WorldWideScience

Sample records for social policy systems

  1. Social Policies in Contemporary Latin America: Families and Poverty in the Social Protection Systems

    OpenAIRE

    González, Cristina

    2015-01-01

    This article examines the impact of social policies on the living conditions of poor families—particularly women—in Latin America from the late 1980s to the present. It identifies three distinct trends of familialism in the region’s social protection systems. The first social policy trend is characterized by poverty alleviation policies addressing the family in an “elliptical” way, taking for granted the idea of a nuclear family. The distinguishing trait of the second trend is the appearance ...

  2. Social Policies in Contemporary Latin America: Families and Poverty in the Social Protection Systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cristina González

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available This article examines the impact of social policies on the living conditions of poor families—particularly women—in Latin America from the late 1980s to the present. It identifies three distinct trends of familialism in the region’s social protection systems. The first social policy trend is characterized by poverty alleviation policies addressing the family in an “elliptical” way, taking for granted the idea of a nuclear family. The distinguishing trait of the second trend is the appearance of social programs aimed at families and stressing the role of women as chief caregivers and administrators. And finally, the third policy trend is defined by an expansion of more universal social programs targeting children and the elderly. Despite the recent emergence of programs with gender specific goals, social policies continue to put a great burden on female workers. For example, many subsidies to poor families deliver money directly to women, improving their intra-family bargaining power, but this translates also into an increase of responsibilities and the ensuing overload of work. Consequently, social policies in Latin America need to aim at encouraging a more egalitarian distribution of housework and care work within the family, especially given how well-established androcentrism is in the region.

  3. Moral Philosophy and Social Work Policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reiman, Amanda

    2009-10-01

    Policies in the United States regarding personal responsibility and deviant behavior often follow an underlying moral philosophy. This paper examines the philosophies in American social policy, and how beliefs about personal responsibility, definitions of deviance and the role of the social welfare system shape current policies.

  4. Moral Philosophy and Social Work Policy

    OpenAIRE

    Reiman, Amanda

    2009-01-01

    Policies in the United States regarding personal responsibility and deviant behavior often follow an underlying moral philosophy. This paper examines the philosophies in American social policy, and how beliefs about personal responsibility, definitions of deviance and the role of the social welfare system shape current policies.

  5. Sustainability science: accounting for nonlinear dynamics in policy and social-ecological systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Resilience is an emergent property of complex systems. Understanding resilience is critical for sustainability science, as linked social-ecological systems and the policy process that governs them are characterized by non-linear dynamics. Non-linear dynamics in these systems mean...

  6. Social mix policies in Paris: discourses, policies and social effects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bacqué, Marie-Hélène; Fijalkow, Yankel; Launay, Lydie; Vermeersch, Stéphanie

    2011-01-01

    Since the 1980s, the issue of social mix has become a public policy category in France. Enshrined in legislation, yet remaining controversial, it represents a major premise on which housing policies have been reconfigured. The concept of social mix is essentially based on who lives where, but it is also evoked in the context of urban renewal schemes for social housing estates, as well as in relation to new-build developments. A study of the bases of social mix policies conducted in Paris since 2001 in the context of the embourgeoisement of the capital shows the fundamental role of social housing stock. The City Council has become involved in policy decisions about both the location and the allocation of social housing. Particular attention has been paid to the middle classes in the name of the principle of ‘balancing the population’. In order to measure the effects of the policy, this article relies on an analysis of two City of Paris schemes that have the stated intent of creating social mix. One of these schemes consists of redeveloping a working-class neighbourhood, Goutte d'Or, while the other involves the new acquisition of social housing in various more affluent neighbourhoods in the capital. This comparative study of the population shows that, whether in a neighbourhood poised for gentrification or in a more affluent neighbourhood, this policy has major effects on forms of local social cohesion, setting in motion individual trajectories and reshaping social and/or ethnic identities.

  7. Social Media Policies

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Stohl, Cynthia; Etter, Michael; Banghart, Scott

    2017-01-01

    of these trends is examined through a content analysis of 112 publicly available social media policies from the largest corporations in the world. The extent to which social media policies facilitate and/or constrain the communicative sensibilities and values associated with contemporary notions of CSR...... negotiation and participation in the social responsibilities of corporations. Moreover, policies generally enact organizational communication practices that are contrary to international CSR guidelines (e.g., the UN Global Compact and other international agreements). Findings suggest that social media...... policies represent a relatively unrecognized development in the institutionalization of CSR communicative norms and practices that call into question the promising affordances of social media for the inclusion of various voices in the public negotiation of what constitutes corporate social responsibility....

  8. PolicyNet Publication System

    Data.gov (United States)

    Social Security Administration — The PolicyNet Publication System project will merge the Oracle-based Policy Repository (POMS) and the SQL-Server CAMP system (MSOM) into a new system with an Oracle...

  9. Using the social security system to deliver housing policy

    OpenAIRE

    Cheung, Louise, Gee Wing

    2016-01-01

    This thesis examines the interaction between housing policy and the social security benefits that support housing costs. Analysis concerns the extent and type of State intervention in housing, thus explaining the dynamic between State and individual responsibility in housing policy. This thesis involves an exploration of the different treatment of the owner-occupied and the rented housing sectors, with reference to the social security benefits which fund ongoing housing costs. This thesis see...

  10. SOCIAL POLICY AS FACTOR OF STATE INSTITUTIONAL STATUS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Larysa Zhukova

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of the article is the research of theoretical and methodological aspects of social policy as the factor of institutional state statuses. Methodology. The researching in institutional providing of state social policy which may be considered as the base for performance of correspond reforms which are directed to the life level increasing, is enough popular task in scientific, theoretical and practical aspects. The scientific search of social policy as the factor of institutional status of state is carried out at the base of classical, neoclassical and institutional methodology. At the base of classical methodology it were defined the general approaches with help of dialectical analysis tools and synthesis of social relations array as historical action. With the help of system, structurally-functional analysis of social policy tasks, it’s opened its internal nature and ways of institutional providing. Institutional and neoclassical approaches allowed the specials analysing tools in modelling of dynamics and institute of social policy institute results in the conditions of market transformations. Also in the research process it were used the economic articles about the question of analysis in state social policy and given the statistic data about the analytical report to the annual President’s of Ukraine message to Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine „About internal and external condition of Ukraine in year 2015”. Research results showed what in the conditions of socially-economic and political instability, the social sphere Ukraine became the hostage of common crisis in economic, catastrophic decreasing of life level, increasing of social confrontation and rough system mistakes in the process of social institution formation. All of this neutralizes the methods efficiency about improvement of socially-economic condition of population and prevents to the implementation of necessary reforms. Practical value lays in the clear definition of

  11. Health system strengthening in Cambodia-a case study of health policy response to social transition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grundy, John; Khut, Qiu Yi; Oum, Sophal; Annear, Peter; Ky, Veng

    2009-10-01

    Cambodia, following decades of civil conflict and social and economic transition, has in the last 10 years developed health policy innovations in the areas of health contracting, health financing and health planning. This paper aims to outline recent social, epidemiological and demographic health trends in Cambodia, and on the basis of this outline, to analyse and discuss these policy responses to social transition. Sources of information included a literature review, participant observation in health planning development in Cambodia between 1993 and 2008, and comparative analysis of demographic health surveys between 2000 and 2005. In Cambodia there have been sharp but unequal improvements in child mortality, and persisting high maternal mortality rates. Data analysis demonstrates associations between location, education level and access to facility based care, suggesting the dominant role of socio-economic factors in determining access to facility based health care. These events are taking place against a background of rapid social transition in Cambodian history, including processes of decentralization, privatization and the development of open market economic systems. Primary policy responses of the Ministry of Health to social transition and associated health inequities include the establishment of health contracting, hospital health equity funds and public-private collaborations. Despite the internationally recognized health policy flexibility and innovation demonstrated in Cambodia, policy response still lags well behind the reality of social transition. In order to minimize the delay between transition and response, new policy making tactics are required in order to provide more flexible and timely responses to the ongoing social transition and its impacts on population health needs in the lowest socio-economic quintiles.

  12. Policy Feedback System (PFS)

    Data.gov (United States)

    Social Security Administration — The Policy Feedback System (PFS) is a web application developed by the Office of Disability Policy Management Information (ODPMI) team that gathers empirical data...

  13. Social policy and population growth in South-East Asia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    You Poh Seng Rao, B; Shantakumar, G

    1974-01-01

    Social and population policies are considered for the 10 countries comprising Southeast Asia--Burma, Indonesia, the Khmer Republic, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, North Vietnam, and South Vietnam. All but Singapore have high fertility rates and Burma, Indonesia, the Khmer Republic, Laos and the two Vietnams have high mortality rates also. Government expenditures for education and social security systems is expanding throughout the region and it is hoped that their continued growth will contribute substantially to the effective implementation of population policies. Population policies in the 5 countries which have them are discussed. These are Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. It is noted, however, that declaration of policy is but the first step. Strategies and programs differ from one country to the next and depend very much on the stage of development, level of literacy, degree of urbanization, and other factors. Family planning activities generally are endogenous to urban social systems but exogenous to rural social systems. Thus, the rural elite has a large role to play in making population policies an integral part of rural life. The possibility is considered of developing workable incentive packages integrating health, education, and social security benefits with suitable emphasis on fertility reduction.

  14. Active Social Policy meets Welfare Professions

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Møller, Marie Østergaard

    2013-01-01

    Active social policy is an example of New Public Management, which contains a set of policy tools directly affecting the various professions working in the welfare sector (Harrits & Møller 2011). The legitimization of the policy is based in a need to strengthen control with public expenditures...... capacities and the doctor’s specialized focus on physical deviations. As such, the paper is an empirically informed contribution to understanding what happens when new forms of New Public Management meet front-line workers such as social workers and doctors who use both rules and professional norms...... and to restore public support for redistributive social benefits such as early retirement pension. Yet, New Public Management and professional norms are typically seen as two distinct rationalities, as reflected in the conflicting aims of the political system (retrenchment) and the ‘street-level bureaucrats...

  15. Balancing economic freedom against social policy principles: EC competition law and national health systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mossialos, Elias; Lear, Julia

    2012-07-01

    EU Health policy exemplifies the philosophical tension between EC economic freedoms and social policy. EC competition law, like other internal market rules, could restrict national health policy options despite the subsidiarity principle. In particular, European health system reforms that incorporate elements of market competition may trigger the application of competition rules if non-economic gains in consumer welfare are not adequately accounted for. This article defines the policy and legal parameters of the debate between competition law and health policy. Using a sample of cases it analyses how the ECJ, national courts, and National Competition Authorities have applied competition laws to the health services sector in different circumstances and in different ways. It concludes by considering the implications of the convergence of recent trends in competition law enforcement and health system market reforms. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Can social inclusion policies reduce health inequalities in sub-Saharan Africa?--A rapid policy appraisal.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rispel, Laetitia C; de Sousa, César A D Palha; Molomo, Boitumelo G

    2009-08-01

    The global resurgence of interest in the social determinants of health provides an opportunity for determined action on unacceptable and unjust health inequalities that exist within and between countries. This paper reviews three categories of social inclusion policies: cash-transfers; free social services; and specific institutional arrangements for programme integration in six selected countries--Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa, Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Zimbabwe. The policies were appraised as part of the Social Exclusion Knowledge Network (SEKN) set up under the auspices of the World Health Organization's Commission on Social Determinants of Health. The paper highlights the development landscape in sub-Saharan Africa and presents available indicators of the scale of inequity in the six countries. A summary of the policies appraised is presented, including whether or what the impact of these policies has been on health inequalities. Cross-cutting benefits include poverty alleviation, notably among vulnerable children and youths, improved economic opportunities for disadvantaged households, reduction in access barriers to social services, and improved nutrition intake. The impact of these benefits, and hence the policies, on health status can only be inferred. Among the policies reviewed, weaknesses or constraints were in design and implementation. The policy design weaknesses include targeting criteria, their enforcement and latent costs, inadequate participation of the community and failure to take the cultural context into account. A major weakness of most policies was the lack of a monitoring and evaluation system, with clear indicators that incorporate system responsiveness. The policy implementation weaknesses include uneven regional implementation with rural areas worst affected; inadequate or poor administrative and implementation capacity; insufficient resources; problems of fraud and corruption; and lack of involvement of civil servants, exacerbating

  17. Institutional and Policy Support for Tourism Social Entrepreneurship

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dredge, Dianne

    2017-01-01

    the characteristics of supportive institutional and policy environments for tourism social entrepreneurship. It argues that governments can contribute in two broad ways to creating the conditions for tourism social entrepreneurship to flourish: they can develop policies that support and encourage the development......There is no question that poverty, social and economic marginalization are contributing to a growing gap between rich and poor, and that international agencies, governments and the private sector have failed to substantially address these issues. The aim of this chapter is to examine...... and operation of social enterprises as part of an inclusive and sustainable tourism system, and they can assist in the creation of institutional conditions that encourage, legitimize and synergize social entrepreneurship. The chapter offers concrete considerations for policy makers in terms of making...

  18. Evidence, Ethics & Social Policy Dilemmas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Steven I. Miller

    1993-07-01

    Full Text Available Within the philosophy of the social sciences, the relationship between evidence, ethics, and social policy is in need of further analysis. The present paper is an attempt to argue that while important social policies can, and perhaps ought to be, grounded in ethical theory, they are seldom articulated in this fashion due to the ambiguity surrounding the "evidence condition." Using a consequentialist-utilitarian framework, and a case study of a policy dilemma, the authors analyze the difficulties associated with resolving policy-based dilemmas which must appeal to evidential support as a justification for an ethical stand. Implication for the relevance of ethics to social policy formulation are discussed in detail.

  19. SOCIAL POLICIES AND STRUCTURAL REFORMS IN EUROPE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ferran Brunet Cid

    2006-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper considers the social and structural policies in contemporary Europe. The presentation is organized in four sections. First, we discuss the emerging Europe, the new unity based on democracy and the market economy, the special European Union formula, and comparisons with America. Second, we analyze the dynamics of the European economy, the convergence process, the gaps between United States in productivity and standard of living, competitiveness issues, and the emergence of a new European economy and new European policy mix.Third, we consider European social conditions, the stationary and aging population, Europe’s low employment rate and permanently high unemployment. European economic growth could draw on two major sources: the labor reserves and reforms in factor, product and service markets. In a monetary union, advanced industrial relations should promote labor mobility and salary flexibility. The social security systems permit the redistribution and cohesion which defines the European model.Fourth, for the new Europe, the structural reform strategy is the way forward for the challenge of European economic policy and social policy: more and better jobs thanks to sustainable growth in a dynamic and competitive knowledge-based economy, favoring greater social cohesion.

  20. Can Social Inclusion Policies Reduce Health Inequalities in Sub-Saharan Africa?—A Rapid Policy Appraisal

    Science.gov (United States)

    Palha de Sousa, César A.D; Molomo, Boitumelo G

    2009-01-01

    The global resurgence of interest in the social determinants of health provides an opportunity for determined action on unacceptable and unjust health inequalities that exist within and between countries. This paper reviews three categories of social inclusion policies: cash-transfers; free social services; and specific institutional arrangements for programme integration in six selected countries—Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa, Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Zimbabwe. The policies were appraised as part of the Social Exclusion Knowledge Network (SEKN) set up under the auspices of the World Health Organization's Commission on Social Determinants of Health. The paper highlights the development landscape in sub-Saharan Africa and presents available indicators of the scale of inequity in the six countries. A summary of the policies appraised is presented, including whether or what the impact of these policies has been on health inequalities. Cross-cutting benefits include poverty alleviation, notably among vulnerable children and youths, improved economic opportunities for disadvantaged households, reduction in access barriers to social services, and improved nutrition intake. The impact of these benefits, and hence the policies, on health status can only be inferred. Among the policies reviewed, weaknesses or constraints were in design and implementation. The policy design weaknesses include targeting criteria, their enforcement and latent costs, inadequate parti-cipation of the community and failure to take the cultural context into account. A major weakness of most policies was the lack of a monitoring and evaluation system, with clear indicators that incorporate system responsiveness. The policy implementation weaknesses include uneven regional implementation with rural areas worst affected; inadequate or poor administrative and implementation capacity; insufficient resources; problems of fraud and corruption; and lack of involvement of civil servants, exacerbating

  1. Happiness and Social Policy in Europe

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Research on Happiness can inform welfare choices and policies an dhelp to promote job creation, social inclusion and to some degree a higher level of equality. The book embraces the relationship between happiness, social policy and welfare state analysis.......Research on Happiness can inform welfare choices and policies an dhelp to promote job creation, social inclusion and to some degree a higher level of equality. The book embraces the relationship between happiness, social policy and welfare state analysis....

  2. Health Policy as a Specific Area of Social Policy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dominika Pekarová

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Purpose and Originality: The aim of the article was to analyse the work of the health policy which is a very specific part of social policy. In the work we focus on its financing, which is a very important issue in the health care. We try to show, what is the role of the state in the health care system as well as the creation of resources and control costs in the health sector. The work is finding such as financing health care in Slovakia and in other selected countries, and which could be changed for the best operation. Method: The analysis was carried out on the basis of the information which I drew from books and Internet resources. The work is divided into two parts. Contains 9 tables and 3 charts. The first chapter is devoted to a general description of social policy, its funding, with a focus on health policy than its specific area. The second chapter analyses the financing systems of health policy in Slovakia and in selected countries. Results: The results showed that the Slovak health care makes is trying hard to catch up with the level of the best health care systems. However, there are countries, which are doing much worse than us, in terms of funding. Society: It is important to properly invest money but also communication between states. To get help on health and to ensure that citizens know states the best conditions of health care. Limitations / further research: This work is focused on how to bring closer health care and its financing in several different countries economically. IN doing so some other aspects such as what is best level of services, etc. were put aside.

  3. Social networking policies in nursing education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frazier, Blake; Culley, Joan M; Hein, Laura C; Williams, Amber; Tavakoli, Abbas S

    2014-03-01

    Social networking use has increased exponentially in the past few years. A literature review related to social networking and nursing revealed a research gap between nursing practice and education. Although there was information available on the appropriate use of social networking sites, there was limited research on the use of social networking policies within nursing education. The purpose of this study was to identify current use of social media by faculty and students and a need for policies within nursing education at one institution. A survey was developed and administered to nursing students (n = 273) and nursing faculty (n = 33). Inferential statistics included χ², Fisher exact test, t test, and General Linear Model. Cronbach's α was used to assess internal consistency of social media scales. The χ² result indicates that there were associations with the group and several social media items. t Test results indicate significant differences between student and faculty for average of policies are good (P = .0127), policies and discipline (P = .0315), and policy at the study school (P = .0013). General Linear Model analyses revealed significant differences for "friend" a patient with a bond, unprofessional posts, policy, and nursing with class level. Results showed that students and faculty supported the development of a social networking policy.

  4. POPULATION POLICY OR SOCIAL POLICY?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    ANDREI STANOIU

    2011-04-01

    Full Text Available After 1989, the demographic situation of Romania population experienced a dramatic, very concerning and dangerous evolution trend. One of the first measures of the new political power was to abolish the very restrictive, anti-human and abusive legal regulation adopted in 1966 by the communist regime concerning abortion and the whole old demographic policy. As a result of this measure and of the worsening economic and social situation of the great majority of Romanian population, the birth rate declined sharply and, from 1992, the natural demographic growth rate became a negative one. The absolute number of Romanian population decreased more and more and, if nothing changes, in the next few decades it will be no bigger than 15 million people. At the same time, the process of demographic ageing of population will accentuate, generating serious problems from demographic and social-economic point of view, Taking into account the present demographic situation and, especially, the foreseen trend of evolution, it is more than clear that there should be taken some urgent, coherent and consistent measures in order to stop this dangerous demographic evolution, until it is not too late, and to avoid, as much as possible, a potential demographic disaster. The problem is: what kind of measures should be taken and what kind of policy should be adopted? Some social scientists believe that a new population policy should be adopted; some others believe that rather a social policy should be adopted. The purpose of my paper is to analyze this different opinions and to show that, behind the dispute on the terminology, should be taken consistent measures, at governmental level, in order to assure a substantial improvement of demographic situation, not only from a quantitative, but from a qualitative point of view as well, and to identify some of these kind of measures.

  5. The social policies of Lula's administration

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maria Hermínia Tavares de Almeida

    Full Text Available The article focuses on the initiatives taken by the Lula administration regarding social policies. To begin with, we describe the social reform process implemented by the governments that followed the redemocratization of Brazil. Then, we examine some indices showing the evolution of social conditions due to social policies practiced during the democratic period. Finally, we analyze the views about the social question predominant in the PT government, as well as the most appropriate policies to tackle such a question. We also discuss the present government's proposals and initiatives regarding the social area.

  6. Social inclusion policy: Producing justice or retribution?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kym Macfarlane

    2010-10-01

    Full Text Available The notion of social inclusion has currently gained extraordinary credence in Australia. Policy incorporating social inclusion abounds across all discipline areas with the federal government for the first time instituting a government portfolio for this area, headed by the Deputy Prime Minister. Such a move indicates the importance of managing aspects of inclusion across all sectors, in a country where diversity abounds. However, this focus on inclusion can prove highly problematic, when it becomes such an integral part of policy formulation and of the assumptions, omissions and contradictions that policy produces. This paper examines how policy discourse produces ways of thinking about inclusion/exclusion. Using three vignettes, the author applies the theories of Michel Foucault to argue that the discursive production of such inclusive policy works to simultaneously exclude by categorising particular types of individuals and families as “proper” participants in society. The author contends that understandings of propriety relating to the inclusion/exclusion binary reinscribe each other, in ways that situate particular citizens outside of possibilities for “success” in social and systemic participation. Such understanding is highlighted by a conceptual examination of the ways in which discursively produced notions of propriety become normalised. Keywords: bricolage, discourse, authorised knowledge, imperative discourse, regimes of truth

  7. SOCIAL PRIORITIES OF FISCAL POLICY IN POST-CRISIS PERIOD

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    I. Lyutyy

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The article carried out a comprehensive study of the social priorities of fiscal policy in Ukraine. Efficiency of fiscal instruments in the system of state regulation of social processes in society. Defined the role of the budgetary impact on the social development of society.

  8. Social Change and Health Policy in Venezuela

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nuramy J. Gutiérrez

    2008-07-01

    Full Text Available This work reviews social changes occurring in Venezuela during the last two decades, examining how they led to the development of a new health policy. Initially, the political context of the nineties is examined; this was a time when the neoliberal politics of the 1980’s had a demonstrable impact on the living conditions and health status of the population. By 1999 social and political events led to a new Constitution which provided the juridical and legal framework for a new health policy. The conceptualization of health and the model of health care which arose from the constitutional process are considered, as well as the reaction of the dominant economic and political sectors to the new policies imposed by constitutional mandate. The emergence of Barrio Adentro and other social missions is analyzed as an essential factor in the initiation of structural changes within the country and its health institutions. The Barrio Adentro program is described in detail, along with key steps in the development of the Venezuelan National Public Health System. Finally, the impact of these new health policies on the quality of life of the Venezuelan population is delineated.

  9. Why Social Policy Needs Objective Indicators

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    R. Veenhoven (Ruut)

    2002-01-01

    textabstractThere are many qualms about subjective indicators, and some believe that social policy would be better for not using them. This paper consists of a review of these objections. It is argued that policy makers need subjective indicators. The main reasons being: 1. Social policy is never

  10. Practicing Policy, Pursuing Change, and Promoting Social Justice: A Policy Instructional Approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heidemann, Gretchen; Fertig, Ralph; Jansson, Bruce; Kim, Hansung

    2011-01-01

    Schools of social work are mandated to train students for policy practice. A new instructional approach is needed so that social workers skillfully engage in policy change to address the growing economic, social, and cultural problems that affect our clients. This article presents the Practicing Policy, Pursuing Change, and Promoting Social…

  11. Dimensions of sustainability in social systems: implications for energy and public policy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Choucri, N.

    1995-01-01

    Many fundamental dilemmas and obstacles to achieving sustainable development are being explored in both academic and policy-making circles. Central to sustainability are the provision and use of energy - for all societies and at all levels of development. This paper presents the essential foundations of an integrated view of sustainable development and illustrates their applicability to energy requirements in developing countries. The essential foundations are framed in terms of interactions among four dimensions of complexity: (i) ecology, (ii) economy, (iii) institutions, and (iv) decision. Jointly, these provide the bounds for modeling the dynamics of sustainability for social systems. Special attention is given here to the dual domains of institutions and decision, with reference to both national policy and corporate strategy at all levels of development. (author) 3 figs., tabs., 11 refs

  12. Social media for public health: an exploratory policy analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fast, Ingrid; Sørensen, Kristine; Brand, Helmut; Suggs, L Suzanne

    2015-02-01

    To accomplish the aims of public health practice and policy today, new forms of communication and education are being applied. Social media are increasingly relevant for public health and used by various actors. Apart from benefits, there can also be risks in using social media, but policies regulating engagement in social media is not well researched. This study examined European public health-related organizations' social media policies and describes the main components of existing policies. This research used a mixed methods approach. A content analysis of social media policies from European institutions, non-government organizations (NGOs) and social media platforms was conducted. Next, individuals responsible for social media in their organization or projects completed a survey about their social media policy. Seventy-five per cent of institutions, NGOs and platforms had a social media policy available. The primary aspects covered within existing policies included data and privacy protection, intellectual property and copyright protection and regulations for the engagement in social media. Policies were intended to regulate staff use, to secure the liability of the institution and social responsibility. Respondents also stressed the importance of self-responsibility when using social media. This study of social media policies for public health in Europe provides a first snapshot of the existence and characteristics of social media policies among European health organizations. Policies tended to focus on legal aspects, rather than the health of the social media user. The effect of such policies on social media adoption and usage behaviour remains to be examined. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Public Health Association. All rights reserved.

  13. Piketty's capital and social policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Piachaud, David

    2014-12-01

    Piketty's Capital (2014) primarily describes and analyses changes in the distribution of wealth and annual incomes. This paper focuses on his policy proposals that make up Part Four of the book. Piketty defends the 'social state' but he discusses it largely in terms of distribution and redistribution between tax units. This neglects the important role of social policy in promoting recognition and redistribution of income and opportunities that is related to gender, race, disability and sexual orientation. Nor does Piketty consider inequalities in health which effect life-time incomes, nor the impact of housing policies on house prices and the distribution of wealth. It is argued that Piketty's approach to social security is simplistic and plays down the complexity of competing policy goals. On taxation, Piketty defends progressive taxation and proposes a global capital levy. The latter proposal runs into formidable problems in seeking global taxation in a world of nation states. Rather than seeking a policy that is, for the foreseeable future, wholly politically impractical, a case is made for less idealistic but more practical and urgent tax coordination between nations to address the widespread avoidance of taxation that large corporations and the very wealthy are now permitted - taxation on which the future of the social state depends. The importance of human and social capital, which are largely set aside by Piketty, are discussed. Finally,it is argued that his approach to policy is to describe trends and propose amelioration of growing inequality rather than to identify causes of the trends and propose policies that might address the causes. Nevertheless, the importance of his work in bringing issues of inequality to the fore, especially among economists, is recognized and applauded. © London School of Economics and Political Science 2014.

  14. Social Policy in Social Work PhD Programs in the United States

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lightfoot, Elizabeth; Gal, John; Weiss-Gal, Idit

    2018-01-01

    While there has been a long-standing concern about the role of policy within social work education and social work practice, most of the emphasis has been on social work education at the BSW and MSW levels. This article examines policy education at the PhD level. It first explores how policy is taught in social work PhD programs in the United…

  15. Reforming Social Policy: Changing Perspectives on Sustainable ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Reforming Social Policy presents an overview of social policy reforms currently ... It shows how some experimental approaches to reform have worked in different ... and students in development studies and social sciences; policymakers and ...

  16. Social Media Policy in Social Work Education: A Review and Recommendations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karpman, Hannah E.; Drisko, James

    2016-01-01

    Although social media use has grown dramatically, program policies have not kept pace. Some programs now state that student social media activities have led to professional conduct reviews and may violate ethical standards. This article reviews current social media policies and conceptualizes their key elements. A review of current social media…

  17. Social media policy in other orqanizations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sebelius, Carl L

    2012-01-01

    Most professional organizations have developed policy for use of social media by their members and several have developed Web sites to help members with ethical media use. It is commmon among businesses, nonprofit organizations, and government agencies to have policies governing use of media by employees when communicating with the public and provide employee training. This article samples some of the best practices in social media policy. Development of such policy represents an attractive opportunity for dentistry.

  18. Social Media, Health Policy, and Knowledge Translation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roland, Damian

    2018-01-01

    Social media has been cited as a methodology for reducing the knowledge translation gap, creating communities of practice, and reducing traditional hierarchical divisions. Social movements have also embraced social media as a means of spreading their aims and reaching wide audiences. However, its impact on health policy is seldom considered. The author examines the complexity of clinicians' use of social media to influence policy and how policy and government groups may use social media to help their own objectives. Crown Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. Foreword to "Intelligence and Social Policy."

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gottfredson, Linda S.

    1997-01-01

    This special issue bridges inquiry on intelligence and scholarship on social policy by exploring the constraints that differences in intelligence may impose in fashioning effective social policy. The authors discuss a range of behaviors, but focus primarily on the noneducational outcomes of crime, employment, poverty, and health. (SLD)

  20. Social Policy and Economic Development in the Nordic Countries

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kangas, Olli; Palme, Joakim

    between democratization and social policy, drawing attention to the role of the state and non-governmental organizations. Social Policy and Economic Development in Nordic Countries examines Nordic social policies on unemployment, social care, family, education and health care policies, and reviews future......This volume examines the relationship between Nordic social policy and economic development from a comparative perspective. It identifies the driving forces behind the development of the Nordic welfare model and the problems and dilemmas the model is facing at present. The book also traces the link...

  1. School-based obesity policy, social capital, and gender differences in weight control behaviors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Ling; Thomas, Breanca

    2013-06-01

    We examined the associations among school-based obesity policies, social capital, and adolescents' self-reported weight control behaviors, focusing on how the collective roles of community and adopted policies affect gender groups differently. We estimated state-level ecologic models using 1-way random effects seemingly unrelated regressions derived from panel data for 43 states from 1991 to 2009, which we obtained from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System. We used multiplicative interaction terms to assess how social capital moderates the effects of school-based obesity policies. School-based obesity policies in active communities were mixed in improving weight control behaviors. They increased both healthy and unhealthy weight control behaviors among boys but did not increase healthy weight control behaviors among girls. Social capital is an important contextual factor that conditions policy effectiveness in large contexts. Heterogeneous behavioral responses are associated with both school-based obesity policies and social capital. Building social capital and developing policy programs to balance outcomes for both gender groups may be challenging in managing childhood obesity.

  2. Poverty, Security and Social Assistance: Challenges of Brazilian Social Policy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ana Paula Ornellas Mauriel

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available This article presents partial results of a study about anti-poverty programs in Brazil. The main contribution of the text is that it relates certain characteristics of the anti poverty programs to theoretical categories that have influenced the debate about social policy in the contemporary context. Special attention is given to the relation of these programs with national social assistance policy. The article begins from the hypothesis that the logic that had inspired the construction of social policies was reconsidered, based on a transformation in the theoretical understanding of the social issue and of ways to confront it. This change appears in the texts in the priority given to poverty as a category of analysis, which is understood as an absence of capacities. This theoretically and methodologically configures an individualistic perspective on social issues, the principal theoretical source for which is the thinking of Amartya Sen.

  3. Social policy and costs of social protection and health

    OpenAIRE

    Koukoufilippou, Ioannis; Papavasileiou, Evanthia; Koinis, Aristotelis

    2016-01-01

    ABSTRACT The understanding of theoretical models and typologies of social systems is a prerequisite for the study and policy formulation in the health sector. The analysis of health expenditure in Greece in relation to the European Union-15 (EU-15) countries, is the first step for policymakers. Through literature review and Eurostat databases (ESSPROS) and the OECD (OECD), compiled and presented the necessary statistical and theoretical data reveal deviations of Greece from the average of...

  4. PRIORITIES OF SOCIAL POLICY OF SEPARATE REGIONS OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tatyana Gennadevna Pronyushkina

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available Definition of priorities in the regional social policy takes into account the specific characteristics of the region, in the unity of the Federal and regional social policies, in terms of ordering in the separation of powers. The effectiveness of the policy is determined based on the evaluation of indicators, which characterize: the reproduction of the population; social unrest; expenditure on social sector, private institutions; the standard of living of the population; civil health. Social protection of the population is differentiated solution of various problems resulting from the consummation of social risks. On the analysis of social structure, as well as the study of causal relationships and social risks and social problems based prioritization of social protection of the population.In the system of management of social protection of the population it is impossible to use any one approach to working with people. Currently, a combination of planned and socio-standard approaches based on the development of standards of social protection. The author of the study reflected the results of monitoring the social well-being and needs of the population Vladimir and Nizhny Novgorod regions. The adoption of new programs to support the needy, the implementation of any social security measures will have the greatest efficiency in combination with a constant monitoring of the social well-being and needs of the population - the main object of social protection. Only using the full extent of socio-cultural, legal, economic and managerial resources, it is possible to achieve full development of the system of social services that fully satisfy the needs of the population.

  5. Networks in social policy problems

    CERN Document Server

    Scotti, marco

    2012-01-01

    Network science is the key to managing social communities, designing the structure of efficient organizations and planning for sustainable development. This book applies network science to contemporary social policy problems. In the first part, tools of diffusion and team design are deployed to challenges in adoption of ideas and the management of creativity. Ideas, unlike information, are generated and adopted in networks of personal ties. Chapters in the second part tackle problems of power and malfeasance in political and business organizations, where mechanisms in accessing and controlling informal networks often outweigh formal processes. The third part uses ideas from biology and physics to understand global economic and financial crises, ecological depletion and challenges to energy security. Ideal for researchers and policy makers involved in social network analysis, business strategy and economic policy, it deals with issues ranging from what makes public advisories effective to how networks influenc...

  6. The state of social media policies in higher education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pomerantz, Jeffrey; Hank, Carolyn; Sugimoto, Cassidy R

    2015-01-01

    This paper presents an analysis of the current state of development of social media policies at institution of higher education. Content analysis of social media policies for all institutions listed in the Carnegie Classification Data File revealed that less than one-quarter of institutions had an accessible social media policy. Analysis was done by institution and campus unit, finding that social media policies were most likely to appear at doctorate-granting institutions and health, athletics, and library units. Policies required that those affiliated with the institution post appropriate content, represent the unit appropriately, and moderate conversations with coworkers and external agencies. This analysis may inform the development and revision of social media policies across the field of higher education, taking into consideration the rapidly changing landscape of social media, issues of academic freedom, and notions of interoperability with policies at the unit and campus levels.

  7. Social Innovation Policies with the Involvement of Social Economy Organizations

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bassi, Andrea; Ecchia, Giulio; Guerra, Alice

    In this paper, we investigate significant social innovation policies (related to the concept of social investment) involving the role of Social Economy organizations, and we discuss some relevant national and regional social innovation experiences by relying upon the current national...... and international literature, reports and website information. During the 1990s and the first half of the 2000s, the concept of “social economy” has evolved from one where the emphasis was on the social (social outcomes and collective action) to a neo-liberal one with more emphasis on the economic and individual...... actors (social entrepreneurs). Nowadays we are facing a transition period nevertheless in the recent developments of the policy orientation at European level, there are some slight but significant clues of a move back towards a more ‘social’ concept. We will assume as operating definition of Social...

  8. Social Media as a Catalyst for Policy Action and Social Change for Health and Well-Being: Viewpoint

    Science.gov (United States)

    2018-01-01

    This viewpoint paper argues that policy interventions can benefit from the continued use of social media analytics, which can serve as an important complement to traditional social science data collection and analysis. Efforts to improve well-being should provide an opportunity to explore these areas more deeply, and encourage the efforts of those conducting national and local data collection on health to incorporate more of these emerging data sources. Social media remains a relatively untapped source of information to catalyze policy action and social change. However, the diversity of social media platforms and available analysis techniques provides multiple ways to offer insight for policy making and decision making. For instance, social media content can provide timely information about the impact of policy interventions. Social media location information can inform where to deploy resources or disseminate public messaging. Network analysis of social media connections can reveal underserved populations who may be disconnected from public services. Machine learning can help recognize important patterns for disease surveillance or to model population sentiment. To fully realize these potential policy uses, limitations to social media data will need to be overcome, including data reliability and validity, and potential privacy risks. Traditional data collection may not fully capture the upstream factors and systemic relationships that influence health and well-being. Policy actions and social change efforts, such as the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s effort to advance a culture of health, which are intended to drive change in a network of upstream health drivers, will need to incorporate a broad range of behavioral information, such as health attitudes or physical activity levels. Applying innovative techniques to emerging data has the potential to extract insight from unstructured data or fuse disparate sources of data, such as linking health attitudes that

  9. Social Welfare Policy in an Information Age: New Vision or More of the Same?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    John G. McNutt

    2005-05-01

    Full Text Available As we move into the 21st Century, the social policy enterprise stands as the nexus between technological, political and social forces that will undermine the base that contemporary programs and policies depend upon. Assumptions about work and the workforce, the nature of governance and the role of technology will radically change. If our social welfare system is to remain relevant, changes will be needed. This paper explores these changing systems and examines how they will influence the current system. It will also speculate on the types of changes that will be necessary if social welfare is to remain relevant to the society of the future.

  10. Innovative Policies for a New Social Reality

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Teresa Llorens Carbonell

    2009-08-01

    Full Text Available Social changes, such as the arrival of immigration, demand that public authorities react and design new policies that meet the needs of citizens. Proactive policies, giving people the tools to face this social change with peace of mind, from knowledge; policies aimed not just at immigrants, but at everyone living in our towns and cities. At the Department of Equality and Citizenship of the Diputació de Barcelona, we are committed to citizenship policies. Those that put everyone at the centre of public action, with the objective of working towards better living together and social cohesion. Town Councils, as local administration, must lead this action and face the challenges that it presents.

  11. Political and Institutional Drivers of Social Security Policy in South Africa

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    S. Ulriksen, Marianne; Plagerson, Sophie

    studies with varying policy outcomes: 1) the social cash transfer system, which is well established; and 2) the National Health Insurance (NHI) scheme, a recent policy, which has suffered several delays. Building on the power resource and historical institutionalism approaches, we explore how different...

  12. Policies as translation: situating the transnational social policies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paul Stubbs

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available This article explores some of the implications of the development of an anthropology or ethnography of the transnational dimensions of policies. The fi rst part explains the basic conceptual apparatus, in terms of policies as a generator of meanings. The second part examines policies as translation and explores its implications in terms of the transnationalization of the policies and, in particular, it seeks to contrast the translation of policies with more orthodox knowledge of policies transference. The third part explores the translation of policies through a refl exive ethnographical approach, analyzing a number of cases based on the practical involvement of the authors in social policies reforms in regions of the Central Europe and the East. The fourth part presents some conclusions and indicates certain theoretical and ethical objections that can and must be raised with regard to the presented approach.

  13. Reforming Social Policy: Changing Perspectives on Sustainable ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Reforming Social Policy: Changing Perspectives on Sustainable Human Development. Book cover Reforming Social Policy: Changing Perspectives on Sustainable Human Development. Directeur(s):. Daniel Morales-Gómez, Necla Tschirgi, and Jennifer L. Moher. Maison(s) d'édition: IDRC. 1 janvier 1999. ISBN :.

  14. Theories in Social Policy and Development Studies

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schmidt, Johannes Dragsbæk

    Theories in Social Policy and Development Studies Presentation for the PhD Seminar - Theories, Concepts and Methods in Development Studies and Sociology......Theories in Social Policy and Development Studies Presentation for the PhD Seminar - Theories, Concepts and Methods in Development Studies and Sociology...

  15. Social Media as a Catalyst for Policy Action and Social Change for Health and Well-Being: Viewpoint.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yeung, Douglas

    2018-03-19

    This viewpoint paper argues that policy interventions can benefit from the continued use of social media analytics, which can serve as an important complement to traditional social science data collection and analysis. Efforts to improve well-being should provide an opportunity to explore these areas more deeply, and encourage the efforts of those conducting national and local data collection on health to incorporate more of these emerging data sources. Social media remains a relatively untapped source of information to catalyze policy action and social change. However, the diversity of social media platforms and available analysis techniques provides multiple ways to offer insight for policy making and decision making. For instance, social media content can provide timely information about the impact of policy interventions. Social media location information can inform where to deploy resources or disseminate public messaging. Network analysis of social media connections can reveal underserved populations who may be disconnected from public services. Machine learning can help recognize important patterns for disease surveillance or to model population sentiment. To fully realize these potential policy uses, limitations to social media data will need to be overcome, including data reliability and validity, and potential privacy risks. Traditional data collection may not fully capture the upstream factors and systemic relationships that influence health and well-being. Policy actions and social change efforts, such as the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's effort to advance a culture of health, which are intended to drive change in a network of upstream health drivers, will need to incorporate a broad range of behavioral information, such as health attitudes or physical activity levels. Applying innovative techniques to emerging data has the potential to extract insight from unstructured data or fuse disparate sources of data, such as linking health attitudes that are

  16. EU governance of economic and social policies : Chances and challenges for social Europe

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bekker, S.; Klosse, S.

    2013-01-01

    This article aims at establishing to what extent the renewed EU economic and social policy coordination cycles offer opportunities to uphold and further develop the Union’s social objectives. First, it seeks to examine to what extent the legal frameworks in which macroeconomic and social policies

  17. Social Media for Public Health: An Exploratory Policy Analysis

    OpenAIRE

    Fast, Ingrid; Sørensen, Kristine; Brand, Helmut; Suggs, L. Suzanne

    2017-01-01

    Background: To accomplish the aims of public health practice and policy today, new forms of communication and education are being applied. Social media are increasingly relevant for public health and used by various actors. Apart from benefits, there can also be risks in using social media, but policies regulating engagement in social media is not well researched. This study examined European public health-related organizations' social media policies and describes the main components of exist...

  18. A survey of social media policies in U.S. dental schools.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Henry, Rachel K; Webb, Chadleo

    2014-06-01

    Since social media sites began to appear in the 1990s, their popularity has increased dramatically, especially among younger individuals. With this widespread use of social media, institutions of higher education are finding the need to implement social media policies. The purpose of this study was to gather information from accredited U.S. dental schools on their social media policies. A survey sent to academic deans asked questions related to social media policies and violations of policies. The survey yielded a 35.9 percent (n=23) response rate. Social media policies at the university level were reported by 47.8 percent (n=11) of respondents, and 34.8 percent (n=8) had social media policies specifically in the dental school. Schools that had an institutional social media policy were more likely to have a social media policy in the dental school (p=0.01), and dental schools were more likely to have a policy if the academic dean had been in the position less than five years (p=0.01). All twenty-three responding dental schools have official social media pages. Dental educators and administrators may want to look for opportunities to raise awareness of social media professionalism in their dental schools.

  19. Teaching Social Policy: Integration of Current Legislation and Media Resources

    Science.gov (United States)

    DeRigne, LeaAnne

    2011-01-01

    Social work students enter the field of social work for many reasons--from wanting to become clinicians to wanting to advocate for a more socially just world. Social policy classes can be the ideal courses to provide instruction on conducting research on current policy issues. Teaching students about policy advocacy can lead to a class rich with…

  20. Active social policies in the EU

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Berkel, Rik van; Møller, Iver Hornemann

    of work in modern societies and the implications this has or should have for scientific and sociopolitical thinking about inclusion, participation and activation; the "paradigm shift" that can be observed in present social policies, which increasingly become directed at participation rather than (income...... and training/education schemes; and the implications of these research findings for the issues outlined above, that is our thinking of work in relation to participation on the one hand, and social policies aiming at increasing participation on the other....

  1. Policy Needs for Social Security in the Process of Citizenization of the Peri-urban Farmers:A Case Study of Hefei City

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    TAN Jiang-lin; CHEN Rui; NI Wen-cong

    2012-01-01

    We conduct a survey of transformational towns and villages in High-tech Development District, Yaohai District and Shushan District, Hefei City. Using data, we analyze the "sideline effect" and inherent contradiction of transformational cities, research the policy needs for social security and its trend in the citizenization process of the peri-urban farmers. On this basis, we construct the social security policy system that can adapt to the accelerated process of urbanization. Finally, we put forth the following recommendations for the social security policy in the citizenization process of the peri-urban farmers: distinguishing different groups’ policy needs for social security; attaching importance to people’s dynamic policy needs for social security in urbanization; focusing on the adaptability of social security policy transformation in urbanization; attaching importance to the social psychosocial environment of social security policy transformation in urbanization; achieving the trinity of non-farm conversion, urbanization and citizenization in the process of urbanization; strengthening the government’s dominant position in the building of social security policy system.

  2. Decentralization and social participation: the new design of social policies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Solange Maria Teixeira

    2007-05-01

    Full Text Available This text indicates essential elements needed for an analysis of direct democracy, materialized in processes of decentralization and civil society participation in spaces for deliberating public policies, in a context of reform of these policies in the 1990’s. It analyzes the national Policy for the Elderly and the experiences of elderly rights councils. It concludes that despite the fact that spaces for participation are contradictory and the orientations of participation of the various subjects are in conflict, the correlation of forces favorable to conservative forces, redirect social policies, giving them a new rationality and new legitimacy that distribute responsibilities to civil society. These changes reinforce a culture of privation in light of the clashes of the refractions of the social issue and transmute popular participation into consent and legitimization of the given order.

  3. Multi-level policies and adaptive social networks – a conceptual modeling study for maintaining a polycentric governance system

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jean-Denis Mathias

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available Information and collaboration patterns embedded in social networks play key roles in multilevel and polycentric modes of governance. However, modeling the dynamics of such social networks in multilevel settings has been seldom addressed in the literature. Here we use an adaptive social network model to elaborate the interplay between a central and a local government in order to maintain a polycentric governance. More specifically, our analysis explores in what ways specific policy choices made by a central agent affect the features of an emerging social network composed of local organizations and local users. Using two types of stylized policies, adaptive co-management and adaptive one-level management, we focus on the benefits of multi-level adaptive cooperation for network management. Our analysis uses viability theory to explore and to quantify the ability of these policies to achieve specific network properties. Viability theory gives the family of policies that enables maintaining the polycentric governance unlike optimal control that gives a unique blueprint. We found that the viability of the policies can change dramatically depending on the goals and features of the social network. For some social networks, we also found a very large difference between the viability of the adaptive one-level management and adaptive co-management policies. However, results also show that adaptive co-management doesn’t always provide benefits. Hence, we argue that applying viability theory to governance networks can help policy design by analyzing the trade-off between the costs of adaptive co-management and the benefits associated with its ability to maintain desirable social network properties in a polycentric governance framework.

