Historical Context

The chapter explores the origin of social welfare policies in welfare states in Western democratic countries. It traces the state of poverty in most Western democracies before the Great Depression of 1930s, and states' interventions with welfare social assistance programs previously handled by communities, churches, and charitable organizations. The chapter, therefore, examines the historical context of social welfare policy, the nature of the welfare state regime, modern welfare state approaches to social welfare policy, and the market and global economies and the welfare state.

2008 ◽  
Vol 89 (1) ◽  
pp. 129-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Idit Weiss-Gal ◽  
John Gal

Seeking to understand the impact of race and nationality on the attitudes of social workers towards social welfare policy, this study compares the attitudes of Arab and Jewish social workers in Israel. This analysis seeks to determine whether the attitudes of the two groups of social workers diverge and, if so, in what direction. Based on a sample of 110 social workers, evenly divided between Arabs and Jews, the findings revealed both similarities and differences in the social welfare policy references of the two groups of social workers. Although both supported the welfare state, they also expressed a lack of enthusiasm to finance it and a degree of skepticism regarding its impact. In contrast to their Jewish counterparts, Arab social workers were more supportive of the welfare state but did not support policies that were perceived as unsupportive of Arabs.


Author(s):  
George R. Boyer

This chapter explores the story of the 1942 Beveridge Report and the beginnings of the welfare state. The policies proposed by Beveridge and the 1945–48 legislation were logical extensions of government's expanding role in social welfare policy beginning with the Liberal Welfare Reforms. This does not mean that the importance of the postwar legislation should be downplayed. Because of the adoption of the National Health Service, universal coverage, and equality of treatment, Britain after 1948 deserves to be called a welfare state, while Edwardian and interwar Britain do not. Unfortunately, despite the enthusiasm with which the public greeted the welfare state, the postwar policies did not eliminate economic insecurity.


Author(s):  
Joel Blau

This chapter examines the main themes in social welfare policy. These themes include the assumption that poor people are responsible for their own poverty; a belief in the marketplace as the best means of addressing human needs; and a consequent wariness of federal social welfare interventions. Analyzing social welfare policy’s multiple and conflicting roles, it then traces these themes as they have manifested themselves throughout U.S. history. The chapter concludes by contending that while these historical factors may have all contributed to less comprehensive social welfare policies, their inadequacies effectively reopen the issue of what social welfare should become in the twenty-first century, when neoliberalism and rising income inequality have heightened the fears of so many Americans about their declining standard of living.


Author(s):  
Michael D. Minta

This chapter examines the advocacy efforts of members of Congress for policies designed to help poor people. It investigates whether the differences that exist between black, Latino, and white legislators in racial and ethnic hearings also occur in social welfare hearings. It examine legislators' interventions in committee deliberations during part of the Clinton era (1993–1997) and the first term of the George W. Bush presidency (2001–2003). It focuses on how actively legislators engaged in the deliberations in terms of questioning witnesses and interacting with fellow members of Congress. It also examines other legislative interventions, such as testifying at hearings in favor of social welfare policies that benefit the poor and requesting hearings designed to help poor people, who are disproportionately minorities.


2021 ◽  
pp. 104973232110468
Author(s):  
Kristin Bindley ◽  
Joanne Lewis ◽  
Joanne Travaglia ◽  
Michelle DiGiacomo

Caring for and bereavement following the death of someone with a life-limiting illness may precipitate social welfare needs related to income support and housing. Nevertheless, carer experiences of welfare policy and institutions have not received significant attention. This qualitative study explored experiences of carers who navigated social welfare policy while caring for someone with a life-limiting illness, and in bereavement. In-depth interviews were conducted with 12 bereaved carers in an area associated with socioeconomic disadvantage. Carers differentially encountered precariousness, with some experiencing structural vulnerability. These positionalities appeared to be shaped by policy and process-related burdens, perceptions of the welfare state, and degrees of legitimisation or disenfranchisement of forms of capital and coping orientations. Recommendations that may improve carer experience were identified. Implications relate to the need for an expanded conceptualisation of vulnerability in health and welfare practice, policy that authentically validates caring and grieving, and upstream strategies that address inequity.


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