Reflections from the conference “Turkey debates its social policies”: A rights-based turn in social policy making in Turkey?

Background: Allusions to the uniqueness and value of childhood abound in academic, lay, and policy discourse. However, little clarity exists on the values that guide child health and social policy-making. We review extant academic literature on the normative dimensions of child health and social policy to provide foundations for the development of child-focused public policies. Methods: We conducted a critical interpretive synthesis of academic literature on the normative dimensions of child health and social policy-making. We employed a social constructivist lens to interpret emergent themes. Political theory on the social construction of target populations served as a bridge between sociologies of childhood and public policy analysis. Results: Our database searches returned 14,658 unique articles; full text review yielded 72 relevant articles. Purposive sampling of relevant literature complemented our electronic searches, adding 51 original articles, for a total of 123 articles. Our analysis of the literature reveals three central themes: potential, rights, and risk. These themes retain relevance in diverse policy domains. A core set of foundational concepts also cuts across disciplines: well-being, participation, and best interests of the child inform debate on the moral and legal dimensions of a gamut of child social policies. Finally, a meta-theme of embedding encompasses the pervasive issue of a child’s place, in the family and in society, which is at the heart of much social theory and applied analysis on children and childhood. Conclusions: Foundational understanding of the moral language and dominant policy frames applied to children can enrich analyses of social policies for children. Most societies paint children as potent, vulnerable, entitled, and embedded. It is the admixture of these elements in particular policy spheres, across distinct places and times, that often determines the form of a given policy and societal reactions to it. Subsequent work in this area will need to detail the degree and impact of variance in the values mix attached to children across sociocultural contexts and investigate tensions between what are and what ought to be the values that guide social policy development for children.

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Coalition Government in Northern Ireland: Social Policy and the Lowest Common Denominator Thesis

Social Policy and Society ◽

10.1017/s1474746411000376 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 15-25 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Ann Marie Gray ◽

Derek Birrell

Keyword(s):

Social Policy ◽

Northern Ireland ◽

Policy Process ◽

Policy Making ◽

Policy Formulation ◽

Coalition Government ◽

Common Denominator ◽

Social Policies ◽

Complex Approach ◽

The Government

In analysing governance and social policy in Northern Ireland in the period of devolution 1999–2002 Eithne McLaughlin described and predicted the dominance of a lowest common denominator approach to the formulation of social policies. This paper examines the period of restored devolution 2007–11 using this thesis. It identifies the trends in the development of social policies after 2007 and examines social policy-making by the government under five categories. Having established the reasons for this complex approach to social policy formulation, consideration is also given to the outcomes of the policy process.

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From Corporatism to Partisan Politics: Social Policy Making under Strain in Switzerland

Swiss Political Science Review ◽

10.1002/j.1662-6370.2004.tb00021.x ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 33-59 ◽

Cited By ~ 39

Author(s):

Silja Häusermann ◽

André Mach ◽

Yannis Papadopoulos

Keyword(s):

Social Policy ◽

Policy Making ◽

Partisan Politics

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Poverty and Social Justice in the Devolved Scotland: Neoliberalism Meets Social Democracy?

Social Policy and Society ◽

10.1017/s1474746409004916 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 8 (3) ◽

pp. 379-389 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

Gill Scott ◽

Gerry Mooney

Keyword(s):

Social Justice ◽

Social Policy ◽

Policy Making ◽

Social Democracy ◽

Neoliberal Economics ◽

Policy Measures ◽

Scottish Government

Drawing on current debates in social policy, this paper considers the extent to which social justice has and is informing social policy making in devolved Scotland. Relating to the work of social justice theorists Young, Fraser and Lister in particular, it critically examines some key Scottish social policy measures since 1999, considering some of the ways in which these have been constructed in terms of social justice and which make claims to the Scottish national. Through a focus on the issue of anti-poverty policies, the paper explores the ways in which the dominant policy approaches of the Scottish Government have reflected an uneven and tension-loaded balance between the enduring legacies of Scottish social democracy and the influences of neoliberal economics.

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Silent Non-Exit and Broken Voice. Early Postcommunist Social Policies as Protest-Preempting Strategies

Südosteuropa ◽

10.1515/soeu-2019-0012 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 67 (2) ◽

pp. 150-174

Author(s):

Pieter Vanhuysse

Keyword(s):

Labor Market ◽

Social Policy ◽

Interest Groups ◽

Action Theory ◽

Political Sociology ◽

New Democracies ◽

Social Policies ◽

The Social ◽

Competing Interest ◽

Distributive Conflict

Abstract This essay contributes to the development of an analytical political sociology examination of postcommunist policy pathways and applies such an analysis in a reinterpretation of the social policy pathways taken by Hungary and Poland. During the critical historical juncture of the early 1990s, governments in these new democracies used social policies to proactively create new labor market outsiders (rather than merely accommodate or deal with existing outsiders) in an effort to stifle disruptive repertoires of political voice. Microcollective action theory helps to elucidate how the break-up of hitherto relatively homogeneous clusters of threatened workers into newly competing interest groups shaped the nature of distributive conflict in the formative first decade of these new democracies. In this light, we see how the analytical political sociology of postcommunist social policy can advance and modify current, predominantly Western-oriented theories of insider/outsider conflict and welfare retrenchment policy, and can inform future debates about emerging social policy biases in Eastern Europe.