  4. The European Social Survey and European research policy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kropp, Kristoffer

    2017-01-01

    This article analyses the history of the European Social Survey (ESS) and its relationship to changes in European research policy, using Bourdieu’s field-analytical approach. It argues that the success of the ESS relied on three interwoven processes that we can understand theoretically in terms...... of the establishment of homological structures and the formation of conjunctural alliances between the field of European social-scientific research and the field of European policy. The three interwoven processes that I depict are: first, the production of a European field of social research, connected to both...... European and national scientific institutions; second, the establishment of European Union (EU) institutions and organisations that were able to identify and link up with social researchers; and third, the formation of conjunctural alliances between the two fields (social science and EU research policy...

  5. Globalisation and social policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Langmore, J

    2001-01-01

    This paper discusses six major themes: that economic and social issues are closely interdependent and that the appropriate stance is to work on both together, simultaneously; that though the threats from globalisation have been exaggerated, there can be substantial costs as well as considerable benefits; that constraints on national policy are significant but are less severe than is commonly considered; that the vitality-the vigour-of national and international political processes must be increased to cope effectively with the changes which are underway; that the private sector, unions and civil society have crucial roles in the provision of services and in advocating socially responsible values, standards and policies; and that one of the most effective means of addressing the erosion of national autonomy from globalisation is for countries to cooperate in setting and implementing shared objectives and international standards and establishing more global public goods.

  6. Urban policy engagement with social sustainability in metro Vancouver.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holden, Meg

    2012-01-01

    This article presents an analysis of social sustainability in comparative theoretical context and as a challenge to the post-political interpretation of sustainability in policy practice at the urban and regional scales. Metro Vancouver provides a case study for improving our understanding of the meaning of social sustainability as a framework for social policy in that it is among the handful of cities around the world currently working to define and enact social sustainability in governance terms. Results of this participant research provide evidence that some cities are politically engaging alternative development pathways using the concept of social sustainability. For sustainable development to retain its promise as an alternative policy framework for cities, social sustainability must be at the forefront.

  7. Social media policies: Implications for contemporary notions of corporate social responsibility

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Stohl, C.; Etter, M.; Banghart, S.; Woo, D.

    Three global developments situate the context of this investigation: the increasing use of social media by organizations and their employees, the burgeoning presence of social media policies, and the heightened focus on corporate social responsibility (CSR). In this study the intersection of these

  8. Social Policy in a Global Society: Parallels and Lessons from the ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    The focus of the 1980s was economic adjustment; in the 1990s, it's social policy reform. ... In Social Policy in a Global Society, international experts examine common social policy ... Asian outlook: New growth dependent on new productivity.

  9. Social Preferences and Labor Market Policy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Filges, Trine; Kennes, John; Larsen, Birthe

    2006-01-01

    We find that the main featues of labor policy across OECD countries can be explained by a simple general equilibrium search model with risk neutral agents and a government that chooses policy to maximize a social welfare function. In equilibrum, policies are chosen to optimal redistribute income....... The model also explains why countries that appear to pursue equity spend more on both active and passive labor market programs....

  10. Territory and management of social policies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aldaíza Sposati

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available The article developed in three movements. The territory building is historical construction and distinguishes this reading of which treat the territory as a place, a coverage area under a given geographic boundary. Assigns key character that distinction for the examination of the relationship territory and social policy. Shows that she is not limited to location of social equipment, and distinguishes it from the social policies operation format without territory, whose management logic is standardized, have homogeneous character of procedures, with similarity to financial agencies operation. In the second movement puts in scene the relationship between institutional agents of social services and the citizens who use them for lives being him. Finally highlights the constituent elements of that relationship as: the recognition of heterogeneity as an expression of singular identities; and the territory trajectory constitution that focuses of living on it, and these influenced by these trajectories.

  11. A Social Work Approach to Policy: Implications for Population Health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miller, Daniel P; Bazzi, Angela R; Allen, Heidi L; Martinson, Melissa L; Salas-Wright, Christopher P; Jantz, Kathryn; Crevi, Katherine; Rosenbloom, David L

    2017-12-01

    The substantial disparities in health and poorer outcomes in the United States relative to peer nations suggest the need to refocus health policy. Through direct contact with the most vulnerable segments of the population, social workers have developed an approach to policy that recognizes the importance of the social environment, the value of social relationships, and the significance of value-driven policymaking. This approach could be used to reorient health, health care, and social policies. Accordingly, social workers can be allies to public health professionals in efforts to eliminate disparities and improve population health.

  12. Sociology, systems and (patient) safety: knowledge translations in healthcare policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jensen, Casper Bruun

    2008-03-01

    In 2000 the American Institute of Medicine, adviser to the federal government on policy matters relating to the health of the public, published the report To Err is Human: Building a Safer Health System, which was to become a call to arms for improving patient safety across the Western world. By re-conceiving healthcare as a system, it was argued that it was possible to transform the current culture of blame, which made individuals take defensive precautions against being assigned responsibility for error - notably by not reporting adverse events, into a culture of safety. The IOM report draws on several prominent social scientists in accomplishing this re-conceptualisation. But the analyses of these authors are not immediately relevant for health policy. It requires knowledge translation to make them so. This paper analyses the process of translation. The discussion is especially pertinent due to a certain looping effect between social science research and policy concerns. The case here presented is thus doubly illustrative: exemplifying first how social science is translated into health policy and secondly how the transformation required for this to function is taken as an analytical improvement that can in turn be redeployed in social research.

  13. Social world of organ transplantation, trafficking, and policies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yousaf, Farhan Navid; Purkayastha, Bandana

    2016-05-01

    Although success of organ transplants reflects advances in medical procedures, the success has generated debates about the ethical standards and policies that govern transplants, especially the acquisition of organs for transplants. We focus on laws, policies, and organ trafficking to highlight the interdisciplinary perspectives that can shape our understanding of transplantation as a social phenomenon. We discuss international policies and country-specific legislation from Pakistan to point to gaps and their implications for protecting vulnerable people who are exploited for organ removal. International collaboration and the legal framework need to be strengthened to fight the menace globally and to deal with the cases of organ trafficking within the legal ambit of human trafficking so that the rights of victims are upheld by states, justice systems, and ultimately medical establishments and practitioners.

  14. Networks in Social Policy Problems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vedres, Balázs; Scotti, Marco

    2012-08-01

    1. Introduction M. Scotti and B. Vedres; Part I. Information, Collaboration, Innovation: The Creative Power of Networks: 2. Dissemination of health information within social networks C. Dhanjal, S. Blanchemanche, S. Clemençon, A. Rona-Tas and F. Rossi; 3. Scientific teams and networks change the face of knowledge creation S. Wuchty, J. Spiro, B. F. Jones and B. Uzzi; 4. Structural folds: the innovative potential of overlapping groups B. Vedres and D. Stark; 5. Team formation and performance on nanoHub: a network selection challenge in scientific communities D. Margolin, K. Ognyanova, M. Huang, Y. Huang and N. Contractor; Part II. Influence, Capture, Corruption: Networks Perspectives on Policy Institutions: 6. Modes of coordination of collective action: what actors in policy making? M. Diani; 7. Why skewed distributions of pay for executives is the cause of much grief: puzzles and few answers so far B. Kogut and J.-S. Yang; 8. Networks of institutional capture: a case of business in the State apparatus E. Lazega and L. Mounier; 9. The social and institutional structure of corruption: some typical network configurations of corruption transactions in Hungary Z. Szántó, I. J. Tóth and S. Varga; Part III. Crisis, Extinction, World System Change: Network Dynamics on a Large Scale: 10. How creative elements help the recovery of networks after crisis: lessons from biology A. Mihalik, A. S. Kaposi, I. A. Kovács, T. Nánási, R. Palotai, Á. Rák, M. S. Szalay-Beko and P. Csermely; 11. Networks and globalization policies D. R. White; 12. Network science in ecology: the structure of ecological communities and the biodiversity question A. Bodini, S. Allesina and C. Bondavalli; 13. Supply security in the European natural gas pipeline network M. Scotti and B. Vedres; 14. Conclusions and outlook A.-L. Barabási; Index.

  15. Macroeconomic policies and increasing social-health inequality in Iran.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zaboli, Rouhollah; Seyedin, Seyed Hesam; Malmoon, Zainab

    2014-08-01

    Health is a complex phenomenon that can be studied from different approaches. Despite a growing research in the areas of Social Determinants of Health (SDH) and health equity, effects of macroeconomic policies on the social aspect of health are unknown in developing countries. This study aimed to determine the effect of macroeconomic policies on increasing of the social-health inequality in Iran. This study was a mixed method research. The study population consisted of experts dealing with social determinants of health. A purposive, stratified and non-random sampling method was used. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to collect the data along with a multiple attribute decision-making method for the quantitative phase of the research in which the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) was employed for prioritization. The NVivo and MATLAB softwares were used for data analysis. Seven main themes for the effect of macroeconomic policies on increasing the social-health inequality were identified. The result of TOPSIS approved that the inflation and economic instability exert the greatest impact on social-health inequality, with an index of 0.710 and the government policy in paying the subsidies with a 0.291 index has the lowest impact on social-health inequality in the country. It is required to invest on the social determinants of health as a priority to reduce health inequality. Also, evaluating the extent to which the future macroeconomic policies impact the health of population is necessary.

  16. Alcohol use and policy formation: an evolving social problem.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Levine, Amir

    2012-01-01

    This article explores the evolutionary course that the social problem of alcohol use has taken in the United States since the Colonial Era. This article utilizes a range of theoretical models to analyze the evolving nature of alcohol use from an unrecognized to a perceived social problem. The models used include critical constructionism (Heiner, 2002), top-down policy model (Dye, 2001) and Mauss'(1975) understanding of social problems and movements. These theoretical constructs exhibit the relative nature of alcohol use as a social problem in regards to a specific time, place, and social context as well as the powerful and influential role that social elites have in defining alcohol asa social problem. Studies regarding the development of alcohol policy formation are discussed to illuminate the different powers, constituents, and factors that play a role in alcohol policy formation.Finally, implications for future study are discussed [corrected].

  17. Social class and policy preferences: implications for economic inequality and interclass relations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bullock, Heather E

    2017-12-01

    Record-setting levels of income and wealth inequality are deepening social class divisions. The adoption of strong progressive redistributive policies is crucial to reducing class inequities, yet many barriers to doing so exist. This review examines class-based policy preferences, focusing on the effects of economic self-interest, system justification, and classist, racist, and sexist stereotypes on policy support. The impact of broader economic conditions is also considered. Collectively, this body of research makes clear that building stronger cross-class support for redistributive policies and programs will prove difficult without addressing both class-based power differences and beliefs that justify inequality. Reducing stereotypes and developing a shared sense of societal responsibility that cuts across class lines can help advance these goals. Social psychological research is vital to informing these efforts. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. A Social Work Approach to Policy: Implications for Population Health

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bazzi, Angela R.; Allen, Heidi L.; Martinson, Melissa L.; Salas-Wright, Christopher P.; Jantz, Kathryn; Crevi, Katherine; Rosenbloom, David L.

    2017-01-01

    The substantial disparities in health and poorer outcomes in the United States relative to peer nations suggest the need to refocus health policy. Through direct contact with the most vulnerable segments of the population, social workers have developed an approach to policy that recognizes the importance of the social environment, the value of social relationships, and the significance of value-driven policymaking. This approach could be used to reorient health, health care, and social policies. Accordingly, social workers can be allies to public health professionals in efforts to eliminate disparities and improve population health. PMID:29236535

  19. Social Science Research Findings and Educational Policy Dilemmas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Steven I. Miller

    2000-01-01

    Full Text Available The article attempts to raise several distinctions regarding the presumed relationship of social science research findings to social policy making. The distinctions are made using Glymour's critique of the Bell Curve. An argument is made that (1 social science models and research findings are largely irrelevant to the actual concerns of policy makers and (2 what is relevant, but overlooked by Glymour, is how ideological factors mediate the process. The forms that ideological mediation may take are indicated.

  20. Policy and identity change in youth social work

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Vitus, Kathrine

    2017-01-01

    _ Summary: This article analyses – by drawing on ideology critical and psychoanalytical concepts from Slavoj Zizek and Glynos et al. – how political, social and fantasmatic logics interplay and form social workers’ professional identities within two youth social work institutions that operate...... within different social policy paradigms: a socialinterventionist paradigm in 2002 and a neoliberal paradigm in 2010. _ Findings: The article shows how the current neoliberalisation of public policy permeates social work practices through fantasmatic narratives that create professional identities to heal...... discrepancies in and conceal the political dimension of everyday life. In one institution, within a welfare state-based ideology a compensating-including social professional identity is created in response to the young people’s alleged deficiencies; in the other institution, within a neoliberal ideology...

  1. Cultural Requirements of Policy Making System for Hijab and Dignity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shahla Bagheri

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Policy making and policy measures is important in the social system. occurs. Policy maker aimed to achieve cultural requirements of policy making system by interaction stale and society. After the Islamic Revolution of Iran. the strengths and weaknesses of the different levels of the system politically has been accompanied in the field of moral and sexual dignity and chastity, aside from the basic necessity of building systems - Iranian, coordination and harmony of the system was not relevant. That is in the realm of theoretical ideas and goals are expressed in practice, the relationship between logical and measurable programs are executed with the goals and policies have been developed. measures to improve processes, motivate and educate individuals and groups, and to monitor the development of information systems.

  2. Aid, social policy, and development

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Addison, Tony; Niño-Zarazúa, Miguel; Tarp, Finn

    This paper discusses past and current social policy strategies in the international aid architecture. From the 1990s, aid strategy and policy shifted to put a stronger emphasis on human development. This accelerated with the Millennium Development Goals and will continue under the Sustainable...... Development Goals, which have even more ambitious targets. The paper also assesses some of the concerns associated with the ‘Paris-style’ aid modalities, and discusses major challenges for the future global development agenda....

  3. Antipodean Social Policy Responses to Economic Crises

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Starke, Peter

    2013-01-01

    the government enacted fiscal stimulus measures, the social policy component was small and the government soon returned to welfare retrenchment and workfare policy. Based on a detailed account of recent crisis policies as well as a condensed overview of previous crisis responses (to the 1970s oil shocks......, interest group structures, political institutions and policy legacies. The analysis shows that the recent differences cannot fully be explained through idiosyncratic factors, as partisan ideology was already crucial in strategic policy decisions during the first months of the crisis. The historical pattern...

  4. Social Investment after Neoliberalism: Policy Paradigms and Political Platforms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deeming, Christopher; Smyth, Paul

    2015-04-01

    The concept of the 'social investment state' refocuses attention on the productive function of social policy eclipsed for some time by the emphasis on its social protection or compensation roles. Here we distinguish between different social investment strategies, the Nordic 'heavy' and the Liberal 'light', with particular reference to the inclusive growth approach adopted in Australia. In 2007, social democrats in Australia returned to government with a clear mandate to reject the labour market deregulation and other neoliberal policies of its predecessor, and to tackle entrenched social and economic disadvantage in Australian society. For the last five years, social investment and inclusive growth has been at the centre of the Australian social policy agenda. Against this background, the article examines and critically assesses the (re)turn to 'social investment' thinking in Australia during Labor's term in office (2007-13). Analysis focuses not just on what was actually achieved, but also on the constraining role of prevailing economic and political circumstances and on the processes that were used to drive social investment reform. In many ways, the article goes some way to exposing ongoing tensions surrounding the distinctiveness of 'social investment' strategies pursued by leftist parties within the (neo)liberal state.

  5. Local Social Media Policies Governing Teachers' Professionally Oriented Participation Online: A Content Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodesiler, Luke

    2017-01-01

    In light of recent scholarship about teachers leveraging social media to support their continuing professional development, this article documents an investigation of school board policies governing teachers' use of social media. Focusing on 30 traditional public school systems within a 10-county region in the Midwestern United States, the author…

  6. Government Policies for Corporate Social Responsibility in Europe

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Knudsen, Jette Steen; Moon, Jeremy; Slager, Rieneke

    This paper analyses policies of twenty two EU member governments designed to encourage corporate social responsibility (CSR) over the first decade of the century. Our paper categorizes policies for CSR into different types depending on their expected degree of regulatory strength. Secondly, whilst...... it identifies a wide range of issues to which government CSR policies are directed, it notes a tendency for these to have expanded from social affairs and employment issues, through environmental issues, to economic and trade and development issues. Thirdly, governments act as agents in their respective...... institutional structures to embed CSR concerns explicitly into these frameworks....

  7. Social murder: the long-term effects of conservative economic policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chernomas, Robert; Hudson, Ian

    2009-01-01

    In this article, the authors take inspiration from Engels's 1845 account of the social murder committed by British capitalists to assess the contemporary impact of conservative economic policy, which they define as policies designed to maximize the accumulation of profit while socializing the associated risks and costs. Conservative economists argue that if their policy prescription is followed, it will produce broad-based economic benefits including more rapid growth, higher incomes, less illness, and, even, more democracy. The authors contrast the myth of conservative economic policy with the reality. What conservative economic policy has actually accomplished is a redistribution of wealth and power away from the vast majority of the population to firms and their owners. The effects of these policies on citizens and workers have been socially determined economic instability, unemployment, poverty, inequality, dangerous products, and infectious and chronic disease.

  8. An Analysis of States' Policies Regarding Social Media Use in Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miller, Janette K.

    2016-01-01

    This policy analysis project focused on states' policies regarding social media use in education. Currently, policies, practices and laws are not keeping pace with the rapidly changing nature of technology. As a result of the quick advancement of social media practices, the need exists for organic policies and practices within the educational…

  9. Integrating Deliberative Justice Theory into Social Work Policy Pedagogy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Morrow, Helen

    2011-01-01

    Deliberation that upholds the social work values of justice and inclusion is an essential component of the policy-making process; yet most social welfare policy curricula focus instead on the goals of distributive justice. This article presents a model that demonstrates how deliberative justice can be easily incorporated into beginning level…

  10. Beyond the contributory principle: changes and continuities in Argentine social policy , 2003-2011

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guillermo V Alonso

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The goal of this article is to analyze the transformations of Argentine social policy during Nestor Kirchner’s and Cristina Fernandez’s Administrations, from 2003 through 2011. We analyze the main social policies with more extended population coverage, especially social security programs. We will argue that at the beginning social policies were a new version of the Bismarckian social insurance, but then the government innovated in social policy breaking with the contributory principle.

  11. Social, state and political society: Reflections on Mental Health Policy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sofia Laurentino

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available This article intends to develop a historical, theoretical and critical debate about mental health, as a social policy, resulting from the dialectical relationship between state and civil society. The adopted methodology is qualitative, consisting on a bibliographical and reflexive review, through which it aims to evaluate positions of various authors on the subject. A discussion of the historical development of the Mental Health policy in Brazil was made, emphasizing the presence of various social movements, such as the Workers in Mental Health Movement, the Sanitary Reform Movement, the Psychiatric Reform Movement and the Anti-Asylum Movement. Therefore, it is verified that society has great ability to fight for effective social policies, in order to mitigate the destructive effects of capitalism. It is concluded that, although social policy is incapable of overcoming the social order, it includes significant changes to the recognition and assurance of rights to the people deprived of wealth and power in society.

  12. Social contingencies, the aged, and public policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hudson, R B

    1993-01-01

    Today's older population is notably different than it was a few decades ago, both in well-being and in diversity, a shift that must be acknowledged in public policy. The U.S. social insurance system overprotects against highly likely, predictable, and nonvolatile events at the expense of more unlikely, potentially catastrophic, and less volatile events. The public sector, therefore, should move toward proportionally emphasizing health-related, functionally impairing events rather than income maintenance; the private sector is better suited to insuring against predictable and nonvolatile old-age events. A contingent event scheme would: (a) encourage the growth of long-term-care insurance; (b) help bridge the gap between those arguing for greater "efficiencies" in social welfare spending and those pressing for new universal benefits; and (c) bring a new perspective to the "generational equity" debate.

  13. CONVERGENCE IN THE EUROPEAN SOCIAL POLICY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mariana Iovitu

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available The European Union has developed a series of strategies that aim to limit the consequences of non-employment (due to the continuing crisis. These strategies aim by the objectives and mechanisms specific to the eco-social area, to improve the access to employment, social services, professional education and a more efficient European fund management. All this are subordinated to the coupling policy public-private in terms of partnerships both at a national level and European level. The problem is related to differences manifested between the social objectives at the national level and those imposed by the European context. The differences come from different degrees of economic development of the member states, economic development which is reflected on the living standards. The convergence between the social policies is based on the economic convergence, which represents the only way to ameliorate the discrepancies between the united nations of Europe. Social Europe dream or certainty? The answer can be found in the words of Jean Monnet: “we are not bringing together states, we are uniting people”. The efforts to define the four types of actions regarding the free movement of labor force and the correlation of the social security schemes, ensuring equal opportunities, respecting labor rights and the fight against discrimination can be found in the results obtained on these priorities.

  14. Ideas for Changing Educational Systems, Educational Policy and Schools

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thomson, Pat; Lingard, Bob; Wrigley, Terry

    2012-01-01

    This paper argues the need for new ideas to assist in the creation of a new social imaginary post-neo-liberalism to frame rethought educational systems, policy and schooling. This is an attempt to reclaim progressive, democratic and social justice purposes for schooling well beyond dominant human capital renditions. While acknowledging the…

  15. Norwegian public health policy: revitalization of the social democratic welfare state?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fosse, Elisabeth

    2009-01-01

    Norway is part of the so-called social democratic welfare state model, which is characterized by its emphasis on solidarity and redistribution among social groups. The concepts of upstream and downstream policy measures may be useful to characterize different approaches to public health policies: upstream measures would be structural measures, in line with the social democratic welfare state model, while downstream measures would be more targeted at individuals or groups at some sort of risk. The aim of this article is to analyze national policies in Norway and how these may be characterized in terms of upstream and downstream factors. Health promotion and public health policies have been high on the Norwegian political agenda for two decades. However, the national policy emphasis has shifted between strategies aimed at individuals and structural strategies--that is, between downstream and upstream measures. Until 2003, policies included mainly downstream measures, but since then a policy shift has taken place and current policy includes an emphasis on upstream measures. This policy was strengthened after a left-wing coalition came into government in 2005. It may be argued that the present policy represents a revitalization of universal and structural measures, in line with the social democratic welfare state model.

  16. The One-Child Policy, Elder Care, and LGB Chinese: A Social Policy Explanation for Family Pressure.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hildebrandt, Timothy

    2018-01-03

    Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) people in China consistently report family pressure as the greatest challenge they face in their daily lives. This problem has been explained primarily by highlighting sociocultural factors. While such explanations are important to understanding family pressure, they do not easily lead to actionable policy interventions to relieve it. This article suggests a new way of looking at family pressure by positing a social policy explanation. In particular, it reveals how both the one-child policy and elder care reforms have strong heteronormative biases that negatively and disproportionately affect LGB people, and it explores social policy interventions that may help address them. Beyond the China case, the article seeks to open up new avenues for research into how sexuality could be better accounted for in analyses of social policies and considered in broader discussions on defamilization and welfare state reform.

  17. Public Policies that Help Foster Social Inclusion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cheung, Chau-kiu

    2013-01-01

    Public policies can be effective in raising people's social inclusion as intended only reasonably through their implementation. With respect to the implementation perspective, this study examines the effectiveness of eight policies as perceived to implement in Hong Kong, China. The study employs data collected from 1,109 Chinese adults randomly…

  18. Adaptive Policies for Reducing Inequalities in the Social Determinants of Health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gemma Carey

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available Inequalities in the social determinants of health (SDH, which drive avoidable health disparities between different individuals or groups, is a major concern for a number of international organisations, including the World Health Organization (WHO. Despite this, the pathways to changing inequalities in the SDH remain elusive. The methodologies and concepts within system science are now viewed as important domains of knowledge, ideas and skills for tackling issues of inequality, which are increasingly understood as emergent properties of complex systems. In this paper, we introduce and expand the concept of adaptive policies to reduce inequalities in the distribution of the SDH. The concept of adaptive policy for health equity was developed through reviewing the literature on learning and adaptive policies. Using a series of illustrative examples from education and poverty alleviation, which have their basis in real world policies, we demonstrate how an adaptive policy approach is more suited to the management of the emergent properties of inequalities in the SDH than traditional policy approaches. This is because they are better placed to handle future uncertainties. Our intention is that these examples are illustrative, rather than prescriptive, and serve to create a conversation regarding appropriate adaptive policies for progressing policy action on the SDH.

  19. The Brazil socio-educational care system: contribution for an analysis critical of the policy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Candida de Souza

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available The Socio-Educational system is the policy of care for juvenile delinquents in Brazil. This policy is challenged to differentiate the prison system, because it’s pedagogic and sanctionatory in the same time. In this paper we propose to make a critical analysis of the implementation of the policy of children and adolescents in Brazil, especially the socio-educational system, under a critical view, with foundation in dialectical historical materialism. So we present the historical evolution of the attention to the rights of children and adolescents in Brazil and aim the limitations and possibilities of this policy today, in addition to the current operation of this policy, followed by an analysis based on critical criminology. Finally, we indicate that the juvenile justice system, the socio-educational system and all social practices relating to offenses should be seen as part of an historical and social process that has as its central point the materiality of social relations, the relationship between society, market and State and the consequent contradictions that are placed there. As the socio-educational project is linked to a contemporary neoliberal state, he does not escape the pressure of capitalism. That is, you can not understand the socio-educational institutions and logic that supports policies so displaced from this broader socio-political system that perpetuates unevenly and exclusive.

  20. A Critical Assessment of Evidence-Based Policy and Practice in Social Work.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Diaz, Clive; Drewery, Sian

    2016-01-01

    In this article the authors consider how effective social work has been in terms of evidence-based policies and practice. They consider the role that "evidence" plays in policy making both in the wider context and, in particular, in relation to social work. The authors argue that there are numerous voices in the policy-making process and evidence only plays a minor role in terms of policy development and practice in social work.

  1. Enforcement of Privacy Policies over Multiple Online Social Networks for Collaborative Activities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Zhengping; Wang, Lifeng

    Our goal is to tend to develop an enforcement architecture of privacy policies over multiple online social networks. It is used to solve the problem of privacy protection when several social networks build permanent or temporary collaboration. Theoretically, this idea is practical, especially due to more and more social network tend to support open source framework “OpenSocial”. But as we known different social network websites may have the same privacy policy settings based on different enforcement mechanisms, this would cause problems. In this case, we have to manually write code for both sides to make the privacy policy settings enforceable. We can imagine that, this is a huge workload based on the huge number of current social networks. So we focus on proposing a middleware which is used to automatically generate privacy protection component for permanent integration or temporary interaction of social networks. This middleware provide functions, such as collecting of privacy policy of each participant in the new collaboration, generating a standard policy model for each participant and mapping all those standard policy to different enforcement mechanisms of those participants.

  2. Feminist Policy Analysis: Expanding Traditional Social Work Methods

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kanenberg, Heather

    2013-01-01

    In an effort to move the methodology of policy analysis beyond the traditional and artificial position of being objective and value-free, this article is a call to those working and teaching in social work to consider a feminist policy analysis lens. A review of standard policy analysis models is presented alongside feminist models. Such a…

  3. Reproductive Health Policies in Peru: Social Reforms and Citizenship Rights

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stéphanie Rousseau

    2007-05-01

    Full Text Available The article analyzes the case of reproductive health policy-making in Peru in the context of recent social policy reforms. Health-sector reforms have only partially redressed Peruvian women’s unequal access to family planning, reproductive rights and maternal care. The main sources of inequalities are related to the segmented character of the health-care system, with the highest burden placed on the public sector. The majority of women from popular classes, who are not protected by an insurance plan, are dependent upon what and how public services are provided. Simultaneously, the continuing role of conservative sectors in public debates about reproductive health policy has a strong impact on public family planning services and other reproductive rights.

  4. Analyzing social policy: multiple perspectives for critically understanding and evaluating policy

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    O'Connor, Mary Katherine; Netting, F. Ellen

    2011-01-01

    ... and development to implementation. Approaching the topic from an analytical and research-based perspective, the authors help readers make better, informed choices for successfully dealing with the complexities of social policy...

  5. Co-financing of Social Policy in the Brazilian Federalism Context of XXI Century

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Evilasio Salvador

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available The federal arrangement post Constitution comes indicating greater accountability of federal units and municipalities in the implementation of social policies at the same time as it gave greater autonomy in tax collection. From the 2000s, the new rules of social policies in education, health and social assitance has required a greater effort of budgetary resources of the states, the Federal District and municipalities, without the creation or injection of additional tax revenue. In social policies, important legislative changes mark the first decade of this century in Brazil with direct implications on federal arrangement and therefore the co-financing of social policies. The main objective of this article is to analyze the amount of funds invested by the federal government, states, Federal District and municipalities in budget functions: social assistance, health and education, from 2002 to 2012, highlighting the co-financing these social policies. As well as to identify some obstacles created by the fiscal adjustment underway in the country to expand the co-financing of social policies.

  6. Promoting Election-Related Policy Practice among Social Work Students

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pritzker, Suzanne; Burwell, Christianna

    2016-01-01

    Political involvement is an integral component of the social work profession, yet there is no explicit reference to social work participation in election-related activities in either the National Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics or the Council on Social Work Education Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards. Social work…

  7. Biotechnology and Innovation Systems: The Role of Public Policy ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    2012-02-29

    Feb 29, 2012 ... This book explores how policies targeting public research institutions, ... such approaches work under different economic and social conditions. ... innovation systems, higher education, and development will find this book an ...

  8. Features of the Japanese national dementia strategy in comparison with international dementia policies: How should a national dementia policy interact with the public health- and social-care systems?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nakanishi, Miharu; Nakashima, Taeko

    2014-07-01

    The Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare of the Japanese national government announced a "Five-Year Plan for Promotion of Measures Against Dementia (Orange Plan)" in September 2012. This article described features of the Japanese dementia strategy in comparison with international dementia policies. An international comparative study was implemented on national dementia policies to seek suggestions for Japanese national strategy. The study consisted of a bibliographical survey, a field survey, and an online case vignette survey in several countries. The Japanese health- and social-care system had multiple access points in the dementia care pathway, as did Australia, France, South Korea, and the Netherlands. Contrary to Japan, a simplified access point was observed in Denmark, England, and Sweden. The Orange Plan aimed to establish specific health-care services, social-care services, and the coordination of agencies for persons with dementia. However, fragmentation remains in the dementia care pathway. The national government should examine fundamental revisions in health, social-care services, and advocacy in joint initiatives with Alzheimer's Association Japan to improve the national dementia strategy. Copyright © 2014 The Alzheimer's Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  9. Perceived Social Policy Fairness and Subjective Wellbeing: Evidence from China

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sun, Feng; Xiao, Jing Jian

    2012-01-01

    This study examined the relationship between perceived fairness of social policies and subjective well-being. Two types of policies examined were related to income distribution and social security. Subjective well-being was measured by work and life satisfaction. In addition, subjective well-beings between different income, age, and education…

  10. Corporate Social Responsability and Organization Policy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nicoleta CRISTACHE

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available At a time when the world is interested in phenomena such as, ecology, environment, food safety, ozone layer depletion, famine and their effects on social responsibility initiatives are becoming increasingly well received. Even if you can not give a real dimension of the concept of social responsibility-taking as any guarantee of success, an organization must be aware that there is only a tool for maximizing the value of image design, but an essential element of long-term success in direct connection with social and environmental performance of the community. To work is to highlight the link between corporate social responsibility strategies and success in solving organizational policies company issues under restrictive conditions imposed by nouile economic, social and political.

  11. European Policy for Corporate Social Responsibility: Governance Context, Linkage with Sustainable development and Crisis as a Policy Factor

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Taliouris, Evangelos

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Political prerequisites for sustainable development (SD in European Union (EU and its member states are environmental innovation as well as transparency, social welfare, good governance and responsible entrepreneurship. The Europe 2020 Strategy and its indicators were a significant step in order EU, its member states and the social stakeholders to deal with crisis negative socioeconomic and environmental outcomes, but also to improve social trust. An important stakeholder towards these is European business sector. Therefore, responsible entrepreneurship via corporate social responsibility (CSR is a policy topic in EU in parallel with other policy topics such as transparency (e.g. non-financial reporting and good governance (e.g. political framework for CSR. The European business community was always a crucial stakeholder for development, but since 2001 CSR is explicitly part of European policy agenda through topics such as public procurement, responsible supply chains, anti-corruption policies, employment generation, reporting and disclosure etc. In EU the applied policy for CSR indicates different approaches and policy tools within the common policy framework and definitions. Moreover, the crisis evolution became an accelerator for CSR policy evolution and convergence between perspectives and member states. The renewed strategy in 2011, the report for CSR public policies in 2014 and the EU steps towards SD Agenda for 2030 in 2015 indicated issues such as corporate citizenship and responsible entrepreneurship as an ongoing policy process that focuses both on EU political convergence at member states level and the European business sector excellence.

  12. Policy options and system supplies on socialization standard management of city agricultural laborers

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    SUN Yujuan

    2007-01-01

    It is a social system engineering to solve problems of city agricultural laborers, inevitably concerning series of social phenomenon and the social issues of the city and countryside relations, the government function, the city management, the fair efficiency, the population flows, the labor employment, the social security, and so on. Furthermore, it also involves the profoundly political and economic system reforms, the transformation of government functions, the system perfection, legal administration, the social stability in China. The city government, as the direct superintendent of the agricultural laborers, should adopt the conception of the system engineering to construct anew mechanism of the city agricultural laborers socialization standard management, which has a profound theoretical and practical significance.

  13. Family Grant: social policy or political marketing?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paulo Gabriel Martins de Moura

    2007-04-01

    Full Text Available This essay, a political analysis, criticizes the Family Grant Program, implemented by the Lula government of 2003-2005. It is based on the ongoing analysis methodology originated in U.S. political science. It seeks to establish a parallel of these analyses with criticisms of the Family Grant program presented in the media and made by specialists. They focus on the absence of a conceptual reference for the program (or its practical non-application, supported by accumulated knowledge in the field, that would guide the social policies of the Lula government. Based on secondary sources about official data and on statements from specialists, the analysis identifies an apparent 'schizophrenia' in the 'philosophical' references that orient the government's social policies, suggesting that the solution chosen was a situational response to a demand for government marketing and not oriented to a deliberate public policy pre-conceived as such, which, if it exists, is not evident in the government actions.

  14. Desegregation Policy as Social Justice Leadership?: The Case for Critical Consciousness and Racial Literacy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Radd, Sharon I.; Grosland, Tanetha J.

    2018-01-01

    Policy making can be viewed as a large-scale attempt at social justice leadership intended to address vast inequities that persist and are perpetuated in the U.S. K-12 education system. The study examines the text of the Minnesota Desegregation Rule to discern its underlying discourses as they relate to race, racism, and social justice. The…

  15. Community work – the missing link of municipal social policy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Moors M.

    2012-10-01

    Full Text Available Municipal social policy has an important role in dealing with social problems of citizens. On micro level, municipalities spend a substantial amount of their budget solving such problems. However, increasing the amount of money spent on solving problems of each individual at micro level does not provide efficient fulfilment of the tasks defined for municipal social policy making. Thus new, complementary solutions should be looked into, as new ways of development of social work in municipalities should be designed with the aim to increase the level of citizen participation and joint responsibility, especially of socially vulnerable groups. Research results let the author conclude that social activity of socially vulnerable groups should be promoted by creating a series of prerequisites, among which citizen participation, need for organisational support, activities that would foster politician and municipality officials’ attitude towards citizen participation and their social capital increase, two-way relationship between citizens and officials, and the worker that would promote citizen participation, among which is social policy making, are considered to be very important. All of this can be successfully reached by developing community work in local municipalities. This is the missing link to combine macro and micro levels, or political determination and practical implementation of citizen participation.

  16. Limits of the Brazilian social welfare policy in view of social demands of users with acute leukemia: reflections of Social Work

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Renata Fonseca Silva

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available The article analyzes the limits of Social Welfare in view of the social demands of users with acute leukemia. Treatment of this disease is characterized by its high complexity, exposing the patient to a series of clinical requirements. Such treatment condition produces greater demands when users are inserted in a context permeated by social issues. Thus, centrality of social policies is found as an essential resource for ensuring effective treatment of these users. However, considering the focus and fragmentation of social policies, a retraction of social rights is observed.

  17. Developing Child-Centered Social Policies: When Professionalism Takes Over

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nicole Hennum

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available No nation today can be understood as being fully child-centered, but many are pursuing social policies heavily favoring children. The emphasis on individual rights and the growth of scientific knowledge underpinning many of these policies have led to the improvement of the lives of a great many children. Paradoxically, these same knowledge bases informing social policies often produce representations and images of children and their parents that are detrimental for both of these groups. Using Norwegian child welfare policies and practices as examples, I will examine some of the possible pitfalls of child-centered praxis. The key question here is one asking whether the scientific frame central to child welfare professionalism has positioned children and parents as objects rather than subjects in their own lives and, in so doing, required them to live up to standards of life defined for them by experts. A central question will involve exploring the extent to which scientific knowledge has erased political and ethical considerations from the field when assessing social problems.

  18. Voluntary sport clubs and the social policy agenda

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Boven, Magda; Slender, Hans; Wiggers, Peter

    2016-01-01

    Local governments, traditionally an important partner of voluntary sport clubs in the Netherlands, are increasingly influencing clubs into involvement in social projects and activities. Although it is not clear what contribution sports clubs can play in this social policy agenda, or whether this

  19. Bringing the "social" into sociohydrology: Conservation policy support in the Central Great Plains of Kansas, USA

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sanderson, Matthew R.; Bergtold, Jason S.; Heier Stamm, Jessica L.; Caldas, Marcellus M.; Ramsey, Steven M.

    2017-08-01

    Identifying means of empirically modeling the human component of a coupled, human-water system becomes critically important to further advances in sociohydrology. We develop a social-psychological model of environmental decision making that addresses four key challenges of incorporating social science into integrated models. We use the model to explain preferences for three conservation policies designed to conserve and protect water resources and aquatic ecosystems in the Smoky Hill River Basin, a semiarid agricultural region in the Central U.S. Great Plains. Further, we compare the model's capacity to explain policy preferences among members of two groups in the River Basin: agricultural producers and members of nonfarming communities. We find that financial obligation is the strongest and most consistent explanation of support for conservation policies among members of both groups. We also find that policy support is grounded in cultural values—deeply held ideas about right and wrong. Environmental values are particularly important explanations of policy support. The constellations of values invoked to make decisions about policies, and the social-psychological pathways linking values to policy support, can vary across policies and types of agents (farmers and nonfarmers). We discuss the implications of the results for future research in sociohydrology.

  20. Politics, policies and processes: a multidisciplinary and multimethods research programme on policies on the social determinants of health inequity in Australia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baum, Fran; Friel, Sharon

    2017-12-21

    The development and implementation of multisectoral policy to improve health and reduce health inequities has been slow and uneven. Evidence is largely focused on the facts of health inequities rather than understanding the political and policy processes. This 5-year funded programme of research investigates how these processes could function more effectively to improve equitable population health. The programme of work is organised in four work packages using four themes (macroeconomics and infrastructure, land use and urban environments, health systems and racism) related to the structural drivers shaping the distribution of power, money and resources and daily living conditions. Policy case studies will use publicly available documents (policy documents, published evaluations, media coverage) and interviews with informants (policy-makers, former politicians, civil society, private sector) (~25 per case). NVIVO software will be used to analyse the documents to see how 'social and health equity' is included and conceptualised. The interview data will include qualitative descriptive and theory-driven critical discourse analysis. Our quantitative methodological work assessing the impact of public policy on health equity is experimental that is in its infancy but promises to provide the type of evidence demanded by policy-makers. Our programme is recognising the inherently political nature of the uptake, formulation and implementation of policy. The early stages of our work indicate its feasibility. Our work is aided by a Critical Policy Reference Group. Multiple ethics approvals have been obtained with the foundation approval from the Social and Behavioural Ethics Committee, Flinders University (Project No: 6786).The theoretical, methodological and policy engagement processes established will provide improved evidence for policy-makers who wish to reduce health inequities and inform a new generation of policy savvy knowledge on social determinants. © Article author

  1. Using social media to engage nurses in health policy development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Connor, Siobhan

    2017-11-01

    To explore nurses' views on future priorities for the profession and to examine social media as an engagement tool to aid policy discussion and development. Nurses are often not directly involved in policy creation and some feel it is a process they cannot easily influence. A descriptive mixed methods study of a Twitter chat hosted by the Chief Nursing Officer for Scotland was undertaken. Data were gathered using an analytics platform and NCapture software. The framework approach aided thematic analysis to draw out themes. Sixty-four people took part in the Twitter chat (#CNOScot) and posted 444 tweets. Nurses called for investment in technology, nursing research, education and mental health. Primary care and advanced practice roles to support older adults with complex health and social care needs were also seen as vital to develop further. Social media can help reach and engage nurses in policy discussion and ensure there is better continuity between policy and practice but some groups risk being excluded using this digital medium. Nursing leaders should consider social media as one of many engagement strategies to ensure nurses and other stakeholders participate in policy debate that informs health strategy development. © 2017 The Authors. Journal of Nursing Management Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  2. Forming Social Partnership Policy in Vocational Training of Service Sector Specialists in Germany and Austria

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kredenets, Nadiya

    2016-01-01

    The article deals with the problem of forming social partnership policy in vocational training of service sector specialists in Germany and Austria. The foreign and domestic pedagogical experience in establishing an effective system of social partnership in vocational education has been analyzed. The author has considered main factors of social…

  3. ACTORS AND IDEAS OF SOCIAL POLICY IN VENEZUELA (1989-2007

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Thais Gutiérrez Briceño

    2008-11-01

    Full Text Available In this paper we study the ideas that underpin social policy agendas and public social practices implemented in Venezuela during 1989-2007, as well as those actors involved in its design and execution. Two periods are defined: 1989-1998 y 1999-2007, which correspond to overrides in the themes considered. This paper is bibliographic and hemerographic, with emphasis on those relating official discourse on the subject. The conclusion of this paper indicates the presence of substantive changes in the periods mentionated, both in the representations of social policies that guide social actions, and those involved in the process.

  4. Social Protection as Development Policy: A New International Agenda for Action

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    François-Xavier Merrien

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available At the turn of the millennium, social protection became a new priority for both states of the global South and international development policy more generally. As, in the past, social protection policies were considered unsuitable for development countries, the elevation of social protection to the level of a preferred instrument of development marks a fundamental paradigm shift. This shift began in the late 1990s, driven by disenchantment with the results of economic adjustment programmes, the 1997 Asian economic crisis, and a heightened awareness of the negative effects of global poverty. Social protection thus became a preferred instrument of the Millennium Development Goals, while the World Bank promoted social protection as a key component of international poverty reduction strategies (social risk management. The Department for International Development (DfID in the United Kingdom, along with other organisations, promoted a development model centred on the rights of the poor. Successful social protection programmes developed in the Global South – such as Brazilian and South African social pension schemes and conditional cash transfers (CCT established in Mexico and Brazil – were adopted as model programmes at the global level. The purpose of this article is to analyse the emergence of social protection in development policies. From this perspective, it examines the various types of programmes promoted by the international community, with a specific focus on CCT. It concludes with an assessment of the relative appropriateness of social protection policies for developing countries.

  5. Obesity as a Socially Defined Disease: Philosophical Considerations and Implications for Policy and Care.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hofmann, Bjørn

    2016-03-01

    Obesity has generated significant worries amongst health policy makers and has obtained increased attention in health care. Obesity is unanimously defined as a disease in the health care and health policy literature. However, there are pragmatic and not principled reasons for this. This warrants an analysis of obesity according to standard conceptions of disease in the literature of philosophy of medicine. According to theories and definitions of disease referring to (abnormal functioning of) internal processes, obesity is not a disease. Obesity undoubtedly can result in disease, making it a risk factor for disease, but not a disease per se. According to several social conceptions of disease, however, obesity clearly is a disease. Obesity can conflict with aesthetic, moral, or other social norms. Making obesity a "social disease" may very well be a wise health policy, assuring and improving population health, especially if we address the social determinants of obesity, such as the food supply and marketing system. However, applying biomedical solutions to social problems may also have severe side effects. It can result in medicalization and enhance stigmatization and discrimination of persons based on appearance or behavior. Approaching social problems with biomedical means may also serve commercial and professionals' interests more than the health and welfare of individuals; it may make quick fix medical solutions halt more sustainable structural solutions. This urges health insurers, health care professionals, and health policy makers to be cautious. Especially if we want to help and respect persons that we classify and treat as obese.

  6. Champions for social change: Photovoice ethics in practice and 'false hopes' for policy and social change.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnston, Gloria

    2016-01-01

    Photovoice methodology is growing in popularity in the health, education and social sciences as a research tool based on the core values of community-based participatory research. Most photovoice projects state a claim to the third goal of photovoice: to reach policy-makers or effect policy change. This paper examines the concerns of raising false hopes or unrealistic expectations amongst the participants of photovoice projects as they are positioned to be the champions for social change in their communities. The impetus for social change seems to lie in the hands of those most affected by the issue. This drive behind collective social action forms, what could be termed, a micro-social movement or comparative interest group. Looking to the potential use of social movement theory and resource mobilisation concepts, this paper poses a series of unanswered questions about the ethics of photovoice projects. The ethical concern centres on the focus of policy change as a key initiative; yet, most projects remain vague about the implementation and outcomes of this focus.

  7. Impact of socially responsible human resources policies on intellectual capital

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jesus Barrena-Martínez

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Purpose: This research focuses on the benefits that social responsibility can report on the area of human resources, examined the impact of a socially responsible configuration of human resource policies and practices in the generation value process for the company, and more specifically in its intellectual capital. Design/methodology/approach: The study performed a regression analysis, testing the individual effects of socially responsible human resource policies on intellectual capital, broken down into three main variables such as human, social and organizational capital. Findings: The results shed light on how the introduction of socially responsible aspects in the management of human resources can facilitate the exchange of knowledge, skills and attitudes human--capital; lead to improvements in communication, trust, cooperation among employees social-capital and, in turn, generates an institutionalized knowledge encoded in the own organizational culture –organizational capital–. Research limitations/implications: The study only provides information from large companies with over 250 employees. Practical implications: There are important implications in the measure of corporate social responsibility concerns in the area of human resources. Social implications: Also important intangible effects on non-economic variables are confirmed, such as intellectual capital. Originality/value: The value of the study lies in its novelty, testing socially responsible configurations of human resources as well as the direct effects of different policies on intellectual capital.

  8. Social values and solar energy policy: the policy maker and the advocate

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shama, A.; Jacobs, K.

