scholarly journals The Moral Foundations of Child Health and Social Policies: A Critical Interpretive Synthesis

Children ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 43
Author(s):  
Avram E. Denburg ◽  
Mita Giacomini ◽  
Wendy J. Ungar ◽  
Julia Abelson
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Child Health ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
Social Policies ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
Critical Interpretive Synthesis

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.

scholarly journals The moral foundations of child health and social policies: A critical interpretive synthesis

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Avram Denburg ◽  
Mita Giacomini ◽  
Wendy J. Ungar ◽  
Julia Abelson
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Child Health ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
Moral Foundations ◽  
Social Policies ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
Critical Interpretive Synthesis ◽  
Full Text Review

Abstract Background: Allusions to the uniqueness and value of childhood abound in academic, lay, and policy discourse. However, little clarity exists on the values that should guide child health and social policymaking. 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, 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 in a range of sociopolitical contexts. Our proposed schema of values, and allied exploration of their points of consonance and tension, is an important step in efforts to gauge social policy prescriptions not only by measures of outcome but also by evidence of their alignment with social values.

scholarly journals Social Policy Transformation and Business Environment Improvement: a Comparative Analysis Based on China and Russia

2020 ◽  
pp. 83-98
Author(s):  
Deyou Xu
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Business Environment ◽  
Social Policies ◽  
Business Environments ◽  
Leading Role ◽  
Governance Systems ◽  
The Government ◽  
Policy Transformation ◽  
The Relationship

Over the past four decades, the economy and society of China and Russia have undergone transformation. Relevant social policies and business environments have constantly changed. So have the ways of interaction among governments, enterprises and citizens. In the relationship between government and citizen, China and Russia have walked different paths in choosing and adjusting social policies, but both have steadily improved people’s well-being. In the relationship between government and business, both countries have achieved significant improvements in business environment through supply-side reforms of public goods and institutions. The theoretical relationship between government and citizen and that between government and business are embodied in social policy and business environment in reality. However, the two are not parallel, but interact with each other and are nested in each other. The government plays a leading role, and its interaction with enterprise and citizen tests the governance systems and capabilities of Beijing and Moscow.

Social Policy in Canada

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Micheal L. Shier ◽  
John R. Graham
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Social Welfare ◽  
Economic System ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Cultural Context ◽  
Voluntary Sector ◽  
Social Needs ◽  
Policy Outcomes ◽  
Social Policies ◽  
Future Trends

The focus and aim of social policy in Canada have in part been determined by the unique sociohistorical and cultural context of the country. This entry provides a brief overview of the leading factors that have contributed to the development of social policy in Canada. Emphasis is placed on the economic, social, and cultural context of the development of the country, along with the system of governance and the ideological framework among the general populace. Following this contextualization, four dominant periods of social policy are described. These include the residual period, the emerging institutional period, the institutional period, and the postinstitutional period. In each era the forces leading to specific social policy outcomes are described. These include aspects of the changing economic system and emerging cultural and social needs among the population. Key social policies in each era are introduced and described. Fundamental to each period of social policy development are the efforts of the voluntary sector. In conclusion, future trends in social policy and social welfare in Canada are discussed.

Explaining Social Policy Adoption in South Korea: the Cases of the Medical Insurance Law and the Minimum Wage Law

1999 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 387-412 ◽  
Author(s):  
JAEHYUN JOO
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
South Korea ◽  
East Asia ◽  
Minimum Wage ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
East Asian ◽  
Medical Insurance ◽  
Social Policies ◽  
Economic Management ◽  
Insurance Law

Although policy priority has always been on economic management in East Asian countries, those countries also developed some notable social policies. However, explanations for the development of social policies in those countries have been relatively underdeveloped compared to those of their economic management policies. This study adds to our understanding of the social policy development in East Asia by examining two cases of social policy adoption in South Korea – the Medical Insurance Law and the Minimum Wage Law. This Korean case study shows a pattern of policy development primarily driven by particular ‘interests’ (state elites' perceived political survival needs and their reputation in international society), with ‘environmental’ factors and ‘policy legacies’ playing a supplementary role. In particular, these policies are interpreted as anticipatory concessions to moderate members of Korean society by the state elites who aimed to stabilise their regimes by separating radicals from moderates. In addition, the medical insurance scheme is understood as a by-product of the competition between the South and North Korean regimes. This study also draws our attention to such issues as the similarities and differences between the East Asian welfare regimes and the change and continuity in the development of social policies in East Asia.

