Poverty remains a problem in Europe, raising the need for new solutions. In this thought-provoking book the contributors delve deeply into the everyday lives of poor households to see which practices and resources they apply to improve their situations. One of the book’s key findings is that social resilience requires a functioning welfare state operating at an increased level. In addition to sufficient welfare transfers, there is a need for low-commodified common goods to be made available not only for the registered poor but all low-income households.
This handbook addresses the issues and challenges of the delivery of social work education in the contemporary world. It provides an authoritative overview of the key debates, switching the lens away from a Western-centric focus to engage with a much broader audience in countries that are in the process of modernization and professionalization, alongside those where social work education is more developed. Chapters tackle major challenges with respect to curriculum, teaching, practice, and training in light of globalization, providing a thorough examination of the practice of social work in diverse contexts. This handbook presents a contribution to the process of knowledge exchange which is essential to global social work education. It brings together professional knowledge and lived experience, both universal and local, and aims to be an essential reference for social work educators, researchers, and students.
Work Inequalities in the Crisis provides an in-depth overview of the effects of the financial and economic crisis on inequalities in the world of work. It examines these inequalities multidimensionally, looking at employment, wages and incomes, working conditions and social dialogue. At the same time, it investigates whether the crisis may halt the progress made in Europe towards better quality jobs and working conditions. This book offers a unique combination of research, case studies and policy discussions. An assessment of national trends in 30 European countries precedes case studies of 14 of them, in which noted European specialists report on individual enterprises or sectors. The volume's survey of national- and local-level policy solutions contributes to identifying those responses that strengthen economic competitiveness, preserve social cohesion and do not deepen inequalities. This timely resource will be of particular interest to academics, students and researchers in labour economics, to policymakers, and to those involved in European studies more generally. Book jacket.
La crisis económica está afectando a multitud de familias en todos los lugares de España. En esta publicación se trata esta situación desde la perspectiva de cómo el desempleo provocado por la crisis afecta a los hogares, qué efectos tiene en diferentes sectores sociales y el impacto sufrido en los sistemas de protección social. También se analiza cómo la opinión pública española tiene una mayor percepción social del aumento de la pobreza en España. En la primera parte del libro se esboza cómo ha sido el primer impacto de la crisis en la sociedad (las altas probabilidades de exclusión, la pobreza?). En la segunda parte de la publicación se tratan los efectos producidos en las condiciones de vida y en las relaciones sociales. También en los hogares con personas de cuidados especiales. La tercera parte del libro trata de elaborar, con perspectiva analítica, una serie de proposiciones para revisar y reforzar los mecanismos políticos. Finalmente, y como fruto del análisis del libro, se presentan distintas líneas de acción para el futuro inmediato, entre las que destacan: garantizar el acceso a unos ingresos mínimos, potenciar el mantenimiento de los jóvenes en el sistema educativo, prevenir los procesos de pérdida de la vivienda, potenciar la igualdad, integrar a los sectores de la población minoritarios y reforzar la red de servicios sociales como agente coordinador de las políticas de lucha contra la exclusión.
In the world of the 21st century, epidemics are common biological and social occurrences, with HIV perhaps emphasising this better than any other disease. Medical scientific research has undoubtedly made significant steps forward; meanwhile, the social research field is still in its initial stages, with many awaiting an equally auspicious response. A Socio-Criminological Analysis of the HIV Epidemic offers a comprehensive analysis of the multifaceted socio-criminological dimensions of the HIV epidemic and positively contributes to the ongoing sociological debate on infectious diseases. The author intends to create an independent epistemology of HIV to explicate the social forces that impact and determine the course and experience of the epidemic, while also seeking to reframe the popular discourse on HIV to reflect sociological conceptualisations. This latter step leads to the identification of the concept of social interaction as an appropriate tool for highlighting the complex social nature of this virus. The unprecedented challenge posed by the epidemic for the international community calls for global cooperation aimed at evaluating the diverse aspects of the issues that many actors in this tragic drama must deal with. Given its wide-reaching international appeal, this book is also recommended for those involved or interested in global health issues and infectious diseases. It will be of particular interest to medical researchers, health workers, social scientists, social workers, policymakers, humanitarian workers, HIV and human rights activists, and graduate students.
Now in its third edition, Human Rights and Social Work explores how the principles of human rights inform contemporary social work practice. Jim Ife considers the implications of social work's traditional Enlightenment heritage and the possibilities of 'post-Enlightenment' practice in a way that is accessible, direct and engaging. The world has changed significantly since the publication of the first edition in 2000 and this book is situated firmly within the context of present-day debates, concerns and crises. Ife covers the importance of relating human rights to the non-human world, as well as the consequences of political and ecological uncertainty. Featuring examples, further readings and a glossary, readers are able to identify and investigate the important issues and questions arising from human rights and social work. Now more than ever, Human Rights and Social Work is an indispensable resource for students, scholars and practitioners alike.
A comprehensive Statistical Appendix provides regional and country-by-country data in such areas as GDP, manufacturing, sector productivity, prices, trade, income distribution and living standards."--BOOK JACKET.
The book is the first major study to examine the implications of differences in welfare regimes for the experience of unemployment in Europe. It is concerned with three central questions about the way such regimes affect the experience of unemployment. The first is how far they protect the quality of life of unemployed people with respect to living standards and the experience of financial hardship. The second is their role in mediating the impact of unemployment on the individual's longer-term position in the labour market, addressing the issue of how far they help to prevent progressive marginalization from the employment structure as a result of motivational change, skill loss or the growth of discriminatory barriers. The third is how far such regimes mediate the impact of unemployment on social integration in the community, for instance with respect to the maintenance (or rupture) of social networks and the degree of psychological distress experienced by the unemployed. The book is the product of a major cross-cultural research programme, funded by the European Union (TSER), bringing together teams from eight countries. The emphasis has been on rigorous comparison rather than the all-too-frequent separate country analyses, which usually provide data which differs in format from one country to another. In addition to a systematic comparison of national data sources, it has been able to make use of a new important data source (the European Community Household Panel) produced by Eurostat which provides directly comparable information for all EU countries. The study shows that institutional and cultural differences have vital implications for the experience of unemployment. While welfare policies affect in an important way the pervasiveness of poverty, it is above all the patterns of family structure and the culture of sociability in a society that affect vulnerability to social isolation. The book concludes by developing a new perspective for understanding the risk of social exclusion.
Social entrepreneurship and social innovation both seek to improve the world through social change. Whereas social entrepreneurship revolves around the business side of change, social innovation focuses on the processes through which that change is generated. This textbook provides a comprehensive analysis of both topics, covering all the characteristics and elements of social innovation and social entrepreneurship, from a conceptual and practical perspective. The book has four sections: 1) Basics and concepts of Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship; 2) Business models and generation of value in social enterprises; 3) Social innovation within traditional companies, and 4) Definition and alignment of the impact of social innovation and entrepreneurship. Students and any practitioners that want to know about social innovation or social entrepreneurship will be exposed to contemporary topics in the field as well as a variety of cases and tools for its development. With its learning objectives, reflective questions, the definition of key concepts, and exercises, this book is the definitive text for advanced undergraduate and graduate courses in social innovation and social entrepreneurship.