    1980-07-01

    Solar energy policy makers and advocates have significantly different hierarchies (clusters) of values upon which they evaluate the adoption of solar technologies. Content analysis, which examines the frequency with which policy makers identify different types of values, indicates that they hold economic values to be of primary importance. Environmental, social, and national security values are also substantial elements of the policy makers' value clusters associated with solar energy. This finding is confirmed by a qualitative analysis of policy makers' values. Advocates, on the other hand, assign almost equal weights (33%) to economic values and social values, slightly less weight to environmental values, and significant attention to ethical and security values as well. These results of frequency analysis are made somewhat more complicated by a qualitative interpretation of the advocates' positions. As part of their more holistic approach, several of the advocates indicated that all values discussed by them are instrumental toward achieving higher-order, ethical and environmental values. In addition, our preliminary investigation indicates that neither group is entirely homogeneous. Testing this and other propositions, as well as obtaining a similar picture of the values which the public associates with solar energy, are topics of future research.

  9. Challenges of the Unemployment Protection System and Active Policies in Spain

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Del Pino, Eloísa

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available The NorSpaR project aims to analyse the main public policy initiatives by which Norway and Spain cope with the new social and economic challenges derived from the so-called New Social Risks (NSR. Although both countries present significant differences in their institutional settings (such as Spanish EU membership, or its belonging to diverse welfare regimes types (Norway is generally included in the Nordic regime, while Spain is part of the Mediterranean one, both countries share a common interest in addressing the aforementioned challenges while maintaining social cohesion. In the last decade, governments in both countries have tried to respond to those challenges by reforming their labour markets, adapting their unemployment schemes, as well as their gender, family and long-term care policies. The analysis covered in this project includes three areas of public policy addressing NSR. First, dependency is one of the most daunting challenges for post-industrial societies experiencing population ageing and with an increasing number of frail people in need of care. This situation is forcing governments to rethink their long-term care policies. Second, family and gender public programs need to respond to the growing difficulties of families in reconciling professional and family life. Third, in the transition to a post-industrial order, and in a context of mass unemployment, social protection systems have a renewed prominence. Along with the so-called passive policies offering financial support to the unemployed, active labour market policies are geared to put people back into work. In our analysis we try to find answers to the following questions: What are the challenges that each of these policies have been trying to address in recent years? How have these policies evolved? What kinds of reforms have been implemented, and which ones have been neglected? Have the policy goals and targets of welfare programs been modified in any significant way

  10. Education Policy for Social Justice in Cyprus: The Role of Stakeholders' Values

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hajisoteriou, Christina; Angelides, Panayiotis

    2014-01-01

    This article examines (a) the official policy for social justice as developed by the Ministry of Education and Culture and its policy-makers, (b) the ways in which school leaders (head teachers) and school actors (teachers) understand education policy for social justice, and (c) the impact of this process on school leaders' and actors' action or…

  11. Brazilian Biodiesel Policy: Social and environmental considerations of sustainability

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Garcez, Catherine Aliana Gucciardi; Vianna, Joao Nildo de Souza

    2009-01-01

    The objective of this article is to analyze the Brazilian Biodiesel Policy (PNPB) and to identify the social and environmental aspects of sustainability that are present or absent within it. Biofuels, namely alcohol and biodiesel, have been increasing in popularity on a global scale due to their potential as alternative and renewable energy sources. Brazil, a vast country blessed with abundant natural resources and agricultural land, has emerged as a global leader in the production of biofuels. This article includes a brief analysis of the concept of sustainable development, which served as a basis to evaluate the Policy documents. Although PNPB's implementation, which began in 2004, is still within its initial stage, it was possible to identify and elaborate on the environmental and social aspects of the Policy, namely: the social inclusion of family farmers; regional development; food security; influencing the carbon and energy balance of biodiesel; promoting sustainable agricultural practices and a diversity of feedstock. (author)

  12. [Latin-American public policy regarding social determinants of health].

    Science.gov (United States)

    García-Ramírez, Jorge A; Vélez-Álvarez, Consuelo

    2013-01-01

    The study was aimed at identifying Latin-American countries' public policy which has been related to the social determinants of health. A topic review was thus made of papers kept in the 22 Latin-American countries' databases and official documents issued by their multilateral organisations and ministries of health. The World Health Organization's concept of the social determinants of health has been summarised and a history given of the pertinent work developed worldwide in regions such as Europe and Latin-America. Public policy regarding the field of study in Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, México and Venezuela has been described. It was concluded that Latin-America provides a panorama of inequality regarding the application of policy concerning the social determinants of health and that there was segmented intervention, mainly regarding intermediate determinants of health, without taking an integrated approach from different entrance points into account, according to the stated conceptual framework.

  13. The social construction of illness: key insights and policy implications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Conrad, Peter; Barker, Kristin K

    2010-01-01

    The social construction of illness is a major research perspective in medical sociology. This article traces the roots of this perspective and presents three overarching constructionist findings. First, some illnesses are particularly embedded with cultural meaning--which is not directly derived from the nature of the condition--that shapes how society responds to those afflicted and influences the experience of that illness. Second, all illnesses are socially constructed at the experiential level, based on how individuals come to understand and live with their illness. Third, medical knowledge about illness and disease is not necessarily given by nature but is constructed and developed by claims-makers and interested parties. We address central policy implications of each of these findings and discuss fruitful directions for policy-relevant research in a social constructionist tradition. Social constructionism provides an important counterpoint to medicine's largely deterministic approaches to disease and illness, and it can help us broaden policy deliberations and decisions.

  14. Corporate Social Responsibility Management System: A Beverage Industry Case Study

    OpenAIRE

    Almeida, Rita; David, Fátima; Abreu, Rute

    2017-01-01

    This research aims to analyse policies inherent to the Corporate Social Responsibility Management System (CSRMS) of a company that produce diet and light beverage, iced teas, juice drinks and bottled waters. This management system is based on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) as “concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and in their interaction with their stakeholders on a voluntary basis” (EC, Green paper – Promotin...

  15. Why do people postpone parenthood? Reasons and social policy incentives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mills, Melinda; Rindfuss, Ronald R; McDonald, Peter; te Velde, Egbert

    2011-01-01

    Never before have parents in most Western societies had their first children as late as in recent decades. What are the central reasons for postponement? What is known about the link between the delay of childbearing and social policy incentives to counter these trends? This review engages in a systematic analysis of existing evidence to extract the maximum amount of knowledge about the reasons for birth postponement and the effectiveness of social policy incentives. The review followed the PRISMA procedure, with literature searches conducted in relevant demographic, social science and medical science databases (SocINDEX, Econlit, PopLine, Medline) and located via other sources. The search focused on subjects related to childbearing behaviour, postponement and family policies. National, international and individual-level data sources were also used to present summary statistics. There is clear empirical evidence of the postponement of the first child. Central reasons are the rise of effective contraception, increases in women's education and labour market participation, value changes, gender equity, partnership changes, housing conditions, economic uncertainty and the absence of supportive family policies. Evidence shows that some social policies can be effective in countering postponement. The postponement of first births has implications on the ability of women to conceive and parents to produce additional offspring. Massive postponement is attributed to the clash between the optimal biological period for women to have children with obtaining additional education and building a career. A growing body of literature shows that female employment and childrearing can be combined when the reduction in work-family conflict is facilitated by policy intervention.

  16. Social Analysis in Development Interventions: Policy Artefact or Constructive Transformation?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    SUSANNA PRICE

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available Recently attention has focused on the role of social researchers in the processes of construction and transmission of knowledge about global poverty and its reduction. This paper examines some of the formative efforts by pioneering social researchers in development institutions to step into the realm of policy making to construct processes for project preparation and management through social analysis. Before 1970 development planners invoked ‘social' or ‘human' factors only as an excuse to explain away project failures - they designed and implemented development projects in the absence of any strategies or regulatory frameworks for managing their social impacts. Recognizing that project investments represent induced change and constitute a social process in themselves, pioneering social researchers constructed policies and procedures to introduce sociological content and method into the project cycle and so re-order social outcomes. Were such constructs merely policy artefacts? Even as the constructs helped to shift the statements of the development discourse towards ‘people oriented' poverty reduction, new modalities appeared which tested the limits of the agreed methods. Institutions may forget, neglect, contest or re-write the documents if in perceived conflict with the institutional ‘core business'. Yet those pioneering efforts created institutional space for, and understanding of, social analysis, with a measure of flow-on international recognition. Tracking social analysis in several international institutions and in a significant emerging economy, China, this paper highlights not only a history full of lessons to be learned where social analysis is not practiced systematically but also outlines some future challenges.

  17. Privacy policies for health social networking sites

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Jingquan

    2013-01-01

    Health social networking sites (HSNS), virtual communities where users connect with each other around common problems and share relevant health data, have been increasingly adopted by medical professionals and patients. The growing use of HSNS like Sermo and PatientsLikeMe has prompted public concerns about the risks that such online data-sharing platforms pose to the privacy and security of personal health data. This paper articulates a set of privacy risks introduced by social networking in health care and presents a practical example that demonstrates how the risks might be intrinsic to some HSNS. The aim of this study is to identify and sketch the policy implications of using HSNS and how policy makers and stakeholders should elaborate upon them to protect the privacy of online health data. PMID:23599228

  18. Privacy policies for health social networking sites.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Jingquan

    2013-01-01

    Health social networking sites (HSNS), virtual communities where users connect with each other around common problems and share relevant health data, have been increasingly adopted by medical professionals and patients. The growing use of HSNS like Sermo and PatientsLikeMe has prompted public concerns about the risks that such online data-sharing platforms pose to the privacy and security of personal health data. This paper articulates a set of privacy risks introduced by social networking in health care and presents a practical example that demonstrates how the risks might be intrinsic to some HSNS. The aim of this study is to identify and sketch the policy implications of using HSNS and how policy makers and stakeholders should elaborate upon them to protect the privacy of online health data.

  19. Government Policies for Corporate Social Responsibility in Europe:

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Knudsen, Jette Steen; Moon, Jeremy; Slager, Rieneke

    2015-01-01

    This paper analyses policies of 22 European Union member governments, designed to encourage corporate social responsibility (CSR) between 2000 and 2011. It categorises these policies by their regulatory strength and identifies the range of issues to which CSR policies are directed. The paper argues...... that Northern European, Scandinavian and UK governments are reconstructing their respective institutional structures to embed CSR concerns more explicitly therein. It concludes that these government CSR initiatives are converging, particularly around their increased regulatory strength and the broadening...

  20. Social policy from Olson to Ostrom. A case study of Dutch disability insurance

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bannink, D.B.D.

    2014-01-01

    Social policy development and reform in corporatist welfare states often follows a pattern of subsequent collectivization and de-collectivization. This has to do, the article argues, with the social problems these phases address. Early social policy development forms a response to Olson-type

  1. Social Media: Developing an Acceptable Use Policy. Research Brief

    Science.gov (United States)

    Williamson, Ronald

    2010-01-01

    The growing use of social media by students and staff has led many schools to consider developing acceptable use policies. There is tremendous opportunity for improving education through the use of social media. There is also potential risk because social media can be used to access age inappropriate information and to engage in aggressive online…

  2. Social policies and activation in the Scandinavian welfare model: the case of Denmark

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Torben M.

    countries been able to reconcile social objectives with a high employment level? It is argued that the Scandinavian welfare model has a strong employment focus both because it is an important element in social policy based on social inclusion, but also because a collective welfare arrangement is only...... financially viable if (private) employment is sufficiently high. To ensure this, the social safety net includes a number of employment conditionalities (active labour market policies/workfare) to balance income protection with an employment focus. These policies are discussed using Denmark as an example...

  3. Family policies in the context of low fertility and social structure

    OpenAIRE

    Thomas Fent; Belinda Aparicio Diaz; Alexia Fürnkranz-Prskawetz

    2013-01-01

    In this paper we investigate the effectiveness of family policies in the context of the structure of a society. We use an agent-based model to analyse the impact of policies on individual fertility decisions and on fertility at the aggregate level. The crucial features of our model are the interactions between family policies and social structure, the agents´ heterogeneity and the structure and influence of the social network. This modelling framework allows us to disentangle the direct effec...

  4. Likely social impacts of proposed national-level policy initiatives

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Piernot, C.A.; Rothweiler, M.A.; Levine, A.; Crews, R.

    1981-03-01

    The results are described of an investigation of likely social effects of enacting nine proposed national-level policy initiatives to accelerate development and use of solar energy. This study is part of the Technology Assessment of Solar Energy Systems (TASE) project supported by the US Department of Energy. The report presents general social impact information about the variety of ways in which the American people could be affected by enactment of these initiatives. It identifies the effects of each initiative on individuals, groups, organizations, communities, and society as a whole. In addition, it provides a framework for organizing a myriad of impact information into a set of conceptually exclusive impact categories. It illustrates that social impacts means effects on people as individuals, groups, organizations, and communities as well as on the infrastructure of society. Finally, it demonstrates the importance of specifying an audience of impact with a case example from the residential rental market.

  5. Developing conservation targets in social-ecological systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Phillip S. Levin

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available The development of targets is foundational in conservation. Although progress has been made in setting targets, the diverse linkages among ecological and social components make target setting for coupled social-ecological systems extremely challenging. Developing integrated social-ecological targets is difficult because it forces policy makers to consider how management actions propagate throughout social-ecological systems, and because ultimately it is society, not scientists, that defines targets. We developed an interdisciplinary approach for identifying management targets and illustrate this approach using an example motivated by Puget Sound, USA. Our approach blends ecological modeling with empirical social science to articulate trade-offs and reveal societal preferences for different social-ecological states. The framework aims to place information in the hands of decision makers and promote discussion in the appropriate forums. Our ultimate objective is to encourage the informed participation of citizens in the development of social-ecological targets that reflect their values while also protecting key ecosystem attributes.

  6. The Pro-Elderly Bias of Social Policies in Israel

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gamliel-Yehoshua, Haya; Vanhuysse, Pieter

    2010-01-01

    orientation of social policies in Israel, which is a comparatively young society that has nevertheless aged significantly since independence in 1948. We present a historical overview of the development of policy efforts towards different age groups and estimate an Elderly/Non-Elderly Spending Ratio at four...

  7. Translating research for health policy: researchers' perceptions and use of social media.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grande, David; Gollust, Sarah E; Pany, Maximilian; Seymour, Jane; Goss, Adeline; Kilaru, Austin; Meisel, Zachary

    2014-07-01

    As the United States moves forward with health reform, the communication gap between researchers and policy makers will need to be narrowed to promote policies informed by evidence. Social media represent an expanding channel for communication. Academic journals, public health agencies, and health care organizations are increasingly using social media to communicate health information. For example, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now regularly tweets to 290,000 followers. We conducted a survey of health policy researchers about using social media and two traditional channels (traditional media and direct outreach) to disseminate research findings to policy makers. Researchers rated the efficacy of the three dissemination methods similarly but rated social media lower than the other two in three domains: researchers' confidence in their ability to use the method, peers' respect for its use, and how it is perceived in academic promotion. Just 14 percent of our participants reported tweeting, and 21 percent reported blogging about their research or related health policy in the past year. Researchers described social media as being incompatible with research, of high risk professionally, of uncertain efficacy, and an unfamiliar technology that they did not know how to use. Researchers will need evidence-based strategies, training, and institutional resources to use social media to communicate evidence. Project HOPE—The People-to-People Health Foundation, Inc.

  8. Transformations of the Social Policy in Ukraine and its Problems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tokarskyi Taras B.

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available The article is dedicated to the background of the transformative processes of the Ukrainian society on the basis of the pro-European strategy for economic and social development of Ukraine in 2002-2011 and further in the subsequent crisis years. The focus is made on the plans regarding the approximation of the state to the norms and standards of developed democracy, as well as on the observed in the civil society failures related to the high level of corruption, violation of social security standards, human and civil rights and freedoms, etc. A special attention is paid to economic approaches and the concepts of the problems of social policy as well as the formation of mechanisms for social protection of the population. There highlighted the most critical problems of the transformation of the social policy, in particular, changes in the pension plan and social benefit program.

  9. [Social participation in mental health: space of construction of citizenship, policy formulation and decision making].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guimarães, José Maria Ximenes; Jorge, Maria Salete Bessa; Maia, Regina Claudia Furtado; de Oliveira, Lucia Conde; Morais, Ana Patrícia Pereira; Lima, Marcos Paulo de Oliveira; Assis, Marluce Maria Araújo; dos Santos, Adriano Maia

    2010-07-01

    The article approaches the comprehension of professionals that act in the mental health area about the movement of construction of social participation in the health system of Fortaleza, Ceará State. The methodology adopted is based upon qualitative approach. The study was developed with semi-structured interviews with 17 mental health professionals of the city above mentioned. The empirical data was analyzed through the technique of thematic content analysis, where it was identified three cores of analysis: social participation as space of citizenship and policy formulation; oriented to attention of collective needs; and decision taking. The study reveals that social participation represents a possibility of amplifying X the relations between the Civil Society and the State, which makes possible the social intervention in proposals of the health policies. It is highlighted the right to health linked to the consolidation of democracy in the attention to the needs and collective edification.

  10. Egalitarian policies and social determinants of health in Bolivarian Venezuela.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muntaner, Caries; Benach, Joan; Páez Victor, María; Ng, Edwin; Chung, Haejoo

    2013-01-01

    In 1999, newly-elected Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez initiated a far-reaching social movement as part of a political project known as the Bolivarian Revolution. Inspired by the democratic ideologies of Simón Bolívar, this movement was committed to reducing intractable inequalities that defined Venezuela's Fourth Republic (1958-1998). Given the ambitious scope of these reforms, Venezuela serves as an instructive example to understand the political context of social inequalities and population health. In this article, we provide a brief overview of the impact of egalitarian policies in Venezuela, stressing: (a) the socialist reforms and social class changes initiated by the Bolivarian Movement; (b) the impact of these reforms and changes on poverty and social determinants of health; (c) the sustainability of economic growth to continue pro-poor policies; and (d) the implications of egalitarian policies for other Latin American countries. The significance and implications of Chávez's achievements are now further underscored given his recent passing, leading one to ask whether political support for Bolivarianism will continue without its revolutionary leader.

  11. Social and Economic Policies Matter for Health Equity: Conclusions of the SOPHIE Project.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Malmusi, Davide; Muntaner, Carles; Borrell, Carme

    2018-01-01

    Since 2011, the SOPHIE project has accumulated evidence regarding the influence of social and economic policies on population health levels, as well as on health inequalities according to socioeconomic position, gender, and immigrant status. Through comparative analyses and evaluation case studies across Europe, SOPHIE has shown how these health inequalities vary according to contexts in macroeconomics, social protection, labor market, built environment, housing, gender equity, and immigrant integration and may be reduced by equity-oriented policies in these fields. These studies can help public health and social justice advocates to build a strong case for fairer social and economic policies that will lead to the reduction of health inequalities that most governments have included among their policy goals. In this article, we summarize the main findings and policy implications of the SOPHIE project and the lessons learned on civil society participation in research and results communication.

  12. Economic growth and mortality: do social protection policies matter?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bilal, Usama; Cooper, Richard; Abreu, Francis; Nau, Claudia; Franco, Manuel; Glass, Thomas A

    2017-08-01

    In the 20th century, periods of macroeconomic growth have been associated with increases in population mortality. Factors that cause or mitigate this association are not well understood. Evidence suggests that social policy may buffer the deleterious impact of economic growth. We sought to explore associations between changing unemployment (as a proxy for economic change) and trends in mortality over 30 years in the context of varying social protection expenditures. We model change in all-cause mortality in 21 OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) countries from 1980 to 2010. Data from the Comparative Welfare States Data Set and the WHO Mortality Database were used. A decrease in the unemployment rate was used as a proxy for economic growth and age-adjusted mortality rates as the outcome. Social protection expenditure was measured as percentage of gross domestic product expended. A 1% decrease in unemployment (i.e. the proxy for economic growth) was associated with a 0.24% increase in the overall mortality rate (95% confidence interval: 0.07;0.42) in countries with no changes in social protection. Reductions in social protection expenditure strengthened this association between unemployment and mortality. The magnitude of the association was diminished over time. Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that social protection policies that accompany economic growth can mitigate its potential deleterious effects on health. Further research should identify specific policies that are most effective. © The Author 2017; all rights reserved. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the International Epidemiological Association

  13. Nursing's Code of Ethics, Social Ethics, and Social Policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fowler, Marsha D

    2016-09-01

    Modern American nursing arose during the Civil War and subsequently adopted the Nightingale educational model in the 1870s. By 1889, the journal Trained Nurse and Hospital Review had been established. It published a six-part series on ethics in nursing. With the establishment of the American Nurses Association in 1893, the articles of incorporation gave the organization its first charge: "to establish and maintain a code of ethics." While the rich and enduring tradition of nursing's ethics has been concerned about individual patients and their relational nexus, nursing ethics has from the beginning been a social ethics, intimately concerned both for the shape of society and for social change. This concern has been for health, conceived broadly and not focused specifically on disease and its treatment, but including the social causes of disease. Nightingale herself was an ardent social reformer, instituting a wide range of types of army sanitation reform, sanitation reform in India, and hospital and nursing reform. Despite her gender, her wealth and privilege granted her access to men in power who furthered her policy and reform agenda. From the start, then, modern nursing was imbued with a social reformist bias. © 2016 The Hastings Center.

  14. Racial-Equity Policy as Leadership Practice: Using Social Practice Theory to Analyze Policy as Practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feldman, Sue; Winchester, Ilana

    2015-01-01

    This, primarily theoretical, paper takes up the longstanding problem of the disconnection between education policy and leadership practice. The authors propose the use of social practice theory as a tool for educational leaders at the state, school district, and school levels, to eliminate the disconnection between policy design and leadership…

  15. Diversity policy, social dominance, and intergroup relations: predicting prejudice in changing social and political contexts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guimond, Serge; Crisp, Richard J; De Oliveira, Pierre; Kamiejski, Rodolphe; Kteily, Nour; Kuepper, Beate; Lalonde, Richard N; Levin, Shana; Pratto, Felicia; Tougas, Francine; Sidanius, Jim; Zick, Andreas

    2013-06-01

    In contrast to authors of previous single-nation studies, we propose that supporting multiculturalism (MC) or assimilation (AS) is likely to have different effects in different countries, depending on the diversity policy in place in a particular country and the associated norms. A causal model of intergroup attitudes and behaviors, integrating both country-specific factors (attitudes and perceived norms related to a particular diversity policy) and general social-psychological determinants (social dominance orientation), was tested among participants from countries where the pro-diversity policy was independently classified as low, medium, or high (N = 1,232). Results showed that (a) anti-Muslim prejudice was significantly reduced when the pro-diversity policy was high; (b) countries differed strongly in perceived norms related to MC and AS, in ways consistent with the actual diversity policy in each country and regardless of participants' personal attitudes toward MC and AS; (c) as predicted, when these norms were salient, due to subtle priming, structural equation modeling with country included as a variable provided support for the proposed model, suggesting that the effect of country on prejudice can be successfully accounted by it; and (d) consistent with the claim that personal support for MC and AS played a different role in different countries, within-country mediation analyses provided evidence that personal attitudes toward AS mediated the effect of social dominance orientation on prejudice when pro-diversity policy was low, whereas personal attitudes toward MC was the mediator when pro-diversity policy was high. Thus, the critical variables shaping prejudice can vary across nations. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved.

  16. Social Optimization and Pricing Policy in Cognitive Radio Networks with an Energy Saving Strategy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shunfu Jin

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The rapid growth of wireless application results in an increase in demand for spectrum resource and communication energy. In this paper, we firstly introduce a novel energy saving strategy in cognitive radio networks (CRNs and then propose an appropriate pricing policy for secondary user (SU packets. We analyze the behavior of data packets in a discrete-time single-server priority queue under multiple-vacation discipline. With the help of a Quasi-Birth-Death (QBD process model, we obtain the joint distribution for the number of SU packets and the state of base station (BS via the Matrix-Geometric Solution method. We assess the average latency of SU packets and the energy saving ratio of system. According to a natural reward-cost structure, we study the individually optimal behavior and the socially optimal behavior of the energy saving strategy and use an optimization algorithm based on standard particle swarm optimization (SPSO method to search the socially optimal arrival rate of SU packets. By comparing the individually optimal behavior and the socially optimal behavior, we impose an appropriate admission fee to SU packets. Finally, we present numerical results to show the impacts of system parameters on the system performance and the pricing policy.

  17. The role of social norms on preferences towards climate change policies: A meta-analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Alló, Maria; Loureiro, Maria L.

    2014-01-01

    The present study provides a review of existing assessments of preferences for climate change mitigation and adaptation policies through a worldwide meta-analysis. In this study, we analyze the impact of social values and norms on preferences towards climate change adaptation and mitigation policies. In a sample of 58 international studies, we found that mitigation actions were preferred over adaptation actions, and that preferences towards climate change policies are affected by attitudes towards time and social norms. In particular, societies with a long-term orientation display greater support towards climate change policies. These results therefore reveal the role of social factors as being crucial in order to understand the acceptability of climate change policies at a worldwide level. - highlights: • Effective policy design is required in order to curb climate change. • Using a meta-analysis, we find that mitigation actions are preferred over adaptation actions. • Economic conditions play a crucial role for supporting efforts to combat climate change. • Cultural and social dimensions are relevant for the acceptability of climate policies. • Understanding social norms and cultural variables may help with the climate change debate

  18. Corporate social policy - problems of institutionalization and experience of Russian oil and gas companies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nekhoda, E.; Kolbysheva, Yu; Makoveeva, V.

    2015-11-01

    The article examines a range of problems related to the process of institutionalization in the corporate social policy, characterizing the social responsibility of business and representing a part of the general strategy of corporate social responsibility. The experience of the social policy implementation in oil and gas companies is analyzed.

  19. Transition Landscapes and Social Networks: Examining On-Gound Community Resilience and its Implications for Policy Settings in Multiscalar Systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ruth Beilin

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Community based natural resource management groups contribute to landscape scale ecological change through their aggregation of local ecological knowledge. However, the social networks at the heart of such groups remain invisible to decision makers as evidenced in funding cuts and strategic policy documents. Our research is a pilot study of the social networks in two peri-urban landscapes in Victoria, Australia. We describe the social network analysis undertaken with regard to natural resource management issues. The findings are assessed against the qualities of resilience: diversity, modularity, connectivity, and feedback loops. A social network analysis tool is discussed with participants to assess its usefulness on-ground and with agency staff involved in the project. We concluded that the sociograms are useful to the groups, however, the management of the tool itself is complex and calls for agency personnel to facilitate the process. Overall, the project did make visible the networks that contribute to a multiscalar social and ecological resilience in these landscapes, and in this regard, their use is of benefit to policy makers concerned with supporting networks that build social resilience.

  20. Playing the triangle: Cosmopolitanism, Cultural Capital and Social Capital as intersecting scholarly discourses about social inclusion and marginalisation in Australian public policy debates

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrew Jakubowicz

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available A constant challenge for scholarly research relates to its impact on and integration into public policy. Where the policy issues are ‘wicked’, as are those concerning intercultural relations and social cohesion, social science research often becomes implicated in real-world problem solving which occurs within everyday political manoeuvring. This paper takes three empirical problems, and three conceptual approaches, and explores what happens when they are pressed together. In particular the paper explores how together they can enhance the social value of the concept of ‘social inclusion’. Cosmopolitanism has a myriad of possible definitions, but is perhaps best addressed in anthropological fashion, by trying to capture the space formed by its presumptive antagonists: nationalism, prejudice, localism, parochialism, and ‘rootedness’ (as in ‘rootless cosmopolitan’. Cultural capital, as developed by Bourdieu, concerns a disposition of mind and body that empowers members of those particular groups that have the resource in socially–approved abundance to operate the cultural apparatus of a society and therefore the power system, to their mutual and individual benefit. Social capital, removed of the vestiges of Marxist class analysis that lurk in Bourdieu’s explorations of education and social power, harks back to another sociological forebear. Emile Durkheim, whose vision of modernity as a constantly incipient catastrophe that could only be held off by a reinvigoration of collective consciousness, has influenced through the Talcott Parsons school of social systemics Robert Putnam (and Australian politician and academic Andrew Leigh’s focus on ‘bonding’ and ‘bridging’ social capital. Having examined these concepts the paper applies them sequentially to three cases of state/civil society relations, through the February 2011 People of Australia multiculturalism policy, the place of young Muslims in Australian society, and the

  1. Strengthening the Referral System through Social Capital: A Qualitative Inquiry in Ghana.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Amoah, Padmore Adusei; Phillips, David R

    2017-10-25

    The referral system in health care has been noted as very influential in determining which services are accessed and when. Nonetheless, existing studies have relied on specific measurable factors relating to health personnel, transportation and communication infrastructure, and finance to explain the challenges facing the referral policy in developing countries. While this is understandable, the role of social capital remains mostly uncharted even though it is implicit in the well-known lay referral system. Using various facets of the social capital concept, this paper empirically examines how the resources embedded in both structural and cognitive aspects of social relationships influence knowledge of, and adherence to, referral policy. This study is based on semi-structured in-depth interviews conducted with 79 adults in the Ashanti Region of Ghana in 2015. Of the 79 participants, 28 lived in urban areas and 51 in rural localities. Eight health personnel and eight community leaders also contributed to the study. Additionally, six focus group discussions were held. The findings indicated that both cognitive and structural forms of social capital considerably underpinned the ability and willingness of people to adhere to the referral process. Moreover, the role of social capital was double-barrelled. It contributed in a significant way to encouraging or dissuading potential patients from rightly embracing the policy. In addition, precepts of social capital reinforced both positive and adverse effects of the other determinants of the policy such as finance and transportation. However, the magnitude of such impact was linked to how 'resourceful' and 'trustworthy' one's available social acquaintances were. The paper suggests that a cautious engagement with social capital will make it a potentially powerful tool for understanding the gaps in and improving the effectiveness of referral policy.

  2. Climate change policies: The role of democracy and social cognitive capital.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Obydenkova, Anastassia V; Salahodjaev, Raufhon

    2017-08-01

    The impact of democracy on governments' choice of environmental policies has attracted significant academic attention in recent years. However, less attention has been devoted to the role of the social cognitive capital of the national population. Does society's cognitive capital matter in governmental choice regarding environmental policies, if at all? This study addresses this question through a large-N analysis of 94 countries accounting for the role of both political regimes and social capital in governmental choice of climate change policies. We find that higher social cognitive capital within a democratic state radically increases that state's commitment to adopt environmental policies. More specifically, a 1-point increase in the democracy index is associated with nearly 5 points increase in the adoption of the Climate Laws, Institutions and Measures Index (CLIMI). In a similar vein, a 10 points increase in social cognitive capital is associated with a nearly 16 points increase in CLIMI. The findings presented in this study aim to contribute to the ongoing debate on the impact of democracy and the cognitive capital of society on international environmentalism. The findings will also be interesting for scholars working on the impact of political institutional factors and the role of society in environmental policy choices made at the international level. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. Using social capital to construct a conceptual International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health Children and Youth version-based framework for stronger inclusive education policies in Europe.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maxwell, Gregor; Koutsogeorgou, Eleni

    2012-02-01

    Inclusive education is part of social inclusion; therefore, social capital can be linked to an inclusive education policy and practice. This association is explored in this article, and a practical measure is proposed. Specifically, the World Health Organization's International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health Children and Youth Version (ICF-CY) is proposed as the link between social capital and inclusive education. By mapping participation and trust indicators of social capital to the ICF-CY and by using the Matrix to Analyse Functioning in Education Systems (MAFES) to analyze the functioning of inclusive education policies and systems, a measure for stronger inclusive education policies is proposed. Such a tool can be used for policy planning and monitoring to ensure better inclusive education environments. In conclusion, combining enhanced social capital linked to stronger inclusive education policies, by using the ICF-CY, can lead to better health and well-being for all.

  4. Older Workers in Changing Social Policy Patterns

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nathalie Burnay

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available Normal 0 false false false EN-CA X-NONE X-NONE Compared to other European countries, the employment rate of older workers in Belgium is rather low. This paper argues that one of the most relevant factors underlying the problems of this low employment rate in Belgium is the social policies directed at older workers. Indeed, when unemployment became a widespread phenomenon in the1970s and 80s, early-retirement schemes were designed to alleviate the financial implications on an aging workforce. The government encouraged anyone over 50 to leave the labour market through early retirement schemes, unemployment payment programs, medical retirement, and career breaks. These practises were based on a wide consensus of government, business, and workers.However, for some years now, international organizations have been concerned about the viability of pension systems and their ability to achieve their objectives. In recent years, different factors have led policy makers to rethink this policy. But changing the trend and keeping people on the job has proven more difficult than foreseen. The transformations of public policies begun at the dawn of the 21st century radically changed the balance between the state, workers, and employers, who had all previously seen early retirement as favourable. This paper also tries to show how early retirement is not simply a desire to escape, but can also be explained as an aggression against the person by the labour market. Leaving professional life early thus seems more to be a case of necessity, in fact not a choice at all, but an obligation, or even a sacrifice, and must be seen in the perspective of professional duties and their evolution.

  5. Older Workers in Changing Social Policy Patterns

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nathalie Burnay

    2009-12-01

    Full Text Available Normal 0 false false false EN-CA X-NONE X-NONE Compared to other European countries, the employment rate of older workers in Belgium is rather low. This paper argues that one of the most relevant factors underlying the problems of this low employment rate in Belgium is the social policies directed at older workers. Indeed, when unemployment became a widespread phenomenon in the1970s and 80s, early-retirement schemes were designed to alleviate the financial implications on an aging workforce. The government encouraged anyone over 50 to leave the labour market through early retirement schemes, unemployment payment programs, medical retirement, and career breaks. These practises were based on a wide consensus of government, business, and workers.However, for some years now, international organizations have been concerned about the viability of pension systems and their ability to achieve their objectives. In recent years, different factors have led policy makers to rethink this policy. But changing the trend and keeping people on the job has proven more difficult than foreseen. The transformations of public policies begun at the dawn of the 21st century radically changed the balance between the state, workers, and employers, who had all previously seen early retirement as favourable. This paper also tries to show how early retirement is not simply a desire to escape, but can also be explained as an aggression against the person by the labour market. Leaving professional life early thus seems more to be a case of necessity, in fact not a choice at all, but an obligation, or even a sacrifice, and must be seen in the perspective of professional duties and their evolution.

  6. Transnational Social Policies: The New Development Challenges of ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Relationships between social policy and human development are the subject of much research and theorizing. ... In doing so, the book examines the underlining international developmental, ethical, economic, and political issues shaping ...

  7. Social diffusion of energy-related practices and representations: Patterns and policies in Portugal and Belgium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bartiaux, Françoise; Schmidt, Luísa; Horta, Ana; Correia, Augusta

    2016-01-01

    The social-class dimension of energy consumption has been rather neglected relative to other theoretical approaches to energy use, despite its potential deployment in energy policies. This paper aims at investigating energy policy-related inequalities across social classes with respect to three dimensions highlighted by environmental-justice theories: income distribution, procedures producing unequal distributional outcomes, and cultural and political recognition of vulnerable and marginalised social groups. These inequalities can be exacerbated or reduced by social diffusion processes, both vertical and horizontal. These processes include policy instruments intending to lower energy consumption in the residential sector. To empirically ground the analysis, two countries with contrasting patterns of income inequalities, Portugal and Belgium, are compared on the basis of qualitative data collected in 2009–2011. We discuss the relevance of integrating the social diffusion dimension in energy policies and propose several policy instruments to do so. One of our main contribution is to argue that both vertical and horizontal diffusion across social classes, if adequately translated into policy instruments, can boost the uptake of residential energy retrofits and other energy saving practices.

  8. Questão social, política social e neodesenvolvimentismo:notas críticas (Social issue, and social policy neodevelopmentism:critical notes Doi: 10.5212/Emancipacao.v.14i1.0006

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gabriela Nogueira Eduardo

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available O exército industrial de reserva no processo de produção capitalista é insuprimível sem a superação do capitalismo. Assim demonstrou Marx na lei geral da acumulação capitalista. Mas, alguns teóricos preferem acreditar que este sistema sócio-econômico conseguiu criar mecanismos para ultrapassar a desigualdade social, defendendo um discurso na advocacia das Políticas Sociais. Nesse contexto, o Brasil vem seguindo uma tendência econômica neodesenvolvimentista tendo como característica a industrialização, a modernização conservadora e expansão das políticas sociais para combater os efeitos da crise capitalista atual. Desse modo, o presente ensaio estuda a relação entre a Questão Social, as políticas sociais no cenário do chamado neodesenvolvimentismo. Concluímos o texto com algumas reflexões que demonstram ser o delineamento das políticas sociais direcionado conforme recomendam os organismos multilaterais que, na particularidade brasileira, se alia a uma tendência econômica neodesenvolvimentista, reiterando as bases ideológicas e materiais de poder do Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT no país.  Palavras-chave: Questão Social. Política Social. Neodesenvolvimentismo. Abstract: The reserve army of labor in the capitalist production process is irrepressible without the overthrow of capitalism. Thus Marx demonstrated in the general law of capitalist accumulation. But some theorists prefer to believe that this socio-economic system can create mechanisms to address social inequality, defending a speech in advocacy of Social Policies. In this context, Brazil is following a neo-developmentism economic trend to counter the effects of the current capitalist crisis. Thus, we intend to study the relationship between Social Issues and social policies in the setting of neo-developmentism. To do so, supported the historicaldialectical materialism, we conducted a literature review, from the contributions of intellectuals who has

  9. Social Mechanisms in Elaborating Russian Educational Policy: Legal Monitoring

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gostev, Aleksandr N.; Turko, Tamara I.; Shchepanskiy, Sergey B.

    2016-01-01

    The article presents the results of legal monitoring and those of a sociological research on the efficiency of social mechanisms in Russian Federation education policy. The data obtained substantiates: the need for systematic improvement of Russian legislation in the education sector; revised notions and content of social mechanisms in Russian…

  10. People-centred science: strengthening the practice of health policy and systems research

    Science.gov (United States)

    2014-01-01

    Health policy and systems research (HPSR) is a transdisciplinary field of global importance, with its own emerging standards for creating, evaluating, and utilizing knowledge, and distinguished by a particular orientation towards influencing policy and wider action to strengthen health systems. In this commentary, we argue that the ability of the HPSR field to influence real world change hinges on its becoming more people-centred. We see people-centredness as recognizing the field of enquiry as one of social construction, requiring those conducting HPSR to locate their own position in the system, and conduct and publish research in a manner that foregrounds human agency attributes and values, and is acutely attentive to policy context. Change occurs at many layers of a health system, shaped by social, political, and economic forces, and brought about by different groups of people who make up the system, including service users and communities. The seeds of transformative practice in HPSR lie in amplifying the breadth and depth of dialogue across health system actors in the conduct of research – recognizing that these actors are all generators, sources, and users of knowledge about the system. While building such a dialogic practice, those conducting HPSR must strive to protect the autonomy and integrity of their ideas and actions, and also clearly explain their own positions and the value-basis of their work. We conclude with a set of questions that health policy and systems researchers may wish to consider in making their practice more people-centred, and hence more oriented toward real-world change. PMID:24739525

  11. Aging, care and social policy. Continuities and changes in Argentina and Mexico

    OpenAIRE

    Arroyo Rueda, María Concepción

    2016-01-01

    This paper intends to show from a comparative perspective of social policy, the provision of care in old age in Argentina and Mexico. It will also show the experience of the national policy of care in Argentina. In this country we carried out interviews with coordinators, operational personnel and users of the national program of care. The participants identify in the policy a vision of rights and social inclusion of the elderly and effective support for family caregivers. Meanwhile, in the c...

  12. Social and labour policy in the German hard coal mining industry

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jakob, K H

    1976-12-01

    An adjustment between economic policy and social policy is indispensable. Polarity, a condition for the codetermination of labor in our economic order. Integration by the formation of private capital by workers.

  13. Malaysia's social policies on mental health: a critical theory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mubarak, A Rahamuthulla

    2003-01-01

    This article aims to review the social policies on mental health and mental illness in Malaysia. Using critical theory, major policy issues pertaining to mental health and mental illness such as mental health legislation, prevalence rates and quality of services available to the people with mental health problems are discussed in detail. Implications of these issues on persons with mental health problems are critically evaluated. The paper highlights that the other countries in ASEAN region also require similar review by policy literature.

  14. Trade liberalization, social policies and health: an empirical case study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McNamara, Courtney

    2015-10-12

    This study investigates the health impacts of a major liberalization episode in the textile and clothing (T&C) sector. This episode triggered substantial shifts in employment across a wide range of countries. It is the first study to empirically link trade liberalization to health via changes in employment and offers some of the first empirical insights on how trade liberalization interacts with social policies to influence health. Data from 32 T&C reliant countries were analysed in reference to the pre- and post-liberalization periods of 2000-2004 and 2005-2009. Fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) was used to examine the association between countries' a) level of development b) labour market and welfare state protections c) T&C employment changes and d) changes in adult female and infant mortality rates. Process tracing was used to further investigate these associations through twelve in-depth country studies. Results from the fsQCA relate changes in employment after the phase-out to both changing adult female and infant mortality rates. Findings from the in-depth country studies suggest that the worsening of adult female mortality rates is related to workers' lack of social protection, both in the context of T&C employment growth and loss. Overall, it is found that social protection is often inaccessible to the type of workers who may be the most vulnerable to processes of liberalization and that many workers are particularly vulnerable due to the structure of social protection policies. Social policies are therefore found to both moderate pathways to health and influence the type of health-related pathways resulting from trade liberalizing policies.

  15. Transnational Social Policies: The New Development Challenges of ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Sub-Saharan Africa: Community-driven Social Policies ... After a decade of researchers' breast-beating about its evil impacts, a growing body of opinion ...... The authorities were faced with growing rates of juvenile delinquency, prostitution, ...

  16. Privacy in context technology, policy, and the integrity of social life

    CERN Document Server

    Nissenbaum, Helen

    2009-01-01

    Privacy is one of the most urgent issues associated with information technology and digital media. This book claims that what people really care about when they complain and protest that privacy has been violated is not the act of sharing information itself—most people understand that this is crucial to social life —but the inappropriate, improper sharing of information. Arguing that privacy concerns should not be limited solely to concern about control over personal information, Helen Nissenbaum counters that information ought to be distributed and protected according to norms governing distinct social contexts—whether it be workplace, health care, schools, or among family and friends. She warns that basic distinctions between public and private, informing many current privacy policies, in fact obscure more than they clarify. In truth, contemporary information systems should alarm us only when they function without regard for social norms and values, and thereby weaken the fabric of social life.

  17. On Welfare and Terror: Social Welfare Policies and Political-Economic Roots of Terrorism

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burgoon, Brian

    2006-01-01

    This article argues that social welfare policies may reduce international and domestic terrorism. Social policies likely affect terrorism in offsetting ways but, on balance, should diminish preferences for terrorism by reducing economic insecurity, inequality, poverty, and religious-political extremism. Thus, countries with more generous welfare…

  18. Aging, care and social policy. Continuities and changes in Argentina and Mexico

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    María Concepción ARROYO RUEDA

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper intends to show from a comparative perspective of social policy, the provision of care in old age in Argentina and Mexico. It will also show the experience of the national policy of care in Argentina. In this country we carried out interviews with coordinators, operational personnel and users of the national program of care. The participants identify in the policy a vision of rights and social inclusion of the elderly and effective support for family caregivers. Meanwhile, in the case of Mexico, we observe scarce and ambiguous legislation on the subject, which is predominated by the practice of informal care to older people, given mainly by the women in the families. Basic care is outside the aging policy and confined within the «familist model» according to an exalted social assessment of the moral obligation of family care.

  19. Teaching the System of Social Policy in Hungary

    Science.gov (United States)

    Talyigas, Katalin

    2008-01-01

    Provides an inside perspective on the development of social work education in Hungary during the final years of communism and after the country regained its independence, when there was a strong focus on re-introducing social work and social sciences which had been repressed by the socialist regime in its denial of social problems and thus, its…

  20. Systems change for the social determinants of health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carey, Gemma; Crammond, Brad

    2015-07-14

    Inequalities in the distribution of the social determinants of health are now a widely recognised problem, seen as requiring immediate and significant action (CSDH. Closing the Gap in a Generation. Geneva: WHO; 2008; Marmot M. Fair Society, Healthy Lives: The Marmot Review. Strategic Review of Health Inequalitites in England Post-2010. London; 2010). Despite recommendations for action on the social determinants of health dating back to the 1980s, inequalities in many countries continue to grow. In this paper we provide an analysis of recommendations from major social determinants of health reports using the concept of 'system leverage points'. Increasingly, powerful and effective action on the social determinants of health is conceptualised as that which targets government action on the non-health issues which drive health outcomes. Recommendations for action from 6 major national reports on the social determinants of health were sourced. Recommendations from each report were coded against two frameworks: Johnston et al's recently developed Intervention Level Framework (ILF) and Meadow's seminal '12 places to intervene in a system' (Johnston LM, Matteson CL, Finegood DT. Systems Science and Obesity Policy: A Novel Framework for Analyzing and Rethinking Population-Level Planning. American journal of public health. 2014;(0):e1-e9; Meadows D. Thinking in Systems. USA: Sustainability Institute; 1999) (N = 166). Our analysis found several major changes over time to the types of recommendations being made, including a shift towards paradigmatic change and away from individual interventions. Results from Meadow's framework revealed a number of potentially powerful system intervention points that are currently underutilised in public health thinking regarding action on the social determinants of health. When viewed through a systems lens, it is evident that the power of an intervention comes not from where it is targeted, but rather how it works to create change within the

  1. Policy incentives and grid-connected photovoltaics system development in China

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wang Jing; Xu Yugao

    2007-07-01

    China has made considerable progress in solar PV generation technology. However, compared with conventional generation technologies or even other renewables such as wind and biomass, grid-connected PV technology is in its early stage and has not reached an adequate level of economic performance. Therefore, policy incentives will play important roles in attracting more social investments to facilitate the development of grid-connected PV generation. This paper is focused on analyzing the role of incentive policies in enhancing the market competitiveness of grid-connected solar PV systems in the context of China with an economic model and some policy suggestions are given based on simulation modeling efforts. (auth)

  2. Regional and Special Issues in Social Policy & Administration

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Finer, Catherine Jones; Greve, Bent

    2016-01-01

    This article explores the emergence and elaboration of regional and special issues of Social Policy & Administration (SP&A) from the contrasting perspectives of the two editors principally involved in their production as a distinctive feature of the journal. Catherine Jones Finer, who retired from......-to-date range of documents to trace trends and developments over time, not merely in the content of the regional and special issues themselves, but in the increasingly international and supra-national social policy environment to which they relate....... editorial involvement in2007, writes from memory of her own experience (which featured the introduction of regional then special issues as an ongoing series) drawing on the run of printed copies of SP&A still in her possession. Bent Greve then draws on his own access to a much wider and more up...