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When Populist Leaders Govern: Conceptualising Populism in Policy Making

Politics and Governance ◽

10.17645/pag.v8i3.2922 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (3) ◽

pp. 71-81 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Attila Bartha ◽

Zsolt Boda ◽

Dorottya Szikra

Keyword(s):

Social Policy ◽

Policy Making ◽

Ideal Type ◽

Liberal Democracies ◽

Policy Positions ◽

Willingness To Adopt ◽

Decision Making Processes ◽

Policy Content ◽

Distinguishing Features

The rise of populist governance throughout the world offers a novel opportunity to study the way in which populist leaders and parties rule. This article conceptualises populist policy making by theoretically addressing the substantive and discursive components of populist policies and the decision-making processes of populist governments. It first reconstructs the implicit ideal type of policy making in liberal democracies based on the mainstream governance and policy making scholarship. Then, taking stock of the recent populism literature, the article elaborates an ideal type of populist policy making along the dimensions of content, procedures and discourses. As an empirical illustration we apply a qualitative congruence analysis to assess the conformity of a genuine case of populist governance, social policy in post-2010 Hungary with the populist policy making ideal type. Concerning the policy content, the article argues that policy heterodoxy, strong willingness to adopt paradigmatic reforms and an excessive responsiveness to majoritarian preferences are distinguishing features of any type of populist policies. Regarding the procedural features populist leaders tend to downplay the role of technocratic expertise, sideline veto-players and implement fast and unpredictable policy changes. Discursively, populist leaders tend to extensively use crisis frames and discursive governance instruments in a Manichean language and a saliently emotional manner that reinforces polarisation in policy positions. Finally, the article suggests that policy making patterns in Hungarian social policy between 2010 and 2018 have been largely congruent with the ideal type of populist policy making.

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Social policy, target populations and policy analysis in Colombia

Policy Analysis in Colombia ◽

10.1332/policypress/9781447347712.003.0014 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 223-238

Author(s):

Santiago Leyva ◽

Carlos Andrés Olaya

Keyword(s):

Social Policy ◽

Policy Analysis ◽

Welfare System ◽

Policy Outcomes ◽

Social Policies ◽

Redistributive Policy ◽

Target Populations ◽

Poverty And Inequality ◽

Persistent Inequality ◽

Policy Target

This chapter explores persistent inequality and poverty for historically excluded groups despite dramatically increased expenditures in social policy as an issue of considerable importance in Colombia. It illustrates how the truncated nature of the Colombian welfare system contributes to the problem of poverty and inequality. It also documents how even the widespread use of targeted social policies for specific populations cannot attain the redistributive policy outcomes associated with a more general approach to welfare policy. The chapter introduces the general changes to social policies by looking into the expansion of basic welfare and then exploring the evolution of policy targeting. It points out the limited achievements of Colombia in terms of the redistribution of income through the concept of the truncated state.

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State organisations and social policy-making

Talking Policy ◽

10.4324/9781003117636-10 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 208-234

Author(s):

Judith Bessant ◽

Rob Watts ◽

Tony Dalton ◽

Paul Smyth

Keyword(s):

Social Policy ◽

Policy Making

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Participatory Social Policies: Diverging Patterns in Brazil and Bolivia

Latin American Politics and Society ◽

10.1017/lap.2018.77 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 61 (2) ◽

pp. 115-137 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Sara Niedzwiecki ◽

Santiago Anria

Keyword(s):

Civil Society ◽

Social Policy ◽

Collective Action ◽

Institutional Context ◽

Healthcare Systems ◽

Welfare States ◽

Civil Society Organizations ◽

Social Policies ◽

Bottom Up ◽

Popular Participation

ABSTRACTBolivia and Brazil have universalized their pension and healthcare systems, respectively. Civil society organizations participated actively in social policy expansion, yet they have done so in starkly different ways, reflecting general patterns in each country. Whereas in Brazil, popular participation in social policies takes place through “inside” formal channels, such as conferences and councils, in Bolivia, bottom-up influence occurs mostly via “outside” channels, by coordinating collective action in the streets. Understanding forms of popular participation matters because policies that allow for popular input are potentially more representative, universal, and nondiscretionary. This article argues that differences in the forms of popular participation in social policy expansion can be explained by the characteristics of the institutional context and differences in the types of movements engaged in the policymaking process. By focusing on patterns of participation, these findings add nuance to the literature on Latin America’s welfare states.

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Comment: American Civilization, Catholic Social Thought, and the Populist-Oriented Social Policy of President Donald J. Trump

Catholic Social Science Review ◽

10.5840/cssr2019244 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 24 ◽

pp. 255-263

Author(s):

Joseph A. Varacalli ◽

Keyword(s):

Social Movements ◽

Social Policy ◽

Social Thought ◽

Tea Party ◽

Social Policies ◽

Catholic Social Thought ◽

The Social ◽

Primary Focus ◽

The Relationship

This Comment concerns itself with the relationship between the social policies of U.S. President Donald J. Trump and, respectively, American civilization and Catholic social thought. Also included are discussions of two recent American populist social movements, the Tea Party and that one generated by a commitment to the Trump Presidency, insofar as the latter relates to the primary focus of this Comment.

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