This timely and compelling ethnography examines the impact of welfare reform on women seeking to escape domestic violence. DC na-Ain Davis profiles twenty-two women, thirteen of whom are Black, living in a battered women's shelter in a small city in upstate New York. She explores the contradictions between welfare reform's supposed success in moving women off of public assistance and toward economic self-sufficiency and the consequences welfare reform policy has presented for Black women fleeing domestic violence. Focusing on the intersection of poverty, violence, and race, she demonstrates the differential treatment that Black and White women face in their entanglements with the welfare bureaucracy by linking those entanglements to the larger political economy of a small city, neoliberal social policies, and racialized ideas about Black women as workers and mothers.

Examines the consequences of welfare reform for black women fleeing domestic violence.

An evaluation of the most enduring privatisation of the Thatcher era &#8230;</i><br><p>Written in an accessible style, this is a key reference for students and researchers in housing and planning; geography; and social policy.<br><p>The book analyses the operation and impact of the right to buy policy (RTB). It includes a critique of the Housing Act and the 2001 Housing (Scotland) Act. The enactment of these changes under a Labour government affirms the continuance of the RTB. The authors take stock of its profound effect on housing policy, reversing the growth in social housing developed over the twentieth century, transforming the nation's tenure structure and revolutionising the UK housing system. <br><p>The Right to Buy: analysis and evaluation of a housing policy begins with an examination of the policy background to the establishment of the RTB and the main features of the legislation. This is followed by chapters that review its take-up and the pattern of sales and their impact on social housing; a chapter examining the financial aspects of the RTB from the viewpoints of tenants, local authorities and central government; one looking at the impact of the RTB via subsequent re-sales on the open market and on the private rented sector; and a chapter drawing on the information already reviewed to consider the potential of the RTB to create sustainable and diverse communities. In the final chapters the international experience of parallel policies are considered and the future take-up of the RTB is assessed in the light of recent reforms together with alternatives.

In the present volume Cathal O'Connel looks at the retreat of the public in the area of housing. The changing ownership structures actually affect largely the entire modes of living together societally and socially -- accommodation and settlement structures are reconstructed under a certain aegis of privatised options -- of which an enforced opting-out is one of the forms of the de-civilising role of the 'regulated de-regulation', by which the state is backing out public responsibility, creating space for a new 'invisible hand', though this is highly visible in form of multinational capital. The same shift of the 'individualisation of the social' is pertinent in third level education which Deirdre Ryan and Peter Herrmann are investigating. In the EU, the current debate on what is called 'Services of General Interests' the focus is on access and quality. Ryan/Herrmann clarify in a distinguished way that in this educational context economy matters not only in regard of accessibility, but as well in quality not least in the meaning of 'trimming substance'. What in these cases is more linked to individual policy areas, radiating and affecting indirectly the entire societal and social fabric, is mirrored and coined by the wider mechanisms of policy making and actually politics. Catherine Forde points on respective mechanisms in local government, making clear that formal restructuration actually does not open 'closed systems'; instead they create a kind of black whole -- claims of opening spaces for participation degenerate into unlevelled playgrounds. Problems of balancing such 'open spaces' between the formal openness and the actually available 'real living space' are topical in Rosie Meade's contribution. It is getting obvious that responsibility is both a question of rights and personal commitment. Joe Finnerty in his contribution points on the most important fact, that the role of scientific research and the measurement of social and societal processes is as well not least a matter of commitment -- it has to be guaranteed and clarified and 'objective reason' is not concerned with expelling subjective factors and artificially reducing complexity by constructing arithmetical constraints; instead, the development of indicator-oriented methods has to sublate and supersede complexity.

In this collective biography, Rhonda Y. Williams takes us behind, and beyond, politically expedient labels to provide an incisive and intimate portrait of poor black women in urban America. Drawing on dozens of interviews, Williams challenges the notion that low-income housing was a resounding failure that doomed three consecutive generations of post-war Americans to entrenched poverty. Instead, she recovers a history of grass-roots activism, of political awakening, and of class mobility, all facilitated by the creation of affordable public housing. The stereotyping of black women, especially mothers, has obscured a complicated and nuanced reality too often warped by the political agendas of both the left and the right, and has prevented an accurate understanding of the successes and failures of government anti-poverty policy.