  3. Multicultural social policy and community participation in health: new opportunities and challenges for indigenous people.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Torri, Maria Costanza

    2012-01-01

    Community participation in local health has assumed a central role in the reforms of public healthcare, being increasingly associated with the issue of decentralization of the health system. The aim of this paper is to raise questions regarding the structural approaches to multicultural social policy in Chile and to analyze the results of its implementation. The article analyzes the case study of Makewe Hospital, one of the pioneering experiences of intercultural health initiative in Chile. The Makewe Hospital, which involves the indigenous community of the Mapuche, provides interesting insights to understand the dynamics of multicultural social policy and presents an example of a successful initiative that has succeeded in involving local communities in multicultural health policy. This case study discusses the effectiveness of grassroots participation in multicultural healthcare provision and presents the main strengths and challenges for the replicability of this experience in other settings. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  4. Policy analysis of multi-actor systems

    CERN Document Server

    Enserink, Bert; Kwakkel, Jan; Thissen, Wil; Koppenjan, Joop; Bots, Pieter

    2010-01-01

    Policy analysts love solving complex problems. Their favorite problems are not just technically complex but also characterized by the presence of many different social actors that hold conflicting interests, objectives, and perceptions and act strategically to get the best out of a problem situation. This book offers guidance for policy analysts who want to assess if and how their analysis could be of help, based on the premise that problem formulation is the cornerstone in addressing complex problems. This book positions policy analysis within the theories on processes of policy making, and f

  5. Understanding the links between ecosystem health and social system well-being: an annotated bibliography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dawn M. Elmer; Harriet H. Christensen; Ellen M. Donoghue; [Compilers].

    2002-01-01

    This bibliography focuses on the links between social system well-being and ecosystem health. It is intended for public land managers and scientists and students of social and natural sciences. Multidisciplinary science that addresses the interconnections between the social system and the ecosystem is presented. Some of the themes and strategies presented are policy...

  6. Not just another variable: untangling the spatialities of power in social-ecological systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Micah L. Ingalls

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Increased attention has been paid to how the spatial dimensions of social-ecological systems are formative in shaping their ability to negotiate change and remain resilient. This paper moves this research further by exploring how diverse forms of power play a crucial role in shaping these spatial dimensions and the production of social-ecological outcomes. Grounding these explorations in a National Protected Area in Lao PDR, this paper explores how power relationships operate through the spatial and temporal domains of complex systems. Findings suggest (at least four important insights: (1 the exercise of power materializes in policies and programs and becomes written onto the spaces of social-ecological systems through boundary creation, zonation, and other social processes that (redefine spatial meanings; these meanings vary by social actor; (2 policies and programs map out unevenly across space and time as they interact with antecedent social-ecological conditions in ways that preclude linear causal relationships between policy and outcomes; (3 although local in their expression, spatialized disputes in social-ecological systems draw on cross-scalar discourses and networks of power to bolster, undermine, and (delegitimize competing environmental and social narratives; and (4 however powerful institutions and actor-networks may be, they are never fully hegemonic as they are attenuated by other discourses and operations of power, although these all play out across a highly uneven sociopolitical terrain. Paying greater attention to the spatial and temporal dynamics of power may be much more than a project of introducing yet another variable into the already complex admixture of analytic elements. Rather, by rendering these explicit as objects of analysis, common insights may change entirely or even be overturned.

  7. The Design of Migrant Integration Policies in Spain: Discourses and Social Actors

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Belén Fernández Suárez

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available Spain is one of the countries with the lowest social spending within the EU-15, and its welfare state has developed later and with less intensity. At the end of the 20th century, Spain became an immigration country, reaching 5.7 million immigrants in 2011. This article explores how the definition of migrant ‘integration’ is based more on a concept of universal rights and social cohesion by the main actors (political parties, trade unions, third sector organizations and immigrant associations than on a notion of a cultural type. We will also analyze how the influence of European policies and restrictive liberalism have led to the implementation of programmes which aim to make civic integration compulsory for the renewal of residence and work permits. The empirical evidence for this article stems from 60 qualitative interviews with social actors in migrant integration policies during 2010 and 2011. The impact of the economic crisis on the foreign population, especially regarding its position in the labor market, will also be considered, explaining the reduction of specific and general policies targeting the migrant population. This cut in social spending has involved a deinstitutionalization of this particular policy field.

  8. Social Entrepreneurship: A Reflection for Adopting Public Policies that Support the Third Sector in Brazil

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Francielli Martins Borges Ladeira

    2013-04-01

    Full Text Available Interest in social entrepreneurship is growing widely not only in Brazil but in the world. Several developed countries have stepped forward to develop policies to support this area not only as a tool to fulfill the government failures such as poverty, health, education, unemployment among others, but also because of all the benefits that social enterprises have in relation to society. However, it is possible to identify a lack of political support for social entrepreneurship in Brazil. Given the needs in the Brazilian context of improvements in several areas where the state can not cover actions in their entirety as social exclusion, income distribution and especially professionalization of youth and creating jobs, we need a deep analysis of how social entrepreneurship can act as a modifying element of this scenario. Thus, with Brazil a country developing rapidly, it is important to verify public policies that support social entrepreneurship in already developed countries and carry out studies on the suitability and applicability of these policies in the Brazilian reality. Thus, this paper aims to study the trends of social entrepreneurship in some developed countries as well as analyzing public policies implemented by these countries, and considering the Brazilian context, present some policy proposals to support social entrepreneurship in Brazil.

  9. Social cost of carbon pricing of power sector CO2: accounting for leakage and other social implications from subnational policies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bistline, John E.; Rose, Steven K.

    2018-01-01

    In environments where climate policy has partial coverage or unequal participation, carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions or economic activity may shift to locations and sectors where emissions are unregulated. This is referred to as leakage. Leakage can offset or augment emissions reductions associated with a policy, which has important environmental and economic implications. Although leakage has been studied at national levels, analysis of leakage for subnational policies is limited. This is despite greater market integration and many existing state and regional environmental regulations in the US. This study explores leakage potential, net emissions changes, and other social implications in the US energy system with regionally differentiated pricing of power sector CO2 emissions. We undertake an economic analysis using EPRI’s US-REGEN model, where power sector CO2 emissions are priced in individual US regions with a range of social cost of carbon (SCC) values. SCC estimates are being considered by policy-makers for valuing potential societal damages from CO2 emissions. In this study, we evaluate the emissions implications within the SCC pricing region, within the power sector outside the SCC region, and outside the power sector (i.e. in the rest of the energy system). Results indicate that CO2 leakage is possible within and outside the electric sector, ranging from negative 70% to over 80% in our scenarios, with primarily positive leakage outcomes. Typically ignored in policy analysis, leakage would affect CO2 reduction benefits. We also observe other potential societal effects within and across regions, such as higher electricity prices, changes in power sector investments, and overall consumption losses. Efforts to reduce leakage, such as constraining power imports into the SCC pricing region likely reduce leakage, but could also result in lower net emissions reductions, as well as larger price increases. Thus, it is important to look beyond leakage and consider a

  10. Rethinking Study and Management of Agricultural Systems for Policy Design

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Johann Baumgärtner

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available There is a concern that agriculture will no longer be able to meet, on a global scale, the growing demand for food. Facing such a challenge requires new patterns of thinking in the context of complexity and sustainability sciences. This paper, focused on the social dimension of the study and management of agricultural systems, suggests that rethinking the study of agricultural systems entails analyzing them as complex socio-ecological systems, as well as considering the differing thinking patterns of diverse stakeholders. The intersubjective nature of knowledge, as studied by different philosophical schools, needs to be better integrated into the study and management of agricultural systems than it is done so far, forcing us to accept that there are no simplistic solutions, and to seek a better understanding of the social dimension of agriculture. Different agriculture related problems require different policy and institutional approaches. Finally, the intersubjective nature of knowledge asks for the visualization of different framings and the power relations taking place in the decision-making process. Rethinking management of agricultural systems implies that policy making should be shaped by different principles: learning, flexibility, adaptation, scale-matching, participation, diversity enhancement and precaution hold the promise to significantly improve current standard management procedures.

  11. Policy framework and legal forms of social enterprise in Central and Eastern Europe

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Staicu Daniela

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available In Central and Eastern European countries, the transition to a market economy stimulated civil society initiatives that in the past had been either discouraged or had become part of the Communist state system, and opened new pathways to entrepreneurial initiatives. The 1990s was an open window to the creation of a significant number of non-profit organizations, including the pioneering establishment of the first social enterprises. When these countries became members of the European Union, the process of legal institutionalization of social enterprises started to be discussed and has taken place at various stages. The purpose of this paper is to provide a comprehensive overview of the policy frameworks and the legal forms and of social enterprises in eight countries: Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia. The research seeks to determine the extent to which the development of national policy frameworks influences the development of legal forms under which social enterprises operate. For the purpose of this analysis, data were collected from relevant to this subject country reports, studies, laws released between 2009 and 2016. The research shows that European social enterprises are often ‘hidden’ among existing legal forms either as associations and foundations with commercial activities, cooperatives serving general or collective interests and mainstream enterprises pursuing an explicit and primary social aim. Further research needs to be done to determine the potential for growth of entities operating as associations and foundations with commercial activities. Furthermore, the research concluded that the countries with specific laws on social entrepreneurship generate 61 % of the social economy activity in Central and Eastern European countries. Further research needs to be done to determine if introducing a social enterprise specific legal form, will stimulate the development of the

  12. A practical procedure for assessing resilience of social-ecological system using the System Dynamics Approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Newton Paulo Bueno

    2009-12-01

    Full Text Available While growing attention has been paid to the idea of resilience of social-ecological systems, it seems that there still are a number of gaps to bridge before we could really use this concept for practical purposes. The main problem is that the most of the works in the field are unclear on how to unequivocally measure the degree of resilience of particular social-ecological systems. In this paper, we suggest to be possible identifying the loss of resilience of social-ecological systems as a process of loop dominance shift. In order to illustrate the argument, we use a very stylized system dynamics model for irrigation systems developed by scholars associated to the Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis at Indiana University.

  13. Protected areas as social-ecological systems: perspectives from resilience and social-ecological systems theory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cumming, Graeme S; Allen, Craig R

    2017-09-01

    Conservation biology and applied ecology increasingly recognize that natural resource management is both an outcome and a driver of social, economic, and ecological dynamics. Protected areas offer a fundamental approach to conserving ecosystems, but they are also social-ecological systems whose ecological management and sustainability are heavily influenced by people. This editorial, and the papers in the invited feature that it introduces, discuss three emerging themes in social-ecological systems approaches to understanding protected areas: (1) the resilience and sustainability of protected areas, including analyses of their internal dynamics, their effectiveness, and the resilience of the landscapes within which they occur; (2) the relevance of spatial context and scale for protected areas, including such factors as geographic connectivity, context, exchanges between protected areas and their surrounding landscapes, and scale dependency in the provision of ecosystem services; and (3) efforts to reframe what protected areas are and how they both define and are defined by the relationships of people and nature. These emerging themes have the potential to transform management and policy approaches for protected areas and have important implications for conservation, in both theory and practice. © 2017 by the Ecological Society of America.

  14. Protected areas as social-ecological systems: perspectives from resilience and social-ecological systems theory

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cumming, Graeme S.; Allen, Craig R.

    2017-01-01

    Conservation biology and applied ecology increasingly recognize that natural resource management is both an outcome and a driver of social, economic, and ecological dynamics. Protected areas offer a fundamental approach to conserving ecosystems, but they are also social-ecological systems whose ecological management and sustainability are heavily influenced by people. This editorial, and the papers in the invited feature that it introduces, discuss three emerging themes in social-ecological systems approaches to understanding protected areas: (1) the resilience and sustainability of protected areas, including analyses of their internal dynamics, their effectiveness, and the resilience of the landscapes within which they occur; (2) the relevance of spatial context and scale for protected areas, including such factors as geographic connectivity, context, exchanges between protected areas and their surrounding landscapes, and scale dependency in the provision of ecosystem services; and (3) efforts to reframe what protected areas are and how they both define and are defined by the relationships of people and nature. These emerging themes have the potential to transform management and policy approaches for protected areas and have important implications for conservation, in both theory and practice.

  15. Social Technology as a Sustainable Public Policy: The Mandalla Project in Ceará

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Josimar Souza Costa

    2013-04-01

    Full Text Available Environmental degradation in semi-arid Northeast has been a great challenge for the Brazilian government. The need to generate employment and income, justifies the establishment of productive activities competitive and covering the dimensions of sustainability. In this context, there is the movement of Social Technology (ST, aimed at social inclusion and development through the appropriation of simple technologies, inexpensive and consolidated in the culture of the community benefit. As a public policy of the government of Ceará, appeared the Mandalla Project, using irrigated agriculture and agribusiness production system, which includes the creation of small animals from natural methods. This study aims to analyze the ST Mandalla as a public policy that promotes sustainable development. The results show that this technology, contributes significantly to the sustainable development of semi-arid and improving the quality of life of communities served when examined against the dimensions of Sustainable Development model of Sachs (2002.

  16. Policy Options for the Improvement of the European Patent System

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schovsbo, Jens Hemmingsen; Cowin, Robin; Van de Eijck, Wim

    2007-01-01

    , the Working Group recognizes that the protection and enforcement of the rights of inventors through the patent system must be done in a manner to stimulate innovation and the diffusion of knowledge. In order to propose meaningful policy options that meet these objectives as much as possible, the evidence put......The present report is based on an independent, policy-oriented investigation of the current European patent system. The central premise of the report is that the patent system has so far been a positive factor in promoting innovation and the diffusion of knowledge, and thus that the system...... is contributing in a constructive way to economic and social welfare objectives. In acknowledging the importance of the patent system in relation to many aspects of society, it is also essential to continually evaluate whether the system is working as effectively as it could be. In addition, because of some...

  17. Implementing drought early warning systems: policy lessons and future needs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iglesias, Ana; Werner, Micha; Maia, Rodrigo; Garrote, Luis; Nyabeze, Washington

    2014-05-01

    Drought forecasting and Warning provides the potential of reducing impacts to society due to drought events. The implementation of effective drought forecasting and warning, however, requires not only science to support reliable forecasting, but also adequate policy and societal response. Here we propose a protocol to develop drought forecasting and early warning based in the international cooperation of African and European institutions in the DEWFORA project (EC, 7th Framework Programme). The protocol includes four major phases that address the scientific knowledge and the social capacity to use the knowledge: (a) What is the science available? Evaluating how signs of impending drought can be detected and predicted, defining risk levels, and analysing of the signs of drought in an integrated vulnerability approach. (b) What are the societal capacities? In this the institutional framework that enables policy development is evaluated. The protocol gathers information on vulnerability and pending hazard in advance so that early warnings can be declared at sufficient lead time and drought mitigation planning can be implemented at an early stage. (c) How can science be translated into policy? Linking science indicators into the actions/interventions that society needs to implement, and evaluating how policy is implemented. Key limitations to planning for drought are the social capacities to implement early warning systems. Vulnerability assessment contributes to identify these limitations and therefore provides crucial information to policy development. Based on the assessment of vulnerability we suggest thresholds for management actions to respond to drought forecasts and link predictive indicators to relevant potential mitigation strategies. Vulnerability assessment is crucial to identify relief, coping and management responses that contribute to a more resilient society. (d) How can society benefit from the forecast? Evaluating how information is provided to

  18. The social and political lives of zoonotic disease models: narratives, science and policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leach, Melissa; Scoones, Ian

    2013-07-01

    Zoonotic diseases currently pose both major health threats and complex scientific and policy challenges, to which modelling is increasingly called to respond. In this article we argue that the challenges are best met by combining multiple models and modelling approaches that elucidate the various epidemiological, ecological and social processes at work. These models should not be understood as neutral science informing policy in a linear manner, but as having social and political lives: social, cultural and political norms and values that shape their development and which they carry and project. We develop and illustrate this argument in relation to the cases of H5N1 avian influenza and Ebola, exploring for each the range of modelling approaches deployed and the ways they have been co-constructed with a particular politics of policy. Addressing the complex, uncertain dynamics of zoonotic disease requires such social and political lives to be made explicit in approaches that aim at triangulation rather than integration, and plural and conditional rather than singular forms of policy advice. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Targeting plug-in hybrid electric vehicle policies to increase social benefits

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Skerlos, Steven J.; Winebrake, James J.

    2010-01-01

    In 2009 the U.S. federal government enacted tax credits aimed at encouraging consumers to purchase plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). These tax credits are available to all consumers equally and therefore do not account for the variability in social benefits associated with PHEV operation in different parts of the country. The tax credits also do not consider variability in consumer income. This paper discusses why the PHEV subsidy policy would have higher social benefits at equal or less cost if the tax credits were offered at different levels depending on consumer income and the location of purchase. Quantification of these higher social benefits and related policy proposals are left for future work.

  20. The role of non-governmental organizations in the social and the health system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Piotrowicz, Maria; Cianciara, Dorota

    2013-01-01

    The article presents the definitions, objectives, fields and tasks of non-governmental organizations in social life, health system and health policy. In addition, the article addresses the issue of effectiveness and quality of NGOs' activity. The term "NGOs" (Non-governmental Organizations) includes different categories of entities that operate not to obtain financial gain, and also do not belong to the government sector. Non-governmental Organizations' fields of activity were described in the International Classification of Non-Profit Organizations (ICNPO). NGOs are an integral part of a democratic society. Sociological sciences emphasize their importance in enhancing social integration, implementation of the principle of subsidiarity, building civil society, social dialogue and participatory democracy. The main tasks of NGOs in the health system are providing services and health advocacy. Provision of services includes medical, social and psychological services as well as, integration activities, care and nursing, material and financial support, educational and information services and training. Health advocacy is a combination of individual and social actions designed to gain political commitment, policy support, social acceptance and systems support for a particular health goal or program. An important task carried out by NGOs is participation in the formation of health policy. The increasing role of NGOs in providing social services and the participation in political processes, result in the need to confirm the validity and credibility of their operation. One of the ways could be to introduce the mechanisms to assess quality and efficiency, such as registration as a part of a legal system, self-regulatory activities (card rules, codes of ethics), certification, participation in networks, monitoring and audit.

  1. Solving problems in social-ecological systems: definition, practice and barriers of transdisciplinary research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Angelstam, Per; Andersson, Kjell; Annerstedt, Matilda; Axelsson, Robert; Elbakidze, Marine; Garrido, Pablo; Grahn, Patrik; Jönsson, K Ingemar; Pedersen, Simen; Schlyter, Peter; Skärbäck, Erik; Smith, Mike; Stjernquist, Ingrid

    2013-03-01

    Translating policies about sustainable development as a social process and sustainability outcomes into the real world of social-ecological systems involves several challenges. Hence, research policies advocate improved innovative problem-solving capacity. One approach is transdisciplinary research that integrates research disciplines, as well as researchers and practitioners. Drawing upon 14 experiences of problem-solving, we used group modeling to map perceived barriers and bridges for researchers' and practitioners' joint knowledge production and learning towards transdisciplinary research. The analysis indicated that the transdisciplinary research process is influenced by (1) the amount of traditional disciplinary formal and informal control, (2) adaptation of project applications to fill the transdisciplinary research agenda, (3) stakeholder participation, and (4) functional team building/development based on self-reflection and experienced leadership. Focusing on implementation of green infrastructure policy as a common denominator for the delivery of ecosystem services and human well-being, we discuss how to diagnose social-ecological systems, and use knowledge production and collaborative learning as treatments.

  2. Política Social e Serviço Social: os desafios da intervenção profissional Social Policy and Social Work: the challenges of professional intervention

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Regina Celia Tamaso Mioto

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Este artigo discute política social e Serviço Social e os desafios que esta relação apresenta para a intervenção profissional. Enfatiza o florescimento e o aprofundamento desse debate ao longo das duas últimas décadas do século 20, e a sua consolidação no início do século 21, que se expressam através da consistente produção de conhecimento e da inserção peculiar dos órgãos representativos da categoria profissional no processo de luta pela institucionalização das políticas públicas compatíveis com os valores contidos no Código de Ética Profissional dos assistentes sociais. O enfoque maior recai sobre a questão da intervenção dos assistentes sociais, no campo da política social, ao implementar o projeto profissional, comprometido com a defesa dos direitos sociais de caráter universal. Nessa perspectiva, trata a política social como um campo contraditório, permeado por interesses e projetos societários antagônicos, no qual se reatualizam questões diretamente articuladas à especificidade e à autonomia profissional.This article discusses social policy and Social Work and the challenges that their relationship presents for professional intervention. It emphasizes the flourishing and deepening of the debate about this issue in the past two decades of the 20th century, and its consolidation in the early 21st century, which is expressed through the constant production of knowledge and the peculiar insertion of agencies that represent the professional category in the struggle for the institutionalization of public policies compatible with the values found in the Code of Professional Ethics for social workers. The strongest focus is on the issues of the intervention of social workers in the field of social policy, through implementation of the professional project, committed to defending social rights of a universal character. From this perspective, it involves social policy as a contradictory field that is permeated

  3. Enhancing the Resilience of the Australian National Electricity Market: Taking a Systems Approach in Policy Development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Barry Newell

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available As the complexity and interconnectedness of present-day social-ecological systems become steadily more apparent, there is increasing pressure on governments, policy makers, and managers to take a systems approach to the challenges facing humanity. However, how can this be done in the face of system complexity and uncertainties? In this paper we briefly discuss practical ways that policy makers can take up the systems challenge. We focus on resilience thinking, and the use of influence diagrams, causal-loop diagrams, and system archetypes. As a case study, set in the context of the climate-energy-water nexus, we use some of these system concepts and tools to carry out an initial exploration of factors that can affect the resilience of the Australian National Electricity Market. We stress the need for the electricity sector to prepare for the impacts of global change by encouraging innovation and diversity, supporting modularity and redundancy, and embracing the need for a policy making approach that takes account of the dynamics of the wider social-ecological system. Finally, taking a longer term view, we conclude by recommending that policy makers work to reduce reliance on conventional market mechanisms, institute continuing cross-sector dialogue, and promote basic education in system dynamics.

  4. The Limitations of Quantitative Social Science for Informing Public Policy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jerrim, John; de Vries, Robert

    2017-01-01

    Quantitative social science (QSS) has the potential to make an important contribution to public policy. However it also has a number of limitations. The aim of this paper is to explain these limitations to a non-specialist audience and to identify a number of ways in which QSS research could be improved to better inform public policy.

  5. Social Relationships and Health: A Flashpoint for Health Policy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Umberson, Debra; Montez, Jennifer Karas

    2011-01-01

    Social relationships—both quantity and quality—affect mental health, health behavior, physical health, and mortality risk. Sociologists have played a central role in establishing the link between social relationships and health outcomes, identifying explanations for this link, and discovering social variation (e.g., by gender and race) at the population level. Studies show that social relationships have short- and long-term effects on health, for better and for worse, and that these effects emerge in childhood and cascade throughout life to foster cumulative advantage or disadvantage in health. This article describes key research themes in the study of social relationships and health, and it highlights policy implications suggested by this research. PMID:20943583

  6. Exploring health systems research and its influence on policy processes in low income countries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Syed Shamsuzzoha B

    2007-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The interface between research and policymaking in low-income countries is highly complex. The ability of health systems research to influence policy processes in such settings face numerous challenges. Successful analysis of the research-policy interface in these settings requires understanding of contextual factors as well as key influences on the interface. Future Health Systems (FHS: Innovations for Equity is a consortium conducting research in six countries in Asia and Africa. One of the three cross-country research themes of the consortium is analysis of the relationship between research (evidence and policy making, especially their impact on the poor; insights gained in the initial conceptual phase of FHS activities can inform the global knowledge pool on this subject. Discussion This paper provides a review of the research-policy interface in low-income countries and proposes a conceptual framework, followed by directions for empirical approaches. First, four developmental perspectives are considered: social institutional factors; virtual versus grassroots realities; science-society relationships; and construction of social arrangements. Building on these developmental perspectives three research-policy interface entry points are identified: 1. Recognizing policy as complex processes; 2. Engaging key stakeholders: decision-makers, providers, scientists, and communities; and 3. Enhancing accountability. A conceptual framework with three entry points to the research-policy interface – policy processes; stakeholder interests, values, and power; and accountability – within a context provided by four developmental perspectives is proposed. Potential empirical approaches to the research-policy interface are then reviewed. Finally, the value of such innovative empirical analysis is considered. Conclusion The purpose of this paper is to provide the background, conceptual framework, and key research directions for

  7. The use of social science knowledge in implementing the Nuclear Waste Policy Act

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bradbury, J.A.

    1989-01-01

    This study investigates the use of social science knowledge by the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM), a division of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), in implementing the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982. The use of social science is examined both generally and in relation to a body of knowledge most relevant to the program, the social science risk literature. The study is restricted to the use by headquarters staff in relation to the largest repository and Monitored Retrievable Storage (MRS) projects. The literature on knowledge utilization and the Sabatier framework on knowledge use and policy learning provide the theoretical framework for the study. The research adopts a multistrategy approach, collecting data from two sources: (1) program documents, policy guidance, and meeting records; and (2) interviews with OCRWM officials. The constructs knowledge and use are conceptualized in different ways, each of which forms the basis for a different analytic approach. The research findings showed a very limited use of social science, more especially by the first repository program. Two reasons are advanced. First, the agency has viewed social science knowledge through technical lens and has applied an approach suited to technical problems to its structuring of waste management policy problems. Second, the degree of societal conflict over nuclear power and nuclear waste has prevented a constructive dialogue among the parties and thus reduced the possibility of policy learning

  8. How social policy contributes to the distribution of population health: the case of gender health equity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beckfield, Jason; Morris, Katherine Ann; Bambra, Clare

    2018-02-01

    In this study we aimed to analyze gender health equity as a case of how social policy contributes to population health. We analyzed three sets of social-investment policies implemented in Europe and previously hypothesized to reduce gender inequity in labor market outcomes: childcare; active labor market programs; and long-term care. We use 12 indicators of social-investment policies from the OECD Social Expenditure Database, the OECD Family Database, and the Social Policy Indicators' Parental Leave Benefit Dataset. We draw outcome data from the 2015 Global Burden of Disease for years lived with disability and all-cause mortality among men and women ages 25-54 for 18 European nations over the 1995-2010 period. We estimate 12 linear regression models each for mortality and morbidity (i.e. years lived with disability), one per social-investment indicator. All models use country fixed-effects and cluster-robust standard errors. For years lived with disability, women benefit more from social investment for most indicators. The only exception is the percentage of young children in publicly funded childcare or schooling, which equally benefits men. For all-cause mortality, men benefit more or equally from social investment for most indicators, while women benefit more from government spending on direct job creation through civil employment. Social policy contributes to the distribution of population health. Social-investment advocates argue such policies in particular enhance economic gender equity. Our results show that these polices have ambiguous effects on gender health equity and even differential improvements among men for some outcomes.

  9. TTI Phase 2 Institutional Support: Social Policy and Development ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    This funding will enhance the Social Policy and Development Centre's (SPDC) role ... SPDC's main areas of research are poverty, inequality, governance, provincial ... and visibility at the national level, particularly in the capital city, Islamabad

  10. Information Policy and Social Media: Accept or Decline

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walster, Dian

    2017-01-01

    In this article I examine how intersections between information policy and social media affect professional ethics and instructional decision making as considered through the lens of professional development and continuing education. The discussion uses techniques from autoethnography such as personal narrative, figurative language and scenarios.…

  11. Socializing the European Semester? Economic governance and social policy coordination in Europe 2020

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Zeitlin, J.; Vanhercke, B.

    2014-01-01

    The European Semester of policy coordination, which is the core of EU’s new institutional architecture for economic and social governance, introduced since the beginning of the Euro crisis, has prompted questions about the nature and dynamics of the EU’s emerging socio-economic governance

  12. Socializing the policy on public transportation to the community

    Science.gov (United States)

    Asmawi, A.; Mariana, D.; Sjoraida, D. F.

    2018-03-01

    This article discusses how public policies on transportation can be communicated to the society in Sukabumi City, West Java, Indonesia. It is important for the community because the development of transportation services has a very close relationship with social welfare and economic growth of the region. This can be demonstrated with an indication that the region whose better transportation system tends to have better levels of social welfare and economic growth. The study here used a multiple case method. The cases consist of activities which were the implementation of the government’s program of socialization to the people of Sukabumi City on transportation. This regency is a door to an expansion of West Java development to the Southwest area that there are things new in government services, including in the field of transportation. Interviews, observation and document analyses were used to collect the data. Face to face interviews using a list of questions were also developed for this study. The findings of the study indicate that in addition to its own designing and implementing transportation development plan in Sukabumi City itself, there is also a transportation development involving West Java provincial government, even the national government of Indonesia in the region. All of the transportation plans could be properly communicated to the public because it used a variety of media, including the traditional, the modern, and the social.

  13. Why Multilingualism and Multilingual Communication Jeopardize a Common Social Policy for Europe

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marácz László

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available This paper studies the consequences of European multilingualism and multilingual communication for a common social policy in the Europe Union. In the past fifty years, the main focus of the Europeanization project has been on financial-economic developments and less on a common social policy. Even today, there is no common framework for social protection in the European Union. Common minimum income or wages for European citizens are lacking. In this paper, it will be argued that the lack of social protection has to do with Europe’s linguistic diversity. Language is seen as a building block of national communities and their political cultures. The European integration project can only continue if different European political cultures are shared. However, due to the fact that a neutral lingua franca is lacking, this has been unsuccessful so far. The interaction of social groups that have a different language repertoire with the structures of multilevel governance are responsible for the fact that some of these social groups, including the ‘Eurostars’, and national cosmopolitans benefit from social protection, whereas other groups lacking relevant language skills, such as anti-establishment forces, commoners, and migrants, are excluded from the European power domains. These power configurations can be fruitfully studied in the floral figuration model. Consequently, due to these patterns of inclusion and exclusion, true solidarity among European citizens is not within reach. These claims will be illustrated by a case study on the Netherlands, a country that has been pursuing neoliberal policies counterbalancing Eurozone and economic crises and is trying to assimilate migrants and other newcomers. Apart from assimilatory policies targeting migrants, language games used by competing forces are playing an important role in the discourse in order to set up power structures.

  14. “Don't affect the share price”: social media policy in higher education as reputation management

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tony McNeill

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available The last 5 years have seen a growing number of universities use social media services such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube to engage with past, present and prospective students. More recently still, a number of universities have published policy or guidance documents on the use of social media for a range of university-related purposes including learning, teaching and assessment. This study considers the social media policies of 14 universities in the United Kingdom (UK that are currently in the public domain. It addresses some of the ways in which Higher Education Institutions (HEIs are responding to both the positive potential of social media as well as its perceived threats. Drawing inspiration, if not actual method, from critical discourse analysis, this study argues that marketisation has been the main policy driver with many social media policies being developed to promote university “brands” as well as protect institutional reputation. The creation and implementation of social media policies are therefore playing a role in helping universities manage both the risks and the benefits of social media in the context of an increasingly marketised Higher Education (HE environment in which protecting institutional reputation has become a priority. However, in the defence of the metaphorical institutional “share price”, some policies constrain both academic autonomy and the possibilities for innovation and risk-taking.

  15. Using Internet-Based Videos as Pedagogical Tools in the Social Work Policy Classroom

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sarabeth Leukefeld

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available Students often feel disconnected from their introductory social welfare policy courses. Therefore, it is important that instructors employ engaging pedagogical methods in the classroom. A review of the literature reveals that a host of methods have been utilized to attempt to interest students in policy courses, but there is no mention of using internet-based videos in the social welfare policy classroom. This article describes how to select and use appropriate internet-based videos from websites such as YouTube and SnagFilms, to effectively engage students in social welfare policy courses. Four rules are offered for choosing videos based on emotional impact, brevity, and relevance to course topics. The selected videos should elicit students’ passions and stimulate critical thinking when used in concert with instructor-generated discussion questions, writing assignments, and small group dialogue. Examples of the process of choosing videos, discussion questions, and student reactions to the use of videos are provided.

  16. The effects of a social media policy on pharmacy students' facebook security settings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Williams, Jennifer; Feild, Carinda; James, Kristina

    2011-11-10

    To examine how students entering a doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) program used Facebook privacy settings before and after the college's social media policy was presented to them. The Facebook profiles of all entering first-year pharmacy students across 4 campuses of a college of pharmacy were evaluated. Ten dichotomous variables of interest were viewed and recorded for each student's Facebook account at 3 time points: before the start of the semester, after presentation of the college's social media policy, and at the end of the semester. Data on whether a profile could be found and what portions of the profile were viewable also were collected. After introduction of the policy, a significant number of students increased their security settings (made information not visible to the public) related to Facebook walls, information pages, and links. Making pharmacy students aware of a college's social media policy had a positive impact on their behaviors regarding online security and privacy.

  17. The Effects of a Social Media Policy on Pharmacy Students’ Facebook Security Settings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feild, Carinda; James, Kristina

    2011-01-01

    Objective. To examine how students entering a doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) program used Facebook privacy settings before and after the college's social media policy was presented to them. Methods. The Facebook profiles of all entering first-year pharmacy students across 4 campuses of a college of pharmacy were evaluated. Ten dichotomous variables of interest were viewed and recorded for each student's Facebook account at 3 time points: before the start of the semester, after presentation of the college's social media policy, and at the end of the semester. Data on whether a profile could be found and what portions of the profile were viewable also were collected. Results. After introduction of the policy, a significant number of students increased their security settings (made information not visible to the public) related to Facebook walls, information pages, and links. Conclusions. Making pharmacy students aware of a college's social media policy had a positive impact on their behaviors regarding online security and privacy. PMID:22171105

  18. GOOD PRACTICE IN CROATIAN SOCIAL POLICY – RECCOMENDATIONS FOR THE COUNTRIES OF THE EUROPEAN UNION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ida Mahmutefendić

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Social policy has the ideal of cohesion and inclusiveness of all citizens, but it has to “play” an active role in creating opportunities for them. It encopmasses in itself primarily a balance between economic efficiency and social solidarity distribution, and strives towards a consensual social model in which the government and the opposition generally agree on the fundamental priorities of society. Starting from July 1st, 2013, Croatia has been a member of the European Union. What experiences can that country bring to European Union? In spite of the differences between the European countries becoming more and more expressed and bigger, there is a common element: a conscience that social justice and social reconciliation could contribute to an economical development and that are not just an expense; but the opposite: an economical development that must contribute to social reconciliation. In the process of the preparation for this work and during the process of its realization, I used the methods of reading a lot of literature, including professional books, professional journals and legislation literature. Social policy has been for years one of my major fields of interest, so some facts I knew already. My research goal is to examine the development so far of the social policy in Croatia, to detect the most important conditions which are necessary to develop high-quality social policies, to discover which are strong sides, and which are weak sides of the Croatian social policy, and therefore what is important to strongly develop, and what is redundant and/or old-fashioned, to throw away or neglect.

  19. Engaging Actors for Integrating Health Policy and Systems Research into Policy Making: Case Study from Haryana State in India

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shankar Prinja

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Background & objective: Good examples of evidence generation using Health Policy and Systems Research (HPSR in low and middle income countries (LMIC; and its application in policy making are scarce. In this paper, we describe the experience of establishing a system of HPSR from the Haryana state in India, outline how the HPSR is being utilized for policy making and programmatic decision making, and analyse the key factors which have been critical to the implementation and uptake of HPSR. Methods: Multiple methods are employed in this case study, ranging from unstructured in-depth interviews, review of the program and policy documents, and participatory notes from the meetings. The steps towards creation of a knowledge partnership between stakeholders are outlined. Four case studies i.e. development of a plan for universal health care (UHC, nutrition policy, centralized drug procurement system and use of RAPID appraisal method highlight the use of research evidence in agenda setting, policy formulation and policy implementation respectively. Results: Our analysis shows that the most important factor which contributed to Haryana model of HPSR was the presence of a dedicated and motivated team in National Rural Health Mission (NRHM at state level, many of whom were researchers by previous training. Overall, we conclude by highlighting the need for establishing an institutional mechanism at Central and State level where health service administrators and managers, academicians and researchers working in the field of health system from medical colleges, public health schools, management and technology institutions and social science universities can identify health system research priorities. Increased budgetary allocation for HPSR is required.

  20. Engaging Actors for Integrating Health Policy and Systems Research into Policy Making: Case Study from Haryana State in India

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shankar Prinja

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Background & objective: Good examples of evidence generation using Health Policy and Systems Research (HPSR in low and middle income countries (LMIC; and its application in policy making are scarce. In this paper, we describe the experience of establishing a system of HPSR from the Haryana state in India, outline how the HPSR is being utilized for policy making and programmatic decision making, and analyse the key factors which have been critical to the implementation and uptake of HPSR. Methods: Multiple methods are employed in this case study, ranging from unstructured in-depth interviews, review of the program and policy documents, and participatory notes from the meetings. The steps towards creation of a knowledge partnership between stakeholders are outlined. Four case studies i.e. development of a plan for universal health care (UHC, nutrition policy, centralized drug procurement system and use of RAPID appraisal method highlight the use of research evidence in agenda setting, policy formulation and policy implementation respectively. Results: Our analysis shows that the most important factor which contributed to Haryana model of HPSR was the presence of a dedicated and motivated team in National Rural Health Mission (NRHM at state level, many of whom were researchers by previous training. Overall, we conclude by highlighting the need for establishing an institutional mechanism at Central and State level where health service administrators and managers, academicians and researchers working in the field of health system from medical colleges, public health schools, management and technology institutions and social science universities can identify health system research priorities. Increased budgetary allocation for HPSR is required.

  1. Operationalizing safe operating space for regional social-ecological systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hossain, Md Sarwar; Dearing, John A; Eigenbrod, Felix; Johnson, Fiifi Amoako

    2017-04-15

    This study makes a first attempt to operationalize the safe operating space concept at a regional scale by considering the complex dynamics (e.g. non-linearity, feedbacks, and interactions) within a systems dynamic model (SD). We employ the model to explore eight 'what if' scenarios based on well-known challenges (e.g. climate change) and current policy debates (e.g. subsidy withdrawal). The findings show that the social-ecological system in the Bangladesh delta may move beyond a safe operating space when a withdrawal of a 50% subsidy for agriculture is combined with the effects of a 2°C temperature increase and sea level rise. Further reductions in upstream river discharge in the Ganges would push the system towards a dangerous zone once a 3.5°C temperature increase was reached. The social-ecological system in Bangladesh delta may be operated within a safe space by: 1) managing feedback (e.g. by reducing production costs) and the slow biophysical variables (e.g. temperature, rainfall) to increase the long-term resilience, 2) negotiating for transboundary water resources, and 3) revising global policies (e.g. withdrawal of subsidy) that negatively impact at regional scales. This study demonstrates how the concepts of tipping points, limits to adaptations, and boundaries for sustainable development may be defined in real world social-ecological systems. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. Social capital and Regional Policy in the EU

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Svendsen, Gert Tinggaard

    2009-01-01

    There needs to be a clear and explicit distinction between policy interventions aimed at increasing income and growth (“efficiency” objectives in the terminology of the Report) and those aimed at reducing inequalities (“social inclusion” objectives in the Report), not least in order to be able...... to monitor and evaluate the results. There needs to be a greater coherence with the place-based or territorial policy concept. And a true concentration on a few issues of key importance for the EU and its people. This would create a Europe-wide critical mass of interventions on commonly agreed priorities...

  3. Towards Universal Health Coverage via Social Health Insurance in China: Systemic Fragmentation, Reform Imperatives, and Policy Alternatives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    He, Alex Jingwei; Wu, Shaolong

    2017-12-01

    China's remarkable progress in building a comprehensive social health insurance (SHI) system was swift and impressive. Yet the country's decentralized and incremental approach towards universal coverage has created a fragmented SHI system under which a series of structural deficiencies have emerged with negative impacts. First, contingent on local conditions and financing capacity, benefit packages vary considerably across schemes, leading to systematic inequity. Second, the existence of multiple schemes, complicated by massive migration, has resulted in weak portability of SHI, creating further barriers to access. Third, many individuals are enrolled on multiple schemes, which causes inefficient use of government subsidies. Moral hazard and adverse selection are not effectively managed. The Chinese government announced its blueprint for integrating the urban and rural resident schemes in early 2016, paving the way for the ultimate consolidation of all SHI schemes and equal benefits for all. This article proposes three policy alternatives to inform the consolidation: (1) a single-pool system at the prefectural level with significant government subsidies, (2) a dual-pool system at the prefectural level with risk-equalization mechanisms, and (3) a household approach without merging existing pools. Vertical integration to the provincial level is unlikely to happen in the near future. Two caveats are raised to inform this transition towards universal health coverage.

  4. Tax, Social Policy and Gender : rethinking equality and efficiency

    OpenAIRE

    2018-01-01

    Gender inequality is profoundly unjust and in clear contradiction to the philosophy of the ‘fair go’. In spite of some action by recent governments, Australia has fallen behind in policy and outcomes, even as the G20 group of nations, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the International Monetary Fund are paying renewed attention to gender inequality. Tax, Social Policy and Gender presents new research on entrenched gender inequality in a comparative framework of hu...

  5. A Study on improvement of environmental assessment system in social, economic, and environmental sectors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nam, Young Sook; Koo, Doh Wan; Keum, Kee Yong [Korea Environment Institute, Seoul (Korea)

    1998-12-01

    The environmental assessment system is assessed as a mechanism that can achieve the goal for environmental policy in 21st century. As it can evaluate social and economic feasibility of large-scale development program, this system can achieve a sustainable society by mitigating social conflicts arising from environmental problems. For making the environmental assessment system substantial, this study was implemented by the need of improvement of the system, by analyzing problems of social, economic, and environmental evaluation, which is implemented under the present system. 44 refs., 1 fig., 25 tabs.

  6. Understanding urban practitioners' perspectives on social-mix policies in Amsterdam: the importance of design and social space

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Lawton, P.

    2013-01-01

    Throughout recent decades, socially-mixed neighbourhoods have become a key element of urban policy and debate. This paper argues, with Amsterdam as an empirical case, that the design, layout and everyday use of social space—including public and private space—is of key importance in understanding the

  7. System of Interactions of Social Actors in Public Communication of Science and Technology

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Miriam Graciela Miquilena

    2010-11-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents the results of a research aimed at explaining the system of interactions of social actors in Public Communication of Science and Technology (PCST, in the context of a social web defined by the novel systems of communication sustained on informational and communication technologies. The study’s theoretical framework highlights the strategic importance of a Public Communication  which focuses on promoting public appropriation of Science and Technology, going beyond the role of Journalism and Science Communication that informs a qualified public, to one that stablishes a bond with policies and decision making in the area, made with participation of international agencies, governments, producers of science and technology, journalists’ associations, educational institutions, and citizens. The research relies on Explicative Methodology. A revision of pertinent bibliography leads to the conclusion that the system of social interactions mediated by personal, interpersonal and grupal global communications, define the relationships in the communicational exchange of the social actor with regard to public communication of science and technology and policies aimed at its appropriation.

  8. The Policy to Promote Social Responsibility

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rosdahl, Anders

    thinking, a vision for the Danish welfare society. An inclusive labour market is one with “a place for everyone”, i.e. also for persons with a reduced working capacity, disabled, ethnic minorities and long-term unemployed – that is persons who have traditionally had difficulties in obtaining or remaining...... viewpoints in the current Danish debate (section 4). Section 5 includes some concluding remarks. Encouraging social responsibility of enterprises is one of the means to promote what in Denmark today is termed an inclusive labour market. The inclusive labour market is, according to current governmental...... in employment. An inclusive labour market is adapted to the needs and capabilities of diverse human beings, also employees, who should be able to reconcile work and family life. The policy to increase the social responsibility of enterprises and to promote an inclusive labour market includes several specific...

  9. Smoke-free policies and the social acceptability of smoking in Uruguay and Mexico: findings from the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation Project.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thrasher, James F; Boado, Marcelo; Sebrié, Ernesto M; Bianco, Eduardo

    2009-06-01

    Little research has been conducted to determine the psychosocial and behavioral impacts of smoke-free policies in middle-income countries. Cross-sectional data were analyzed from the 2006 waves of the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation. Survey comparing adult smokers in Mexico (n = 1,080), where smoke-free legislation at that time was weak, and Uruguay (n = 1,002), where comprehensive smoke-free legislation was implemented. Analyses aimed to determine whether exposure to smoke-free policies and perceived antismoking social norms were associated with smokers' receiving cues about the bothersome nature of secondhand smoke (SHS), with smokers' reactance against such cues, and with smokers' level of support for smoke-free policies in different venues. In bivariate analyses, Uruguayan smokers were more likely than Mexican smokers to experience verbal anti-SHS cues, lower reactance against anti-SHS cues, stronger antismoking societal norms, and stronger support for 100% smoke-free policies in enclosed workplaces, restaurants, and bars. In multivariate models for both countries, the strength of voluntary smoke-free policies at home was independently associated with support for smoke-free policies across all venues queried, except for in bars among Uruguayans. Perceived strength of familial antismoking norms was consistently associated with all indicators of the social acceptability of smoking in Uruguay but only with the frequency of receiving anti-SHS verbal cues in Mexico. These results are generally consistent with previous research indicating that comprehensive smoke-free policies are likely to increase the social unacceptability of smoking and that resistance against such policies is likely to diminish once such policies are in place.

  10. How social policies can improve financial accessibility of healthcare: a multi-level analysis of unmet medical need in European countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Israel, Sabine

    2016-03-05

    The article explores in how far financial accessibility of healthcare (FAH) is restricted for low-income groups and identifies social protection policies that can supplement health policies in guaranteeing universal access to healthcare. The article is aimed to advance the literature on comparative European social epidemiology by focussing on income-related barriers of healthcare take-up. The research is carried out on the basis of multi-level cross-sectional analyses using 2012 EU-SILC data for 30 European countries. The social policy data stems from EU-SILC beneficiary information. It is argued that unmet medical needs are a reality for many individuals within Europe - not only due to direct user fees but also due to indirect costs such as waiting time, travel costs, time not spent working. Moreover, low FAH affects not only the lowest income quintile but also the lower middle income class. The study observes that social allowance increases the purchasing power of both household types, thereby helping them to overcome financial barriers to healthcare uptake. Alongside healthcare system reform aimed at improving the pro-poor availability of healthcare facilities and financing, policies directed at improving FAH should aim at providing a minimum income base to the low-income quintile. Moreover, categorical policies should address households exposed to debt which form the key vulnerable group within the low-income classes.

  11. Social policies and the pathways to inequalities in health

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Whitehead, M; Burström, B; Diderichsen, Finn

    2000-01-01

    in relation to the identified policy entry points. Overall, in Britain, around 50% of the health disadvantage of lone mothers is accounted for by the mediating factors of poverty and joblessness, whereas in Sweden these factors only account for between 3% and 13% of the health gap. The final section discusses......The aim of this study is to contribute to the emerging field of health inequalities impact assessment. It develops further a conceptual framework that encompasses the policy context as well as the pathways leading from social position to inequalities in health. It then uses this framework...... the implications of the findings for future policy intervention and research in the two countries....