Delivery Structures and Policy Development in Post-Devolution Scotland

2002 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 315-324 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Parry
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Social Policy ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
Policy Process ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
Employment Outcomes ◽  
New Labour ◽  
Civil Servants ◽  
Annual Reports

The policy process in the devolved Scottish system reconciles the Scottish themes of delivering social policy from the centre, through channels of advice and professional direction, and the New Labour theme of broad social policy strategies aiming at better service delivery and employment outcomes. Beneath the surface issues there is a trend to re-structure some services. The Scottish Executive's strategy Social Justice, set out in annual reports, relates devolved and non-devolved responsibilities in a way that has implications for the structure of Executive departments and the policy-making demands made upon civil servants. The research reported here uses interviews with officials to explore the structures of policy making in the Executive within a context of expectations about ministerial and official roles inherited from the previous administrative devolution.

The First Social Policy: Alcohol Control and Modernity in Policy Studies

2007 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 428-451 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Lawrence Schrad
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Social Insurance ◽  
Economic Security ◽  
Social Policies ◽  
Industrialized Countries ◽  
Policy Studies ◽  
Systematic Analysis ◽  
Alcohol Control ◽  
Potential Risks

From modest beginnings in the systematic analysis of social insurance programs of advanced, industrialized countries, the scope of social policy studies has expanded to encompass myriad programs that seek to mitigate potential risks to employment, income, and economic security.1 At the same time, historical interest on policy development has extended back further in time to contextualize the otherwise excessive concentration on social policy developments of the twentieth century.2 Yet, as the boundaries of epistemology broaden, there remains a curious tendency among policy historians to maintain that what they are studying are the origins ofmodernsocial policies.3 Perhaps this focus on modernity is the outgrowth of a perceived need to have such research remain relevant to contemporary social policy debates. Whatever the reason, it does raise the question–What makes a social policymodern?4 To assume that particular social policies aremodernsuggests that there may be social policies that are not. Do there indeed exist social policies that might be thought of aspremodern?If so, do such premodern social policies differ from modern ones not only in terms of particular historical epochs but also in terms of more-substantive distinctions?

Conceptualizing and Theorizing Social Policy, Poverty, and Inequality

2020 ◽  
pp. 22-37
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Social Exclusion ◽  
Social Cohesion ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Welfare States ◽  
Comprehensive Approach ◽  
Social Policies ◽  
Extreme Poverty ◽  
Policy Paradigm ◽  
Poverty And Inequality

The chapter conceptualizes and theorizes social policy in the context of poverty and inequality. Inequality and poverty are two concepts that are by definition multi-dimensional and, therefore, require a comprehensive approach. The chapter argues that different theories underpinned social policies of welfare states in their fight against extreme poverty and inequality. The chapter, therefore, seeks to examine the following concepts and theories as they influence the development and reform of social policies: conceptual clarifications of social policy, poverty, social exclusion and inclusion, social cohesion or equity, theoretical underpinnings that influence social policy development and reforms, and the new social policy paradigm.

Including the voices of children and young people in health policy development: An Irish perspective

2018 ◽  
Vol 77 (7) ◽  
pp. 791-802 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shirley Martin ◽  
Deirdre Horgan ◽  
Margaret Scanlon ◽  
Nazih Eldin ◽  
Anne O’Donnell
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Peer Relationships ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Healthy Lifestyles ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Children And Young People ◽  
Balanced Diet ◽  
Obesity Policy

Objective: This paper presents findings of a qualitative study which explored children and young people’s understanding of health and the factors that contribute, or act as barriers, to healthy lifestyles. Views were elicited from consultations with children and young people as part of the process for the development of a National Obesity Policy in Ireland. Design: Child participatory methodology was used which prioritised the voice of the child in policy making. Methods: Two consultations were held – one with 48 children between the ages of 8 and 12 and the other with 34 young people aged 13–17 years. The consultations utilised qualitative participatory methodology which prioritised the voices of children and young people in policy making. A diverse range of methodological tools (e.g. ‘lifelines’, ‘body maps’, world café workshops) were used to collect data and optimise levels of participant engagement. Qualitative visual and written data produced during the consultations was then subjected to thematic analysis. Results: Children and young people’s constructions of health and healthy lifestyles are multifaceted. Participants in the consultation appeared well informed as to the general factors which contribute to healthy and unhealthy lifestyles. There were notable differences of emphasis related to age, with the older age group engaging more with issues relating to mental health and peer relationships, while younger children focused more on balanced diet and exercise. Conclusion: Findings from this consultation suggest that children’s constructions of health, and their understandings of the factors that impact health, are complex and often go beyond medical constructions of the meaning of health. The consultation informed the development of the new National Obesity Policy in a number of ways, including specific actions in relation to the development of a whole school healthy lifestyles programme, developing a health and well-being model for early childhood services, and providing clinical services specifically for children.

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