With the enactment of the Family Support Act of 1988, every state is now required to implement a workfare program. Workfare is designed to supplement and ultimately replace welfare with job training programs. Nathan examines the roles of job training, job placement, education, and child care services as a route to transforming welfare payment programs into systems that stress jobs and services for welfare families.

At the outset of his second term, President Bush's proposal to partially privatize Social Security has touched off a debate of enormous proportion. Disentangling the rhetoric and hyperbole from fact is essential for anyone trying to evaluate the potential merits or pitfalls of the plan. Leonard and Mark Santow-a father-and-son team who integrate two different political viewpoints (fiscally conservative and socially liberal, respectively)-offer specific recommendations for improving Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid in socially responsible ways that relieve some of the stress on the middle class and promote upward mobility. Explaining sophisticated economic concepts in layman's terms, the Santows expose myths about how entitlement programs actually work, arguing, for example, that while the financial state of Social Security gets most of the press, Medicare and Medicaid are in much more serious trouble. They integrate conservative and liberal viewponts to propose a package of reforms that includes both tax cuts and increases and an overhaul of the government's economic forecasting system. Synthesizing mountains of data and explaining sophisticated economic concepts in layman's terms, the Santows expose myths about how entitlement programs actually work, arguing, for example, that while the financial state of Social Security gets most of the press, Medicare and Medicaid are in much more serious trouble. Moreover, they are highly critical of privatization plans, demonstrating that similar programs have failed in other countries and that such plans are programs are neither fiscally nor socially sound. If the American people value the common commitments that these programs embody, we will need to see them as a package, and fund them accordingly. In response to this challenge, the Santows integrate conservative and liberal viewpoints to propose a package of reforms that includes both tax cuts and increases and an overhaul of the government's economic forecasting system. Featuring a timeline of key events since Franklin Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act in 1935 and an appendix of data tables, the authors offer a primer for concerned citizens, policymakers, educators, students, and finance professionals-anyone with a stake in designing a system that pays for these essential programs in an equitable manner and contributes to our collective prosperity. Featuring a timeline of key events since Franklin Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act in 1935 and an appendix of data tables, the authors offer a primer for concerned citizens, policymakers, educators, students, and finance professionals-anyone with a stake in designing a system that pays for these essential programs in an equitable manner and contributes to our collective prosperity.

Everyone agrees that Social Security's future is in jeopardy--or is it? Long viewed as the "third rail" of American politics, Social Security is a major political issue, and many experts and politicians would like to restructure this program. But too few of us, young and elderly alike, really understand the origins and workings of this popular program. Daniel Beland answers the call for objective information with a short history that provides context and clarity for the current debates.

Covering six decades through the beginning of the current century, Beland chronicles how Social Security and the controversy surrounding its solvency have evolved, offering along the way new insights into its past, present, and future. His balanced perspective will help readers understand and evaluate partisan arguments on both sides of the issue.

Beland reconstructs the political history of Social Security, describes the impact of subsequent amendments to the original act, and offers comparative insights from other countries that can improve our understanding of the debate. He focuses particularly on the relationship between ideas and institutions in policymaking to examine the impact of gender and race on Social Security politics; and he shows that gender has had a more direct impact on Social Security development--especially regarding spousal benefits--and is more important in understanding the politics of reform than has often been understood.

In assessing how Social Security has been sold to the public, Beland reveals how the 1935 act resulted in part from its link with the traditional American belief in the values associated with hard work and self-reliance, while surreptitiously providing some economic security for the impoverished. Today's privatizers argue for changing from a guaranteed benefit to a defined contribution program, seeking to reclaim from liberals the rhetoric about American values in order to alter the very nature of Social Security--effectually turning discourse centered on personal and collective gain against the institutional legacy of the New Deal.

Succinct and illuminating, Beland's work provides concerned citizens with a thoughtful exploration of how the politics of Social Security evolved, while offering scholars new theoretical insights about the welfare state and the role of ideas and institutions in policymaking."

Combining powerful personal stories with astute analysis and recommendations, "Always on Call" reveals the hidden struggles of the more than 25 million family caregivers in the United States. While family members have always provided care for one another, recent changes in health care have placed tremendous new responsibilities on them--responsibilities that, only a decade ago, were a routine part of hospital care. The prevalence of chronic rather than acute illness, trends toward shorter hospital stays, increased outpatient care, and limited insurance benefits for in-home care now leave family caregiving as the only option for many Americans.