  12. Upending the social ecological model to guide health promotion efforts toward policy and environmental change.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Golden, Shelley D; McLeroy, Kenneth R; Green, Lawrence W; Earp, Jo Anne L; Lieberman, Lisa D

    2015-04-01

    Efforts to change policies and the environments in which people live, work, and play have gained increasing attention over the past several decades. Yet health promotion frameworks that illustrate the complex processes that produce health-enhancing structural changes are limited. Building on the experiences of health educators, community activists, and community-based researchers described in this supplement and elsewhere, as well as several political, social, and behavioral science theories, we propose a new framework to organize our thinking about producing policy, environmental, and other structural changes. We build on the social ecological model, a framework widely employed in public health research and practice, by turning it inside out, placing health-related and other social policies and environments at the center, and conceptualizing the ways in which individuals, their social networks, and organized groups produce a community context that fosters healthy policy and environmental development. We conclude by describing how health promotion practitioners and researchers can foster structural change by (1) conveying the health and social relevance of policy and environmental change initiatives, (2) building partnerships to support them, and (3) promoting more equitable distributions of the resources necessary for people to meet their daily needs, control their lives, and freely participate in the public sphere. © 2015 Society for Public Health Education.

  13. Asylum Seekers and Resettled Refugees in Australia: Predicting Social Policy Attitude From Prejudice Versus Emotion

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lisa K. Hartley

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available While most of the world's refugees reside in developing countries, their arrival to western countries is highly politicised, giving rise to questions about the types of entitlements and rights that should, or should not, be granted. In this study, using a mixed-methods community questionnaire (N = 185, we examined attitudes towards social policies aimed at providing assistance to two categories of new arrivals to Australia: resettled refugees (who arrive via its official refugee resettlement program and asylum seekers (who arrive via boat and then seek refugee status. Social policy attitude was examined as a consequence of feelings of anger, fear, and threat, as well as levels of prejudice. Participants felt significantly higher levels of anger, fear, threat, and prejudice towards asylum seekers compared to resettled refugees. For both resettled refugees and asylum seekers, prejudice was an independent predictor of more restrictive social policy attitudes. For resettled refugees, fear and perceived threat were independent predictors for more restrictive social policy whereas for asylum seekers anger was an independent predictor of restrictive social policy. The qualitative data reinforced the quantitative findings and extended understanding on the appraisals that underpin negative attitudes and emotional responses. Practical implications relating to challenging community attitudes are discussed.

  14. Studying Policy Transfer through the Lens of Social Network Analysis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Staunæs, Dorthe; Brøgger, Katja; Steiner-Khamsi, Gita

    Studying Policy Transfer through the Lens of Social Network Analysis The panelists present the findings of a joint empirical research project carried out at Aarhus University (DPU/Copenhagen) and at Teachers College, Columbia University (New York). The research project succeeded to identify...... discursive networks of political stakeholders and policy advisors that were considered key actors in the Danish school reform. The research team investigated how these networks interrelate, change over time, and represent different constituents (government, academe, business), at times contradicting...... or collaborating with each other, respectively. Against the backdrop of globalization studies in comparative education, the research project attempted to identify borrowers, translators, and brokers of educational reform drawing on a complementary set of expertise from social network analysis methodology (Oren...

  15. Young Offending: Towards a Radical/Critical Social Policy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rogowski, Steve

    2010-01-01

    Young offending is perceived as a serious social problem and always remains near the top of the political agenda. Over the post-war years, policy and practice moved from welfare/treatment towards punishment as the key for addressing the problem, culminating in New Labour's Crime and Disorder Act 1998. Thereafter there was increasing concern about…

  16. Agent-based simulations of the influence of social policy and neighboring communication on the adoption of grid-connected photovoltaics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Murakami, Tomoyuki

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • Multi-agent systems coupled with an electric power flow analysis. • Influence of social policy and communication on the adoption of photovoltaics. • Strong intervention near a transformer drives the greatest PV adoption. • Strong intervention far from a transformer increases social costs. - Abstract: Agent-based simulations coupled with an analysis of the flow of electric power are carried out to examine the influence of the social policy of the government and the neighboring communication between customers on the adoption of distributed rooftop photovoltaic electrical power generators (PVs). How the relationships between the social policy and the possibility of a reverse current restriction give rise to the collective behavior of autonomous individuals, and how the end customers interact and form relationships with its environment are described. Strong intervention by the government in the areas near a main high-voltage power distribution transformer, where the possibility of a reverse current restriction is relatively low, drives the greatest adoption of the PV system. The near areas are primarily occupied by customers with only a PV to improve the diffusion rate of PVs via the self-organization by the communication between customers. It also lead in a decrease in the need for compensation devices, which in turn minimizes the social cost. Growth in the number of PVs in areas far from the transformer is assisted by the installation of batteries as compensation for the lost opportunity due to restrictions in those areas on reverse power currents. Therefore, excessive intervention by the government in the far areas results in an increase in the social cost of managing reverse currents

  17. Social and Economic Analysis Branch: integrating policy, social, economic, and natural science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schuster, Rudy; Walters, Katie D.

    2015-01-01

    The Fort Collins Science Center's Social and Economic Analysis Branch provides unique capabilities in the U.S. Geological Survey by leading projects that integrate social, behavioral, economic, and natural science in the context of human–natural resource interactions. Our research provides scientific understanding and support for the management and conservation of our natural resources in support of multiple agency missions. We focus on meeting the scientific needs of the Department of the Interior natural resource management bureaus in addition to fostering partnerships with other Federal and State managers to protect, restore, and enhance our environment. The Social and Economic Analysis Branch has an interdisciplinary group of scientists whose primary functions are to conduct both theoretical and applied social science research, provide technical assistance, and offer training to support the development of skills in natural resource management activities. Management and research issues associated with human-resource interactions typically occur in a unique context and require knowledge of both natural and social sciences, along with the skill to integrate multiple science disciplines. In response to these challenging contexts, Social and Economic Analysis Branch researchers apply a wide variety of social science concepts and methods which complement our rangeland/agricultural, wildlife, ecology, and biology capabilities. The goal of the Social and Economic Analysis Branch's research is to enhance natural-resource management, agency functions, policies, and decisionmaking.

  18. The Social Cost Of Electricity. Scenarios and Policy Implications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Markandya, A.; Bigano, A.; Porchia, R.

    2010-01-01

    This book reports and rationalizes the state-of-the-art concerning the social costs of electricity generation. Social costs are assessed by adding to the private generation costs, the external costs associated with damages to human health, the environment, crops, materials, and those related to the consequences of climate change. The authors consider the evolution of these costs up to 2030 for major electricity generating technologies and, using these estimates, evaluate policy options for external cost internalization, providing quantitative scenarios by country and primary fuel for 2010, 2020 and 2030. While mainly focusing on European countries, the book also examines the situation in key emerging economies such as China, India, Brazil and Turkey. With an analysis of the policies for external costs internalization, this book will appeal to energy policymakers, research institutions focusing on energy, environmental and energy NGOs and trade associations, as well as energy companies.

  19. Understanding Australian policies on public health using social and political science theories: reflections from an Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia Workshop.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baum, Fran; Graycar, Adam; Delany-Crowe, Toni; de Leeuw, Evelyne; Bacchi, Carol; Popay, Jennie; Orchard, Lionel; Colebatch, Hal; Friel, Sharon; MacDougall, Colin; Harris, Elizabeth; Lawless, Angela; McDermott, Dennis; Fisher, Matthew; Harris, Patrick; Phillips, Clare; Fitzgerald, Jane

    2018-04-19

    There is strong, and growing, evidence documenting health inequities across the world. However, most governments do not prioritize policies to encourage action on the social determinants of health and health equity. Furthermore, despite evidence concerning the benefits of joined-up, intersectoral policy to promote health and health equity, it is rare for such policy approaches to be applied systematically. To examine the usefulness of political and social science theory in understanding the reasons for this disjuncture between evidence and practice, researchers and public servants gathered in Adelaide for an Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia (ASSA) Workshop. This paper draws together the learnings that emerged from the Workshop, including key messages about the usefulness of various theories as well as insights drawn from policy practice. Discussions during the Workshop highlighted that applying multiple theories is particularly helpful in directing attention to, and understanding, the influence of all stages of the policy process; from the construction and framing of policy problems, to the implementation of policy and evaluation of outcomes, including those outcomes that may be unintended. In addition, the Workshop emphasized the value of collaborations among public health researchers, political and social scientists and public servants to open up critical discussion about the intersections between theory, research evidence and practice. Such critique is vital to render visible the processes through which particular sources of knowledge may be privileged over others and to examine how political and bureaucratic environments shape policy proposals and implementation action.

  20. Controle social e políticas de saúde Social control over health policies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aldaíza Sposati

    1992-12-01

    Full Text Available Na história de democratização das políticas de saúde, um dos campos que construiu visibilidade aos movimentos de saúde, quer pela denúncia das "ausências e omissões" dos serviços instalados, quer pela luta no sentido de construir um espaço regular para o exercício do controle nos serviços e nas burocracias da gestão da saúde, foi o controle social da coisa pública. No início da década de 80, a experiência marcante na região leste da cidade de São Paulo foi a de criar os conselhos de saúde como representação popular no controle do Estado. Nesta reflexão, as autoras não pretendem discutir a composição da representação, mas sim avançar para novos problemas. Na conjuntura pós Constituição de 1988, vivemos um novo momento democrático. As leis, a princípio, amparam a participação da população nas políticas de saúde e são defensoras dos direitos sociais. Como, então, é entendido o campo do controle social? Este restringe-se aos serviços de saúde ou é mais ampliado, englobando a política de saúde? Como é que as leis passam da sua formulação para a sua aplicação? Busca-se, no texto, mapear questões que se colocam quando o controle social se orienta para constituir uma pressão pela mudança/alteração da situação.As the democratization of health policies develops, social control over public interests has been of help in providing health movements with prominence, not only by denouncing cases of "negligence and omission" by established services, but also by struggling to create regular, favourable conditions by which to exercise control over services and governmental management of public health policies. In the early 1980s, a remarkable experience occurred in the "Zona Leste" or eastern burrough of the city of São Paulo, consisting of the emergence of Health Councils as a means of popular representation in the control over the state. Through their analysis of these issues, the authors' intent is

  1. The right to health, health systems development and public health policy challenges in Chad.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Azétsop, Jacquineau; Ochieng, Michael

    2015-02-15

    There is increasing consensus that the right to health can provide ethical, policy and practical groundings for health systems development. The goals of the right to health are congruent with those of health systems development, which are about strengthening health promotion organizations and actions so as to improve public health. The poor shape and performance of health systems in Chad question the extent of realization of the right to health. Due to its comprehensiveness and inclusiveness, the right to health has the potential of being an organizational and a normative backbone for public health policy and practice. It can then be understood and studied as an integral component of health systems development. This paper uses a secondary data analysis of existing documents by the Ministry of Public Health, Institut National de la Statistique, des Etudes Economiques et Démographiques (INSEED), the Ministry of Economy and Agence Française de Cooperation to analyze critically the shape and performance of health systems in Chad based on key concepts and components of the right to health contained in article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and on General Comment 14. The non-realization of the right to health, even in a consistently progressive manner, raises concerns about the political commitment of state officials to public health, about the justice of social institutions in ensuring social well-being and about individual and public values that shape decision-making processes. Social justice, democratic rule, transparency, accountability and subsidiarity are important groundings for ensuring community participation in public affairs and for monitoring the performance of public institutions. The normative ideals of health systems development are essentially democratic in nature and are rooted in human rights and in ethical principles of human dignity, equality, non-discrimination and social justice. These ideals are grounded

  2. Effects of Social, Economic, and Labor Policies on Occupational Health Disparities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siqueira, Carlos Eduardo; Gaydos, Megan; Monforton, Celeste; Slatin, Craig; Borkowski, Liz; Dooley, Peter; Liebman, Amy; Rosenberg, Erica; Shor, Glenn; Keifer, Matthew

    2018-01-01

    Background This article introduces some key labor, economic, and social policies that historically and currently impact occupational health disparities in the United States. Methods We conducted a broad review of the peer-reviewed and gray literature on the effects of social, economic, and labor policies on occupational health disparities. Results Many populations such as tipped workers, public employees, immigrant workers, and misclassified workers are not protected by current laws and policies, including worker’s compensation or Occupational Safety and Health Administration enforcement of standards. Local and state initiatives, such as living wage laws and community benefit agreements, as well as multiagency law enforcement contribute to reducing occupational health disparities. Conclusions There is a need to build coalitions and collaborations to command the resources necessary to identify, and then reduce and eliminate occupational disparities by establishing healthy, safe, and just work for all. PMID:23606055

  3. A Discursive Institutionalist Approach to Understanding the Changes to the Irish Social Partnership Policy After 2008

    OpenAIRE

    Hogan, John; Timoney, Nicola

    2016-01-01

    Read before the society, 14 January 2016 Employing the critical juncture theory (CJT), a discursive institutionalist approach, this paper examines the nature of the changes to social partnership policy at the end of the decade of the 2000s. Did these changes constitute a transformation in social partnership policy, or were they a continuation of a previously established policy pathway? The CJT consists of three elements – economic crisis, ideational change, and the nature of the policy cha...

  4. Lifelong Learning as Social Need and as Policy Discourse

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Palle

    2009-01-01

    Lifelong learning is a key concept in EU policy documents not only on education, but also on economic competitiveness and social cohesion. The discourse on lifelong learning has been strongly criticised by educational researchers, who document that it often reflects narrow notions of learning and...

  5. Social Security System in India: An International Comparative Analysis

    OpenAIRE

    Jha, Rupak Kumar; Bhattacharyya, Surajit

    2010-01-01

    This paper examines selected components of social security system in India and compares them with their OECD counterparts. Historically, the Indian policy makers have viewed the pension system as a welfare measure and therefore, it lacks in financial professionalism, diversification, and in the belief that pension funds can also be treated as an asset. The Indian system is biased towards the organized formal sector as workers in this sector are benefitted with the provisions under various lab...

  6. Counseling, Psychological, and Social Services Staffing: Policies in U.S. School Districts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brener, Nancy; Demissie, Zewditu

    2018-06-01

    Schools are in a unique position to meet the mental and behavioral health needs of children and adolescents because approximately 95% of young people aged 7-17 years attend school. Little is known, however, about policies related to counseling, psychological, and social services staffing in school districts. This study analyzed the prevalence of such policies in public school districts in the U.S. Data from four cycles (2000, 2006, 2012, and 2016) of the School Health Policies and Practices Study, a national survey periodically conducted to assess policies and practices for ten components of school health, were analyzed in 2017. The survey collected data related to counseling, psychological, and social services among nationally representative samples of school districts using online or mailed questionnaires. Sampled districts identified respondents responsible for or most knowledgeable about the content of each questionnaire. The percentage of districts with a district-level counseling, psychological, and social services coordinator increased significantly from 62.6% in 2000 to 79.5% in 2016. In 2016, 56.3% of districts required each school to have someone to coordinate counseling, psychological, and social services at the school. Fewer districts required schools at each level to have a specified ratio of counselors to students (16.2% for elementary schools, 16.8% for middle schools, and 19.8% for high schools), and the percentage of districts with these requirements has decreased significantly since 2012. Increases in the prevalence of district-level staffing policies could help increase the quantity and quality of counseling, psychological, and social services staff in schools nationwide, which in turn could improve mental and behavioral health outcomes for students. This article is part of a supplement entitled The Behavioral Health Workforce: Planning, Practice, and Preparation, which is sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

  7. The Social Dimensions of Sustainability and Change in Diversified Farming Systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christopher M. Bacon

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Agricultural systems are embedded in wider social-ecological processes that must be considered in any complete discussion of sustainable agriculture. Just as climatic profiles will influence the future viability of crops, institutions, i.e., governance agreements, rural household and community norms, local associations, markets, and agricultural ministries, to name but a few, create the conditions that foster sustainable food systems. Because discussions of agricultural sustainability often overlook the full range of social dimensions, we propose a dual focus on a broad set of criteria, i.e., human health, labor, democratic participation, resiliency, biological and cultural diversity, equity, and ethics, to assess social outcomes, and on institutions that could support diversified farming systems (DFS. A comparative analysis of case studies from California's Central Valley, Mesoamerican coffee agroforestry systems, and European Union agricultural parks finds that DFS practices are unevenly adopted within and among these systems and interdependent with institutional environments that specifically promote diversified farming practices. Influential institutions in these cases include state policies, farmers' cooperatives/associations, and organized civic efforts to influence agroenvironmental policy, share knowledge, and shape markets for more 'sustainable' products. The Californian and Mesoamerican cases considers organic and fair trade certifications, finding that although they promote several DFS practices and generate social benefits, they are inadequate as a single strategy to promote agricultural sustainability. The complex governance and multifunctional management of Europe's peri-urban agricultural parks show unexpected potential for promoting DFS. Unless DFS are anchored in supportive institutions and evaluated against an inclusive set of social and environmental criteria, short-term investments to advance diversified agriculture could

  8. Social Impact Management Plans: Innovation in corporate and public policy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Franks, Daniel M., E-mail: d.franks@uq.edu.au [Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining, The University of Queensland, Sustainable Minerals Institute, St Lucia, Brisbane, Queensland 4072 (Australia); Vanclay, Frank, E-mail: frank.vanclay@rug.nl [Department of Cultural Geography, Faculty of Spatial Sciences, The University of Groningen, P.O. Box 800, 9700 AV Groningen (Netherlands)

    2013-11-15

    Social Impact Assessment (SIA) has traditionally been practiced as a predictive study for the regulatory approval of major projects, however, in recent years the drivers and domain of focus for SIA have shifted. This paper details the emergence of Social Impact Management Plans (SIMPs) and undertakes an analysis of innovations in corporate and public policy that have put in place ongoing processes – assessment, management and monitoring – to better identify the nature and scope of the social impacts that might occur during implementation and to proactively respond to change across the lifecycle of developments. Four leading practice examples are analyzed. The International Finance Corporation (IFC) Performance Standards require the preparation of Environmental and Social Management Plans for all projects financed by the IFC identified as having significant environmental and social risks. Anglo American, a major resources company, has introduced a Socio-Economic Assessment Toolbox, which requires mine sites to undertake regular assessments and link these assessments with their internal management systems, monitoring activities and a Social Management Plan. In South Africa, Social and Labour Plans are submitted with an application for a mining or production right. In Queensland, Australia, Social Impact Management Plans were developed as part of an Environmental Impact Statement, which included assessment of social impacts. Collectively these initiatives, and others, are a practical realization of theoretical conceptions of SIA that include management and monitoring as core components of SIA. The paper concludes with an analysis of the implications for the practice of impact assessment including a summary of key criteria for the design and implementation of effective SIMPs. -- Highlights: • Social impact management plans are effective strategies to manage social issues. • They are developed in partnership with regulatory agencies, investors and community.

  9. Social Impact Management Plans: Innovation in corporate and public policy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Franks, Daniel M.; Vanclay, Frank

    2013-01-01

    Social Impact Assessment (SIA) has traditionally been practiced as a predictive study for the regulatory approval of major projects, however, in recent years the drivers and domain of focus for SIA have shifted. This paper details the emergence of Social Impact Management Plans (SIMPs) and undertakes an analysis of innovations in corporate and public policy that have put in place ongoing processes – assessment, management and monitoring – to better identify the nature and scope of the social impacts that might occur during implementation and to proactively respond to change across the lifecycle of developments. Four leading practice examples are analyzed. The International Finance Corporation (IFC) Performance Standards require the preparation of Environmental and Social Management Plans for all projects financed by the IFC identified as having significant environmental and social risks. Anglo American, a major resources company, has introduced a Socio-Economic Assessment Toolbox, which requires mine sites to undertake regular assessments and link these assessments with their internal management systems, monitoring activities and a Social Management Plan. In South Africa, Social and Labour Plans are submitted with an application for a mining or production right. In Queensland, Australia, Social Impact Management Plans were developed as part of an Environmental Impact Statement, which included assessment of social impacts. Collectively these initiatives, and others, are a practical realization of theoretical conceptions of SIA that include management and monitoring as core components of SIA. The paper concludes with an analysis of the implications for the practice of impact assessment including a summary of key criteria for the design and implementation of effective SIMPs. -- Highlights: • Social impact management plans are effective strategies to manage social issues. • They are developed in partnership with regulatory agencies, investors and community.

  10. The Relation Between Policies concerning Corporate Social Responsibility and Philosophical Moral Theories

    OpenAIRE

    Frederiksen, Claus S.

    2009-01-01

    This paper examines the relation between policies concerning Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and philosophical moral theories. The objective is to determine which moral theories form the basis for CSR policies. Are they based on ethical egoism, libertarianism, utilitarianism or some kind of common-sense morality? To address this issue, I conducted an empirical investigation examining the relation between moral theories and CSR policies, in companies engaged in CSR. Based ...

  11. Dynamic Systems Modeling in Educational System Design & Policy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Groff, Jennifer Sterling

    2013-01-01

    Over the last several hundred years, local and national educational systems have evolved from relatively simple systems to incredibly complex, interdependent, policy-laden structures, to which many question their value, effectiveness, and direction they are headed. System Dynamics is a field of analysis used to guide policy and system design in…

  12. CROSS-SECTORAL YOUTH POLICY: CONCEPT AND MODERN TECHNOLOGIES OF SOCIAL PARTNERSHIP

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Angelina Vladimirovna Borodina

    2016-01-01

    As a result, prospects of social dialogue concerning youth lie in expansion of number of partners and expansion of area of the solved problems in comparison with traditional tripartite social-labor interaction; reformation of youth policy management from the subject-object form; the training of the culture of cross-sectoral partnership for partners.

  13. Rural Development Policy in Brazil: the dilemma between productive inclusion and social

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ademir Antonio Cazella

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5007/2175-7984.2016v15nesp1p49 In the past two decades an evident dichotomy has been established between policies of a productive nature and those aimed at social assistance for family farms in Brazil. The purpose of this article is to analyze this duality in the main public policies for family farming, and presents a quantitative overview of the results. From a methodological perspective the analysis was based on the number of farmers who benefit from the agrarian reform policies, rural credit, institutional food markets, rural social security and income transfer. The main results of this study indicate that the economic support for the productive activities of Brazilian family farming have been concentrated among the intermediary and well-established farms that are inserted in markets. In parallel, most family farmers are relegated to social assistance programs and not integrated to the working agendas of the main professional organizations in agriculture.

  14. Urban Housing Policy Review of China : From Economic Growth to Social Inclusion

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Deng, W.; Hoekstra, J.S.C.M.; Elsinga, M.G.

    2015-01-01

    This paper reviews the housing policy of China from 1949-2013. It examines the housing tenure change, policy instruments, and impacts social structures in different time periods. After the welfare period of 1949-77, the dual provision period of 1978-1998, and the market dominant period of 1999-2011,

  15. Urban housing policy review of China : From economic growth to social inclusion

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Deng, W.; Hoekstra, J.S.C.M.; Elsinga, M.G.

    2014-01-01

    This paper reviews the housing policy of China from 1949-2013. It examines the housing tenure change, policy instruments, and impacts social structures in different time periods. After the welfare period of 1949-77, the dual provision period of 1978-1998, and the market dominant period of 1999-2011,

  16. Climate-based policies may increase life-cycle social costs of vehicle fleet operation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Emery, Isaac; Mbonimpa, Eric; Thal, Alfred E.

    2017-01-01

    Sustainability guidelines and regulations in the United States often focus exclusively on carbon or petroleum reductions. Though some of these policies have resulted in substantial progress toward their goals, the effects of these efforts on other social and environmental externalities are often ignored. In this study, we examine the life-cycle air pollutant emissions for alternative fuel and vehicle purchase scenarios at a military installation near a typical urban area in the United States (U.S.). We find that scenarios which minimize petroleum use or greenhouse gas emissions do not concomitantly minimize criteria air pollutant emissions. We also employ social cost methodologies to quantify economic externalities due to climate change and health-related air pollutant impacts. Accounting for the social costs of climate change and air pollution from vehicle use reveals that criteria air pollutants may have a greater total impact than greenhouse gas emissions in locations similar to the urban area examined in this study. Use of first-generation biofuels, particularly corn grain ethanol, may reduce net petroleum use at the cost of increased total health impacts. More comprehensive policies may be needed to ensure that sustainability policies result in a net benefit to society. - Highlights: • U.S. energy and transportation policies focus on petroleum use and greenhouse gases. • Use of corn ethanol at a military base in Ohio, U.S. increases total social costs vs. gasoline. • Renewable electricity provides cost-effective climate and health protection. • DOD strategy to improve energy security may damage Americans' health. • More inclusive policies needed to protect health and climate.

  17. Can European sustainability and innovation policies accelerate the uptake of product-service systems?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Tan, A.R.; Diaz Lopez, F.J.; Mudgal, S.; Tukker, A.

    2013-01-01

    This review paper presents preliminary results from on-going research on PSS policies in Europe. Despite the apparent potential of product-service systems (PSS) as more profitable, resource efficient and socially responsible, there has seemingly been limited uptake of this type of business model. A

  18. Policy Driven Development: Flexible Policy Insertion for Large Scale Systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Demchak, Barry; Krüger, Ingolf

    2012-07-01

    The success of a software system depends critically on how well it reflects and adapts to stakeholder requirements. Traditional development methods often frustrate stakeholders by creating long latencies between requirement articulation and system deployment, especially in large scale systems. One source of latency is the maintenance of policy decisions encoded directly into system workflows at development time, including those involving access control and feature set selection. We created the Policy Driven Development (PDD) methodology to address these development latencies by enabling the flexible injection of decision points into existing workflows at runtime , thus enabling policy composition that integrates requirements furnished by multiple, oblivious stakeholder groups. Using PDD, we designed and implemented a production cyberinfrastructure that demonstrates policy and workflow injection that quickly implements stakeholder requirements, including features not contemplated in the original system design. PDD provides a path to quickly and cost effectively evolve such applications over a long lifetime.

  19. Pension system in Romania. Long term imbalances and inconsistent policies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ph. D. Associate Professor Razvan Papuc

    2012-05-01

    Full Text Available Public policies on retirement, both in Romania and in other EU countries, have been and still are conditioned by numerous short-term budgetary constaints and by long term major sustainability problems. Alongside objective, demographic developments known in all European countries , support systems for the elderly are facing numerous constraints, both due to government policies marked by fiscal indiscipline and lack of consistency of decisions and, hence, credibility phenomena caused by the phenomenon "the captive politician of a redistributive policy model". Modeling support institutions for pensioners by political actors was most of the times the expression of elections marked by Weberian instrumental rationality and not by wertrationalitat, using the axiom- guide for the behaviour of decision markers to "meet social interests in order to come to power" and not by the concern for a more long term efficient trans-redistributive approach. This paper aims to pursue the most important imbalances that chartacterize the public pension system in Romania, expression of decisions determined by aggregating in group individual preferences and noy by both rational and ethical analysis without redistribution centres.

  20. Corporate Social Media Use Policy: Meeting Business and Ethical Responsibilities

    OpenAIRE

    Gotterbarn , Don

    2012-01-01

    Part 5: Section 4: Citizens’ Involvement, Citizens’ Rights and ICT; International audience; Rapidly developing social media technology has made obsolete many corporate computer use policies. New types of policies need to be developed which address the blurring of the distinction between corporate and personal computing. The gradual change in whose smart technology is used, and how it is used in the service of employers needs to be controlled to promote possible positive effects for the employ...

  1. The life-course perspective and social policies : An overview of the issues

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bovenberg, A.L.

    2008-01-01

    A number of trends are changing the nature of social risks and increase the importance of human capital, adaptability, and flexibility. This article discusses the usefulness of a life-course perspective in developing proactive social policies that better fit the changing life cycles of individuals

  2. Women's Views about Gender Equality on the Current Social Policy in Turkey

    Science.gov (United States)

    Öztop, Hülya; Finkel, Müge

    2015-01-01

    Women's equal participation in all aspects of social, political and economic life is an essential requirement for sustainable development and democratic governance. How to engage women in these different spheres of policy, increase their access to information and ensure their participation in policy debates are therefore among the key questions…

  3. An Analysis of NCAA Division 1 Student Athlete Social Media Use, Privacy Management, and Perceptions of Social Media Policies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Snyder, Eric M.

    2013-01-01

    The intercollegiate athletic subculture knows very little about how social media policies are perceived by students-athletes. Athletic department administrators, conference commissioners, and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) who are in charge of creating new policies lack any meaningful data to help understand or negotiate new…

  4. Social Justice and Capacity for Self-Development in Educational Systems in European Union

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Bo-Ruey

    2016-01-01

    This paper explores social justice and equity in educational policies and systems in the European Union, and analyzes the significance within. Equity indicators of the European educational systems, "Equity of the European Educational Systems: A set of indicators" declared in 2006, introduces the debates on educational justice issues on…

  5. [Social and population policy. Considerations on efficiency and equity].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gomez De Leon Cruces, J

    1991-01-01

    It is generally accepted that modern governments have a series of obligations and responsibilities to their citizens, and that the modern state should institutionalize its responses to social demands of its citizens in its social policy. Social policy should assure the production of public goods, defined as goods available to all society and distributed equally to all members, whose consumption does not deprive any other individual of similar consumption. Private goods by contrast are those whose benefits are consumed by an individual without providing any benefit to others. Many goods fall between the 2 categories and share characteristics of each. The state should finance and subsidize goods that generate social benefits and should establish rules of operation for the private sector. 2 goals of government participation are that it be efficient and just. Efficiency means that it is clearly oriented to production of public goods, or to the public component of goods that are a mixture of public and private, and that it does not interfere with the "social efficiency" that results from the free development of private institutions. Justice implies equity and equality of opportunities for citizens to promote their personal goals. The specific cases of education and health care demonstrate that efficiency and redistribution may conflict. Although primary and secondary education are recognized as a social good that produces greater social benefits than university education, investment in higher education is frequently greater than that in primary and secondary education, with severe distributive biases. Following the focus of the classic theory of welfare, health expenditures should be concentrated on preventive interventions, increasing the availability of potable water and sanitary facilities, providing basic health services to the least favored groups, and similar actions. But institutionalized medicine in Mexico strongly favors curative services, typically devoting 2

  6. Policy options to stimulate social innovation initiatives addressing food waste prevention and reduction

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Vittuari, Matteo; Gaiani, Silvia; Politano, Alessandro; Timmermans, A.J.M.; Bos-Brouwers, H.E.J.

    2016-01-01

    The report builds on the knowledge created by the FUSIONS position paper “Stimulating social innovation through policy measures” that uses as key inputs the range of existing social innovation initiatives catalogued by FUSIONS WP4 in the inventory and draws on the outcomes of the WP3 Social Camp

  7. Using the forest, people, fire agent-based social network model to investigate interactions in social-ecological systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paige Fischer; Adam Korejwa; Jennifer Koch; Thomas Spies; Christine Olsen; Eric White; Derric Jacobs

    2013-01-01

    Wildfire links social and ecological systems in dry-forest landscapes of the United States. The management of these landscapes, however, is bifurcated by two institutional cultures that have different sets of beliefs about wildfire, motivations for managing wildfire risk, and approaches to administering policy. Fire protection, preparedness, and response agencies often...

  8. Peer Review in a Social Policy Course: Lessons Learned

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shauna P. Acquavita

    2013-04-01

    Full Text Available Peer review is a tool that provides students with a sense of how their work is perceived by others. Built on refection and feedback, peer review assesses the quality of academic processes and products based on well-understood criteria. Peer review was implemented in a baccalaureate social work policy course to enhance writing and critical thinking skills. Students were surveyed on their experiences and indicated that peer review activities provided beneficial learning exercises. The information gathered suggests methods for future implementation of peer review in social work education.

  9. Resilience research and policy/practice discourse in health, social, behavioral, and environmental sciences over the last ten years.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Almedom, Astier M

    2008-12-01

    Resilience research has gained increased scientific interest and political currency over the last ten years. To set this volume in the wider context of scholarly debate conducted in previous special theme issue and/or special section publications of refereed journals on resilience and related concepts (1998-2008). Peer reviewed journals of health, social, behavioral, and environmental sciences were searched systematically for articles on resilience and/or related themes published as a set. Non-English language publications were included, while those involving non-human subjects were excluded. A total of fifteen journal special issues and/or special sections (including a debate and a roundtable discussion) on resilience and/or related themes were retrieved and examined with the aim of teasing out salient points of direct relevance to African social policy and health care systems. Viewed chronologically, this series of public discussions and debates charts a progressive paradigm shift from the pathogenic perspectives on risk and vulnerability to a clear turn of attention to health-centered approaches to building resilience to disasters and preventing vulnerability to disease, social dysfunction, human and environmental resource depletion. Resilience is a dynamic and multi-dimensional process of adaptation to adverse and/or turbulent changes in human, institutional, and ecological systems across scales, and thus requires a composite, multi-faceted Resilience Index (RI), in order to be meaningfully gauged. Collaborative links between interdisciplinary research institutions, policy makers and practitioners involved in promoting sustainable social and health care systems are called for, particularly in Africa.

  10. The path of Brazilian social assistance policy post-1988: the significance of institutions and ideas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Natália Guimarães Duarte Sátyro

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available This paper analyzes the construction of the social assistance policy at the federal level in Brazil over the last two decades. It focuses on the Federal Constitution of 1988 and subsequent infra-constitutional legislation, especially that enacted during the Fernando Henrique Cardoso (FHC and Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (Lula administrations, which showed very different conceptions of social policy. For both administrations, we analyze the consequences of the institutional changes and legal framework introduced as well as the social policy ideas that informed them. It is argued that the construction of social assistance in Brazil demanded much more than the constitutional provisions enacted in 1988. It included the entire set of subsequent constitutional legislation, a process in which the ruling party played a critical role. Categories of neo-institutionalism and the method of process tracing, plus in-depth interviews with relevant actors, were employed. Our findings point to the impact of the interaction between institutional structures, like constitutions and policy legacies, and the political projects of governing parties. Constitutional provisions, even if not bound to a policy, can prevent setbacks and anchor the action of pressure groups. They can also allow progressive administration to change the status quo.

  11. Student's Work: Social Capital in the Czech Republic and Public Policy Implications

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michal Vodrážka

    2009-06-01

    Full Text Available Social capital in Eastern Europe has received a fair amount of scholarly attention in recent years, including in the Czech Republic. This paper examines the stock of macro-level social capital in the Czech Republic in comparative European perspective. The notions of “missing” social capital and corruption as negative social capital are explored. The corruption situation in the Czech Republic and the progress in curbing it that was made in the last decade are evaluated. Regressions run with data from the World Value Survey and the Corruption Perception Index show that economic growth does not translate into correspondingly lower levels of corruption in the Czech case. State bureaucracy is identified as a possible reason for the failure to curb corruption successfully. Public policy recommendations and their usefulness for the Czech Republic are debated and a civil service reform is proposed as the most appropriate policy for addressing the situation.

  12. The Soviet State Social Policy in the Sphere of Development of the Material Culture of the Southern Russian Peasants in the 1920-ies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Susanna D. Bagdasaryan

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available This article discusses the problems of formation of the Soviet state social policy transformations in material culture of the southern Russian peasants in the 1920-ies. The necessity of studying the Soviet state social policy in Russia in the period of 1920-ies the historical aspect is determined by several factors. First, in the study of Russian history of the XX century, one of the main directions of national historiography was and remains the study of social problems at various stages of its development. In this regard, relevant is the consideration of the main challenges for social development at country and regional level. Secondly, in the formation of a new concept of social development of the country increases the need to adequate understanding of the role and importance of the Soviet state in the modernization of Russian society. One of the fundamental principles of state social policy is the principle of state responsibility for creating the conditions necessary for the development of society and the individual. In this regard, special scientific and practical interest becomes the problem of the essence of social policy in different historical periods, especially in the 1920-ies the history of the Soviet state, when it formed the Soviet system. In the analysed time clearly showed different approaches to solving social problems: in the framework of the state ideology and assumptions in Economics elements of private property (1921-1929.

  13. O social sob o "tacão de ferro" da política econômica do período 2003-2006 The social policy under the "Iron Heel" of economic policy in the period of 2003-2006

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rosa Maria Marques

    2009-12-01

    Full Text Available O artigo reflete sobre o impacto da continuidade da política econômica condizente com o novo padrão de acumulação capitalista internacional, sob a dominância do capital financeiro, nos principais ramos da Seguridade Social. Destaca a adoção do regime de metas de inflação e a busca de elevados superávits primários; descreve os principais resultados da economia brasileira e trata do impacto dessa opção sobre o financiamento da Previdência Social e do Sistema Único de Saúde - SUS. De forma específica, evidencia que o resultante dessa política - baixo crescimento, manutenção de elevadas taxas de juros, precarização do mercado de trabalho, redução do gasto público - compromete a plena aplicação dos princípios do SUS. Apesar disso, alguns avanços são apontados, como o crescimento da cobertura do Programa de Saúde da Família.The article discusses the impact of economic policy maintanence in accordance with the new pattern of international capitalist accumulation under financial capital dominance in main Social Security areas. It analyses the adoption of inflation target system and the achievement of high fiscal primary results; describes the main Brazilian economic results and examine the impact of this particular option on social security with a focus on the financial system of the Unified Health System (SUS. In a specific way, it argues that this policy outcome - low economic growth, high interest rates, unstable work market, reduction in social expenditure - compromises an effective application of the SUS principles. However, some advances have been pointed out, for instance, the increase of Family Health Program coverage.

  14. An Examination of Social Media Policy Usage of South Central United States' Universities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eaton, Virginia J.; Luse, Donna W.; Hodge, Thomas G.

    2012-01-01

    Since the use of social media tools by universities has expanded exponentially, a university can easily find itself in a precarious situation in a moment's notice because social media tools have been used inadvertently. This study investigated the social media policies of AACSB-International accredited schools in the SREB South Central Region of…

  15. Public participation in the social policies and services of the community of Madrid: the institutional system / El sistema institucional de participación ciudadana en las políticas y los servicios sociales de la comunidad de Madrid

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gema Pastor Albaladejo

    2013-10-01

    Full Text Available This article analyzes the Community of Madrid’s institutional public participation system, to determine whether the different existing formal mechanisms (regulatory framework and permanent participation organisms have an appropriate institutional design to ensure that citizens have access to, and the ability to intervene in, those deliberative processes that may in some way influence the regional social policies and services.

  16. Consumer opinion on social policy approaches to promoting positive body image: Airbrushed media images and disclaimer labels.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paraskeva, Nicole; Lewis-Smith, Helena; Diedrichs, Phillippa C

    2017-02-01

    Disclaimer labels on airbrushed media images have generated political attention and advocacy as a social policy approach to promoting positive body image. Experimental research suggests that labelling is ineffective and consumers' viewpoints have been overlooked. A mixed-method study explored British consumers' ( N = 1555, aged 11-78 years) opinions on body image and social policy approaches. Thematic analysis indicated scepticism about the effectiveness of labelling images. Quantitatively, adults, although not adolescents, reported that labelling was unlikely to improve body image. Appearance diversity in media and reorienting social norms from appearance to function and health were perceived as effective strategies. Social policy and research implications are discussed.

  17. Across Space and Time: Social Responses to Large-Scale Biophysical Systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Macmynowski, Dena P.

    2007-06-01

    The conceptual rubric of ecosystem management has been widely discussed and deliberated in conservation biology, environmental policy, and land/resource management. In this paper, I argue that two critical aspects of the ecosystem management concept require greater attention in policy and practice. First, although emphasis has been placed on the “space” of systems, the “time”—or rates of change—associated with biophysical and social systems has received much less consideration. Second, discussions of ecosystem management have often neglected the temporal disconnects between changes in biophysical systems and the response of social systems to management issues and challenges. The empirical basis of these points is a case study of the “Crown of the Continent Ecosystem,” an international transboundary area of the Rocky Mountains that surrounds Glacier National Park (USA) and Waterton Lakes National Park (Canada). This project assessed the experiences and perspectives of 1) middle- and upper-level government managers responsible for interjurisdictional cooperation, and 2) environmental nongovernment organizations with an international focus. I identify and describe 10 key challenges to increasing the extent and intensity of transboundary cooperation in land/resource management policy and practice. These issues are discussed in terms of their political, institutional, cultural, information-based, and perceptual elements. Analytic techniques include a combination of environmental history, semistructured interviews with 48 actors, and text analysis in a systematic qualitative framework. The central conclusion of this work is that the rates of response of human social systems must be better integrated with the rates of ecological change. This challenge is equal to or greater than the well-recognized need to adapt the spatial scale of human institutions to large-scale ecosystem processes and transboundary wildlife.

  18. New Agenda: South African Journal of Social and Economic Policy

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This is a policy journal analyzing social and economic issues in South Africa. We publish infomed articles by experts and decision makers. These articles are accessible to the ordinary reader. Other website associated with this journal: www.newagenda.org.za ...

  19. Social Housing Provision in Copenhagen

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tsenkova, Sasha; Vestergaard, Hedvig

    -profit housing providers, and a wide range of fiscal and regulatory instruments enhancing the competitive performance of the social housing sector. The research analyses recent housing policy measures and their impact on new social housing provision in Copenhagen. The emphasis is on the mix of housing policy......The paper provides an overview of trends and processes of change affecting new social housing provision in Denmark with a focus on Copenhagen. The local responses are reviewed within the context of changes to the unitary national housing system that functions with a robust range of private and non...... instruments implemented in three major policy domains-fiscal, financial and regulatory-to promote the production of new social housing. The system of new social housing provision is examined as a dynamic process of interaction between public and private institutions defining housing policy outcomes...

  20. Advancing system and policy changes for social and racial justice: comparing a Rural and Urban Community-Based Participatory Research Partnership in the U.S.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Devia, Carlos; Baker, Elizabeth A; Sanchez-Youngman, Shannon; Barnidge, Ellen; Golub, Maxine; Motton, Freda; Muhammad, Michael; Ruddock, Charmaine; Vicuña, Belinda; Wallerstein, Nina

    2017-02-21

    The paper examines the role of community-based participatory research (CBPR) within the context of social justice literature and practice. Two CBPR case studies addressing health inequities related to Type 2 Diabetes and Cardiovascular disease were selected from a national cross-site study assessing effective academic-community research partnerships. One CBPR partnership works with African Americans in rural Pemiscot County, Missouri and the other CBPR partnership works with African American and Latinos in urban South Bronx, New York City. Data collection included semi-structured key informant interviews and focus groups. Analysis focused on partnerships' context/history and their use of multiple justice-oriented strategies to achieve systemic and policy changes in order to address social determinants of health in their communities. Community context and history shaped each partnership's strategies to address social determinants. Four social justice approaches (identity/recognition, procedural, distributive, and structural justice) used by both partnerships were identified. These social justice approaches were employed to address underlying causes of inequitable distribution of resources and power structures, while remaining within a scientific research framework. CBPR can bridge the role of science with civic engagement and political participation, empowering community members to become political agents who integrate evidence into their social justice organizing strategies.

  1. Nurturing Diversified Farming Systems in Industrialized Countries: How Public Policy Can Contribute

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alastair Iles

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available If diversified farming systems (DFS are to thrive again in the United States, policies and preferences must evolve to reward the environmental and social benefits of sustainable farming and landscape management. Compared with conventional agricultural policies, policies aiding ecological diversification are underdeveloped and fragmented. We consider several examples of obstacles to the adoption and spread of diversified farming practices in the U.S. industrialized agricultural system. These include the broader political economic context of industrialized agriculture, the erosion of farmer knowledge and capacity, and supply chain and marketing conditions that limit the ability of farmers to adopt sustainable practices. To overcome these obstacles and nurture DFS, policy makers, researchers, industry, farmers, consumers, and local communities can play pivotal roles to transform agricultural research, develop peer-to-peer learning processes, support the recruitment and retention of new farmers through access to credit and land, invest in improved agricultural conservation programs, provide compensation for provision of ecological services in working landscapes, and develop links to consumer and institutional markets.

  2. Analysis of the decision-support function of policy assessment in real-world policy making in the field of poverty and social inequalities. Case study on migrant integration policies in the Brussels-Capital Region

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Feyaerts, Gille; Deguerry, Murielle; Deboosere, Patrick; De Spiegelaere, Myriam

    2017-01-01

    Despite its high potential to support decision-making, the role of policy assessment in real-world policy making in the field of poverty and social inequalities remains largely questioned. In this study, we analyse policy assessment's role in a context of real-world policymaking, by means of a case study on a legislative proposal on integration policy for immigrant newcomers in the Brussels-Capital Region, for which we evaluate the potential effects on poverty and social inequalities. We first analyse the policy process surrounding the policy proposal – a process that is often treated as a black box within policy assessment research. Understanding the factors that influence and determine the decision-making process, enables us to gain insight into the potential decision-support function(s). Second, we develop an approach to policy assessment that aims to fully exploit its potential to contribute to the functions of both instrumental and conceptual learning. For this purpose, we propose to introduce the approach of realist evaluation and to focus on evaluating the underlying policy intervention theory from the perspective of poverty and social inequalities. Finally, we illustrate this new approach and its added value by applying it to the legislative proposal on integration policy and analyse its contribution to policy-oriented learning. - Highlights: •The field of policy assessment should draw on insights from policy studies. •We unpacked the policymaking black-box to identify the mechanisms of policy change. •The policy process is driven by an interaction of ideas, interests and institutions. •Policy assessment's potential lies in both instrumental and conceptual learning. •We propose to integrate realist evaluation's logic of inquiry within policy assessment.

  3. System characteristics of tourism policy

    OpenAIRE

    Marin Neshkov

    2012-01-01

    In the article there is made a systemic characterization and is clarified the nature of tourism policy. A more specific object of attention are some issues connected with the following: the interpretation of the interrelation „policy - tourism”; the clarific ation of the notion of „policy” in the context of tourism; theoretical overview and analysis of specialized literature; systemic characterization of policy in tourism and definition of the notion of „tourism policy”. There are defined and...

  4. Conceptualizing an Agenda for Social Responsibility and Public Policy at Montgomery College. A Briefing Paper. Revised

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scott, Michelle T.

    2007-01-01

    The purpose of this briefing paper is to conceptualize a social responsibility and public policy agenda for Montgomery College. The briefing paper provides (a) a well researched perspective to embed a College culture to actualize social responsibility and public policy as institutional practices; (b) examines some of the opportunities and…

  5. Evolution of Government Policies on Guiding Corporate Social Responsibility in China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yanhong Tang

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available This paper aims to unearth the ways in which the Chinese government uses policies to guide corporate social responsibility (CSR development in China. Co-word analysis, cluster analysis, and network analysis were conducted on the relevant policy documents from 2005 to 2013 from the Chinese government. This paper illustrates the evolution of industry involvement in metagovernance of CSR, the evolution of intergovernmental relations in CSR policy formulation, and the evolution of policy relations on guiding CSR. The quantitative text analysis on policy documents reveals policy intentions and maps policy process, advancing understanding of policy orientation and evolution. The CSR reports of the same period of the State Grid in China are used as empirical evidence to validate the policy evolution. This work presents the overall evolution of the ways in which the Chinese government deployed its guiding strategy on CSR, and empirically demonstrates the organization of metagovernance maneuvered by China’s government to promote CSR development in China. It provides perspective and methods to analyze China’s networked government policies, and empirically answers the central question of metagovernance about the ways in which the organization of metagovernance is carried out.

