Description
Book SynopsisAdopting an interdisciplinary approach this book provides a cutting-edge, in-depth account of social policy research today, how we got here, and where future research should be headed. It defines the core research agenda for the future covering multiple social policy fields, including care, family, health, and housing policy as well as gender equality, labour market policy, and welfare attitudes.
The book brings together a unique combination of scholars from social policy, sociology, political science, international relations, and law, who explore how European societies have changed over the last 20 years, the future challenges which need to be addressed and the role for social policy research. The editors argue that to advance research on European social policy, we need to develop a better understanding of the interplay between multiple policies, invest more resources in theoretical development, and effectively utilize perhaps the greatest asset of European social policy research – its multidisciplinarity.
Offering crucial insights into the dynamic nature of social policy research, this book will be a valuable guide for social policy scholars and students. Its discussion of a broad range of social policy areas will also be useful for practitioners and policymakers across a wide range of social policy fields.
Trade Review‘As societies change, so must their social policies, and so also must the research that informs them. Social Policy in Changing European Societies: Research Agendas for the 21st Century resets the research agenda after two tumultuous decades. The perspective is comparative and multi-disciplinary, with contributors assessing current thinking about policy areas, theoretical perspectives, research methodologies, and urgent policy challenges including social care, climate change, digitalisation and international migration.’ -- Sheila Shaver, Social Policy Research Centre, UNSW Sydney, Australia
‘The volume is a worthy celebration of ESPAnet’s 20th anniversary. The chapters examine two decades of research on the core elements of social policy — from healthcare to housing, from poverty to privatization, from social investment to subjective well-being, from targeting to tax credits, from decentralization to defamilization, and much more. I learned a great deal from it.’ -- Lane Kenworthy, University of California, San Diego, US
‘Gathering a line-up of excellent scholars, this volume takes stock of social policy research in Europe. By mapping key themes and challenges, it explores the multiple faces of this research in an impressive manner. This volume is a must read for social policy students and practitioners in Europe and beyond.’ -- Daniel Béland, McGill University, Canada
Table of ContentsContents: Preface xvi 1 Social policy research in changing European societies 1 Kenneth Nelson, Rense Nieuwenhuis, and Mara A. Yerkes PART I KEY THEMES IN SOCIAL POLICY RESEARCH 2 Care and the analysis of welfare states 20 Mary Daly and Margarita León 3 Family policy research in Europe 34 Wim Van Lancker and Hannah Zagel 4 Comparative research on health and health care 50 Claus Wendt 5 Long-term developments in housing policy and research 66 Caroline Dewilde and Marietta Haffner 6 Studying the politics of pension reforms and their social consequences 85 Bernhard Ebbinghaus and Katja Möhring 7 Poverty, social policy and the welfare state: a research agenda 101 Bea Cantillon 8 Research on active social policy 120 Giuliano Bonoli PART II CROSS-CUTTING RESEARCH THEMES 9 Researching social Europe on the move 136 Caroline De la Porte and Ilaria Madama 10 The evolution of social policy research in Central and Eastern Europe 154 Jolanta Aidukaite and Jekaterina Navicke 11 Twenty years of social policy research on gender 171 Trudie Knijn 12 European labour markets and social policy: recent research and future directions 187 Jochen Clasen and Daniel Clegg 13 Recent advances in understanding welfare attitudes in Europe 202 Wim van Oorschot, Tijs Laenen, Femke Roosma, and Bart Meuleman 14 Methodologies for comparative social policy analysis 218 Emanuele Ferragina and Christopher Deeming PART III SOCIAL POLICY RESEARCH CHALLENGES 15 Social policy research and climate change 236 Bjørn Hvinden and Mi Ah Schoyen 16 Studying social policy in the digital age 251 Minna van Gerven 17 Migrants and social policy: shifting research agendas 265 Karen N. Breidahl, Troels Fage Hedegaard, and Verena Seibel 18 Social policy research in times of crisis 279 Bent Greve and Thomas Paster 19 Where to from here? Social policy research in future European societies 294 Mara A. Yerkes, Kenneth Nelson and Rense Nieuwenhuis Index 303