This book, first published in 2000 and now substantially updated, presents an intimate look at the world of family caregiving. The compelling narratives by caregivers capture the intensity of the caregiving experience, while chapters by noted health care professionals, many of whom speak of their own experiences, analyze the impact of caregiving, urge more professional advocacy on behalf of caregivers, and offer insightful suggestions for building partnerships for change and fostering improvement. This second edition includes:
- caregiving as a workplace dilemma
- the added burdens of end-of-life caregiving
- clinician-family conflicts (and new approaches for resolving them)
- new federal and state policy initiatives
- resources for families and professionals
- a new section on innovative caregiving programs
- new chapter on the financial impact of caregiving

Designed for family caregivers, health professionals, administrators, pastoral care providers, policymakers, patient and caregiver advocates, and human resource professionals, "Always on Call" is an essential book for understanding the current realities of family caregiving. Equally important, it builds a compelling case for change.

A United Hospital Fund Book

A large group of people maintains that Social Security

Examines the tragic crime of familicide, the murder suicide of children and a parent in the context of a dispute over custody or access. The trauma of this offence reverberates through the families, communities and across generations, causing mental and physical illness and social dysfunction.

Combining powerful personal stories with astute analysis and recommendations, "Always on Call" reveals the hidden struggles of the more than 25 million family caregivers in the United States. While family members have always provided care for one another, recent changes in health care have placed tremendous new responsibilities on them--responsibilities that, only a decade ago, were a routine part of hospital care. The prevalence of chronic rather than acute illness, trends toward shorter hospital stays, increased outpatient care, and limited insurance benefits for in-home care now leave family caregiving as the only option for many Americans.

This book, first published in 2000 and now substantially updated, presents an intimate look at the world of family caregiving. The compelling narratives by caregivers capture the intensity of the caregiving experience, while chapters by noted health care professionals, many of whom speak of their own experiences, analyze the impact of caregiving, urge more professional advocacy on behalf of caregivers, and offer insightful suggestions for building partnerships for change and fostering improvement. This second edition includes:
- caregiving as a workplace dilemma
- the added burdens of end-of-life caregiving
- clinician-family conflicts (and new approaches for resolving them)
- new federal and state policy initiatives
- resources for families and professionals
- a new section on innovative caregiving programs
- new chapter on the financial impact of caregiving

Designed for family caregivers, health professionals, administrators, pastoral care providers, policymakers, patient and caregiver advocates, and human resource professionals, "Always on Call" is an essential book for understanding the current realities of family caregiving. Equally important, it builds a compelling case for change.

A United Hospital Fund Book

Empirical analysis of two decades of pioneering pension and social security reform in Latin America and the Caribbean shows that much has been achieved, but that critical challenges remain. In tackling this unfinished agenda, a great deal can be learned from the reform experience of countries in the region. Keeping the Promise, produced by the chief economist's office in the Latin America and Caribbean Region at the World Bank, evaluates policy reforms in 12 countries, points to successes and shortcomings, and proposes priorities and options for future reform. ""Keeping the Promise provides a timely assessment of two decades of pension reform experience-with a wealth of new data, and empirical evaluation of reformed social security systems. Many economists and policymakers will not be persuaded by some of the main conclusions and recommendations-such as the supposed failure to increase coverage, and the call for strengthening a pay-as-you-go defined-benefit scheme for poverty prevention-but they will welcome the book's critical appraisal. This is required reading for pension specialists and policymakers in Latin America and beyond.""-Klaus Schmidt-Hebbel, Chief of Economic Research, Central Bank of Chile ""A heavyweight analysis of the Latin American pension revolution which raises important questions about the optimal scale of compulsory saving when redesigning pension systems. "" -Paul Wallace, The Economist

In the last quarter of the twentieth century, the global political economy has undergone a profound transformation. Democracy has swept the globe, and both rich and developing nations must compete in an increasingly integrated world economy.
How are social welfare policies being affected by this wave of economic globalization? Leading researchers explore the complex question in this new comparative study. Shifting their focus from the more commonly studied, established welfare states of northwestern Europe, the authors of "Globalization and the Future of the Welfare State" examine policy development in the middle-income countries of southern and eastern Europe, Latin America, Russia, and East Asia.
Previous investigations into the effects of globalization on welfare states have generally come to one of two conclusions. The first is that a global economy undermines existing welfare states and obstructs new developments in social policy, as generous provisions place a burden on a nation's resources and its ability to compete in the international marketplace. In contrast, the second builds on the finding that economic openness is positively correlated with greater social spending, which suggests that globalization and welfare states can be mutually reinforcing.
Here the authors find that globalization and the success of the welfare state are by no means as incompatible as the first view implies. The developing countries analyzed demonstrate that although there is great variability across countries and regions, domestic political processes and institutions play key roles in managing the disruptions wrought by globalization.