  6. The mediating role of social workers in the implementation of regional policies targeting energy poverty

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Scarpellini, Sabina; Sanz Hernández, M. Alexia; Llera-Sastresa, Eva; Aranda, Juan A.; López Rodríguez, María Esther

    2017-01-01

    This paper aims to provide a socio-political reflection of the role played by social workers in regional policies and of the real needs of households affected by energy poverty. The paper also examines the impact of technical-specialised training on the ability of social workers to prevent and mitigate conditions of household energy poverty in Europe. The adoption of a research-action-participation methodological framework and a training research approach has permitted the opinions of social workers to be collected through surveys, and their central role in implementing regional policies to be highlighted. The conclusions obtained have made possible the construction of a self-diagnosis and data-collection tool which increases the ability of social workers to mediate and implement urgent mitigation measures for energy poverty. Finally, regional policies which aim to mitigate household energy poverty are examined from the professional perspective of social workers. - Highlights: • Social workers play a mediating role in the certification of household energy poverty. • Specific training for social workers contributes to the prevention of energy poverty. • National wide regulation would enable the implementation of equitable measures for energy poverty. • It is recommendable to define progressive subsidies depending on the level of energy vulnerability of the households.

  7. Towards a Framework for Analysing Interactions between Social Science and Environmental Policy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parry, Sarah; Murphy, Joseph

    2013-01-01

    Interactions between social science and environmental policy have become increasingly important over the past 25 years. There has, however, been little analysis of the roles that social scientists adopt and the contributions they make. In this paper we begin the process, offering tentative answers to two key questions: in relation to environmental…

  8. Social learning in a policy-mandated collaboration: Community wildfire protection planning in the eastern United States

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rachel F. Brummel; Kristen C. Nelson; Pamela J. Jakes; Daniel R. Williams

    2010-01-01

    Policies such as the US Healthy Forests Restoration Act (HFRA) mandate collaboration in planning to create benefits such as social learning and shared understanding among partners. However, some question the ability of top-down policy to foster successful local collaboration. Through in-depth interviews and document analysis, this paper investigates social learning and...

  9. Incorporating social and cultural significance of large old trees in conservation policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blicharska, Malgorzata; Mikusiński, Grzegorz

    2014-12-01

    In addition to providing key ecological functions, large old trees are a part of a social realm and as such provide numerous social-cultural benefits to people. However, their social and cultural values are often neglected when designing conservation policies and management guidelines. We believe that awareness of large old trees as a part of human identity and cultural heritage is essential when addressing the issue of their decline worldwide. Large old trees provide humans with aesthetic, symbolic, religious, and historic values, as well as concrete tangible benefits, such as leaves, branches, or nuts. In many cultures particularly large trees are treated with reverence. Also, contemporary popular culture utilizes the image of trees as sentient beings and builds on the ancient myths that attribute great powers to large trees. Although the social and cultural role of large old trees is usually not taken into account in conservation, accounting for human-related values of these trees is an important part of conservation policy because it may strengthen conservation by highlighting the potential synergies in protecting ecological and social values. © 2014 Society for Conservation Biology.

  10. Public Policies for Corporate Social Responsibility in Four Nordic Countries

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Midttun, Atle; Gjølberg, Maria; Kourula, Arno

    2015-01-01

    Corporate social responsibility (CSR) was historically a business-oriented idea that companies should voluntarily improve their social and environmental practices. More recently, CSR has increasingly attracted governments’ attention, and is now promoted in public policy, especially in the European......’ traditions favoring negotiated agreements and strong regulation to control corporate conduct. This article analyzes the conflicts and compatibilities arising when advanced welfare states introduce CSR, focusing on how the two traditions diverge and on how conflicts are reconciled. Empirically the study...

  11. Social orphanhood in Latvia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Trapenciere I.

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The reform processes and the developments of social policy to solve the major social problems of the socially vulnerable population, among them, children in particular, take place in Latvia during the last 20 years. Protection of children rights is declared one of the strategic priorities of the state social policy. At the same time the problem of child neglect and child abandonment in Latvia has not yet been sufficiently conceptualized. Already since 1990-ies Latvian society has clearly faced with an objective necessity of solving problems of child abandonment in connection with an increasing number of social orphans. The situation was complicated by the fact that the formation of a fundamentally new system of social policy, social support and assistance to risk children had to be developed and implemented in conditions of economic transition to market economy relations, increasing social tensions, and sharp increase in social inequality and social discrimination. Among the enourmous number of economical and social problems in the developing democratic state, the issue of child abandonment as an important social problem has been addressed rather fragmentary. The term “social orphanhood” does not appear in the social policy vocabulary of the Latvian social policy doscourse.

  12. Recent social and biogeophysical changes in the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna, Mekong, and Amazon deltas as inputs into evolutionary policy-making.

    Science.gov (United States)

    de Araujo Barbosa, C. C.; Hossain, S.; Szabo, S.; Matthews, Z.; Heard, S.; Dearing, J.

    2014-12-01

    Policy-making in social-ecological systems increasingly looks to iterative, evolutionary approaches that can address the inherent complexity of interactions between human wellbeing, agricultural and aquacultural production, and ecosystem services. Here we show how an analysis of available time-series in delta regions over past decades can provide important insight into the social-ecological system dynamics that result from the complexity. The presentation summarises the recent changes for major elements of each social-ecological system, for example demography, economy, health, climate, food, and water. Time-series data from official statistics, monitoring programmes and sequential satellite imagery are analysed to define the range of trends, the presence of change points, slow and fast variables, and the significant drivers of change. For example, in the Bangladesh delta zone, increasing gross domestic product and per capita income levels since the 1980s mirror rising levels of food and inland fish production. In contrast, non-food ecosystem services such as water availability, water quality and land stability have deteriorated. As a result, poverty alleviation is associated with environmental degradation. Trends in indicators of human wellbeing and ecosystem services point to widespread non-stationary dynamics governed by slowly changing variables with increased probability of systemic threshold changes/tipping points in the near future. We conclude by examining how the findings could feed into new management tools, such as system dynamic models and assessments of safe operating spaces. Such tools have the potential to help create policies that deliver alternative and sustainable paths for land management while accommodating social and environmental change.

  13. Renewing the Future: Social Innovation Systems, Sector Shift, and Innoweave

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stephen Huddart

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available Against a backdrop of various “occupy” movements signifying civic dissatisfaction with the social contract, and in an era of fiscal restraint affecting governments and communities in many parts of the world, we need new and more effective ways to address complex social challenges. While continuous innovation is commonly understood to be a source of growth, productivity improvement, and competitive advantage in the technology and manufacturing sectors, the author’s focus is on social innovation systems, designed to replace maladaptive institutions and obsolete policy frameworks with novel and disruptive means for improving outcomes on issues such as population health and climate change. This article proposes a definition of such systems, and examines how system-level tools including impact investing, open data platforms, and “change labs” are fostering collaboration among the private, public, and community sectors. We argue that a key priority at this time is to make these and other tools and processes for social innovation available to community organizations and their government and business partners everywhere, in a manner that allows for continuous cycles of implementation and learning. The author describes one such project currently being developed in Canada by Social Innovation Generation and other partners, called Innoweave. Innoweave is a technology-enabled social innovation system for sharing the tools and processes of social innovation with the community sector. The article concludes with a call for multi-sectoral participation in social innovation systems as an investment in society’s adaptive capacity and future wellbeing.

  14. New Agenda: South African Journal of Social and Economic Policy ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    NEW AGENDA is peer-reviewed and listed in the department of education's Index of Approved South African Journals. The journal's focus encompasses South African, African and international developments in social and economic research and policy. We aim to provide high-quality pertinent information and analysis for ...

  15. Distribution of Responsibility for Social Security and Labour Market Policy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Madsen, Per Kongshøj

    It is shown that legislation of unemployment insurance and active labour market policy is set by the national government. Legislation with respect to employment protection, however, is largely left to the social partners, i.e. the dismissal of salaried workers is regulated by a special piece...

  16. Allergies And Asthma : Employing Principles Of Social Justice As A Guide In Public Health Policy Development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jason Behrmann

    2010-05-01

    Full Text Available The growing epidemic of allergy and allergy-induced asthma poses a significant challenge to population health. This article, written for a target audience of policy-makers in public health, aims to contribute to the development of policies to counter allergy morbidities by demonstrat- ing how principles of social justice can guide public health initiatives in reducing allergy and asthma triggers. Following a discussion of why theories of social justice have utility in analyzing allergy, a step-wise policy assessment protocol formulated on Rawlsian principles of social jus- tice is presented. This protocol can serve as a tool to aid in prioritizing public health initiatives and identifying ethically problematic policies that necessitate reform. Criteria for policy assess- ment include: 1 whether a tentative public health intervention would provide equal health ben- efit to a range of allergy and asthma sufferers, 2 whether targeting initiatives towards particu- lar societal groups is merited based on the notion of ‘worst-off status’ of certain population seg- ments, and 3 whether targeted policies have the potential for stigmatization. The article con- cludes by analyzing three examples of policies used in reducing allergy and asthma triggers in order to convey the general thought process underlying the use of the assessment protocol, which public health officials could replicate as a guide in actual, region-specific policy development.

  17. Factors Influencing And Alternative Policies Offered Of Social Conflicts Indigenous Peoples Rights

    OpenAIRE

    Saiful Deni

    2017-01-01

    This paper is a review of the social conflicts of indigenous peoples especially in North Maluku. The purpose of this review is to find out some factors causing indigenous peoples social conflicts in North Maluku and to produce alternative solutions as a policy to develop indigenous peoples livelihoods. The review resulted in several factors causing social conflicts of indigenous peoples such as the unclear boundary between the two parties the customary violations by the forest businessmen the...

  18. Corporate Staff Social Rights and Protection as Key Points of Business Entities Social Policy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Svetlana V. Titova

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The article describes key notions and principles of corporate staff social rights and protection. These notions were considered in terms of business entities social policy. The author thoroughly studied such personnel rights as the right to organize and bargain collectively, freedom of association, payment for personnel labor, child labor, forced labor, duty hours, discrimination, worker safety and health. The author attaches special attention to the types of privileges and guarantees, which business entities should provide to their employees, such as compensation for moral damages caused by labor injury, material assistance to employees and their families in different cases, concerned with labor functions

  19. Accounting for external costs in a study of a Swedish district-heating system - An assessment of environmental policies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fahlen, E.; Ahlgren, E.O.

    2010-01-01

    Sweden has historically had strict emission control by implementation of economic policy instruments with the aim of internalising the external costs of air pollution. This study aims to evaluate how well current Swedish policy instruments reflect the environmental costs associated with heat generation in several district-heating (DH) plants in the DH system of Goeteborg. Furthermore, it aims to simulate and evaluate the operation of the DH system based on its social cost-effectiveness which takes into account the DH system's private and external costs (non-internalised environmental costs). The study shows that the economic policy instruments do not fully internalise all external costs whereas for certain technologies, the costs in terms of taxes, emission permits, environmental fees, etc. are higher than the environmental costs caused by the pollutants, given the environmental cost estimates used in the study. The simulation results show that the deviating internalisation of external costs affects the economic ranking of the different plants within the studied DH system. The estimated loss in social-cost effectiveness of the operation of the DH system of Goeteborg is noticable but relatively small if compared to the variable heat generation costs for most of the studied DH plants.

  20. Políticas sociales, dispositivos autogestivos y enunciados subjetivantes Social Policies, Automanagement And Social Movements

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Graciela Zaldúa

    2008-12-01

    Full Text Available En la perspectiva de la Psicología Social Comunitaria convergen contextos, actores, y construcciones sobre las estructuras sociales, las mediaciones institucionales, grupales y subjetivas. Las significaciones relacionales, políticas y éticas, nos interpelan ante las situaciones de vulnerabilidad psicosocial y el lugar de las Políticas Públicas y los derechos de ciudadanía. Las micropolíticas desplegadas en dos cooperativas de trabajo: del Movimiento de Trabajadores Desocupados y de la Asamblea Popular La Alameda, visibilizan posicionamientos subjetivos y grupales de resistencia a operatorias tutelares y esclavistas. Con metodología de investigación acción participativa (IAP y análisis del discurso (AD, se elucidan las tensiones en las modalidades de participación y los posicionamientos subjetivos frente a las subordinaciones de género, clase y etnia. En los contextos de organización cooperativa se evidencian efectos subjetivantes y de lazo social propiciadores de efectos reparatorios al daño social.On the perspective of Social Community Psychology, actors and social constructions converge on structures and on institutional, collective and subjective mediations. Psychosocial vulnerability situations, Public Policies and citizenship's rights appeal to us by their relational, political and ethical significances. The micropolicies deployed by two cooperatives -Unemployed Workers Movement and Popular Assembly La Alameda- show subjective positions and collective resistance to tutelary operatives and slave work. With methodology of Participative Action Research and speech analysis, tensions are elucidated in modalities of participation and subjective positions opposite to gender, class and culture subordinations. In cooperative organization's context, effects are developed as subjective repairs to social damage.

  1. Promoting Health Through Policy and Systems Change: Public Health Students and Mentors on the Value of Policy Advocacy Experience in Academic Internships.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marquez, Daniela; Pell, Dylan; Forster-Cox, Sue; Garcia, Evelyn; Ornelas, Sophia; Bandstra, Brenna; Mata, Holly

    2017-05-01

    Emerging professionals and new Certified Health Education Specialists often lack academic training in and actual experience in National Commission for Health Education Credentialing Area of Responsibility VII: Communicate, Promote, and Advocate for Health, Health Education/Promotion, and the Profession. For undergraduate and graduate students who have an opportunity to complete an internship or practicum experience, gaining experience in Competencies 7.2: Engage in advocacy for health and health education/promotion and 7.3: Influence policy and/or systems change to promote health and health education can have a profound impact on their career development and their ability to advocate for policies that promote health and health equity. Compelling evidence suggests that interventions that address social determinants of health such as poverty and education and those that change the context through improved policy or healthier environments have the greatest impact on public health, making it vital for emerging public health professionals to gain experience in policy advocacy and systems change. In this commentary, students and faculty from two large universities in the U.S.-Mexico border region reflect on the value of policy advocacy in academic internship/fieldwork experiences. Based on their experiences, they highly recommend that students seek out internship opportunities where they can participate in policy advocacy, and they encourage university faculty and practicum preceptors to provide more opportunities for policy advocacy in both classroom and fieldwork settings.

  2. Energy UK 1986. An economic, social and policy audit

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Harrison, A; Gretton, J [eds.

    1986-01-01

    In a yearbook on energy in the UK with emphasis on economic, social and policy issues, eleven articles are presented of which nine were selected and indexed separately. The topics covered include energy forecasting, energy conservation, its balance with respect to supply investment, government relationships with fuel industries, fuel poverty, acid rain and efficiency studies of the electricity supply industry.

  3. Operationalising a social-ecological system perspective on the Arctic Ocean.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crépin, Anne-Sophie; Gren, Åsa; Engström, Gustav; Ospina, Daniel

    2017-12-01

    We propose a framework to support management that builds on a social-ecological system perspective on the Arctic Ocean. We illustrate the framework's application for two policy-relevant scenarios of climate-driven change, picturing a shift in zooplankton composition and alternatively a crab invasion. We analyse archetypical system dynamics between the socio-economic, the natural, and the governance systems in these scenarios. Our holistic approach can help managers identify looming problems arising from complex system interactions and prioritise among problems and solutions, even when available data are limited.

  4. The Mexican experience in monitoring and evaluation of public policies addressing social determinants of health

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valle, Adolfo Martinez

    2016-01-01

    Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) have gradually become important and regular components of the policy-making process in Mexico since, and even before, the World Health Organization (WHO) Commission on Social Determinants of Health (CSDH) called for interventions and policies aimed at tackling the social determinants of health (SDH). This paper presents two case studies to show how public policies addressing the SDH have been monitored and evaluated in Mexico using reliable, valid, and complete information, which is not regularly available. Prospera, for example, evaluated programs seeking to improve the living conditions of families in extreme poverty in terms of direct effects on health, nutrition, education and income. Monitoring of Prospera's implementation has also helped policy-makers identify windows of opportunity to improve the design and operation of the program. Seguro Popular has monitored the reduction of health inequalities and inequities evaluated the positive effects of providing financial protection to its target population. Useful and sound evidence of the impact of programs such as Progresa and Seguro Popular plus legal mandates, and a regulatory evaluation agency, the National Council for Social Development Policy Evaluation, have been fundamental to institutionalizing M&E in Mexico. The Mexican experience may provide useful lessons for other countries facing the challenge of institutionalizing the M&E of public policy processes to assess the effects of SDH as recommended by the WHO CSDH. PMID:26928215

  5. The Mexican experience in monitoring and evaluation of public policies addressing social determinants of health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valle, Adolfo Martinez

    2016-01-01

    Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) have gradually become important and regular components of the policy-making process in Mexico since, and even before, the World Health Organization (WHO) Commission on Social Determinants of Health (CSDH) called for interventions and policies aimed at tackling the social determinants of health (SDH). This paper presents two case studies to show how public policies addressing the SDH have been monitored and evaluated in Mexico using reliable, valid, and complete information, which is not regularly available. Prospera, for example, evaluated programs seeking to improve the living conditions of families in extreme poverty in terms of direct effects on health, nutrition, education and income. Monitoring of Prospera's implementation has also helped policy-makers identify windows of opportunity to improve the design and operation of the program. Seguro Popular has monitored the reduction of health inequalities and inequities evaluated the positive effects of providing financial protection to its target population. Useful and sound evidence of the impact of programs such as Progresa and Seguro Popular plus legal mandates, and a regulatory evaluation agency, the National Council for Social Development Policy Evaluation, have been fundamental to institutionalizing M&E in Mexico. The Mexican experience may provide useful lessons for other countries facing the challenge of institutionalizing the M&E of public policy processes to assess the effects of SDH as recommended by the WHO CSDH.

  6. The Mexican experience in monitoring and evaluation of public policies addressing social determinants of health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adolfo Martinez Valle

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available Monitoring and evaluation (M&E have gradually become important and regular components of the policy-making process in Mexico since, and even before, the World Health Organization (WHO Commission on Social Determinants of Health (CSDH called for interventions and policies aimed at tackling the social determinants of health (SDH. This paper presents two case studies to show how public policies addressing the SDH have been monitored and evaluated in Mexico using reliable, valid, and complete information, which is not regularly available. Prospera, for example, evaluated programs seeking to improve the living conditions of families in extreme poverty in terms of direct effects on health, nutrition, education and income. Monitoring of Prospera's implementation has also helped policy-makers identify windows of opportunity to improve the design and operation of the program. Seguro Popular has monitored the reduction of health inequalities and inequities evaluated the positive effects of providing financial protection to its target population. Useful and sound evidence of the impact of programs such as Progresa and Seguro Popular plus legal mandates, and a regulatory evaluation agency, the National Council for Social Development Policy Evaluation, have been fundamental to institutionalizing M&E in Mexico. The Mexican experience may provide useful lessons for other countries facing the challenge of institutionalizing the M&E of public policy processes to assess the effects of SDH as recommended by the WHO CSDH.

  7. Forecasting Economic, Social and Environmental Growth in the Sanitary and Service Sector Based on Thailand's Sustainable Development Policy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pruethsan Sutthichaimethee

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this study is to forecast the long run implementation of Thailand’s sustainable development policy in three main aspects, including economic, social and environmental aspect for the the sanitary and service sectors from 2016 until 2045. According to the national data for the years 2000–2015, based on the ARIMAX model, it has been found that Thai economy system is potentially changed and growing rapidly by 25.76%, the population has grown by 7.15%, and the Greenhouse gas emissions will gradually increase by 49.65%, in the year 2045. However, based on the analysis above, if Thailand fails to run the afore-mentioned policy properly, it will be difficulto successfully implement sustainable development, because the increased emission is moving in the same direction with economy and social aspect of Thailand.

  8. Corporate Social Responsibility

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kampf, Constance

    2007-01-01

    Understanding Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) as having explicit policies and implicit norms situated in cultural systems highlights the connections between institutional and cultural structures of nation states and business' commitment to CSR as reflected in the strategies used to communic......Understanding Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) as having explicit policies and implicit norms situated in cultural systems highlights the connections between institutional and cultural structures of nation states and business' commitment to CSR as reflected in the strategies used...

  9. Social environment, bases social markers and health care system in Shida Kartli region.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Raminashvili, D; Gvanceladze, T; Kajrishvili, M; Zarnadze, I; Zarnadze, Sh

    2009-10-01

    Difficult social conditions are accompanied by poor health status and limited access to quality social services. Accessibility to the health care is one of the important patient right universally. Although formally in place, health services are deprived of any means to assist the population. From 1600 respondents 58,8% paid for medical bills on their own, and 8.7% of respondents had health insurance that covered medical and health expenses. Almost every fifth respondent (18.5%) had access to supplemental financial support from friends and relatives. The vast majority of respondents considered the care received from medical services providers as being positive. 17.8% of respondents evaluated it as having been "very good", and every second out of five respondents (42.7%) evaluated it as having been "good". Every twentieth patient (5.2%) evaluated it as "poor" and 3.7% -"very bad", 29% of respondents are affiliated with various governmental programs. Social-economic situation influenced on the accessibility to the medical care. An effective of social policy is the system of prevention of risk factors.

  10. Monitoring REDD+: From Social Safeguards to Social Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ravikumar, A.; Andersson, K.

    2010-12-01

    Krister Andersson 1 and Ashwin Ravikumar 1 The UNFCCC requires countries that participate in the REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries) program to monitor both forest carbon inventories as well as the governance of REDD+ activities and their social consequences. Exactly how this should be done, however, remains an open question. This paper addresses this question by drawing on existing research on social-ecological systems and new institutional economics. We make the case for a monitoring system that goes beyond a narrow focus of qualitative indicators of REDD+ governance that seek to provide social safeguards for international investors to create a more comprehensive monitoring system that is useful for social learning about how policies affect a variety of forest outcomes. We describe the defining characteristics of five existing approaches to monitoring REDD+ governance. Applying evaluative criteria of affordability, comprehensiveness, transparency, uncertainty specification, and explanatory potential, we analyze the extent to which each of the programs contribute to broader social learning processes in participating countries. Our analysis finds that it makes sense to move from the current narrow focus of monitoring for control to monitoring for social learning. Particularly valuable to participating REDD+ actors would be the creation of learning systems that can help policy makers to identify opportunities for policy improvements, with the ultimate goal of making REDD+ more effective, efficient, and equitable. Such learning is not possible, however, without timely and systematic collection of data on the relationships between forests and forest users. 1University of Colorado at Boulder, Environmental Studies Program, Boulder, CO 80309-0397

  11. Social Justice in Australian Higher Education Policy: An Historical and Conceptual Account of Student Participation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gale, Trevor; Tranter, Deborah

    2011-01-01

    This article provides a synoptic account of historically changing conceptions and practices of social justice in Australian higher education policy. It maps the changes in this policy arena, beginning with the period following the Second World War and concluding with an analysis of the most recent policy proposals of the Bradley Review.…

  12. From Pronasol to Oportunidades: social policy and enduring poverty in México / De Pronasol a Oportunidades: política social y persistencia de la pobreza en México

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Félix Acosta Díaz

    2010-10-01

    Full Text Available After almost fifteen years of social policies, extreme poverty has become an enduring problem in Mexico. Even in those years when nation-wide economic conditions have been particularly good, an important segment of the Mexican population faces the problem of poverty and the lack of social opportunities and this segment grows heavily with economic turndowns. The purpose of this paper is twofold: on one hand, it compares the objectives against the efficacy of social policy aimed to alleviate and reduce poverty in Mexico in the period after the great 1982 economic and social crisis; on the other hand, it points out the expectations and the problems of a new social policy that may be more effective in overcoming poverty and social deprivation in modern Mexico.

  13. The Distributional Impact of Social Security Policy Options.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Couch, Kenneth A; Reznik, Gayle L; Tamborini, Christopher R; Iams, Howard M

    2017-01-01

    Using microsimulation, we estimate the effects of three policy proposals that would alter Social Security's eligibility rules or benefit structure to reflect changes in women's labor force activity, marital patterns, and differential mortality among the aged. First, we estimate a set of options related to the duration of marriage required to receive divorced spouse and survivor benefits. Second, we estimate the effects of an earnings sharing proposal with survivor benefits, in which benefits are based entirely on earned benefits with spouses sharing their earnings during years of marriage. Third, we estimate the effects of adjusting benefits to reflect the increasing differential life expectancy by lifetime earnings. The results advance our understanding of the distributional effects of these alternative policy options on projected benefits and retirement income, including poverty and supplemental poverty status, of divorced and widowed women aged 60 or older in 2030.

  14. Military and Veteran Families and Children: Policies and Programs for Health Maintenance and Positive Development. Social Policy Report. Volume 28, Number 3

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cozza, Stephen J.; Lerner, Richard M.; Haskins, Ron

    2014-01-01

    This "Social Policy Report" summarizes what is currently known about our nation's military children and families and presents ideas and proposals pertinent to the formulation of new programs and the policies that would create and sustain these initiatives. We emphasize the need for future rigorous developmental research about military…

  15. Using a trauma-informed policy approach to create a resilient urban food system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hecht, Amelie A; Biehl, Erin; Buzogany, Sarah; Neff, Roni A

    2018-07-01

    Food insecurity is associated with toxic stress and adverse long-term physical and mental health outcomes. It can be experienced chronically and also triggered or exacerbated by natural and human-made hazards that destabilize the food system. The Baltimore Food System Resilience Advisory Report was created to strengthen the resilience of the city's food system and improve short- and long-term food security. Recognizing food insecurity as a form of trauma, the report was developed using the principles of trauma-informed social policy. In the present paper, we examine how the report applied trauma-informed principles to policy development, discuss the challenges and benefits of using a trauma-informed approach, and provide recommendations for others seeking to create trauma-informed food policy. Report recommendations were developed based on: semi-structured interviews with food system stakeholders; input from community members at outreach events; a literature review; Geographic Information System mapping; and other analyses. The present paper explores findings from the stakeholder interviews. Baltimore, Maryland, USA. Baltimore food system stakeholders stratified by two informant categories: organizations focused on promoting food access (n 13) and community leaders (n 12). Stakeholder interviews informed the recommendations included in the report and supported the idea that chronic and acute food insecurity are experienced as trauma in the Baltimore community. Applying a trauma-informed approach to the development of the Baltimore Food System Resilience Advisory Report contributed to policy recommendations that were community-informed and designed to lessen the traumatic impact of food insecurity.

  16. Public policies for adolescents in vulnerable áreas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mara Rejane Barroso Barcelos

    2010-09-01

    Full Text Available Objective: To characterize the cross-sector policies aimed at the teenager, from the following analytical variables: adolescence, interdisciplinary, intersectionality and Health System; vulnerability and territory, healthy municipalities and communities. Methods: A documental literature review, in which we sought the meaning of adolescence, the ratio of public investment in this segment and a discussion on the social norm and the state apparatus for their support. We used as categories of analysis: intersectionality, systemic complexity of health, territory of vulnerability, spatial delimitation of policy, social network and healthy spaces. Results: Public policies integrated into healthy spaces have been implemented in several places having adolescence as a focal object. Policies aimed at teenagers, whose symbolic representation considers them more independent and positive in social reality, tend to create more meaningful opportunities and empowerment of individuals. Conclusion: In Brazilian State, new spaces of sociability of the adolescent are welcome, serving as socializing agencies, contributing to the construction of the subjectivity of the adolescent, based in the recovery of social values and preparing for life as from an ethical and civicconsciousness.

  17. SOSYAL GÜVENLİK SİSTEMİ AÇISINDAN GÜVENCELİ ESNEKLİK (FLEXICURITY IN TERMS OF SOCIAL SECURITY SYSTEM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Duygu Demirsat KÖLEOĞLU

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Flexicurity is a fact that synchronically interests and impresses employee and employer. Flexicurity fact becomes concrete with some genuine provisions. This provision is appropriate law framework, active labour market policies, lifelong learning and social security system. In this study, it is aimed to analyze flexicurity fact in the context of social security systems. In this reasons, income security and combination security are explicated through social security systems.

  18. Constructions of Social Inclusion within Australian Early Childhood Education and Care Policy Documents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wong, Sandie; Turner, Kay

    2014-01-01

    Social inclusion discourses have been powerful in informing early childhood policy contexts, both internationally and in Australia (the context of the current study) for the past decade or so. But little research has examined the productive aspects of social inclusion discourses particularly within early childhood education and care (ECEC) policy…

  19. Three propositions on why characteristics of performance management systems converge across policy areas with different levels of task complexity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bjørnholt, Bente; Lindholst, Andrej Christian; Agger Nielsen, Jeppe

    2014-01-01

    of task complexity amidst a lack of formal and overarching, government-wide policies. We advance our propositions from a case study comparing the characteristics of performance management systems across social services (eldercare) and technical services (park services) in Denmark. Contrary to expectations......This article investigates the differences and similarities between performance management systems across public services. We offer three propositions as to why the characteristics of performance management systems may still converge across policy areas in the public sector with different levels...... for divergence due to differences in task complexity, the characteristics of performance management systems in the two policy areas are observed to converge. On the basis of a case study, we propose that convergence has occurred due to 1) similarities in policy-specific reforms, 2) institutional pressures, and 3...

  20. The Master model on multi-actor and multilevel social responsibilities : A conceptual framework for policies and governance on stakeholders’ social responsibilities

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    P.A. Ashley (Patricia Almeida)

    2011-01-01

    textabstractThis working paper contributes to a collective discussion in a workshop occurring in January 2011 at the International Institute of Social Studies, bringing scholars from Europe and Brazil and aiming inter-university research collaboration on linking policies on social responsibility to

  1. To bail out or not to bail out systemically relevant financial institutions: The incentives of policy makers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lucas Marc Fuhrer

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available The recent financial crisis has shown that many financial institutions may be systemically relevant. Their bankruptcy would cause significant costs for the overall economy. However, a clear definition of systemic risks still does not exist. Thus, the decision, whether an institution is, or is not systemically relevant is in the end made by policy makers. This paper takes a closer look at the incentives available to policy makers and their influence on the bailout decision. In the model presented here it is possible to show, that too many financial institutions get bailed out, when assuming that policy makers tend to be more risk-averse than socially optimal. The costs due to this misallocation of resources can be significant.

  2. Policy Contexts of Social Work in Britain: the wider implications of 'New' Labour and the 'New Legal Regime'

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    2003-11-01

    Full Text Available Several commentators have expressed disappointment with New Labour's apparent adherence to the policy frameworks of the previous Conservative administrations. The employment orientation of its welfare programmes, the contradictory nature of the social exclusion initiatives, and the continuing obsession with public sector marketisation, inspections, audits, standards and so on, have all come under critical scrutiny (c.f., Blyth 2001; Jordan 2001; Orme 2001. This paper suggests that in order to understand the socio-economic and political contexts affecting social work we need to examine the relationship between New Labour's modernisation project and its insertion within an architecture of global governance. In particular, membership of the European Union (EU, International Monetary Fund (IMF and World Trade Organisation (WTO set the parameters for domestic policy in important ways. Whilst much has been written about the economic dimensions of 'globalisation' in relation to social work rather less has been noted about the ways in which domestic policy agenda are driven by multilateral governance objectives. This policy dimension is important in trying to respond to various changes affecting social work as a professional activity. What is possible, what is encouraged, how things might be done, is tightly bounded by the policy frameworks governing practice and affected by those governing the lives of service users. It is unhelpful to see policy formulation in purely national terms as the UK is inserted into a network governance structure, a regulatory framework where decisions are made by many countries and organisations and agencies. Together, they are producing a 'new legal regime', characterised by a marked neo-liberal policy agenda. This paper aims to demonstrate the relationship of New Labour's modernisation programme to these new forms of legality by examining two main policy areas and the welfare implications they are enmeshed in. The first is

  3. Acknowledging individual responsibility while emphasizing social determinants in narratives to promote obesity-reducing public policy: a randomized experiment.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jeff Niederdeppe

    Full Text Available This study tests whether policy narratives designed to increase support for obesity-reducing public policies should explicitly acknowledge individual responsibility while emphasizing social, physical, and economic (social determinants of obesity. We use a web-based, randomized experiment with a nationally representative sample of American adults (n = 718 to test hypotheses derived from theory and research on narrative persuasion. Respondents exposed to narratives that acknowledged individual responsibility while emphasizing obesity's social determinants were less likely to engage in counterargument and felt more empathy for the story's main character than those exposed to a message that did not acknowledge individual responsibility. Counterarguing and affective empathy fully mediated the relationship between message condition and support for policies to reduce rates of obesity. Failure to acknowledge individual responsibility in narratives emphasizing social determinants of obesity may undermine the persuasiveness of policy narratives. Omitting information about individual responsibility, a strongly-held American value, invites the public to engage in counterargument about the narratives and reduces feelings of empathy for a character that experiences the challenges and benefits of social determinants of obesity.

  4. Acknowledging individual responsibility while emphasizing social determinants in narratives to promote obesity-reducing public policy: a randomized experiment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Niederdeppe, Jeff; Roh, Sungjong; Shapiro, Michael A

    2015-01-01

    This study tests whether policy narratives designed to increase support for obesity-reducing public policies should explicitly acknowledge individual responsibility while emphasizing social, physical, and economic (social) determinants of obesity. We use a web-based, randomized experiment with a nationally representative sample of American adults (n = 718) to test hypotheses derived from theory and research on narrative persuasion. Respondents exposed to narratives that acknowledged individual responsibility while emphasizing obesity's social determinants were less likely to engage in counterargument and felt more empathy for the story's main character than those exposed to a message that did not acknowledge individual responsibility. Counterarguing and affective empathy fully mediated the relationship between message condition and support for policies to reduce rates of obesity. Failure to acknowledge individual responsibility in narratives emphasizing social determinants of obesity may undermine the persuasiveness of policy narratives. Omitting information about individual responsibility, a strongly-held American value, invites the public to engage in counterargument about the narratives and reduces feelings of empathy for a character that experiences the challenges and benefits of social determinants of obesity.

  5. Seeing the Wood from the Trees: A Critical Policy Analysis of Intersections between Social Class Inequality and Education in Twenty-first Century Ireland

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kevin CAHILL

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper is a critical policy analysis of intersections between social class inequality and education policy in Ireland. The focus is upon contemporary policy and legislation such as The Irish Constitution and equality legislation; social inclusion policies such as the DEIS scheme; literacy and numeracy policy documents; as well as current government policy statements on education. It utilises Stephen Ball’s policy analysis tools of policy as text, policy as discourse and policy effects to examine the social, cultural and political constructs of policy and legislation influencing social class inequality in education in Ireland (Ball, 1993. The focus is upon the refusal to name social class as a significant issue despite the weight of evidence showing the key influence class position and access to economic and cultural resources has on one’s educational opportunities, experiences and outcomes. The approach taken here is discursive in the sense that the documents are the data and the findings are infused with detailed theoretical discussion of contemporary issues around inequality in education in Ireland. The analysis finds that the absence of social class in official policy and legislative discourses is indicative of a growing neoliberalisation of education policy in Ireland where increased foci on international comparisons and a consumer-driven philosophy of educational provision militate against equality for students from lower socio-economic groups.

  6. The Social Process of Analyzing Real Water Resource Systems Plans and Management Policies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Loucks, Daniel

    2016-04-01

    Developing and applying systems analysis methods for improving the development and management of real world water resource systems, I have learned, is primarily a social process. This talk is a call for more recognition of this reality in the modeling approaches we propose in the papers and books we publish. The mathematical models designed to inform planners and managers of water systems that we see in many of our journals often seem more complex than they need be. They also often seem not as connected to reality as they could be. While it may be easier to publish descriptions of complex models than simpler ones, and while adding complexity to models might make them better able to mimic or resemble the actual complexity of the real physical and/or social systems or processes being analyzed, the usefulness of such models often can be an illusion. Sometimes the important features of reality that are of concern or interest to those who make decisions can be adequately captured using relatively simple models. Finding the right balance for the particular issues being addressed or the particular decisions that need to be made is an art. When applied to real world problems or issues in specific basins or regions, systems modeling projects often involve more attention to the social aspects than the mathematical ones. Mathematical models addressing connected interacting interdependent components of complex water systems are in fact some of the most useful methods we have to study and better understand the systems we manage around us. They can help us identify and evaluate possible alternative solutions to problems facing humanity today. The study of real world systems of interacting components using mathematical models is commonly called applied systems analyses. Performing such analyses with decision makers rather than of decision makers is critical if the needed trust between project personnel and their clients is to be developed. Using examples from recent and ongoing

  7. The Impact of Public Housing Policy on Family Social Work Theory and Practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCarty, Dawn

    2008-01-01

    Social workers are the professionals most engaged with families living in low-income and subsidized housing and most familiar with the problems associated with inadequate housing. Yet the discussion of public housing policy has been left largely to economists and housing activists and the clear implications for family social work practice have not…

  8. Policy gaps and technological deficiencies in social networking environments: Implications for information sharing

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stephen M. Mutula

    2013-06-01

    Objectives: The study sought to investigate the following research objectives to: (1 describe the types of social networks, (2 examine global penetration of the social networks, (3 outline the users’ legitimate rights that must be protected in the social networking sites (SNS, (4 determine the methods employed by SNS to protect the users’ legitimate rights and (5 identify the policy gaps and technological deficiencies in the protection of the users’ legitimate rights in the SNS. Method: A literature survey and content analysis of the SNS user policies were used to address objective four and objective five respectively. Results: The most actively used sites were Facebook and Twitter. Asian markets were leading in participation and in creating content than any other region. Business, education, politics and governance sectors were actively using social networking sites. Social networking sites relied upon user trust and internet security features which however, were inefficient and inadequate. Conclusion: Whilst SNS were impacting people of varying ages and of various professional persuasions, there were increased concerns about the violation and infringement of the users’ legitimate rights. Reliance on user trust and technological security features SNS to protect the users’ legitimate rights seemed ineffectual and inadequate.

  9. Social mix and the neighbourhood effect: policy ambitions and empirical evidence

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Musterd, S.; Ostendorf, W.J.M.; de Vos, S.

    2001-01-01

    Segregation is a central concept in both academic and policy debates on urban issues. It has been argued that the process of globalisation results in increased social polarisation and subsequently sharper spatial segregation. Indeed, many politicians express a fear of rising segregation, envisioning

  10. Housing property and welfare state change: Social investment and asset-based welfare as compatible social policy approaches

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Lennartz, C.; Ronald, R.

    2015-01-01

    Structural economic and family-demographic shifts, as well as socio-economic integration processes at the EU level have led to profound transformations of the established social policy models in Europe in the past two decades. Notwithstanding the considerable variations across nations and regime

  11. Social Policy and Governance: Conceptual Reflections on Ageing in England

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jason L. Powell

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper looks in more detail at the incidence and consequence of social policies for older people through the conceptual lens of governmentality (Foucault, 1977 in England. This international paper with focus on England will enable us to consider the implications of the re-figuring of the relationship between the state, older people and helping professions. In many ways, policy provides three trajectories for older people: first, as independent self-managing consumers with private means and resources; second, as people in need of some support to enable them to continue to self-manage; and third, as dependent and unable to commit to self-management. Governmentality provides the theoretical framework through which to view policy and practice that is largely governed by discourses of personalisation, safeguarding, capability and risk for older people in England.

  12. Knowledge-based changes to health systems: the Thai experience in policy development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tangcharoensathien, Viroj; Wibulpholprasert, Suwit; Nitayaramphong, Sanguan

    2004-10-01

    Over the past two decades the government in Thailand has adopted an incremental approach to extending health-care coverage to the population. It first offered coverage to government employees and their dependents, and then introduced a scheme under which low-income people were exempt from charges for health care. This scheme was later extended to include elderly people, children younger than 12 years of age and disabled people. A voluntary public insurance scheme was implemented to cover those who could afford to pay for their own care. Private sector employees were covered by the Social Health Insurance scheme, which was implemented in 1991. Despite these efforts, 30% of the population remained uninsured in 2001. In October of that year, the new government decided to embark on a programme to provide universal health-care coverage. This paper describes how research into health systems and health policy contributed to the move towards universal coverage. Data on health systems financing and functioning had been gathered before and after the founding of the Health Systems Research Institute in early 1990. In 1991, a contract capitation model had been used to launch the Social Health Insurance scheme. The advantages of using a capitation model are that it contains costs and provides an acceptable quality of service as opposed to the cost escalation and inefficiency that occur under fee-for-service reimbursement models, such as the one used to provide medical benefits to civil servants. An analysis of the implementation of universal coverage found that politics moved universal coverage onto the policy agenda during the general election campaign in January 2001. The capacity for research on health systems and policy to generate evidence guided the development of the policy and the design of the system at a later stage. Because the reformists who sought to bring about universal coverage (who were mostly civil servants in the Ministry of Public Health and members of

  13. The Diverse Impacts of the Neo-liberal Social Policies on Children’s Welfare and Social Work with Young People: The Finnish Perspective

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    2007-05-01

    Full Text Available This article discusses the impacts of globalization, neo-liberal social policies and the Finnish economic recession of the 1990s on children's and young people's welfare. It summarises some of the impacts of Finnish social policies on the everyday lives of families with children and highlights some of the features of the recent and current debates surrounding youth delinquency and the societal reactions to young generations. All this contributes to a contradictory and conflicting societal context which challenges experts in the field of child welfare social work experts to operate - as expected - at the right moment, legally and effectively. Instead of being overly-defensive for the ‘good old’ ways of practicing social work with children, the authors invite social work scholars and practitioners to reconceptualise both the concept of children's citizenship and its position both in child welfare theory and practice in the context of children's global rights.

  14. Global Health Systems and Policy Development: Implications for Health Literacy Research, Theory and Practice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rowlands, Gillian; Dodson, Sarity; Leung, Angela; Levin-Zamir, Diane

    2017-01-01

    Accessible and responsive health systems are critical to population health and human development. While progress has been made toward global health and development targets, significant inequities remain within and between countries. Expanding health inequities suggest a widespread and systemic neglect of vulnerable citizens, and a failure to enshrine within policies a responsibility to tailor care to the variable capabilities of citizens. Implementation of health and social policies that drive the design of accessible health systems, services, products and infrastructure represents the next frontier for health reform. Within this chapter we argue the need to consider health and health literacy across policy domains, to operationalize the intent to address inequities in health in meaningful and pragmatic ways, and to actively monitor progress and impact within the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We contend that viewing and developing policies and systems within a health literacy framework will assist in placing citizens and equity considerations at the center of development efforts. In this chapter, we explore the relationship between health literacy and equitable access to health care, and the role of health system and policy reform. We first explore international policies, health literacy, and the SDGs. We then explore national policies and the role that national and local services and systems play in building health literacy, and responding to the health literacy challenges of citizens. We discuss the World Health Organization's (WHO) Framework for Integrated People-Centered Health Services and the way in which health services are being encouraged to understand and respond to citizen health literacy needs. Each section of the chapter ends with a summary and a review of health literacy research and practice. Throughout, we illustrate our points through 'vignettes' from around the world.

  15. Forging Consensus for Implementing Youth Socialization Policy in Northwest China

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fairbrother, Gregory P.

    2011-01-01

    The goal of this article is to examine how the provincial education media in China play a role of forging consensus among local actors responsible for the implementation of new centrally-promulgated youth socialization policy. In doing so, it also explores the tension among three of the Chinese state's claims to legitimacy: economic development,…

  16. Institutional Transition from Welfare Enterprise to Social Enterprise: the Localization of Legislation and Policy in Chinese Context

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhang Xiaomeng

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Welfare enterprises, which are intended to create jobs for disabled people, are the core component of China's welfare system. As the economic environment and regulations change, China's welfare enterprises, which cannot take effective measures from within and emerge strong in market competition, are stuck in a bottleneck where further development is difficult. Welfare enterprises have hit the ceiling in their development for lacking sustainable sources of capital and capabilities of capital operation, inefficient management model and uncompetitive products and services. To reverse the trend of decline and grow into strong market players, the transformation from welfare enterprise to social enterprise, embracing the features of enterprise and social objectives, as an alternative is of crucial importance. As a new hybrid economic form, social enterprise combines the efficiency of businesses and the public-good nature of welfare enterprises, representing win-win cooperation among the government, society, and business sector. Such development is an institutional transformation which boosts competitiveness and tackles tough issues welfare enterprises are facing. Shifting from welfare enterprises to social enterprises means an institutional transition, during the process of which international experience in legislation shall be learned and localized. This paper analyzes the development history of welfare enterprises by taking a comprehensive look at the salient points of existing laws, policies promulgated throughout history, implementation and performance, major problems etc. so as to explore the institutional transition from welfare enterprises to social enterprises, revealing possible legal and policy problems and making suggestions.

  17. Feed-in Tariff Pricing and Social Burden in Japan: Evaluating International Learning through a Policy Transfer Approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yugo Tanaka

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Feed-in tariff (FiT policy approaches for renewable energy (RE deployment are employed in many nations around the world. Although FiTs are considered effective in boosting RE deployment, the issue of increasing energy bills and social burden is an often-reported negative impact of their use. The FiT has been employed in Japan since 2012, following after many developed countries, and, as was experienced in other nations, led to a social burden imparted on society significantly higher than initial government estimates. Although policy decision making does not necessarily reflect international policy experience, it is still prudent to ask how international policy experiences of social burden increase were considered within the Japanese approach. In this research, we analyzed the transfer process by adapting a conventional model to develop more objective observations than was previously possible, by setting a benchmark for evaluation based on prior international experiences. We identified two streams of policy transfer, each led by different actors; the government and representatives of the National Diet of Japan (Diet. Both actors were exposed to the same experiences, however the interpretation, application to policy development and priority settings employed were vastly different. Although the framework can only assess policy learning processes, we have found that the government undertook a reasonable and rational process toward learning, while, on the other hand, the modified bill developed by the Diet members did not thoroughly derive learnings in the same way, due to cognitive and political reasons, and specifically, the issue of limiting social burden was not addressed.

  18. Individual, social, and environmental factors associated with support for smoke-free housing policies among subsidized multiunit housing tenants.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hood, Nancy E; Ferketich, Amy K; Klein, Elizabeth G; Wewers, Mary Ellen; Pirie, Phyllis

    2013-06-01

    Mandatory smoke-free policies in subsidized, multiunit housing (MUH) may decrease secondhand smoke exposure in households with the highest rates of exposure. Ideally, policies should be based on a strong understanding of factors affecting support for smoke-free policies in the target population to maximize effectiveness. A face-to-face survey was conducted from August to October 2011 using a stratified random sample of private subsidized housing units in Columbus, OH, without an existing smoke-free policy (n = 301, 64% response rate). Lease holders were asked to report individual, social, and environmental factors hypothesized to be related to support for smoke-free policies. Multiple logistic regression models were used to identify factors independently associated with policy support. Most tenants supported smoke-free policies in common areas (82.7%), half supported policies inside units (54.5%), and one third supported a ban outside the building (36.3%). Support for smoke-free policies in units and outdoors was more common among nonsmokers than smokers (71.5% vs. 35.7%, p social, but no environmental, factors were independently associated with policy support. Smokers who intended to quit within 6 months or less were more likely than other smokers to support in-unit policies (45.3% vs. 21.1%; p = .003). More than half of subsidized MUH tenants supported smoke-free policies inside their units. Strategies to address individual- and social-level barriers to behavior change should be implemented in parallel with smoke-free policies. Policies should be evaluated with objective measures to determine their effectiveness.

