Understanding Global Social Policy

Building on the successes of Understanding Global Social Policy (Yeates ed. 2008) and its companion text, the Global Social Policy Reader (Yeates and Holden ed. 2009), the second edition of this leading textbook in social policy identifies and reviews the key issues, debates and priorities for action in global social policy as a field of academic study and research and as a field of political practice and action. All first edition chapters have been systematically revised and updated to reflect major developments in the fast-paced area of global social policy making over the past five years, and include new material on the Millennium Development Goals, the Social Protection Floor and the ‘greening’ of global social policy. This much-needed second edition includes new chapters on global poverty and inequality, social protection, criminal justice and education. Written by an international team of leading social policy analysts , Understanding Global Social Policy is the leading textbook in the field and provides a comprehensive and accessible overview of international actors and social policy formation in global context. It is essential reading for undergraduate and postgraduate students, researchers, policy makers and practitioners seeking to identify key issues in contemporary social policy and locate them within a global framework of analysis and action.

`This primer on the global politics of social policy ... is essential reading for students as well as others seriously interested in improving the human condition. Nuanced and critical, Deacon′s book offers a much needed and constructive guide to the complex supra-national debates over rights, regulation and redistribution impinging on social welfare all over the world′ - Jomo K.S., United Nations Assistant, Secretary-General for Economic Development `This book is very timely and addresses many issues that are en vogue at the moment. It relates social policy studies to other fields such as global governance and development studies and thus opens up new discussions in the subject area′ - Dr Antje Vetterlein, University of Oxford Global Social Policy and Governance offers an authoritative understanding of the way social policies at national and supra-national level are shaped in the context of globalisation. The book: " evaluates national social policies advanced by international organisations. " examines policies addressing global social redistribution, regulation and rights. " highlights the roles of global actors, including INGOs, consultants, think tanks, task forces and global policy advocacy coalitions. " explores the political obstacles to reforms in global social governance, " outlines the growing importance of global social movements. " presents arguments for more effective global and regional social policies. " is illustrated by case studies, further reading sections and a glossary. Global Social Policy and Governance will be an essential text for students of social policy, development studies and international relations. It will also be invaluable reading for those shaping social policies in international organisations and those in social movements seeking to influence them. Bob Deacon is Professor of International Social Policy at the University of Sheffield.

With a contemporary overview of global social policy formation, the third edition of this leading textbook identifies key issues, debates and priorities for action in social policy across the Global South and North. Accessible and lively, it incorporates seven new chapters covering theory, social justice, climate, migration, gender, young people and water, energy and food. The original chapters have also been fully updated to reflect major developments in the fast-changing world of global social policy. Key features include: • overview and summary boxes to bookend each chapter; • questions for discussion and follow-up activities; • further reading and resources. Exploring what it means to locate human welfare within a global framework of social policy analysis and action, this textbook offers a perfect guide for curious students.

This volume explores the case for and the prospects of the development of world-regional social policies as integral elements of a pluralistic, equitable and effective system of global governance. Focusing on transnational regionalism, this book examines the trajectory and crossing over of the three strands of scholarly analysis within the past decade which have given rise to this volume: the perceived negative impact of neo-liberal globalisation upon national social policy; the need for but the difficulty of securing reforms in the institutions of global social governance; and the increasing salience of the world-regional level of governance in handling cross-border issues. The authors develop an intellectual and research agenda that will also inform the political development of an international programme concerned with the social policy dimensions of regional governance. Combining the perspectives and collective expertise of a team of international scholars and activists, the book features: Theoretical and policy cases for a focus on regionalism and social policy A mapping and analysis of social policy dimensions of regional integration processes and formations in four continents An assessment of the regional dimensions of global agencies, in particular of the UN (ILO, WHO, UNESCO, UNDP) including the approach to regional social policy of the UN Regional Economic Commissions and Development Banks An articulation of a multi-levelled conceptualisation of global social governance within which regional associations of countries plays a significant part. The book will be of interest to students and scholars of social policy, development studies, international relations and political science, especially those focused on the public policy dimensions of globalisation, regionalisation and international development.

Discussing how to use public policy to improve the quality of life for those at the bottom of the social hierarchy, this text makes the case for policy that expands employment and facilitates jobs, finances education and economic and cultural integration, rewards merit, and encourages voting and political participation. Political scientists from around the world measure the effect of democratization, religion, ethnicity, race, and mass media on internal conflict during the initial post-Cold War period, in Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin and North America. Some topics include the role of mass communication on Egyptian family planning, Russian nationalism, and the Guatemalan peace process.

This bold new textbook represents a significant step forward in social policy teaching by combining comparative and global perspectives. Introducing readers to a wide spread of international challenges and issues, the book shows how insights into policy can be generated using a comparative and multidisciplinary approach. Global in its canvas and analytical in its method, the book: • explores the economic, social and political contexts of social policy; • examines in detail its institutions and fields of practice; • illustrates the field’s main ideas, themes and practices, drawing on a rich international literature and using pertinent and thought-provoking examples. Authored by two highly respected and experienced academics, this book demonstrates the rewards of studying social policy from an international perspective by avoiding the constraints of a single-nation focus. Clear, authoritative and wide-ranging, it will be essential reading for students of social sciences taking courses covering social policy, social welfare and comparative policy analysis.

Bringing together top scholars in the field, Universality and Social Policy in Canada provides an overview of the universality principle in social welfare. The contributors survey the many contested meanings of universality in relation to specific social programs, the field of social policy, and the modern welfare state. The book argues that while universality is a core value undergirding certain areas of state intervention--most notably health care and education--the contributory principle of social insurance and the selectivity principle of income assistance are also highly significant precepts in practice.

As neoliberalism begins to reach its limits, and the new landscape of social and public policy that it has left in its wake becomes clearer, there is a great need to define and explain the new roles that social policy, non-governmental organizations, and citizens are taking on. In this book, internationally renowned contributors provide a sustained analysis of this new landscape, reframing social and public policy and bringing in the latest thinking on social investment and inclusive growth on a global scale. Scholars and practitioners working in development, human geography, politics, and international political economy will all need this book as they look at what's to come.