What are the objectives of social security and social assistance provisions? How can we establish whether these provisions are effective? How do countries differ in the design and effectiveness of their social security systems? This introductory textbook provides a foundation for the systematic study of social security and means-tested social assistance. The book is structured around a model of policy evaluation, which focuses attention on the multiple objectives and outcomes of social security and provides the basis for a multi-disciplinary approach. It progresses from an examination of the varied objectives of social security, via a consideration of key implementation issues, to the establishment of measures of effectiveness and efficiency. Throughout the text theoretical issues are illustrated with reference to the experiences of six countries: the United Kingdom, the USA, Australia, Germany, Sweden and South Korea, to provide an international comparative framework. This is a key textbook for students of social and public policy and economics and essential reading for anyone interested in social security, social welfare and the welfare state.

Recommendations for infant and toddler care and development based on current brain research and its implications How much do children's early experiences affect their cognitive and social development? How important is the parent's role in child development? Is it possible to ameliorate or reverse the consequences of early developmental deficits? This vitally important book draws on the latest research from the social sciences and studies on the brain to answer these questions and to explore what they mean for social policy and child and family development. The authors affirm that sound social policy providing for safe and appropriate early care, education, health care, and parent support is critical not only for the optimal development of children, but also for strengthening families, communities, and the nation as a whole. Offering a wealth of advice and recommendations, they explain: * the benefits of family leave, child care, and home visitation programs; * the damage that child abuse inflicts; * the vital importance of nutrition (and breast feeding) for pregnant women and young children; * the adverse effects that occur in misguided efforts to disseminate research too early; * and more. Written by experts in the field of early child development, care, and education, the book is essential reading for parents and policymakers alike.

Population ageing has fuelled interest in pensions and intergenerational equity, leading to privatization of pensions. Yet the gender implications of such policies and the connections between the gender contract and the generational contract remain unexplored. Women, Work and Pensions examines how women's paid and unpaid work, interacting with the gendered pension systems of six liberal welfare states - Britain, the US, Canada, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand - contributes to female poverty in later life. By comparing how these welfare states deal with women's employment, family roles and pension entitlement, the nature of the residual welfare model is better understood. Changes over the past three decades in the gender contract and in women's employment suggest that family caring may have less impact on women's pensions in the future. Yet pension reforms which diminish the effectiveness of women-friendly features in state pensions through cuts and privatization point in the opposite direction. This issue, and how the pension penalties of caring vary with women's class, ethnicity and birth cohort, are major themes of the book.

The beginning of the twentieth century witnessed a remarkable growth of corporate welfare programs in American industry. By the mid-1920s, 80 percent of the nation's largest companies--firms including DuPont, International Harvester, and Metropolitan Life Insurance--engaged in some form of welfare work. Programs were implemented to achieve goals that ranged from improving basic workplace conditions, to providing educational, recreational, and social opportunities for workers and their families, to establishing savings and insurance plans. Employing the critical lens of gender analysis, Nikki Mandell offers an innovative perspective on the development of corporate welfare. She argues that its advocates sought to build a new relationship between labor and management by recasting the modern corporation as a Victorian family. Employers assumed the authoritative position of fathers, assigned their employees the subordinate role of children, and hired male and female welfare managers to act as ""corporate mothers"" charged with creating a harmonious household. But internal conflict and external pressures weakened the corporate welfare system, and it eventually gave way to a system of personnel management and employee representation. With the abandonment of the familial model, the form of corporate welfare changed; but, as Mandell demonstrates, its content left an enduring legacy for modern industrial relations. |Mandell examines the growth of corporate welfare programs around the turn of the 20th century. She argues that businessmen hoped such programs would transform conflict-ridden relations between management and labor into a harmonious partnership modeled after the Victorian family.

