In a much-anticipated revision, the third edition of this widely used volume continues to track the impact of cultural change on women's roles and the public policies that affect their lives. Women and Public Policy places a broad range of policy issues-from education and health care to economic equity and the criminal justice system-in historical context, discusses the formation and implementation of current policy, and explores public policy silences. In addition to featuring and analyzing new data, this third edition: highlights issues of race, class, age, and ethnicity, showing how they intersect with gender in crucial ways. includes greatly expanded coverage of reproductive issues with a new chapter devoted to the topic, looking comprehensively at contraception and abortion, the international gag rule, RU-486, the morning after pill, later-term abortion developments, and reproductive technologies. showcases recent developments in all policy areas, from the impact of welfare reform on educational opportunities and child support enforcement to a discussion of Medicare and prescription drug coverage.

Women's participation in the United States is shaped by the changing landscape of the country's cultural history. Through an exploration of the political socialization of women, the authors give students a powerful way to understand the gender gap in political attitudes, patterns of women's political participation, and women as members of the political elite. For this new second edition the authors have updated every chapter with new content and data. Greater coverage of the interaction of gender, race, class, ethnicity, and age is integrated throughout and alongside additional material on feminism, Title IX, origins of the gender gap, and more on agents of socialization.