Contractualism and Citizenship is a special issue (Volume 18 No 2) of the journal Law in Context. The contents are listed below. You can read the abstract for each chapter by clicking on its title.You can purchase a single copy of this issue through this page, or subscribe to the journal from the journal page.

Proposes a new model of contractualism based on an interpersonal, deliberative conception of practical reason which answers the twin demands of moral accuracy and explanatory adequacy.

Contractualism has a venerable history and considerable appeal. Yet as an account of the foundations or ultimate grounds of morality it has been thought by many philosophers to be subject to fatal objections. In this book Nicholas Southwood argues otherwise. Beginning by detailing and diagnosing the shortcomings of the existing "Hobbesian" and "Kantian" models of contractualism, he then proposes a novel "deliberative" model, based on an interpersonal, deliberative conception of practical reason. He argues that the deliberative model of contractualism represents an attractive alternative to its more familiar rivals and that it has the resources to offer a more compelling account of morality's foundations, one that does justice to the twin demands of moral accuracy and explanatory adequacy.

The ’Golden Age' of the welfare state in Europe was characterised by a strengthening of social rights as citizens became increasingly protected through the collective provision of income security and social services. The oil crisis, inflation and high unemployment of the 1970s largely saw the end of welfare expansion with critical voices claiming the welfare state had created an unbalanced focus on the social rights of individuals, above their responsibilities as citizens. During the 1980s many western countries developed contractual modes of thinking and regulation within welfare policy. Contractualism has proved a significant organising principle for public reforms in general, and for social policy reforms in particular as it embraces both a way of justifying certain welfare policies and of constructing specific socio-legal policy instruments. Engaging with both the critique of the welfare state and the subsequent policy responses, expert contributors in this book examine contractualism as a discourse, comprising principles and justifying ideas, and as a legal and social practice. Covering the international debate on conditionality they discuss European experiences with active social citizenship ideas and contractualism providing individual case studies and comparisons from a wide range of European countries.

War by Agreement presents a new theory on the ethics of war. It shows that wars can be morally justified at both the ad bellum level (the political decision to go to war) and the in bello level (its actual conduct by the military)by accepting a contractarian account of the rules governing war. According to this account, the rules of war are anchored in a mutually beneficial and fair agreement between the relevant players - the purpose of which is to promote peace and to reduce the horrors of war. The book relies on the long social contract tradition and illustrates its fruitfulness in understanding and developing the morality and the law of war.

"Explores the concept of the social contract and how it shapes citizenship. Argues that the modern social contract is an account of the ethical and cultural conditions upon which modern citizenship depends"--Provided by publisher.

The ’Golden Age' of the welfare state in Europe was characterised by a strengthening of social rights as citizens became increasingly protected through the collective provision of income security and social services. The oil crisis, inflation and high unemployment of the 1970s largely saw the end of welfare expansion with critical voices claiming the welfare state had created an unbalanced focus on the social rights of individuals, above their responsibilities as citizens. During the 1980s many western countries developed contractual modes of thinking and regulation within welfare policy. Contractualism has proved a significant organising principle for public reforms in general, and for social policy reforms in particular as it embraces both a way of justifying certain welfare policies and of constructing specific socio-legal policy instruments. Engaging with both the critique of the welfare state and the subsequent policy responses, expert contributors in this book examine contractualism as a discourse, comprising principles and justifying ideas, and as a legal and social practice. Covering the international debate on conditionality they discuss European experiences with active social citizenship ideas and contractualism providing individual case studies and comparisons from a wide range of European countries.

The greening of citizenship, the state and ideology has created both opportunities and bottlenecks for progressive political movements. Scerri argues that these are pursuing justice by making holistic demands for: fair distribution and status recognition, adequate representation and effective participation.

Beaudry shows how the social contract fails to take account of the moral status of people with severe intellectual disabilities.

From Rights to Management presents a powerful and thoroughly documented new thesis about the transformation of the concept of work during the period 1970-2000. The authors remind us of what we now easily forget: that, not so long ago, the right of an unemployed person to social security benefits and services was not questioned. Over the years, this right has been gradually replaced by a two-way bargain with the state. And in the place of this old 'social citizenship', there has arisen a government-corporate alliance that manages job seekers by contract. The shift from the needs of the person to the demands of business is complete. Those tempted to argue with this provocative thesis will find a formidable array of evidence assembled in this well-researched book. Focusing primarily on Australia--where the marketisation of welfare and employment services has gone farther than in any other country--Professors Carney and Ramia draw not only on the recent literature of several relevant disciplines, but also on in-depth interviews with thirty unemployed people from a wide range of backgrounds and situations. By assessing the inner workings and impacts of public management transformations on the lives of those most deeply affected, the authors provide a keen understanding of how the management theories, initiatives, and pretexts--economic and legal--work out in actuality. The interdisciplinary discussion incorporates debates about civil society, social capital, and other germane topics of great concern to scholars, policymakers, and administrators in this era of globalisation. A deep analysis of the new policy network of social services examines the types of contracts that govern the various parts of the system. The analysis concludes with a proposed new framework that reinstalls citizenship as the basis for welfare policy, but in a way that places real obligations and accountability on government and does not leave disadvantaged persons to fight a losing battle. No lawyer, professional, academic, or official in the social policy environment can afford to ignore this challenging work.