After two decades of feminist challenges to mainstream theorising, gender has become a central element of social policy and the welfare state. A new literature has widened the focus of social policy from state and economy to a three-sided discourse encompassing the state, the market and the family. The Handbook on Gender and Social Policy provides a comprehensive introduction to this field with up-to-date accounts of debates and innovative original research by leading international authors. The Handbook covers the key areas of social policy that relate to the inequalities between men and women in the developed and developing world. It presents original research on contemporary issues at national and transnational levels across the central policy terrain of income, employment, care and family policy, including family policy models, same-sex marriage and child protection. It features chapters on key perspectives on gender and policy and six original studies of the state of play in different regions of the world. The Handbook on Gender and Social Policy is an excellent resource for advanced students and postgraduate students of sociology, political science, women?s studies, policy studies and related areas. It will also be of interest for practitioners and scholars of social policy seeking up-to-date coverage of how gender affects the contours of social policy and politics. Contributors include: E. Adamson, C. Arza, D. Balkmar, M. Bernstein, M. Blaxland, M. Brady, D. Brennan, R. Daiger von Gleichen, M. Daly, A.L. Ellingsaeter, V. Esquivel, H. Figueiredo, K.R. Fisher, L. Foster, J. Ginn, S. Harkness, B. Harvey, J. Hearn, B. Hewitt, J. Jenson, T. Knijn, R. Mahon, L. Marg, J. Martinez Franzoni, J. McCoy, S. Meyer, J. Outshoorn, K. Pringle, S. Razavi, E. Reese, J.l. Rubery, M. Seeleib-Kaiser, X. Shang, S. Shaver, S. Staab, C. Valiente, F. Williams, A. Yeatman

After two decades of feminist challenges to mainstream theorising, gender has become a central element of social policy and the welfare state. A new literature has widened the focus of social policy from state and economy to a three-sided discourse encompassing the state, the market and the family. The Handbook on Gender and Social Policy provides a comprehensive introduction to this field with up-to-date accounts of debates and innovative original research by leading international authors. The Handbook covers the key areas of social policy that relate to the inequalities between men and women in the developed and developing world. It presents original research on contemporary issues at national and transnational levels across the central policy terrain of income, employment, care and family policy, including family policy models, same-sex marriage and child protection. It features chapters on key perspectives on gender and policy and six original studies of the state of play in different regions of the world. The Handbook on Gender and Social Policy is an excellent resource for advanced students and postgraduate students of sociology, political science, women?s studies, policy studies and related areas. It will also be of interest for practitioners and scholars of social policy seeking up-to-date coverage of how gender affects the contours of social policy and politics. Contributors include: E. Adamson, C. Arza, D. Balkmar, M. Bernstein, M. Blaxland, M. Brady, D. Brennan, R. Daiger von Gleichen, M. Daly, A.L. Ellingsaeter, V. Esquivel, H. Figueiredo, K.R. Fisher, L. Foster, J. Ginn, S. Harkness, B. Harvey, J. Hearn, B. Hewitt, J. Jenson, T. Knijn, R. Mahon, L. Marg, J. Martinez Franzoni, J. McCoy, S. Meyer, J. Outshoorn, K. Pringle, S. Razavi, E. Reese, J.l. Rubery, M. Seeleib-Kaiser, X. Shang, S. Shaver, S. Staab, C. Valiente, F. Williams, A. Yeatman

First published in 1997, this report examines the classic social policy question of whether pensions should be paid only to those with relatively few other resources, so that scarce funds go to the people who need them most, or whether it is more just, and pensions are more willingly funded, when everyone can expect to get one in their turn. Since the 1980s, the scale of social expenditure has come into question in most advanced industrial nations. The large shar of this expenditure devoted to the support of the aged, amidst growing numbers of old and very old people, has put age pensions at the centre of this discussion. Sheila Shaver examines this classic question in a comparative analysis of income support in six countries, drawing on data from the Luxembourg Income Study and the International Social Survey Programme. The statistical studies are embedded in a discussion of social policy and citizenship; need, poverty and social cohesion; and the structure and restructuring of welfare states.

The 1990s have seen dramatic restructuring of state social provision in the US, the UK, Canada and Australia. This has occurred largely because of the rise of market liberalism, which challenges the role of the state. This important book examines the impact of changes in social policy regimes on gender roles and relations. Structured thematically and systematically comparative, it analyses three key policy areas: labor markets, income maintenance and reproductive rights. Largely driven by issues of equality, it considers the role of the state as a site for gender and sexual politics at a time when primacy is given to the market, developing an argument about social citizenship in the process. Eminent scholars in the field, Julia O'Connor, Ann Orloff and Sheila Shaver make a landmark contribution to debates about social policy and gender relations in this era of economic restructuring and deregulation.

Three leading figures in the field make this important contribution to debates about social policy and gender relations in an era of economic restructuring and market liberalism. Structured thematically and systematically comparative, the book analyzes three key policy areas: labor markets, income maintenance and reproductive rights. It explores the question of whether liberal states should intervene in workplaces or families to guarantee the rights and welfare of all individuals within them. The experiences of Canada, the UK, United States and Australia are the focus of the book.