Abram Bergson has been making significant contributions to economic theory since the 1930s, and this selection of fifteen of his most influential essays exhibits in large part the breadth of his range. The book's primary focus, however, is on those aspects of economic theory to which he has given sustained attention over the whole course of his career: welfare and socialist economics.Part I, Social Welfare and the Economic Optimum, presents the author's seminal early article on the concept of social welfare and two additional essays on the relation of social choice theory to welfare economics and on the import of taste differences for optimal income distribution.In Part II, Problems of Measurement, the critique of Frisch's methods of marginal utility measurement that has become a classic is followed by three essays on consumer's surplus analysis, including the frequently cited paper on monopoly welfare losses. A final paper elaborates for factor productivity calculation the index number theory that was developed by Moorsteen and the author for output measurement.In Part III, Public Enterprise and Socialist Economics, two surveys of the theory of socialist economics that are standard references in the field are followed by an essay on the politics of socialist efficiency and by two studies of public enterprise, one on optimal pricing and the other on managerial riskbearing.Finally, Part IV, Prices, Income, and Employment, consists of two papers that represent an early effort to integrate macro- and microeconomics, a matter that has since become of wide interest.Abram Bergson has taught at Harvard University since 1956; he is now George F. Baker Professor of Economics.

This book is a timely assessment of 20 years of progress in the field of housing economics and its application to policy and practice. Two decades on from the publication of Duncan Maclennan's influential "Housing Economics, "16 leading housing experts - both academics and policy makers from across the world - now honour Maclennan's contributions.

The chapters here present a contemporary survey of key issues in housing, from urban housing markets and sub-market modelling, to the economics of social housing, the basis for housing planning, economic analysis of neighbourhoods, and the connections between academic work and policy development.

For students, researchers and practitioners in housing, urban economics and social policy, "Housing Economics and Public Policy"

. provides up to date and comprehensive reviews of major areas of the housing economics literature

. sheds light on the economic, social and spatial processes that affect housing

. includes discussion of major areas of cutting edge housing economics research and identifies continuing gaps

. presents a synthesis of housing economics research on both sides of the Atlantic

. assesses the impact of theory on policy and practice

Mediating Divorce: A Step-by-Step Manual is written for family law attorneys and therapists who need a comprehensive resource for facilitating the divorce mediation process.

Written by Marilyn S. McKnight and Stephen K. Erickson, two widely known pioneers in the field of divorce mediation, this useful guide will show how to implement the techniques needed to be an effective divorce mediator.

It includes helpful information for understanding and working through the emotions experienced by people going through a divorce.

This comprehensive Medicare manual will bridge the gap between confusing Medicare rules and the real world. For the 39 million people already on Medicare, it contains an overview of what Medicare covers, and what it does not (a relatively short list), and explains when to pay bills and when NOT to.

This is one of two volumes devoted to pension reform that are appearing as part of a series of studies of social security issues prepared by the ILO. The two pension volumes examine approaches to reform taken by four advanced EU-applicant countries, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia.

This is one of two volumes devoted to pension reform that are appearing as part of a series of studies of social security issues prepared by the ILO. The two pension volumes examine approaches to reform taken by four advanced EU-applicant countries, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia.

High-rise public housing developments were signature features of the post-World War II city. A hopeful experiment in providing temporary, inexpensive housing for all Americans, the "projects" soon became synonymous with the black urban poor, with isolation and overcrowding, with drugs, gang violence, and neglect. As the wrecking ball brings down some of these concrete monoliths, Sudhir Venkatesh seeks to reexamine public housing from the inside out, and to salvage its troubled legacy. Based on nearly a decade of fieldwork in Chicago's Robert Taylor Homes, "American Project" is the first comprehensive story of daily life in an American public housing complex. Venkatesh draws on his relationships with tenants, gang members, police officers, and local organizations to offer an intimate portrait of an inner-city community that journalists and the public have only viewed from a distance. Challenging the conventional notion of public housing as a failure, this startling book re-creates tenants' thirty-year effort to build a safe and secure neighborhood: their political battles for services from an indifferent city bureaucracy, their daily confrontation with entrenched poverty, their painful decisions about whether to work with or against the street gangs whose drug dealing both sustained and imperiled their lives. "American Project" explores the fundamental question of what makes a community viable. In his chronicle of tenants' political and personal struggles to create a decent place to live, Venkatesh brings us to the heart of the matter.