Comprises 33 papers grouped under five themes: The Nature of social policy; The History of social policy; Social policy and the social services; The Political economy of social policy; and International and future perspectives on social policy.

The Handbook of Social Policy and Development makes a groundbreaking, coherent case for enhancing collaboration between social policy and development. With wide ranging chapters, it discusses a myriad of ways in which this can be done, exploring both academic and practical activities. As the conventional distinction between ‘developed’ and ‘developing’ countries becomes increasingly blurred, this Handbook explores how collaboration between social policy and development is needed to meet global social needs.

This exciting and innovative Handbook provides readers with a comprehensive and globally relevant overview of the instruments, actors and design features of social protection systems, as well as their application and impacts in practice. It is the first book that centres around system building globally, a theme that has gained political importance yet has received relatively little attention in academia.

′Strong social policy is essential for sustainable growth. This book is an extremely useful overview of social policy issue for policy makers and anyone who wants to understand the true roots of successful sustainable development′ - Ian Johnson, Vice President for Sustainable Development, The World Bank ′Throughout the world issues of social development have now taken centre stage. There is no more comprehensive and readable guide to the choices and conflicts of this global drama. This book is essential reading for all students and practitioners of social development - and for every World Bank economist′ - David Piachaud, Professor of Social Policy, London School of Economics This much-needed textbook fulfils a major gap in providing a complete up-to-date guide and introduction to the increasingly important role of social policy in the context of development processes and practice. Across a number of key sectors and areas of social policy concern, the authors accessibly introduce and explain the main conceptual debates, the most recent policy discussions, and provide applied examples to illustrate the latest developments in the social policy and planning field. Central topics covered include: - poverty - rural development - urban development - education - health - social work - social welfare - international development and cooperation. Social Policy for Development is an essential text for all students and practitioners alike seeking a deeper understanding of the issues of poverty, social exclusion and deprivation across social policy and development studies internationally.

Social development over one's lifetime is a complex area that has received consider able attention in the psychological, social-psychological, and sociological literature over the years. Surprisingl~ however, since 1969, when Rand McNally published Goslin's Handbook of Socialization, no comprehensive statement of the field has appeared in book form. Given the impressive data in this area that have been adduced over the last two decades, we trust that our handbook will serve to fill that gap. In this volume we have followed a lifespan perspective, starting with the social interactions that transpire in the earliest development stages and progressing through childhood, adolescence, adulthood, and, finall~ one's senior years. In so doing we cover a variety of issues in depth. The book contains 21 chapters and is divided into five parts: I, Theoretical Perspectives; II, Infants and Toddlers; ill, Children and Adolescents; Iv, Adults; and V, The Elderly. Each of the parts begins with introductory material that reviews the overall issues to be considered. Many individuals have contributed to the final production of this handbook. Foremost are our eminent contributors, who graciously agreed to share with us their expertise. We also thank our administrative and technical staff for their assistance in carrying out the day-to-day tasks necessary to complete such a project. Finall~ we thank Eliot Werner, Executive Editor at Plenum, for his willingness to publish and for his tolerance for the delays inevitable in the development of a large handbook.

Environmental change is central to the global social policy challenges of the twenty-first century. This comprehensive Handbook brings together leading experts from around the world to address the most important questions and issues we face. How should

Dramatic socio-economic transformations over the last two decades have brought social policy and social welfare issues to prominence in many East Asian societies. Since the 1990s and in response to national as well as global pressure, there have been substantial developments and reforms in social policy in the region but the development paths have been uneven. Until recently, comparative analysis of East Asian social policy tends to have focused on the established welfare state of Japan and the emerging welfare regimes of four Tiger Economies. Much of the recent debate indeed preceded Chinas re-emergence onto the world economy. In this context, this Handbook brings China more fully into the contemporary social policy debates in East Asia. Organised around five themes from welfare state developments, to theories and methodologies, to current social policy issues, the Handbook presents original research from leading specialists in the fields, and provides a fresh and updated perspective to the study of social policy. Providing a comparative international approach, this Handbook will appeal to academics, researchers and students at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels working in the fields of social policy, as well as policy makers and practitioners who are interested in social policy lessons from other societies.

James Midgley provides a broad overview of social welfare, outlining key institutions, terminology, historical research, and approaches. He also details reasons for the existence of international social welfare and the challenges that arise from it. The author includes an important section on applied international social welfare that addresses the concerns of practitioners--concerns that have been neglected in much of the literature in the field. An entire section of the book is devoted to issues of social work practice, social developments, the activities of international agencies, and their collaborative efforts. While practical application is an important focus of the book, several chapters deal with key theoretical debates in the field. The author also includes descriptive chapters that provide comprehensive accounts of world social conditions and social welfare institutions.

This Handbook uses methodologies and cases to discover how and when to evaluate social policy, and looks at the possible impacts of evaluation on social policy decisions. The contributors present a detailed analysis on how to conduct social policy evaluation, how to be aware of pitfalls and dilemmas and how to use evidence effectively.

The social development approach seeks to integrate economic and social policies within a dynamic development process in order to achieve social welfare objectives. This first comprehensive textbook on the subject demonstrates that social development offers critically significant insights for the developed as well as the developing world. James Midgley describes the social development approach, traces its origins in developing countries, reviews theoretical issues in the field and analyzes different strategies in social development. By adding the developmental dimension, social development is shown to transcend the dichotomy between the residualist approach, which concentrates on targeting resources to the most needy, and the institutional approach which urges extensive state involvement in welfare.