, Islam, Confucianism, family, women, community. | ||
| JSSP 2002 Vol. 1/1 |
The Danish Welfare State: A Social Rights Perspective: | |
| (University of Copenhagen, Denmark) -- (download article) | ||
|
Abstract: At a time of rapid change in the European welfare state, the Danish welfare state experiences a great deal of changes in all major social policy fields. This article investigates the role of social citizenship rights in the welfare state and, in view of that, analyses the development of the welfare state in Denmark. Three models of citizenship rights are identified in the theoretical part of the study, a universal, a performative, and a clientelistic type of social rights. Hence, each policy field, rather than welfare state system, may be classified accordingly, which allows greater sharpness in analyzing welfare state change across time and international borders. In the case of Denmark, it is concluded that the country all in all moves in the direction of more performative social rights, particularly with regard to health care and pension rights. | ||
| Keywords: Denmark, welfare state, typologies of social policies, social rights, historical development, health care, pensions, social assistance. |
Prospective Special Issue Editors and Authors contact:
aspalter@aasw-asia.net, christian@uic.edu.hk, christian.aspalter@gmail.com