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Informationen zum Autor Daniel Beland is Professor of Public Policy and Sociology at the University of Saskatchewan. Klappentext From housing, pensions and family benefits, to health care, unemployment insurance and social assistance, the welfare state is a key aspect of our lives. But social programs are contested political realities that we can't hope to understand without locating them within the "big picture." This book provides a concise political and sociological introduction to social policy, helping readers to grasp the nature of social programs and the political struggles surrounding them. It takes a broad comparative and historical viewpoint on the United States, using an international perspective to contextualize American social policy within the developed world. Provocative and engaging, it offers insight into a wide range of social policy issues such as: welfare regimes, welfare state development, the politics of retrenchment and restructuring; the relationship between social programs and various forms of inequality; changing family and economic relations; the role of private social benefits; the potential impact of globalization; and debates about the future of the welfare state. What is Social Policy? will be stimulating reading for upper-level students of sociology, political science, public policy, and social work. Zusammenfassung * Provides a concise political and sociological introduction to social policy. * Helps readers to grasp the nature of social programs and the political struggles surrounding them. * Takes a broad comparative and historical viewpoint of social policy in the developed world. Inhaltsverzeichnis List of Tables vi Preface & Acknowledgements vii Introduction 1 1 Social Policy and the Welfare State 9 2 The United States in International Context 44 3 Welfare State Development 66 4 Retrenchment and Restructuring 93 5 Looking Challenges 120 Conclusion 151 Notes 157 References 161 ...