  19. The European Union Food Distribution programme for the Most Deprived Persons of the community, 1987-2013: From agricultural policy to social inclusion policy?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Caraher, Martin

    2015-07-01

    The European Union Food Distribution programme for the Most Deprived Persons (MDP) of the community ran from 1987 until 2013. It was funded from Common Agricultural Policy budgets. The programme initially made use of surplus foods from the food mountains resulting from intervention stocks. This food was then distributed through aid agencies within member states, coordinated at a national government level. Reform of the CAP and global rises in food prices resulted in an increase in budget from €300 to €500 million Euros in 2010 with the added power to buy food on the open market. This led to a formal challenge to the scheme on the basis that buying goods on the open market shifted the emphasis from an agricultural/financial basis to a social one. A court ruling found that because the program was no longer used for removing surpluses the link to agriculture policy has become tenuous and therefore had no basis in community law. As a result of this legal challenge a number of policy compromises ensured the MDP would continue until the end of 2013 with a reduced budget. The scheme has been superseded by a new scheme in March 2014 called the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD). This is seen as a social programme. The way that policy and politics developed and changed the MDP programme are set out. The article tracks its move from being an agricultural policy to a social welfare one. The key policy players and actors in this move are set out as are the changing context and policy frameworks. The replacement of the MDP by FEAD is discussed as is how intensive lobbying in 2012/13 resulted in the development of a new Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD). Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Analysis of Department of Defense social media policy and its impact on operational security

    OpenAIRE

    Leonhardi, Eric V.; Murphy, Mark; Kim, Hannah

    2015-01-01

    Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited The emergence and rapid adoption of social media by society has forced the Department of Defense (DOD) to adapt, and ultimately develop and incorporate, social media policy into its cybersecurity strategy. While social media has influenced DOD strategy, it has also had a direct impact on the organization’s operational security (OPSEC). DOD personnel using social media represent a potential OPSEC risk through the various ways and means ...

  1. Socio-compatible energy policies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Renn, O.; Albrecht, G.; Kotte, U.; Peters, H.P.; Stegelmann, H.U.

    1985-01-01

    The socio-compatibility project comprises three central analytical elements: 1) The arborescent value analysis: Eminent social groups (such as the trade-unions or the ecological institutes) were questioned on their values and criteria applied to evaluate different energy systems. 2) The energy system and scenario impact analysis: Indicators deduced from the arborescent value analysis serve to approximately cover the value dimensions affected by above criteria. 3) Impact analysis weighing executed by a group of arbitrarily chosen citizens. All reflections considered, it is evident that none of the energy policies discussed may claim the title 'socio-compatible'. The individual, i.e. neither scientist nor politician, cannot decide upon the socio-compatibility of one or the other concept. An altogether socially compatible solution accepted and classified as such by different social groups may only crystallize and be set against different options by the political formation of opinion. The studys' primary concern lies in furnishing information, i.e. aids for politicians having to decide on energy policies. Above all the study aimed at finding out about reactions, social protest, opposition or approval to be coped with by those who, having the say in political matters, want to speak up for one of the energy policies under public discussion. (orig./HSCH) [de

  2. A Social Accountable Model for Medical Education System in Iran: A Grounded-Theory

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammadreza Abdolmaleki

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Social accountability has been increasingly discussed over the past three decades in various fields providing service to the community and has been expressed as a goal for various areas. In medical education system, like other social accountability areas, it is considered as one of the main objectives globally. The aim of this study was to seek a social accountability theory in the medical education system that is capable of identifying all the standards, norms, and conditions within the country related to the study subject and recognize their relationship. In this study, a total of eight experts in the field of social accountability in medical education system with executive or study experience were interviewedpersonally. After analysis of interviews, 379 codes, 59 secondary categories, 16 subcategories, and 9 main categories were obtained. The resulting data was collected and analyzed at three levels of open coding, axial coding, and selective coding in the form of grounded theory study of “Accountability model of medical education in Iran”, which can be used in education system’s policies and planning for social accountability, given that almost all effective components of social accountability in highereducation health system with causal and facilitator associations were determined.Keywords: SOCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY, COMMUNITY–ORIENTED MEDICINE, COMMUNITY MEDICINE, EDUCATION SYSTEM, GROUNDED THEORY

  3. Public social monitoring reports and their effect on a policy programme aimed at addressing the social determinants of health to improve health equity in New Zealand.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pega, Frank; Valentine, Nicole B; Matheson, Don; Rasanathan, Kumanan

    2014-01-01

    The important role that monitoring plays in advancing global health is well established. However, the role of social monitoring as a tool for addressing social determinants of health (SDH) and health equity-focused policies remains under-researched. This paper assesses the extent and ways in which New Zealand's (NZ) Social Reports (SRs) supported a SDH- and health equity-oriented policy programme nationally over the 2000-2008 period by documenting the SRs' history and assessing its impact on policies across sectors in government and civil society. We conducted key-informant interviews with five senior policy-makers and an e-mail survey with 24 government and civil society representatives on SRs' history and policy impact. We identified common themes across these data and classified them accordingly to assess the intensity of the reports' use and their impact on SDH- and health equity-focused policies. Bibliometric analyses of government publications and media items were undertaken to empirically assess SRs' impact on government and civil society. SRs in NZ arose out of the role played by government as the "benevolent social welfare planner" and an understanding of the necessity of economic and social security for "progress". The SRs were linked to establishing a government-wide programme aimed at reducing inequalities. They have been used moderately to highly in central and local government and in civil society, both within and outside the health sector, but have neither entered public treasury and economic development departments nor the commercial sector. The SRs have not reached the more universal status of economic indicators. However, they have had some success at raising awareness of, and have stimulated isolated action on, SDH. The NZ case suggests that national-level social monitoring provides a valuable tool for raising awareness of SDH across government and civil society. A number of strategies could improve social reports' effectiveness in stimulating

  4. Mere Objectives or Hard Law? A Case Study on the EU‘s Social Policy in the Context of Free Market Economy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Izabela Jędrzejowska-Schiffauer

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this contribution is to assess the impact of the EU Internal Market rules on the development of Union’s social policy. To that end the author analyses trends in the EU’s social policy over time, also following the outbreak of the economic and financial crisis in 2008, synthesising selected Union’s legislation, soft measures and case law relating to social policy, with a view to determining their immediate or potential impact on social rights and social protection. It is submitted that to date, the Union has made but a very restricted use of its powers to develop the social dimension of its Single Market, which contributes to the difficulties in reconciling social and labour rights with competition law and economic freedoms. This problem is ascribed not exclusively to the commonly blamed inequality of arms resulting from the prevalence of soft measures in the area of social policy and the hard law regulatory framework for the implementation of the Single Market rules. Its core is identified in the lack of will on the part of national governments to advance economic integration on common (European social foundations. Hence the necessary prerequisite for the further advance of the EU social policy and a sustainable European socio-economic model is the attitude change in the Member States.

  5. Recent Transformations in China's Economic, Social, and Education Policies for Promoting Innovation and Creativity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pang, Weiguo; Plucker, Jonathan A.

    2012-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to review major Chinese policies related to creativity education. We first identify and describe the role of innovation and creativity in economic and social development policies over the past 20 years, then analyze how the call for enhanced Chinese innovation and creativity was actualized in corresponding education…

  6. Closing global knowledge gaps : Producing generalized knowledge from case studies of social-ecological systems

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Magliocca, Nicholas R.; Ellis, Erle C.; Allington, Ginger R.H.; de Bremond, Ariane; Dell'Angelo, Jampel; Mertz, Ole; Messerli, Peter; Meyfroidt, Patrick; Seppelt, Ralf; Verburg, Peter H.

    2018-01-01

    Concerns over rapid widespread changes in social-ecological systems and their consequences for biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, food security, and human livelihoods are driving demands for globally comprehensive knowledge to support decision-making and policy development. Claims of regional or

  7. Beyond the ABC: climate change policy and theories of social change

    OpenAIRE

    Elizabeth Shove

    2010-01-01

    In this short and deliberately provocative paper I reflect on what seems to be a yawning gulf between the potential contribution of the social sciences and the typically restricted models and concepts of social change embedded in contemporary environmental policy in the UK, and in other countries too. As well as making a strong case for going beyond what I refer to as the dominant paradigm of ‘ABC’—attitude, behaviour, and choice—I discuss the attractions of this model, the blind spots it cre...

  8. An Item Bank to Measure Systems, Services, and Policies: Environmental Factors Affecting People With Disabilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lai, Jin-Shei; Hammel, Joy; Jerousek, Sara; Goldsmith, Arielle; Miskovic, Ana; Baum, Carolyn; Wong, Alex W; Dashner, Jessica; Heinemann, Allen W

    2016-12-01

    perceptions of systems, services, and policies resources reliably with the items described here. Moderate relations between systems, services, and policies facilitators and PROMIS and CPI variables provide support for the measurement and theory of environmental effects on social functioning related to participation. Copyright © 2016 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  9. Does social policy moderate the impact of unemployment on health? A multilevel analysis of 23 welfare states.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vahid Shahidi, Faraz; Siddiqi, Arjumand; Muntaner, Carles

    2016-12-01

    The magnitude of observable health inequalities between the unemployed and their employed counterparts differs considerably across countries. Few attempts have been made to test theoretical explanations for this cross-national variation. Moreover, existing studies suffer from important theoretical and methodological limitations. This study addresses these limitations and investigates whether differences in the generosity of social protection policies and in public attitudes towards those policies explain why unemployment-related health inequalities are steeper in some societies than in others. Multilevel logistic modelling was used to link contextual-level variables on social protection policies and public attitudes in 23 European countries to individual-level data on self-rated health from the 2012 wave of the European Social Survey. The magnitude of inequalities in self-rated health between the unemployed and their employed counterparts varies significantly across countries as a function of cross-national differences in the level of social protection awarded to the unemployed and the level of public support for the welfare state. The results provide empirical support for the claim that governments can play a more active role in mitigating unemployment-related health inequalities by expanding the generosity and scope of social protection policies. Whether such an expansion of social protection will take place in the current climate of fiscal austerity is a political question whose implications merit the attention of population health scholars. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Public Health Association. All rights reserved.

  10. Fort Collins Science Center- Policy Analysis and Science Assistance Branch : Integrating social, behavioral, economic and biological sciences

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    The Fort Collins Science Center's Policy Analysis and Science Assistance (PASA) Branch is a team of approximately 22 scientists, technicians, and graduate student researchers. PASA provides unique capabilities in the U.S. Geological Survey by leading projects that integrate social, behavioral, economic, and biological analyses in the context of human-natural resource interactions. Resource planners, managers, and policymakers in the U.S. Departments of the Interior (DOI) and Agriculture (USDA), State and local agencies, as well as international agencies use information from PASA studies to make informed natural resource management and policy decisions. PASA scientists' primary functions are to conduct both theoretical and applied social science research, provide technical assistance, and offer training to advance performance in policy relevant research areas. Management and research issues associated with human-resource interactions typically occur in a unique context, involve difficult to access populations, require knowledge of both natural/biological science in addition to social science, and require the skill to integrate multiple science disciplines. In response to these difficult contexts, PASA researchers apply traditional and state-of-the-art social science methods drawing from the fields of sociology, demography, economics, political science, communications, social-psychology, and applied industrial organization psychology. Social science methods work in concert with our rangeland/agricultural management, wildlife, ecology, and biology capabilities. The goal of PASA's research is to enhance natural resource management, agency functions, policies, and decision-making. Our research is organized into four broad areas of study.

  11. The Master model on multi-actor and multilevel social responsibilities: A conceptual framework for policies and governance on stakeholders’ social responsibilities

    OpenAIRE

    Ashley, Patricia Almeida

    2011-01-01

    textabstractThis working paper contributes to a collective discussion in a workshop occurring in January 2011 at the International Institute of Social Studies, bringing scholars from Europe and Brazil and aiming inter-university research collaboration on linking policies on social responsibility to development and equity. The paper serves as an introductory discussion for reframing the concept of corporate social responsibility into a broader umbrella concept of multi-actor and multilevel soc...

  12. Consequences of Arizona's Immigration Policy on Social Capital among Mexican Mothers with Unauthorized Immigration Status

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valdez, Carmen R.; Padilla, Brian; Valentine, Jessa Lewis

    2013-01-01

    This study explores the consequences of increasingly restrictive immigration policies on social capital among Mexican mothers with unauthorized immigrant status in Arizona. Three focus groups conducted in Arizona explore how mothers' experiences with immigration policies have affected their neighborhood, community, and family ties. Focus group…

  13. Fisheries policy, research and the social sciences in Europe: Challenges for the 21st century

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Symes, D.; Hoefnagel, E.W.J.

    2010-01-01

    Despite evidence of a broadening of the science base for European fisheries policy with the incorporation of an ecosystem approach and increasing use of economic modelling, the contribution of the social sciences to policy related research remains less conspicuous. Progress has occurred in the

  14. Optimizing Input/Output Using Adaptive File System Policies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Madhyastha, Tara M.; Elford, Christopher L.; Reed, Daniel A.

    1996-01-01

    Parallel input/output characterization studies and experiments with flexible resource management algorithms indicate that adaptivity is crucial to file system performance. In this paper we propose an automatic technique for selecting and refining file system policies based on application access patterns and execution environment. An automatic classification framework allows the file system to select appropriate caching and pre-fetching policies, while performance sensors provide feedback used to tune policy parameters for specific system environments. To illustrate the potential performance improvements possible using adaptive file system policies, we present results from experiments involving classification-based and performance-based steering.

  15. Food system policy, public health, and human rights in the United States.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shannon, Kerry L; Kim, Brent F; McKenzie, Shawn E; Lawrence, Robert S

    2015-03-18

    The US food system functions within a complex nexus of social, political, economic, cultural, and ecological factors. Among them are many dynamic pressures such as population growth, urbanization, socioeconomic inequities, climate disruption, and the increasing demand for resource-intensive foods that place immense strains on public health and the environment. This review focuses on the role that policy plays in defining the food system, particularly with regard to agriculture. It further examines the challenges of making the food supply safe, nutritious, and sustainable, while respecting the rights of all people to have access to adequate food and to attain the highest standard of health. We conclude that the present US food system is largely unhealthy, inequitable, environmentally damaging, and insufficiently resilient to endure the impacts of climate change, resource depletion, and population increases, and is therefore unsustainable. Thus, it is imperative that the US embraces policy reforms to transform the food system into one that supports public health and reflects the principles of human rights and agroecology for the benefit of current and future generations.

  16. Seeing the Wood from the Trees: A Critical Policy Analysis of Intersections between Social Class Inequality and Education in Twenty-First Century Ireland

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cahill, Kevin

    2015-01-01

    This paper is a critical policy analysis of intersections between social class inequality and education policy in Ireland. The focus is upon contemporary policy and legislation such as The Irish Constitution and equality legislation; social inclusion policies such as the DEIS scheme; literacy and numeracy policy documents; as well as current…

  17. Social Cost Benefit Analysis for Environmental Policy-Making

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    De Zeeuw, A.; In t Veld, R.; Van Soest, D.; Meuleman, L.; Hoogewoning, P.

    2008-01-01

    Review of the theoretical literature and the current debate on the valuation of environmental goods and services, on the discounting of future benefits and costs, and on how social cost benefit analysis (SCBAs) can be integrated in the policy and decision making process. It is concluded that SCBA can be a good decision support method in environmental policy-making if it is transparent and if all impacts are taken into account. Furthermore, the SCBA process should be participative, and politicians must be prepared to take responsibility for the assumptions behind the SCBA, including the assumptions on valuation and on the discount rate. Such a political role makes each SCBA a unique product of a politically responsible actor, and makes it possible for other stakeholders to have calculated an alternative SCBA based on their own assumptions. This Background Study also contains the proceedings of the international SCBA conference organised by RMNO on 16-17 January 2008

  18. Ideological Support for the Indian Caste System: Social Dominance Orientation, Right-Wing Authoritarianism and Karma

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sarah Cotterill

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available This paper extends the social dominance perspective to the Indian context by examining the role of belief in Karma (sanchita in the justification of the Indian caste system. Using social dominance theory (Sidanius & Pratto, 1999 and the dual process model (Duckitt, 2001 as guiding theoretical frameworks, we tested four related hypotheses within a sample of 385 Indian university students. In particular we expected that social dominance orientation (SDO and right-wing authoritarianism (RWA would both make relatively strong and independent contributions to participants’ endorsement of Karma (H1, as well as their support for antiegalitarian social policies and conventions (H2. We also predicted that endorsement of Karma, itself, would be strongly related to support for these policies, net of the influence of SDO, RWA, as well as generalized prejudice (H3. Finally, and consistent with the notion that Karma functions as a legitimizing ideology, we hypothesized that it would at least partially mediate, net of generalized prejudice, the relationships between SDO and RWA, on the one hand, and antiegalitarian and conventional social policies, on the other (H4. Results of latent variable structural equation modeling provided support for all four hypotheses. The theoretical implications of these findings are discussed.

  19. Federalism and social justice: implications for social work.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Linhorst, Donald M

    2002-07-01

    Federalism is a system of government that divides power between two or more levels of government. During the current conservative political climate in the United States, power has shifted increasingly from the federal government to states, a move that has implications for the achievement of social justice. Consequently, it is now necessary for social workers to engage in political activity at the state and local levels, in addition to the federal level, to promote social justice. Implications for social work policy practice, research, and education for advancing social justice within the federal system of government are explored.

  20. Understanding health systems, health economies and globalization: the need for social science perspectives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murray, Susan F; Bisht, Ramila; Baru, Rama; Pitchforth, Emma

    2012-08-31

    The complex relationship between globalization and health calls for research from many disciplinary and methodological perspectives. This editorial gives an overview of the content trajectory of the interdisciplinary journal 'Globalization and Health' over the first six years of production, 2005 to 2010. The findings show that bio-medical and population health perspectives have been dominant but that social science perspectives have become more evident in recent years. The types of paper published have also changed, with a growing proportion of empirical studies. A special issue on 'Health systems, health economies and globalization: social science perspectives' is introduced, a collection of contributions written from the vantage points of economics, political science, psychology, sociology, business studies, social policy and research policy. The papers concern a range of issues pertaining to the globalization of healthcare markets and governance and regulation issues. They highlight the important contribution that can be made by the social sciences to this field, and also the practical and methodological challenges implicit in the study of globalization and health.

  1. Understanding health systems, health economies and globalization: the need for social science perspectives

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Murray Susan F

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract The complex relationship between globalization and health calls for research from many disciplinary and methodological perspectives. This editorial gives an overview of the content trajectory of the interdisciplinary journal ‘Globalization and Health’ over the first six years of production, 2005 to 2010. The findings show that bio-medical and population health perspectives have been dominant but that social science perspectives have become more evident in recent years. The types of paper published have also changed, with a growing proportion of empirical studies. A special issue on ‘Health systems, health economies and globalization: social science perspectives’ is introduced, a collection of contributions written from the vantage points of economics, political science, psychology, sociology, business studies, social policy and research policy. The papers concern a range of issues pertaining to the globalization of healthcare markets and governance and regulation issues. They highlight the important contribution that can be made by the social sciences to this field, and also the practical and methodological challenges implicit in the study of globalization and health.

  2. Social policy devolution: a historical review of Canada, the United kingdom, and the United States (1834-1999).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dunlop, Judith M

    2009-01-01

    This paper explores the recurring themes of devolution and social policy across time and nation in Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Devolution is defined as the transfer of responsibility from national governments to state and local levels. Using a historical framework, the central/local tensions that characterize devolution and social policy in these countries are noted from 1834 to the late 1990s. This chronology shows that despite their geographical, ideological, and cultural differences, all of these countries have shifted responsibility for social provision back and forth between central and local governments in similar ways throughout the three eras delineated in this analysis. Clearly, devolution characterizes the current social policy climate in these three countries and across many Western democracies. Recent trends in the environment such as privatization, mandatory collaboration, community capacity building, and service integration are identified, and process questions are presented as a guide for practitioners who seek to explore the current devolution reality.

  3. Continuing professional development for teachers in South Africa and social learning systems: conflicting conceptual frameworks of learning

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    G.M. Steyn

    2008-07-01

    Full Text Available To transform education in this country, South African teachers need to be appropriately equipped to meet the evolving challenges and needs of the country. The national policy framework for teacher education and development is an attempt to address the need for suitably qualified teachers in South Africa. Its aim is to improve the quality of education by focusing on the professional development of teachers. This article attempts to address the following research problem: Does continuing professional development for teachers (CPDT, as stipulated by the national policy framework, have the potential to contribute to the development of teachers as proposed by social learning systems? The answer to this question has the potential to inform and influence the policy and its implementation. The answer also describes how conceptual frameworks for learning in Wenger’s social learning systems conflict with effective professional development (PD programmes and CPDT.

  4. Long-term care policy for the elderly in the Zaporozhye region of Ukraine: a case study of social development following the collapse of Communism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Palley, Howard A; Romanenkova, Lyudmyla A

    2004-01-01

    In this paper, we review the status of social policy for the elderly in Ukraine since the fall of Communism and the breakup of the Soviet Union. We specifically address the problem of "rebuilding" an income and services policy for the at-risk elderly after the unraveling of the system that existed prior to the fall of Communism. Also, we address some existing problems faced by the elderly in the health care system. Within this context, we present a case study of the current status of long-term care policy for the elderly in one province of Ukraine, the eastern province of Zaporozhye, encompassing the industrial city of Zaporozhye on the Dnieper River. This case study particularly pays attention to current attempts to promote a social development process of long-term care services for the elderly. It examines recent developments with respect to public sector organizations and voluntary sector organizations that are trying to provide necessary services to the needy elderly. With respect to the voluntary sector, the paper pays particular attention to the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) model of a largely externally funded NGO that provides comprehensive and integrated social supports, while emphasizing local empowerment and the use of volunteers, for the needy Jewish population in the province of Zaporozhye. Based on our findings, we make some proposals regarding the improvement of income and services policy with respect to the elderly in Zaporozhye and Ukraine.

  5. Targeting brains, producing responsibilities: the use of neuroscience within British social policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Broer, Tineke; Pickersgill, Martyn

    2015-05-01

    Concepts and findings 'translated' from neuroscientific research are finding their way into UK health and social policy discourse. Critical scholars have begun to analyse how policies tend to 'misuse' the neurosciences and, further, how these discourses produce unwarranted and individualizing effects, rooted in middle-class values and inducing guilt and anxiety. In this article, we extend such work while simultaneously departing from the normative assumptions implied in the concept of 'misuse'. Through a documentary analysis of UK policy reports focused on the early years, adolescence and older adults, we examine how these employ neuroscientific concepts and consequently (re)define responsibility. In the documents analysed, responsibility was produced in three different but intersecting ways: through a focus on optimisation, self-governance, and vulnerability. Our work thereby adds to social scientific examinations of neuroscience in society that show how neurobiological terms and concepts can be used to construct and support a particular imaginary of citizenship and the role of the state. Neuroscience may be leveraged by policy makers in ways that (potentially) reduce the target of their intervention to the soma, but do so in order to expand the outcome of the intervention to include the enhancement of society writ large. By attending as well to more critical engagements with neuroscience in policy documents, our analysis demonstrates the importance of being mindful of the limits to the deployment of a neurobiological idiom within policy settings. Accordingly, we contribute to increased empirical specificity concerning the impacts and translation of neuroscientific knowledge in contemporary society whilst refusing to take for granted the idea that the neurosciences necessarily have a dominant role (to play). Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  6. Analysing policy delivery in the United Kingdom: the case of street crime and anti-social behaviour.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, Martin; Richards, David; Geddes, Andrew; Mathers, Helen

    2011-01-01

    For all governments, the principle of how and whether policies are implemented as intended is fundamental. The aim of this paper is to examine the difficulties for governments in delivering policy goals when they do not directly control the processes of implementation. This paper examines two case studies – anti-social behaviour and street crime – and demonstrates the difficulties faced by policy-makers in translating policy into practice when the policy problems are complex and implementation involves many actors.

  7. SOCIAL AUDIT OF THE MUNICIPAL SYSTEM OF GENERAL EDUCATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    T. I. Zerchaninova

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The paper deals with the theory and practice of social audit of the municipal system of general education. The authors have developed a conceptual model of social audit to accurately identify both the short- and long-term development prospects of the given system. The paper describes the social audit procedures in Berezovsky municipal district of Sverdlovsk region including four stages: the content analysis of municipal documents concerning the development strategy of the general education system, diagnosis of the current conditions and problems, effectiveness evaluation of the municipal system of general education, and practical  recommendations for improving the education quality. The above mentioned audit demonstrates that the indices of education development are unsystematically tracked, obstructing therefore the adjustment process. To solve the given problems the following measures are recommended: personnel policy development, creating the regional managerial reserve and organizing management workshops, informing the teachers about the modern educational tools, and updating the municipal program of the «Educational System Development of Berezovsky Municipal District for 20011–20015». However, the above suggestions target only the current problems disregarding the challenges of tomorrow which require the advancing strategy. In authors’ opinion, the main emphasis should be re-placed on the quality improvement of the municipal educational services instead of the infrastructure reinforcement. 

  8. SOCIAL AUDIT OF THE MUNICIPAL SYSTEM OF GENERAL EDUCATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    T. I. Zerchaninova

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available The paper deals with the theory and practice of social audit of the municipal system of general education. The authors have developed a conceptual model of social audit to accurately identify both the short- and long-term development prospects of the given system. The paper describes the social audit procedures in Berezovsky municipal district of Sverdlovsk region including four stages: the content analysis of municipal documents concerning the development strategy of the general education system, diagnosis of the current conditions and problems, effectiveness evaluation of the municipal system of general education, and practical  recommendations for improving the education quality. The above mentioned audit demonstrates that the indices of education development are unsystematically tracked, obstructing therefore the adjustment process. To solve the given problems the following measures are recommended: personnel policy development, creating the regional managerial reserve and organizing management workshops, informing the teachers about the modern educational tools, and updating the municipal program of the «Educational System Development of Berezovsky Municipal District for 20011–20015». However, the above suggestions target only the current problems disregarding the challenges of tomorrow which require the advancing strategy. In authors’ opinion, the main emphasis should be re-placed on the quality improvement of the municipal educational services instead of the infrastructure reinforcement. 

  9. Earnings Sharing in the U.S. Social Security System: A Microsimulation Analysis of Future Female Retirees

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iams, Howard M.; Reznik, Gayle L.; Tamborini, Christopher R.

    2010-01-01

    Purpose: As part of an ongoing effort to analyze the distributional implications of potential policy reforms to the U.S. Social Security system, we consider the widely discussed reform of earnings sharing. Such an approach has been viewed as a way to "update" Social Security's family benefits based on marital status and as a means to…

  10. Policy in the Area of Wages and Its Implementation in the Far East in the 1930s as a Mechanism for the Formation of Social Hierarchy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Olga I. Shestak

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available This article, based on documents from state archives, examines Soviet policy in the area of wages through the example of the Far East. The author comes to the conclusion that the wages policy implemented in the USSR in the 1930s was a key mechanism in the formation of a hierarchical social production-type establishment. It would determine the prestige of professions and the functionality of spheres of work activity and underscored the commanding positioning of social groups, thereby setting and ensuring all key criteria for constructing a system of social inequality, on the one hand, and fixing the population to remote and scarcely populated territories, on the other.

  11. Social limitations of maize farmers' adaptation to neoliberal policy reform in Mexico

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Groenewald, S.F.; Niehof, A.

    2015-01-01

    This article highlights the interfaces between micro-level livelihoods, social networks, and macroeconomic trends and policies. Specifically, it analyzes the role of farmer groups in livelihood adaptation of smallholder maize producers in southern Mexico. We show how neoliberal market changes have

  12. A Cognitive Perspective on Policy Implementation : Reform Beliefs, Sensemaking, and Social Networks

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Siciliano, Michael D.; Moolenaar, Nienke M.; Daly, Alan J.; Liou, Yi Hwa

    2017-01-01

    Utilizing a cognitive perspective, this article examines the social processes through which teachers come to understand the Common Core State Standards. The authors begin by identifying three beliefs that have important implications for policy implementation: self-efficacy, resource adequacy, and

  13. Public Policies Analysis and the Prince System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Behxhet Brajshori

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Public Policies present governmental sectorial policies and according to several scholars those are defined based on "what does the Government do". In fact, those are mandatory state's principles for the Government that aims the implementation of the strategy, objectives and Government's goals in the function of its promises' fulfilment towards the electors and all of the country's citizens. Public Policies Analysis has to do with the monitoring of government's agenda which directly can influence on a specific community. The idea of public policies analysis in linked with the need that the Government through statistical data has to prove what is being worked. Public Policies Analysis evolves in terms of design, implementation and public policies' effects. One of the methods for predicting the probability that a specifi c public policy will be implemented or not, is the Prince System. The Prince System, actually, presents a technique for assessing the relative support or opposition to a particular policy from individuals, groups or organizations.

  14. Emission-dependent supply chain and environment-policy-making in the ‘cap-and-trade’ system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Du, Shaofu; Zhu, Lili; Liang, Liang; Ma, Fang

    2013-01-01

    The paper focuses on a so-called emission-dependent supply chain consisting of one single emission-dependent manufacturer and one single emission permit supplier in the ‘cap-and-trade’ system, where emission permit becomes requisite for production. We consider the emission cap of emission-dependent manufacturer allocated by the government as a kind of environmental policy and formally investigate its influence on decision-makings within the concerned emission-dependent supply chain as well as distribution fairness in social welfare. It is proved that the system-wide and the manufacturer's profits increase with the emission cap while the permit supplier's decreases. There is room for manufacturer and permit supplier to coordinate the supply chain to get more profit in a certain condition. - Highlights: ► We model an emission-dependent supply chain with a permit supplier and a firm. ► We game-theoretically analyze their optimal decisions in a ‘cap-and-trade' system. ► It is possible to coordinate the supply chain in a certain condition. ► The effect of emission cap as an environment policy is considered. ► Bernoulli–Nash Social Welfare Function is employed to analyze the optimal cap

  15. Information Security Policy Modeling for Network Security Systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dmitry Sergeevich Chernyavskiy

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Policy management for network security systems (NSSs is one of the most topical issues of network security management. Incorrect configurations of NSSs lead to system outages and appearance of vulnerabilities. Moreover, policy management process is a time-consuming task, which includes significant amount of manual work. These factors reduce efficiency of NSSs’ utilization. The paper discusses peculiarities of policy management process and existing approaches to policy modeling, presents a model aimed to formalize policies for NSSs independently on NSSs’ platforms and select the most effective NSSs for implementation of the policies.

  16. [Social representations of municipal counselors regarding social control in health in the Brazilian Unified Health System (SUS)].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shimizu, Helena Eri; Pereira, Marcio Florentino; Cardoso, Antonio José Costa; Bermudez, Ximena Pamela Claudia Dias

    2013-08-01

    This study seeks to analyze the social representations of municipal health counselors regarding social control in health. Sixty interviews were conducted with counselors of nineteen counties within the Integrated Federal District Region and Surrounding Areas (RIDE-DF). Data analysis was conducted with the use of French Alceste software, which included two thematic groups. The first dealt with the weaknesses of health councils, consisting of four categories: limitations in decision-making powers, bureaucratization of everyday practices, weaknesses in social participation and limitations in the practice of representation. The second dealt with the health system in RIDE-DF, consisting of only one category that expresses the precarious organization of health care in RIDE-DF. Social representation of social control, with a focus on social participation appears to be constrained by a ritual, namely the bureaucratization of policies and practices in the councils. This form of hierarchical and bureaucratic organization and operation of the council, based on a centralizing management model, has distanced the counselors from discussing health needs geared to the construction of public Health Projects.

  17. Physicians' Self-Conceptions of Their Expertise in Statutory Health Insurance and Social Security Systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seger, Wolfgang; Nüchtern, Elisabeth

    2015-07-01

    Medical experts who practice social medicine have a strong ethical approach for their professional positions. Their reports must reflect an objective, independent, high-quality assessment of interactions between health status and the disability of individuals. However, they must simultaneously consider the societal involvement of these individuals when determining the framework of the Statutory Health Insurance and Social Security Systems. Their task is to recommend sociomedical benefits that are tailored to suit personal needs and that respect the individual life situations of the persons involved, thus complementing the efforts of healthcare professionals in clinical settings. The editorial describes the self-conception of this medical specialty on behalf of the German Society of Social Medicine and Prevention (DGSMP). Policy makers in social insurances and social security systems generally must respect independent sociomedical recommendations as a crucial point for further realistic development activities.

  18. Bridging evidence, policy, and practice to strengthen health systems for improved maternal and newborn health in Pakistan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hirose, Atsumi; Hall, Sarah; Memon, Zahid; Hussein, Julia

    2015-11-25

    Policy and decision making should be based on evidence, but translating evidence into policy and practice is often sporadic and slow. It is recognised that the relationship between research and policy uptake is complex and that dissemination of research findings is necessary, but insufficient, for policy uptake. Political, social, and economic context, use of (credible) data and dialogues between and across networks of researchers and policymakers play important roles in evidence uptake. Advocacy is the process of mobilising political and public opinions to achieve specific aims and its role is crucial in mobilising key actors to push for policy uptake. Advocacy and research groups (i.e. those who would like to see research evidence used by policymakers) may use different approaches and tools to stimulate the diffusion of research findings. The use of mass- and social media, communication with study participants, and the involvement of stakeholders at the early stages of research development are examples of the approaches that can be employed to stimulate diffusion of evidence and increase evidence uptake. The Research and Advocacy Fund (RAF) for Maternal and Newborn Health (MNH) worked within the health system context in Pakistan with the aim of espousing the principles of evidence, advocacy, and dissemination to improve MNH outcomes. The articles included in this special issue are outputs of RAF and highlight where RAF's approaches contributed to MNH policy reforms. The papers discuss critical health system issues facing Pakistan, including service delivery components, demand creation, equitable access, transportation interventions for improved referrals, availability of medicines and equipment, and health workforce needs. In addition to these tangible elements, the health system 'software', i.e. the power and the political and social contexts, is also represented in the collection. These articles highlight three considerations for the future: the growing

  19. Healthcare Policy in Romania. Frameworks and Challenges

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Buţiu Călina Ana

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available The objective of the paper is to review some of the healthcare policy issues of Romania and identify those challenges which may be addressed through social intervention. Based on statistical data, documents, reports and applicable laws one will review the health condition of Romanian population and the state of the national health system, and will examine the broad strategies and policies currently under the scrutiny of appropriate ministries. The findings of the study suggest looking at health policies also through the lens of social inclusion.

  20. The Social Commerce System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dubovyk Tetiana V.

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available The social commerce is a relatively new phenomenon, found in the little researched direction of trade. Research results by the authors have provided to systematize the views on the concept of «social commerce», characterize the social commerce system, propose measures to develop a social commerce strategy. The authors have defined the social commerce as expansion of e-commerce in the social networks on the Internet, in which social factors are significant, and consumers use the right to create content through the media via forums, ratings, reviews, and recommendations on different platforms. Enterprises are advised to use social tools to perform social interaction with consumers in social networks, create a social climate in view of the social support on the Web. The authors have proposed the concept of «social commerce system», structure of which contains the following elements: individuality of consumer, social communications, social communities, e-commerce; defined the multidimensional attributes that are naturally associated with all four elements of the social commerce. They cover the quality of information, system quality, quality of service, convenience and ease-of-use, payment mechanism.

  1. Single Mothers' Experiences with Pregnancy and Child Rearing in Korea: Discrepancy between Social Services/Policies and Single Mothers' Needs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Jung-Eun; Lee, Jin Yong; Lee, Sang Hyung

    2018-05-10

    This study aims to explore single mothers’ experiences with social services/policies for their independent living and to identify gaps between these experiences and the needs of single mothers. A focus group discussion was performed to collect data. Seven single mothers discussed their experiences in significant periods of their lives: pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting. Findings from the qualitative thematic analysis show discrepancies between the direction of social services/policies and single mothers’ needs, in terms of difficulties in healthcare, childcare, housing, employment, and income security. To the single mothers in this study, the social safety net is not inclusive, compared to that which is available to two-parent families or adoptive families. It is necessary to intervene in current blind spots of services/policies for single mothers, and to provide a social safety net to strengthen single mothers’ self-reliance and their children’s social security in the long term.

  2. Factors Influencing And Alternative Policies Offered Of Social Conflicts Indigenous Peoples Rights

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Saiful Deni

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available This paper is a review of the social conflicts of indigenous peoples especially in North Maluku. The purpose of this review is to find out some factors causing indigenous peoples social conflicts in North Maluku and to produce alternative solutions as a policy to develop indigenous peoples livelihoods. The review resulted in several factors causing social conflicts of indigenous peoples such as the unclear boundary between the two parties the customary violations by the forest businessmen the injustice of the law enforcement officers in solving the problems the destruction of the indigenous people and the forest community narrow forest the lack positive contribution of forest management so far to indigenous peoples and forest communities companies do not involve indigenous peoples andor forest communities in forest exploitation destruction of customary buildings as places of worship deforestation timber exploitation while timber by indigenous peoples is sacred wood or abstinence to be felled. Alternative solutions are required by local government such as policy on legal recognition of indigenous peoples indigenous peoples empowerment implementation of indigenous peoples aspirations indigenous peoples economic development based on local wisdom and dispute resolution of indigenous peoples through special courts of a holistic nature.

  3. Policy gaps and technological deficiencies in social networking environments: Implications for information sharing

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stephen M. Mutula

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Background: With the growing adoption and acceptance of social networking, there are increased concerns about the violation of the users’ legitimate rights such as privacy, confidentiality, trust, security, safety, content ownership, content accuracy, integrity, access and accessibility to computer and digital networks amongst others.Objectives: The study sought to investigate the following research objectives to: (1 describe the types of social networks, (2 examine global penetration of the social networks, (3 outline the users’ legitimate rights that must be protected in the social networking sites (SNS, (4 determine the methods employed by SNS to protect the users’ legitimate rights and (5 identify the policy gaps and technological deficiencies in the protection of the users’ legitimate rights in the SNS.Method: A literature survey and content analysis of the SNS user policies were used to address objective four and objective five respectively.Results: The most actively used sites were Facebook and Twitter. Asian markets were leading in participation and in creating content than any other region. Business, education, politics and governance sectors were actively using social networking sites. Social networking sites relied upon user trust and internet security features which however, were inefficient and inadequate.Conclusion: Whilst SNS were impacting people of varying ages and of various professional persuasions, there were increased concerns about the violation and infringement of the users’ legitimate rights. Reliance on user trust and technological security features SNS to protect the users’ legitimate rights seemed ineffectual and inadequate.

  4. Decision support tool to evaluate alternative policies regulating wind integration into autonomous energy systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zouros, N.; Contaxis, G.C.; Kabouris, J.

    2005-01-01

    Integration of wind power into autonomous electricity systems strongly depends on the specific technical characteristics of these systems; the regulations applied should take into account physical system constraints. Introduction of market rules makes the issue even more complicated since the interests of the market participants often conflict each other. In this paper, an integrated tool for the comparative assessment of alternative regulatory policies is presented along with a methodology for decision-making, based on alternative scenarios analysis. The social welfare concept is followed instead of the traditional Least Cost Planning

  5. Crisis, Living Conditions and Health in Mexico: New Challenges for Social Policy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Oliva López Arellano

    2010-08-01

    Full Text Available In the last 30 years, Mexico has faced major crises in its political, economic, and social life. These crises have affected living conditions and health. With the implementation in the 1980's of structural adjustment and economic stabilization policies, Mexico saw a rapid growth of poverty accelerating trends toward social polarization and social division. The current crisis, fueled by deregulation of the global financial markets, only deepens the tendency towards economic stagnation. It has led to an increase in unemployment, worsening income inequalities, and generalized inflation. The increase in food prices, in particular, has made life more difficult for the Mexican population. The crisis has had a palpable and concrete impact on living conditions, health status, and food security for diverse social groups.

  6. From Pronasol to Oportunidades: social policy and enduring poverty in México / De Pronasol a Oportunidades: política social y persistencia de la pobreza en México

    OpenAIRE

    Félix Acosta Díaz

    2010-01-01

    After almost fifteen years of social policies, extreme poverty has become an enduring problem in Mexico. Even in those years when nation-wide economic conditions have been particularly good, an important segment of the Mexican population faces the problem of poverty and the lack of social opportunities and this segment grows heavily with economic turndowns. The purpose of this paper is twofold: on one hand, it compares the objectives against the efficacy of social policy aimed to alleviate an...

  7. Potential for smoke-free policies in social venues to prevent smoking uptake and reduce relapse: a qualitative study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wakefield, Melanie; Cameron, Melissa; Murphy, Michael

    2009-01-01

    The purpose of this article is to better understand the utility of smoking in pubs/bars and nightclubs and explore perceptions of how smoke-free policies might influence smoking behavior. Qualitative focus group methodology was used involving young social smokers and older regular smokers. Pubs/bars and nightclubs were valued as the few remaining indoor public places where people could relax and smoke. These venues were perceived to provide encouragement for smoking more cigarettes by increasing smoking rate and facilitating smoking relapse. For young social smokers, smoking provided an opportunity to be part of a "cool" in-group. Older regular smokers felt pubs/bars provided strong cues for smoking relapse. Smokers felt they would adapt to smoke-free policies and expected these policies to reduce their smoking or assist quitting. Smoke-free policies in pubs/bars and nightclubs may assist smokers to quit and make it less likely that young social smokers will progress to regular smoking.

  8. Changing politics of Canadian social policy

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Rice, James J; Prince, Michael J

    2000-01-01

    ... in the 1990s. Globalization and the concomitant corporate mobility affect government's ability to regulate the distribution of wealth, while the increasing diversity of the population puts increasingly complex demands on an already overstressed system. Yet in the face of these constraints, the system still endures and is far from irrelevant. Some social progr...

  9. Disability Policy Must Espouse Medical as well as Social Rehabilitation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrew J. Haig

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available A confident statement in Social Inclusion by Mannon and MacLacLan that disability is not a health problem places doubt on the rationale of their otherwise well-written research agenda for disability studies. Both by definition and in practice disability is in part about the impact of health on a person's functioning. The consequence of this misperception among social policy makers is a decreased emphasis on the resources and research needed to build medical rehabilitation programs. This is especially true in lower resource countries where naive inclusion of medical rehabillitation within community based rehabilitation strategies has resulted in fewer resources and less expertise to deliver the distinctly different, and well validated services of a medical rehabilitation team. Any rational research agenda on disability must focus on disease and medical rehabilitation as well as the psychological, social, and environmental factors discussed in this article.

  10. Entrepreneurship policies and the development of regional innovation systems: theory, policy and practice

    OpenAIRE

    Lawton-Smith, Helen

    2017-01-01

    The paper provides an appraisal and synthesis of the regional innovation systems approach in relation to entrepreneurship policies. It addresses a number of areas where theoretical, empirical and policy-based issues are currently under-developed in relation to entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship policy.

  11. Communicating Inequalities to Enhance Support for Obesity-Prevention Policies: The Role of Social Comparisons, Age Frames, and Emotion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Skurka, Chris

    2017-11-28

    With certain populations in the United States at higher risk for obesity than other populations, public health advocates have attempted to draw attention to these inequalities to galvanize support for obesity-mitigation policies. Yet research comparing different messages about social inequalities indicates that not all social comparisons are persuasive. Drawing on Weiner's (1986) theory of perceived responsibility and social motivation, I experimentally tested promising message frames about obesity disparities. Participants (N = 653) read one of six messages following a 3 (social comparison frame: geographic vs. racial vs. no-comparison) × 2 (age frame: child vs. adult) between-subjects design. Unexpectedly, geographic frames (rural/urban) indirectly decreased policy support relative to the control frame by way of increased counterarguing. Compared to adult frames about obesity inequalities, childhood frames evoked more sympathy and less internal attribution, which in turn positively predicted support for obesity-prevention policies. Practical and theoretical implications of these findings are discussed.

  12. Social science and the public agenda: reflections on the relation of knowledge to policy in the United States and abroad.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilensky, H L

    1997-10-01

    It is tempting to oversell the practical value of applied research. A hard look at the effects of U.S. social science on public policy in areas such as active labor market policies (training, job creation, placement, etc.), crime prevention, fiscal policy, poverty reduction, and health care reform suggests an inverse relationship between social science consensus and policy and budgetary decisions. Fragmented and decentralized political economies (e.g., the United States) foster policy segmentation and isolated, short-run single-issue research--often politicized and misleading. More corporatist democracies (such as Sweden, Norway, Austria, and Germany) evidence a tighter relation between knowledge and power in which a wider range of issues is connected, longer-range effects are sometimes considered, and research is more often actually used for planning and implementation. Even in less hospitable societies, however, social science does make its way in the long run. Favorable conditions and examples are discussed.

  13. Performance systems and social capital

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Grane Mikael Gregaard; Edwards, Kasper

    2014-01-01

    Performance systems and social capital are considered mutually exclusive. Contemporary studies show that social capital is essential in generating performance improvement. This raises an important question: “How do performance systems and social capital correspond?” This study draws on findings...... from a study on implementation of a performance system in Danish construction. The results show causalities between implementing the performance system and the emergence of social capital in construction projects. Results indicate that performance systems and social capital is not mutually exclusive...

  14. Explaining Dutch fertility Rates in a Comparative European perspective: The role of economy, social policy and culture

    OpenAIRE

    Rijken, Arieke J.; Knijn, Trudie

    2008-01-01

    This article contributes to the search for explanations of the cross-national variation in fertility rates by studying the influence of social policy, economic and cultural factors on fertility in the former EU15, while giving special attention to one case: The Netherlands. This country lacks good social policy for supporting parents to combine work and care and nevertheless has a relatively high fertility rate. This article addresses the backgrounds of that phenomenon, using comparative macr...

  15. Decoding ClassDojo: Psycho-Policy, Social-Emotional Learning and Persuasive Educational Technologies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Williamson, Ben

    2017-01-01

    ClassDojo is one of the world's most successful educational technologies, currently used by over 3 million teachers and 35 million children globally. It reinforces and enacts emerging governmental "psycho-policies" around the measurement and modification of children's social and emotional learning in schools. This article focuses…

  16. The Appreciative System of Urban ICT Policies: An Analysis of Perceptions of Urban Policy Makers

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Cohen-Blankshtain, G.; Nijkamp, P.

