Changing Patterns

Creativity is an essential human drive that nourishes the soul.

Originally published in 1989, this cross-national study investigates the role and pattern of family life in fourteen countries in contemporary Europe. Providing a wealth of information on European families, it is a key source for anyone wishing to understand the changes in the family at that time. The contributors argue that, far from withering away, the family remained a very important social unit which continued to have considerable influence on other social institutions such as the state and the labour market. The central theme is the interrelation between changes in production and working life on one hand, and changes in family life and reproduction on the other. The contributors focus on the pressures and contradictions produced by the division of functions between family and work, and on problems which have arisen as a consequence of the sometimes incompatible and even conflicting demands of the two institutions. They show that the evolution of the nuclear family model in Europe had led to a great diversity of family patterns, and conclude that the family in modern European societies still had a contribution to make which no other institution could provide.

The reform of teacher education has been a focal point of state action in industrial countries since the early 1980s. Given this convergence of educational and governmental activity, the studies presented here are a significant departure from conventional discourse on reform, because they explore the ways that social regulation and political power operate through the processes of educational reform. This book considers the reform of teacher education to be an integral part of the larger system of social regulation that takes place in the arena of schooling. Reforms in teacher education involve complex sets of interactions among and within social institutions. These interactions help shape power relations and patterns of social regulation that operate through state, university, and school interactions. Nevertheless, the patterns that give direction and value to teacher education are not easily discerned in public discussions of educational change. Instead, many of the most important regulatory aspects of teacher education reform are partly obscured by a public discourse that focuses attention on formal responses to socioeconomic events, and that tends to divert critical attention away from the power that is exercised—and the interests that are served—during reform. This volume presents studies of reform in Australia, Finland, Iceland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Although these countries differ in their political and social histories, rates and levels of industrialization, and patterns of educational practice, there is a striking commonality in both the strategies that are employed to reform teacher education, and in the nature of social regulation that is a concomitant of reform.

""A thoughtful assessment of socioeconomic needs and influences, observing the necessity for benefits as well as the lessons of experience offered by various nations""--Library Bookwatch Over the last two decades, aging populations, changing family structures, market forces of globalization, strains of immigration, and political and ideological realignments have joined to create powerful pressures that are reshaping the design and philosophy of social welfare policies. Changing Patterns of Social Protection analyzes emerging patterns of social welfare and the implications of these trends for the future of social protection to vulnerable groups in France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, United Kingdom, and the United States. Examining central policy trends in these countries, contributors explore current reforms of mainline programs: old age pensions, disability and unemployment insurance, family assistance, health care, and social services. The findings highlight how modern dynamics of social protection are manifest through reforms that include diverse social and economic incentives, changing benefit structures, a wide range of work-oriented measures, the resurgence of private activity, and current approaches to targeting benefits. Assessments of the socioeconomic influences that have precipitated these reforms reveal a broad range of common factors as well as country-specific influences such as the clientelistic approach to welfare in Italy, the complexities of reunification in Germany, and the ""Dutch disease"" of explosive claims for disability benefits. Changing Patterns of Social Protection offers insights into the issues raised by these policy reforms and their possible effects. By clarifying alternative policy designs this work affords a fresh perspective on how to think about the changing structure and function of social welfare arrangements in modern society. Neil Gilbert is Chernin Professor of Social Services and Social Welfare at the Un

The past few decades have seen important shifts that have reshaped the global trade landscape. As a share of global output, trade is now at almost three times the level in the early 1950s, in large part driven by the integration of rapidly growing emerging market economies (EMEs). The expansion in trade is mostly accounted for by growth in noncommodity exports, especially of high-technology products such as computers and electronics. It is also characterized by a growing role of global supply chains and an ongoing shift of technology content toward EMEs. These developments in global trade have been associated with growing trade interconnectedness and carry important implications for trade patterns, in particular in response to relative price changes. The aim of this paper is to outline the factors underlying these changes and analyze their implications for the outlook for global trade patterns.

Changing Patterns of Global Trade outlines the factors underlying important shifts in global trade that have occurred in recent decades. The emergence of global supply chains and their increasing role in trade patterns allowed emerging market economies to boost their inputs in high-technology exports and is associated with increased trade interconnectedness.The analysis points to one important trend taking place over the last decade: the emergence of China as a major systemically important trading hub, reflecting not only the size of trade but also the increase in number of its significant trading partners.

State legislatures have changed more than perhaps any other American political institution in the last two decades, argue Gary F. Moncrief and Joel A. Thompson. This volume examines those changes and explores their impact on the individual legislator. The editors have assembled a group of leading state legislative scholars, who address changes in the composition of the legislature; entry and exit issues; campaign financing; elections; midsession vacancies; committee systems; and legislative leadership. Changing Patterns in State Legislative Careers covers a timely topic, given the recent movement in a number of states to limit legislative terms. It will be of interest to those who study legislative behavior, American political institutions, organizational change, and elections.