    2004-01-01

    Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has become an important tool to promote a variety of public goals and policies. In the past years much attention has been given to the expected social benefits from deploying ICTs in different urban fields (transportation, education, public

  17. TRIPLE-VALUE SIMULATION MODELING CASES TACKLE NUTRIENT AND WATERSHED MANAGEMENT FROM A SOCIAL-ECOLOGICAL SYSTEMS PERSPECTIVE

    Science.gov (United States)

    Decision makers often need assistance in understanding dynamic interactions and linkages among economic, environmental and social systems in coastal watersheds. They also need scientific input to better evaluate potential costs and benefits of alternative policy interventions. EP...

  18. 75 FR 60749 - Policy on Payment System Risk

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM [Docket No. OP-1345] Policy on Payment System Risk AGENCY: Board of... of its Policy on Payment System Risk (PSR). The revisions explicitly recognize the role of the... payment flows for the banking system, while also helping to mitigate credit exposures of the Federal...

  19. Disability Policy Implementation From a Cross-Cultural Perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Verdugo, Miguel A; Jenaro, Cristina; Calvo, Isabel; Navas, Patricia

    2017-07-01

    Implementation of disability policy is influenced by social, political, and cultural factors. Based on published work, this article discusses four guidelines considered critical for successful policy implementation from a cross-cultural perspective. These guidelines are to: (a) base policy implementation on a contextual analysis, (b) employ a value-based approach, (c) align the service delivery system both vertically and horizontally, and (d) engage in a partnership in policy implementation. Public policy should be understood from a systems perspective that includes cross-cultural issues, such as how different stakeholders are acting and the way they plan and implement policy.

  20. A fuzzy logic expert system for evaluating policy progress towards sustainability goals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cisneros-Montemayor, Andrés M; Singh, Gerald G; Cheung, William W L

    2017-12-16

    Evaluating progress towards environmental sustainability goals can be difficult due to a lack of measurable benchmarks and insufficient or uncertain data. Marine settings are particularly challenging, as stakeholders and objectives tend to be less well defined and ecosystem components have high natural variability and are difficult to observe directly. Fuzzy logic expert systems are useful analytical frameworks to evaluate such systems, and we develop such a model here to formally evaluate progress towards sustainability targets based on diverse sets of indicators. Evaluation criteria include recent (since policy enactment) and historical (from earliest known state) change, type of indicators (state, benefit, pressure, response), time span and spatial scope, and the suitability of an indicator in reflecting progress toward a specific objective. A key aspect of the framework is that all assumptions are transparent and modifiable to fit different social and ecological contexts. We test the method by evaluating progress towards four Aichi Biodiversity Targets in Canadian oceans, including quantitative progress scores, information gaps, and the sensitivity of results to model and data assumptions. For Canadian marine systems, national protection plans and biodiversity awareness show good progress, but species and ecosystem states overall do not show strong improvement. Well-defined goals are vital for successful policy implementation, as ambiguity allows for conflicting potential indicators, which in natural systems increases uncertainty in progress evaluations. Importantly, our framework can be easily adapted to assess progress towards policy goals with different themes, globally or in specific regions.

  1. Policy development: a more formal systems approach process

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Greeff, AP

    2011-09-01

    Full Text Available Policy developers in corporate and governance roles are often developing policies by means of policy development cycles that typically resemble a system life cycle approach. Although policy development cycles often vary, depending on the applicable...

  2. Conference Report: "Health Policy and Programs Evaluative Research for Social Change". An Ibero-American Symposium

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Francisco Mercado-Martínez

    2008-05-01

    Full Text Available This is a report of the "Health Policy and Programs Evaluative Research for Social Change" Ibero-American Symposium held in Guadalajara, Mexico November 1-3, 2006. Attendees represented eight countries, and were associated with NGO's and academic and health services organizations. The most important themes included in the debates were the meaning of qualitative and evaluative health research for social change, the challenges of teaching for change, ethical challenges, and possibilities for making the findings of qualitative research available to different groups or stakeholders (users, policy makers, professionals, and the population as a whole. URN: urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs0802194

  3. Energy, environment, and policy choices: Summer institutes for science and social studies educators

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Marek, E.A.; Chiodo, J.J.; Gerber, B.L.

    1997-06-01

    The Center for Energy Education (CEE) is a partnership linking the University of Oklahoma, Close Up Foundation and Department of Energy. Based upon the theme of energy, environment and public policy, the CEE`s main purposes are to: (1) educate teachers on energy sources, environmental issues and decisionmaking choices regarding public policy; (2) develop interdisciplinary curricula that are interactive in nature (see attachments); (3) disseminate energy education curricula; (4) serve as a resource center for a wide variety of energy education materials; (5) provide a national support system for teachers in energy education; and (6) conduct research in energy education. The CEE conducted its first two-week experimentially-based program for educators during the summer of 1993. Beginning at the University of Oklahoma, 57 teachers from across the country examined concepts and issues related to energy and environment, and how the interdependence of energy and environment significantly influences daily life. During the second week of the institute, participants went to Washington, D.C. to examine the processes used by government officials to make critical decisions involving interrelationships among energy, environment and public policy. Similar institutes were conducted during the summers of 1994 and 1995 resulting in nearly 160 science and social studies educators who had participated in the CEE programs. Collectively the participants represented 36 states, the Pacific Territories, Puerto Rico, and Japan.

  4. Políticas sociais, "terceiro setor" e "compromisso social": perspectivas e limites do trabalho do psicólogo Social policies, "third sector" and "social responsibility": perspectives and limits of practicing psychology

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Oswaldo Hajime Yamamoto

    2007-04-01

    Full Text Available O presente artigo tem por objetivo discutir as possibilidades e os limites do trabalho do psicólogo no campo do bem-estar social/público e no "terceiro setor". É apresentada uma remissão histórica sobre a inserção do psicólogo no campo social, uma revisão conceitual sobre o significado das políticas sociais no capitalismo monopolista como resposta à "questão social", uma discussão sobre o impacto da reforma neoliberal nas políticas sociais no Brasil hoje, incluindo a questão da emergência do "terceiro setor", como contexto para a discussão dos limites do compromisso social do psicólogo.The purpose of this paper is to discuss the possibilities and the limits of practicing psychology in social welfare services. The limits of the psychologist's practice is discussed considering: 1 the historical development of the profession in social welfare service; 2 a conceptual review on the significance of social policies in monopolist capitalism in facing the "social issue"; 3 a discussion on the impact of the neo-liberal reform of social policies in Brazil, including the emergence of the "third sector".

  5. Volunteering as reciprocity: beneficial and harmful effects of social policies to encourage contribution in older age.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stephens, Christine; Breheny, Mary; Mansvelt, Juliana

    2015-04-01

    Social policy applications of 'active ageing' ideals have recently focussed on volunteering as a beneficial and valuable contribution that older people can make to their communities. In this paper we draw attention to the positive and negative effects of a general imperative to contribute. Understanding the benefits of contribution in terms of the moral force of reciprocity recognises that older people do need and want to contribute to society and these contributions are beneficial for their sense of identity and wellbeing. However, older people vary greatly in their health, financial resources, and social networks and should not be seen as a homogenous group whose members must contribute in the same way. A policy focus on the imperative to contribute as a participating citizen can be oppressive and lead to withdrawal from social engagement by those who are the most in need of support to participate. Priorities for social and organisational policies must include support for the many ways older people are able to be involved in their communities and to provide structures necessary to support their preferences. A focus on individual responsibility for active engagement in society, which does not take account of individual circumstances or past contributions, can be harmful. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Becoming allies: Combining social science and technological perspectives to improve energy research and policy making

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Diamond, Rick; Moezzi, Mithra

    2002-07-01

    Within the energy research community, social sciences tends to be viewed fairly narrowly, often as simply a marketing tool to change the behavior of consumers and decision makers, and to ''attack market barriers''. As we see it, social sciences, which draws on sociology, psychology, political science, business administration, and other academic disciplines, is capable of far more. A social science perspective can re-align questions in ways that can lead to the development of technologies and technology policy that are much stronger and potentially more successful than they would be otherwise. In most energy policies governing commercial buildings, the prevailing R and D directives are firmly rooted in a technology framework, one that is generally more quantitative and evaluative than that fostered by the social sciences. To illustrate how social science thinking would approach the goal of achieving high energy performance in the commercial building sector, they focus on the US Department of Energy's Roadmap for commercial buildings (DOE 2000) as a starting point. By ''deconstructing'' the four strategies provided by the Roadmap, they set the stage for proposing a closer partnership between advocates of technology-based and social science-based approaches.

  7. Capacity Building for a New Social and Economic Policy Strategy in ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Capacity Building for a New Social and Economic Policy Strategy in Paraguay. The elections of 20 April 2008 put an end to 61 years of single-party rule in Paraguay. With the arrival of the new administration, one of IDRC's long-time partners - the Centro de Análisis y Difusión de la Economía Paraguya-CADEP) - saw its ...

  8. Empirical Evidence and Policy Implications from National Systems of ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    This project will focus on two critical topics in the current innovation policy ... data provided by innovation surveys in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and ... long-term climate action to reduce social inequality, promote greater gender ...

  9. A multi-dimensional analysis of the upper Rio Grande-San Luis Valley social-ecological system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mix, Ken

    The Upper Rio Grande (URG), located in the San Luis Valley (SLV) of southern Colorado, is the primary contributor to streamflow to the Rio Grande Basin, upstream of the confluence of the Rio Conchos at Presidio, TX. The URG-SLV includes a complex irrigation-dependent agricultural social-ecological system (SES), which began development in 1852, and today generates more than 30% of the SLV revenue. The diversions of Rio Grande water for irrigation in the SLV have had a disproportionate impact on the downstream portion of the river. These diversions caused the flow to cease at Ciudad Juarez, Mexico in the late 1880s, creating international conflict. Similarly, low flows in New Mexico and Texas led to interstate conflict. Understanding changes in the URG-SLV that led to this event and the interactions among various drivers of change in the URG-SLV is a difficult task. One reason is that complex social-ecological systems are adaptive, contain feedbacks, emergent properties, cross-scale linkages, large-scale dynamics and non-linearities. Further, most analyses of SES to date have been qualitative, utilizing conceptual models to understand driver interactions. This study utilizes both qualitative and quantitative techniques to develop an innovative approach for analyzing driver interactions in the URG-SLV. Five drivers were identified for the URG-SLV social-ecological system: water (streamflow), water rights, climate, agriculture, and internal and external water policy. The drivers contained several longitudes (data aspect) relevant to the system, except water policy, for which only discreet events were present. Change point and statistical analyses were applied to the longitudes to identify quantifiable changes, to allow detection of cross-scale linkages between drivers, and presence of feedback cycles. Agricultural was identified as the driver signal. Change points for agricultural expansion defined four distinct periods: 1852--1923, 1924--1948, 1949--1978 and 1979

  10. Frontline work and the impact of solidarity: Encounters between children and professionals under Danish preventive health and social policy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Møller, Marie Østergaard

    2013-01-01

    Within recent years, Denmark has implemented a number of preventive policies based on the line of reasoning that it is better to prevent than to solve problems. Preventive policies express political intentions aimed at solving core welfare state problems related to health, education and welfare...... & Møller forthcoming in Critical Policy Studies) as well as a reproduction of social boundaries affecting variation between how professionals transform public worries into preventive action (Harrits & Møller re- invited in Public Management Review). One analysis suggested that an increase in social...

  11. Social Environmental Correlates of Health Behaviors in a Faith-Based Policy and Environmental Change Intervention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hermstad, April; Honeycutt, Sally; Flemming, Shauna StClair; Carvalho, Michelle L; Hodge, Tarccara; Escoffery, Cam; Kegler, Michelle C; Arriola, Kimberly R Jacob

    2018-03-01

    Diet and physical activity are behavioral risk factors for many chronic diseases, which are among the most common health conditions in the United States. Yet most Americans fall short of meeting established dietary and physical activity guidelines. Faith-based organizations as settings for health promotion interventions can affect members at multiple levels of the social ecological model. The present study investigated whether change in the church social environment was associated with healthier behavior at church and in general at 1-year follow-up. Six churches received mini-grants and technical assistance for 1 year to support policy and environmental changes for healthy eating (HE) and physical activity (PA). Socioenvironmental (social support and social norms) and behavioral (HE and PA at church and in general) outcomes were derived from baseline and 1-year follow-up church member surveys ( n = 258). Three of six churches demonstrated significant improvements in all three socioenvironmental aspects of HE. Two of five churches exhibited significant socioenvironmental improvements for PA at follow-up. Church social environmental changes were related to health behaviors at church and in general ( p Change in social support for HE, social support for PA, and social norms for PA were each associated with three church-based and general behavioral outcomes. Social norms for healthy eating were related to two general behavior outcomes and social norms for unhealthy eating to one general behavioral outcome. Study findings demonstrate that socioenvironmental characteristics are essential to multilevel interventions and merit consideration in designing policy and environmental change interventions.

  12. Social movement heterogeneity in public policy framing: A multi-stakeholder analysis of the Keystone XL pipeline

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wesley, David T. A.

    In 2011, stakeholders with differing objectives formed an alliance to oppose the Keystone XL heavy oil pipeline. The alliance, which came to be known as "Tar Sands Action," implemented various strategies, some of which were more successful than others. Tar Sands Action was a largely heterogeneous alliance that included indigenous tribes, environmentalists, ranchers, landowners, and trade unions, making it one of the more diverse social movement organizations in history. Each of these stakeholder categories had distinct demographic structures, representing an array of racial, ethnic, educational, occupational, and political backgrounds. Participants also had differing policy objectives that included combating climate change and protecting jobs, agricultural interests, water resources, wildlife, and human health. The current dissertation examines the Tar Sands Action movement to understand how heterogeneous social movement organizations mobilize supporters, maintain alliances, and create effective frames to achieve policy objectives. A multi-stakeholder analysis of the development, evolution and communication of frames concerning the Keystone XL controversy provides insight into the role of alliances, direct action, and the news media in challenging hegemonic frames. Previous research has ignored the potential value that SMO heterogeneity provides by treating social movements as culturally homogenous. However, diversity has been shown to affect performance in business organizations. The current study demonstrates that under some circumstances, diversity can also improve policy outcomes. Moreover, policy frames are shown to be more effective in sustaining news media and public interest through a process the author calls dynamic frame sequencing (DFS). DFS refers to a process implementing different stakeholder frames at strategically opportune moments. Finally, Tar Sands Action was one of the first SMOs to rely heavily on social media to build alliances, disseminate

  13. Communication-oriented person-organization fit as a key factor of job-seeking behaviors: millennials' social media use and attitudes toward organizational social media policies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cho, Jaehee; Park, Dong Jin; Ordonez, Zoa

    2013-11-01

    The main goal of this study was to assess how the millennial generation perceives companies that have different social media policies and how such perception influences key variables for job-seeking behaviors, including perceived person-organization fit (POF), organizational attraction, and job pursuit intention. Results from a univariate general linear model and path analysis supported all of the established hypotheses. In particular, the results revealed that millennials perceived higher POF for a company with organizational policies supporting employees' social media use. Further, organizational attractiveness significantly mediated the relationship between communication-oriented POF and job pursuit intention.

  14. As práticas do "Serviço Social activo" no âmbito das novas tendências da política social: uma perspectiva portuguesa Active Social Work practices within the new social policy trends: a Portuguese perspective

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Francisco Branco

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available Este artigo pretende discutir como a política social activa deu origem a um "serviço social activo" e que tipo de questões se levantam à profissão, tendo em conta a orientação subjacente à definição de Serviço Social da Fias. Uma das mais relevantes discussões neste domínio prende-se com a noção de empowerment segundo uma concepção que não se confina ao nível individual, mas se alarga ao nível comunitário e colectivo. A análise ensaiada baseia-se em dados recolhidos em estudos empíricos realizados em Portugal no âmbito do serviço social e da política social.This article will discuss how active social policy gave birth to an "active social work" and what kind of issues it raises to the profession, taking into account the acknowledged IFSW definition of social work. One of the most relevant discussions in this realm concerns the notion of empowerment and its extent from individual to community level. The analysis will rely on data collected from empirical studies on social work and social policy in Portugal.

  15. The Use of Social Ecological Hotspots Mapping: Co-Developing Adaptation Strategies for Resource Management by Communities and Policy Makers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alessa, L.

    2014-12-01

    Ultimately, adaptation is based on a set of trade-offs rather than optimal conditions, something that is rarely seen in messy social ecological systems (SES). In this talk, we discuss the role of spatial hot-spot mapping using social and biophysical data to understand the feedbacks in SES. We review the types of data needed, their means of acquisition and the analytic methods involved. In addition, we outline the challenges faced in co-developing this type of inquiry based on lessons learned from several long-term programs. Finally, we present the utility of SES hotspots in developing adaptation strategies on the ground by communities and policy makers.

  16. Energy policy, social exclusion and sustainable development: The biofuels and oil and gas cases in Brazil

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hall, Jeremy; Matos, Stelvia; Silvestre, Bruno

    2010-09-15

    Recent Brazilian policies have encouraged impoverished communities to participate in the country's growing energy industry. This paper explores the country's attempts to encourage such participation within the oil and gas and biofuels sectors. Our research is based on interviews with industry executives, policymakers, non-governmental organizations and farmers conducted between 2005-2009 in Brazil, an emerging energy leader, yet a country grappling with social exclusion. We propose that some sectors have a propensity to be exclusive due to technological complexity, whereas other sectors, although less complex, tend to economize at the expense of social programs. We conclude with managerial and policy implications.

  17. SOCIAL LEGITIMACY VERSUS BUSINESS PERFORMANCE IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY POLICIES OF ANDALUSIAN GOLF COURSES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Francisco José, Riquel Ligero

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper attempts an analysis of organizational motivations when developing policies for environmental liability. Specifically, to compare the production of social legitimacy to the improvement of organizational performance, we proceeded to test two models in a sector which in recent years has opened a wide debate on environmental sustainability. We refer to golf tourism in Andalusia, in which there has been a considerable increase in such facilities. We have used the statistical technique Partial Least Square (PLS.

  18. Promoting Social Network Awareness: A Social Network Monitoring System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cadima, Rita; Ferreira, Carlos; Monguet, Josep; Ojeda, Jordi; Fernandez, Joaquin

    2010-01-01

    To increase communication and collaboration opportunities, members of a community must be aware of the social networks that exist within that community. This paper describes a social network monitoring system--the KIWI system--that enables users to register their interactions and visualize their social networks. The system was implemented in a…

  19. Economic and policy analysis for solar PV systems in Indiana

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jung, Jinho; Tyner, Wallace E.

    2014-01-01

    In recent years, the energy market in the US and globally is expanding the production of renewable energy. Solar energy for electricity is also expanding in the US. Indiana is one of the states expanding solar energy with solar photovoltaic (PV) systems. Therefore, we conduct benefit cost analysis with several uncertain input variables to determine the economics of adopting solar PV systems in Indiana based on policy instruments that could increase adoption of solar PV systems. The specific objectives are analyses of the cost distribution of solar PV systems compared with grid electricity in homes and estimating the probability that solar can be cheaper than electricity from grids under different policy combinations. We first do the analysis under current policy and then the analysis under potential policy options for a variety of scenarios. Also, the results inform government policy makers on how effective the alternative policies for encouraging solar PV systems are. The results show that current policies are important in reducing the cost of solar PV systems. However, with current policies, there is only 50–50 chance of solar being cheaper than electricity from grids. If potential policies are implemented, solar PV systems can be more economical than grid electricity. - Highlights: • We investigate the economics of solar PV systems based on policy instruments. • We do scenario analyses under different combinations of policies. • We examine the probability of solar being cheaper than grid electricity for each scenario. • With current policies, there is 50–50 chance of solar being cheaper than the grid. • With depreciation and carbon tax, solar is much more economical than the grid

  20. A First Nations-led social innovation: a moose, a gold mining company, and a policy window

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniel D. P. McCarthy

    2014-12-01

    combined with several other factors, including: (1 the high price of gold; (2 a mining company seeking to demonstrate corporate social responsibility to repair its international reputation with indigenous peoples by supporting an innovative, local Indigenous-led initiative; and (3 a new policy context, including Supreme Court of Canada decisions and provisions in the updated Ontario Mining Act, that require meaningful consultation with indigenous peoples has led to the emergence of a indigenous peoples-led collaborative, social innovation. This policy window allowed for the formation of an unprecedented council of indigenous knowledge holders (elders and traditional practitioners to help inform mine restoration and practice as well as to foster the resurgence of traditional language and culture in local indigenous communities. Here, we document this unprecedented social change opportunity.

  1. Anti-corruption policy in the system of legal measures

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tatyana Viktorovna Filonenko

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available Objective to determine the scientificmethodological foundations of anticorruption policy. Methods dialectical approach to cognition of social phenomena allows to explore the combination of objective and subjective factors influencing the formation and implementation of anticorruption policy. The author39s model of anticorruption policy is based on the wide range of logical methods of information processing modeling abstraction analysis analogy. Scientific hypothesis and formal legal analysis were also used. Results basing on comparison of the recent theoreticallegal criminallegal and criminological research in the field of legal and anticorruption policy the scientificmethodological foundations of anticorruption policy are disclosed. The authors attempt to systematize the scientific interpretation of anticorruption policy. The concept of legal policy its forms tools subjects and typesare discussed. As a result it becomes possible to describe the current anticorruption policy using terminology from the theory of legal policy. This approach can increase the effectiveness of modern anticorruption policy as it allows to clearly see the gaps and shortcomings in lawmaking and law enforcement during the anticorruption policy implementation. Scientific novelty the article makes an attempt to describe the current anticorruption policy with the use of terminology and models developed in the theoretical and legal research for the characterization of legal policy and its particular directions. Practical significance the main provisions and conclusions of the article can be used in scientific and pedagogical work when considering questions about the nature and trends of the modern anticorruption policy development. The applied approach allows to bring together criminal law criminology and theoreticallegal research of anticorruption policy. nbsp

  2. The future of European health policies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koivusalo, Meri Tuulikki

    2005-01-01

    The role of the European Union in health policies is changing. The European social model is under threat due to shifts in E.U. policies on liberalization of service provision, limited public budgets, a focus on the health sector as a productive sector in the context of broader European policies and the Lisbon strategy, and changes in the context of the new Constitutional Treaty. These changes are evident in a new reflection paper on European health strategy and its focus. E.U. health policies are at a critical juncture. The danger is that the current processes will lead European health policies and the health systems of member states more in the direction of U.S. health policies and the commercialization of health systems than toward improvement of the current situation.

  3. Facilitating access to sports for people in poverty? A study on local social sports policy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hanne Vandermeerschen

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available SAMENVATTING Mensen in armoede toegang bieden tot sport? Een studie naar lokaal sociaal sportbeleid Onderzoek heeft aangetoond dat armoede een impact heeft op de kansen voor sportdeelname. Mensen in armoede participeren minder in sport in vergelijking met mensen die gemakkelijk(er rondkomen. Op Vlaams beleidsniveau werden initiatieven genomen om lokale besturen aan te moedigen tot het promoten en faciliteren van sportdeelname voor mensen in armoede. Het is echter nog onduidelijk in welke mate dit ingang vond op lokaal niveau. In deze studie wordt onderzocht in welke mate lokale sportdiensten momenteel initiatieven nemen om sportdeelname bij mensen in armoede te faciliteren, met welke moeilijkheden sportdiensten worden geconfronteerd om dit doel te bereiken, en in welke mate lokaal sociaal sportbeleid tot stand komt door middel van samenwerkingsverbanden tussen de sportsector enerzijds, en de sociale sector anderzijds. De data zijn afkomstig van het Vlaamse Sportdiensten Panel (2014. De resultaten geven onder meer aan dat de publieke sportsector en de sociale sector nog in grote mate twee “gescheiden” werelden zijn. Het blijkt een uitdaging om de afstand tussen beiden te overbruggen. Aanbevelingen voor verder onderzoek en voor de ontwikkeling van een sociaal sportbeleid worden aangereikt. ABSTRACTFacilitating access to sports for people in poverty? A study on local social sports policy Research has shown that living in poverty affects the opportunities for engaging in practicing sports. People in poverty participate less in sports than people who have no (or fewer difficulties making ends meet. At the Flemish policy level, initiatives have been undertaken to ensure that more local sports authorities promote and facilitate participation in sports for people in poverty. However, it remains unclear how these concerns are being translated at the local level. In this study, we investigate the extent to which local sports authorities are currently

  4. Urban Policy, Social Movements and the Right to the City in Brazil

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Friendly, Abigail

    2017-01-01

    Brazilian urban social movements have played a key role in bringing about change in urban policy since the 1980s and in light of the widespread protests across the country in June 2013. This insurgency and the urban reform movement of the 1980s and 1990s exemplify waves of mobilization and

  5. [Immigration in Spain and the health system: a fiscal policy perspective].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blanco Moreno, Angela; Hernández Pascual, Javier

    2009-12-01

    The Spanish population has grown by over 6 million people in the last 10 years and immigrants account for 4.5 million of this increase. Although this influx has largely been motivated by economic reasons, stimulated by the sharp growth of the Spanish economy, sociological factors must also be considered to assess the impact of immigration shock on public expenditure and the social welfare system. On the one hand, the demographic growth caused by immigration temporarily balances the pension system, as immigrants have a lower average age and a higher fertility rate. On the other hand, the demographic and economic features of the immigrant community make additional demands on the social welfare system. Universal access to basic public services such as the education and health systems is a crucial asset in the integration policy aimed at the immigrant collective, and compensates for its possible effect as an incentive to immigrate. In the short term, the huge population growth has led to health services' congestion, especially in primary health care, because of the unequal geographic distribution of immigrants. The health expenditure imputable to immigrants is lower than their share in the total population and is highly concentrated in four autonomous regions.

  6. Social Position Influencing the Water Perception Gap Between Local Leaders and Constituents in a Socio-Hydrological System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haeffner, Melissa; Jackson-Smith, Douglas; Flint, Courtney G.

    2018-02-01

    How well city leaders represent their constituents and meet their needs are key concerns in transitioning to local sustainable water governance. To date, however, there is little research documenting the influence of social position between elected leaders who make policy, career staff water managers who design and operate systems and implement policies, and the members of the public whose individual water use behaviors are important drivers of water sustainability outcomes. In this study, we ask: "How does social position explain variation in water perceptions and concerns between different actors in a socio-hydrological system?" Using a mixed method approach with survey and interview data, we explore the ways that positioning within the governance system, geographic context, and citizen engagement in local government mediate perceptions of the urban water system. Regardless of local biophysical water supply conditions, residents showed most concern about future water shortages and high water costs, while their leaders were consistently most concerned about deteriorating local water infrastructure. Further, constituents who received water-related information directly from public utility mailings or served on community committees and boards had perceptions that were more aligned with leaders' concerns. The importance of social structure over natural and built environments in shaping water issue perceptions underscores the value of social analysis in socio-hydrology studies. Further, practitioners looking to increase consensus for a transition to sustainable water governance might work to develop institutional mechanisms to increase opportunities for water user involvement in local water system governance.

  7. Caught Up in the Past? Social Inclusion, Skills, and Vocational Education and Training Policy in England

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fleckenstein, Timo; Lee, Soohyun Christine

    2018-01-01

    Since the mid-1990s, governments of different political persuasion have tried to reform VET policy to address problems in skills formation and social inclusion. Despite considerable policy activism, success has been somewhat limited, and England failed to overcome the problems associated with its liberal training regime. This article assesses the…

  8. "Don't Affect the Share Price": Social Media Policy in Higher Education as Reputation Management

    Science.gov (United States)

    McNeill, Tony

    2012-01-01

    The last 5 years have seen a growing number of universities use social media services such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube to engage with past, present and prospective students. More recently still, a number of universities have published policy or guidance documents on the use of social media for a range of university-related purposes including…

  9. Social Capital and Longitudinal Change in Sustainability Plans and Policies: U.S. Cities from 2000 to 2010

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    John Pierce

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available This study examines changes from 2000 to 2010 in the adoption of sustainability plans and policies in a sample of U.S. cities. The study’s framework posits sustainability initiatives as communitarian outcomes intended to meet the needs of both current and future generations. We hypothesize, accordingly, that a community’s social capital level, in the form of the relative presence of social trust, is a primary facilitating condition for the adoption of sustainability initiatives. The analysis assesses whether trust-based social capital is similarly associated with the adoption of plans and policies at both time points (2000 and 2010, as well as whether social capital is associated with change in the adoption levels documented across the ten-year period. The paper concludes by suggesting that the effect of social capital is substantially reduced in 2010 as a consequence of institutional network dynamics featured in the theory of isomorphic change.

  10. Family and gender policies in Norway

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Arlung, Liera

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available The NorSpaR project aims to analyse the main public policy initiatives by which Norway and Spain cope with the new social and economic challenges derived from the so-called New Social Risks (NSR. Although both countries present significant differences in their institutional settings (such as Spanish EU membership, or its belonging to diverse welfare regimes types (Norway is generally included in the Nordic regime, while Spain is part of the Mediterranean one, both countries share a common interest in addressing the aforementioned challenges while maintaining social cohesion. In the last decade, governments in both countries have tried to respond to those challenges by reforming their labour markets, adapting their unemployment schemes, as well as their gender, family and long-term care policies. The analysis covered in this project includes three areas of public policy addressing NSR. First, dependency is one of the most daunting challenges for post-industrial societies experiencing population ageing and with an increasing number of frail people in need of care. This situation is forcing governments to rethink their long-term care policies. Second, family and gender public programs need to respond to the growing difficulties of families in reconciling professional and family life. Third, in the transition to a post-industrial order, and in a context of mass unemployment, social protection systems have a renewed prominence. Along with the so-called passive policies offering financial support to the unemployed, active labour market policies are geared to put people back into work. In our analysis we try to find answers to the following questions: What are the challenges that each of these policies have been trying to address in recent years? How have these policies evolved? What kinds of reforms have been implemented, and which ones have been neglected? Have the policy goals and targets of welfare programs been modified in any significant way

  11. Unemployment and activation policies in Norway

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Barth, Erling

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available The NorSpaR project aims to analyse the main public policy initiatives by which Norway and Spain cope with the new social and economic challenges derived from the so-called New Social Risks (NSR. Although both countries present significant differences in their institutional settings (such as Spanish EU membership, or its belonging to diverse welfare regimes types (Norway is generally included in the Nordic regime, while Spain is part of the Mediterranean one, both countries share a common interest in addressing the aforementioned challenges while maintaining social cohesion. In the last decade, governments in both countries have tried to respond to those challenges by reforming their labour markets, adapting their unemployment schemes, as well as their gender, family and long-term care policies. The analysis covered in this project includes three areas of public policy addressing NSR. First, dependency is one of the most daunting challenges for post-industrial societies experiencing population ageing and with an increasing number of frail people in need of care. This situation is forcing governments to rethink their long-term care policies. Second, family and gender public programs need to respond to the growing difficulties of families in reconciling professional and family life. Third, in the transition to a post-industrial order, and in a context of mass unemployment, social protection systems have a renewed prominence. Along with the so-called passive policies offering financial support to the unemployed, active labour market policies are geared to put people back into work. In our analysis we try to find answers to the following questions: What are the challenges that each of these policies have been trying to address in recent years? How have these policies evolved? What kinds of reforms have been implemented, and which ones have been neglected? Have the policy goals and targets of welfare programs been modified in any significant way

  12. The Zero Hunger and Brazil without Extreme Poverty programs: a step forward in Brazilian social protection policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paes-Sousa, Romulo; Vaitsman, Jeni

    2014-11-01

    Brazilian social protection programs have had consistent effects in reducing poverty and inequality among their respective target-groups: children, adolescents and pregnant and breastfeeding women. In 2011, the Brazil without Extreme Poverty program was launched as a strategy to eradicate extreme poverty by 2014. It makes the promotion of rights the core concept of the official political narrative. This study seeks to provide a systematic description of the Brazil without Extreme Poverty program and its initial results. A review of official documents and academic studies on the social protection programs was conducted. The Brazil without Extreme Poverty program represents an incremental approach to the social protection policies enacted by the previous administration. It advocates a multidimensional and focused approach, funded primarily by the federal government. The strategy subscribes to the international trend of associating social protection with employment and income generation policies.

  13. Health systems as defences against the consequences of poverty: equity in health as social justice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mburu, F M

    1983-01-01

    The main development problems in the Third World are known to be gross socioeconomic inequality, widespread poor health status accompanied by high fertility and infant mortality rates, low life expectancy, mass illiteracy and mass poverty. In most of these countries governments invest a great deal of scarce resources toward the consequences of poverty rather than it causes. The paucity of resources for such social services is exacerbated by continuously increasing demands and needs which have to be satisfied. Unmet needs tend to cause apathy in the population. For purposes of controlling poverty and its consequences, these must be clearly formulated and relevant policies, a commitment to implement such policies, adequate administrative capacity and reasonably adequate resources. In the case of the health services system, the same requirements apply. Above all, the health system has to be directed toward the greatest needs of the population. This must involve policy makers, implementors and the consumer community. This paper argues that health systems cannot be an effective weapon against the consequences of poverty unless the above kinds of policy exist and are implemented.

  14. School practices to promote social distancing in K-12 schools: review of influenza pandemic policies and practices.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Uscher-Pines, Lori; Schwartz, Heather L; Ahmed, Faruque; Zheteyeva, Yenlik; Meza, Erika; Baker, Garrett; Uzicanin, Amra

    2018-03-27

    During an evolving influenza pandemic, community mitigation strategies, such as social distancing, can slow down virus transmission in schools and surrounding communities. To date, research on school practices to promote social distancing in primary and secondary schools has focused on prolonged school closure, with little attention paid to the identification and feasibility of other more sustainable interventions. To develop a list and typology of school practices that have been proposed and/or implemented in an influenza pandemic and to uncover any barriers identified, lessons learned from their use, and documented impacts. We conducted a review of the peer-reviewed and grey literature on social distancing interventions in schools other than school closure. We also collected state government guidance documents directed to local education agencies or schools to assess state policies regarding social distancing. We collected standardized information from each document using an abstraction form and generated descriptive statistics on common plan elements. The document review revealed limited literature on school practices to promote social distancing, as well as limited incorporation of school practices to promote social distancing into state government guidance documents. Among the 38 states that had guidance documents that met inclusion criteria, fewer than half (42%) mentioned a single school practice to promote social distancing, and none provided any substantive detail about the policies or practices needed to enact them. The most frequently identified school practices were cancelling or postponing after-school activities, canceling classes or activities with a high rate of mixing/contact that occur within the school day, and reducing mixing during transport. Little information is available to schools to develop policies and procedures on social distancing. Additional research and guidance are needed to assess the feasibility and effectiveness of school

  15. EMPLOYMENT OF YOUTH: PROBLEMS, PLACE IN SYSTEM OF SOCIAL VALUES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aleksandr Nikolaevich Gostev

    2016-01-01

    The study found that good employment – the main purpose of life of the general population. For the mechanism of the strategic management of the employment of human productive capacity is essential willingness to work professional graduate school, which has a complex structure, including cognitive, motivational, volitional, and other elements, each of which is able to destroy the whole system. Employed – the foundation of all social and moral values of young people, the condition is stable order, civic responsibility and political activity, patriotism, national unity, national security. This social phenomenon in terms of increase of the number of threats to national security is becoming a priority in government policy. Employed young people and their moral values are in direct relation.

  16. Social Entrepreneurship: a Reflection for Adopting Public Policies that Support the Third Sector in Brazil

    OpenAIRE

    Borges Ladeira, Francielli Martins; Vier Machado, Hilka

    2013-01-01

    Interest in social entrepreneurship is growing widely not only in Brazil but in the world. Several developed countries have stepped forward to develop policies to support this area not only as a tool to fulfill the government failures such as poverty, health, education, unemployment among others, but also because of all the benefits that social enterprises have in relation to society. However, it is possible to identify a lack of political support for social entrepreneurship in Brazil. Given ...

  17. La política social en el plan de desarrollo Social policy in the development plan change to build peace

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Corredor Martínez Consuelo

    1999-06-01

    Full Text Available La tesis central de este articulo es que el actual Plan de Desarrollo mantiene -en forma equivocada- la dicotomia entre politica economica y politica social, y que esta ultima continua atrapada en una vision de complementariedad que lleva a persistir entre en el asistencialismo y a subestimar la complejidad de los factores estructurales y coyunturales que estan en la raiz de la violencia y la pobreza, dos problemas que el plan considera centrales.The central thesis of this article is that the current Development Plan maintains -mistakenly- the dichotomy between economic policy and social policy, and that the latter continues to be trapped in a vision of complementarity which leads to the persistence of assistentialism and to underestimating the complexity of the structural and conjunctural factors which are at the root of violence and poverty, two problems which the Plan considers central.

  18. Public Policies for Corporate Social Responsibility in Four Nordic Countries: Harmony of Goals and Conflict of Means

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Midttun, A.; Gjølberg, M.; Kourula, A.; Sweet, S.; Vallentin, S.

    2015-01-01

    Corporate social responsibility (CSR) was historically a business-oriented idea that companies should voluntarily improve their social and environmental practices. More recently, CSR has increasingly attracted governments’ attention, and is now promoted in public policy, especially in the European

  19. Social Justice for Crossover Youth: The Intersection of the Child Welfare and Juvenile Justice Systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kolivoski, Karen M; Goodkind, Sara; Shook, Jeffrey J

    2017-10-01

    Social workers are critical to promoting racial and social justice. "Crossover youth," a term used to describe youths who have contact with both the child welfare and juvenile justice systems, are an especially vulnerable but often overlooked population with whom social workers engage. A disproportionate number of crossover youth are African American. Empirical research on crossover youth is growing, but such scholarship rarely engages with a human rights and social justice perspective. African American children and youths have a distinct place within the history and current context of the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. These systems have historically excluded them or treated them differently; now, African American youths are overrepresented in each of them, and evidence suggests they are more likely to cross over. The purpose of this article is to describe the historical and current context of crossover youth, with a particular focus on African American youths, to provide the foundation for a discussion of what social workers can do to promote racial and social justice for crossover youth, including specific implications for practice and policy, as well as broader implications for human and civil rights. © 2017 National Association of Social Workers.

  20. The Social Geography of Choice: Neighborhoods' Role in Students' Navigation of School Choice Policy in Chicago

    Science.gov (United States)

    Phillippo, Kate L.; Griffin, Briellen

    2016-01-01

    This study extends research on school choice policy, and on the geography of educational opportunity, by exploring how students understand their school choices and select from them within social-geographical space. Using a conceptual framework that draws from situated social cognition and recent research on neighborhood effects, this study…

  1. A Comparison of Symbolic Racism Theory and Social Dominance Theory as Explanations for Racial Policy Attitudes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sidanius, Jim; And Others

    1992-01-01

    Defines symbolic racism theory and social dominance theory. Compares the two theories and how they affect racial policy attitudes such as busing, affirmative action, and welfare. Explains that the study reanalyses data previously collected. Discusses symbolic racism as a legitimizing myth. Reports that social dominance theory was more consistent…

  2. Access Denied: School Librarians' Responses to School District Policies on the Use of Social Media Tools

    Science.gov (United States)

    DiScala, Jeffrey; Weeks, Ann Carlson

    2013-01-01

    Public school districts often block access to online social media tools. While considered a preventive measure to ensure student safety and limit district liability, this policy strips school librarians and their collaborating teachers of opportunities to instruct students in using social media tools creatively and responsibly. Using one school…

  3. Leading Schools to Promote Social Inclusion: Developing a Conceptual Framework for Analysing Research, Policy and Practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Raffo, Carlo; Gunter, Helen

    2008-01-01

    Although much research has focussed on how various educational policy initiatives have attempted to improve problems of social exclusion, little research has systematically examined, categorised and synthesised the types of leadership in schools that might assist improving social inclusion. Given the importance of school leadership in New Labour…

  4. Towards Static Analysis of Policy-Based Self-adaptive Computing Systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Margheri, Andrea; Nielson, Hanne Riis; Nielson, Flemming

    2016-01-01

    For supporting the design of self-adaptive computing systems, the PSCEL language offers a principled approach that relies on declarative definitions of adaptation and authorisation policies enforced at runtime. Policies permit managing system components by regulating their interactions...... and by dynamically introducing new actions to accomplish task-oriented goals. However, the runtime evaluation of policies and their effects on system components make the prediction of system behaviour challenging. In this paper, we introduce the construction of a flow graph that statically points out the policy...... evaluations that can take place at runtime and exploit it to analyse the effects of policy evaluations on the progress of system components....

  5. Unpacking the social construction of 'natural' disaster through policy discourses and institutional responses in Mexico: the case of Chalco Valley's floods, State of Mexico

    OpenAIRE

    Aragón-Durand, F. d. J.

    2009-01-01

    This research analyses 'natural' disaster policies for Mexico. The objective is to demonstrate that 'natural' disaster and the policies oriented to prevent them are socially constructed. It adopts a constructionist perspective because it is concerned with the understanding of collective social constructions of meaning and knowledge that are determined by political and social processes. This study focuses on the relation between the discourses of disaster causality, policy problem construction...

  6. Towards a Capability-Based Theory of Social Justice for Education Policy-Making

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walker, Melanie

    2006-01-01

    Increasingly there is interest in development studies and specifically in the field of education in taking up Amartya Sen's capability approach as a framework for theorizing, implementing and evaluating education policy as a matter of social justice. This paper sets out to contribute to the emerging debate and to show how the capability approach…

  7. Effect of different economic support policies on the optimal synthesis and operation of a distributed energy supply system with renewable energy sources for an industrial area

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Casisi, Melchiorre; De Nardi, Alberto; Pinamonti, Piero; Reini, Mauro

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • MILP model optimization identifies best structure and operation of an energy system. • Total cost of the system is minimized according to industrial stakeholders wills. • Effects of the adoption of economic support policies on the system are evaluated. • Social cost of incentives is comparted with correspondent CO 2 emission reduction. • Support schemes that promote an actual environmental benefit are highlighted. - Abstract: Economic support policies are widely adopted in European countries in order to promote a more efficient energy usage and the growth of renewable energy technologies. On one hand these schemes allow us to reduce the overall pollutant emissions and the total cost from the point of view of the energy systems, but on the other hand their social impact in terms of economic investment needs to be evaluated. The aim of this paper is to compare the social cost of the application of each incentive with the correspondent CO 2 emission reduction and overall energy saving. A Mixed Integer Linear Programming optimization procedure is used to evaluate the effect of different economic support policies on the optimal configuration and operation of a distributed energy supply system of an industrial area located in the north-east of Italy. The minimized objective function is the total annual cost for owning, operating and maintaining the whole energy system. The expectation is that a proper mix of renewable energy technologies and cogeneration systems will be included in the optimal solution, depending on the amount and nature of the supporting policies, highlighting the incentives that promote a real environmental benefit

  8. Macroprudential policies on banking system

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ionuţ Mircea

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available The macro-prudential tool kit deals with those risks that contributed to the outbreak of the last economic crisis or materialized during it, namely the excessive credit growth, the excessive price assets growth driven by the credit growth, the excessive increase in leverage, the liquidity risk, the volatile capital flows and foreign currency lending. It can be argued that macro-prudential policies underestimated the systemic risks mentioned, although they were better positioned than other policies aimed at financial stability. The impact of macro-prudential policy is difficult to be determined, because is usually applied simultaneously and in the same direction with other macroeconomic policies. Thus, it is necessary a better coordination of policies and a better calibration of instruments in order to get a quick and effective response during their implementation. These must be in line with national specificities and the risks identified. Until the new macro-prudential tools introduced by Basel III will prove their effectiveness, the issue of finding proper tools is still open.

  9. Social Policies and Families in Stress: Gender and Educational Differences in Work-Family Conflict from a European Perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Notten, Natascha; Grunow, Daniela; Verbakel, Ellen

    2017-01-01

    In modern welfare states, family policies may resolve the tension between employment and care-focused demands. However these policies sometimes have adverse consequences for distinct social groups. This study examined gender and educational differences in working parents' perceived work-family conflict and used a comparative approach to test whether family policies, in particular support for child care and leave from paid work, are capable of reducing work-family conflict as well as the gender and educational gaps in work-family conflict. We use data from the European Social Survey 2010 for 20 countries and 5296 respondents (parents), extended with information on national policies for maternity and parental leave and child care support from the OECD Family Database. Employing multilevel analysis, we find that mothers and the higher educated report most work-family conflict. Policies supporting child care reduce the level of experienced work-family conflict; family leave policy appears to have no alleviating impact on working parents' work-family conflict. Our findings indicate that family policies appear to be unable to reduce the gender gap in conflict perception and even widen the educational gap in work-family conflict.

  10. The potential of transnational language policy to promote social inclusion of immigrants: An analysis and evaluation of the European Union's INCLUDE project

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bian, Cui

    2017-08-01

    Language issues and social inclusion consistently remain two major concerns for member countries of the European Union (EU). Despite an increasing awareness of the importance of language learning in migrants' social inclusion, and the promotion of language policies at European and national levels, there is still a lack of common actions at the European level. Challenged by questions as to whether language learning should be prioritised as a human right or as human capital building, how host/mainstream language learning can be reinforced while respecting language diversity, and other problems, member countries still need to find solutions. Confronting these dilemmas, this study analyses the relationship and interactions between language learning and immigrants' social inclusion in different contexts. It explores the potential of enhancing the effectiveness of language policies via a dialogue between policies and practices in different national contexts and research studies in the field of language and social inclusion. The research data are derived from two databases created by a European policy for active social inclusion project called INCLUDE. This project ran from 2013 to 2016 under the EU's lifelong learning programme, with funding support from the European Commission. Through an analysis of these two project databases, the paper reviews recent national language policies and their effect on the social inclusion of migrants. In the second part of her article, the author interprets the process of language learning and social inclusion using poststructuralist theories of language and identity.

  11. A Framework for Educating Health Professionals to Address the Social Determinants of Health

    Science.gov (United States)

    National Academies Press, 2016

    2016-01-01

    The World Health Organization defines the social determinants of health as "the conditions in which people are born, grow, work, live, and age, and the wider set of forces and systems shaping the conditions of daily life." These forces and systems include economic policies, development agendas, cultural and social norms, social policies,…

  12. Social learning and public policy: Lessons from an energy-conscious village

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Darby, Sarah

    2006-01-01

    Social learning is a prerequisite for sustainable energy use. This paper sets out some considerations from learning theory that offer a useful way of looking at domestic energy awareness and at actions to improve energy efficiency and conserve energy. Findings from a survey of residents of an English village that had won an 'energy-conscious village' competition are used to illustrate how individual and social learning can occur over a period of time, and how a 'top down' initiative may relate to other more informal sources of motivation and information. A model of learning about domestic energy use that incorporates awareness, action and feedback is proposed, and the implications for policy and further research are discussed

  13. ‘Excuse me, sir. Please don’t smoke here’. A qualitative study of social enforcement of smoke-free policies in Indonesia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaufman, Michelle R; Merritt, Alice Payne; Rimbatmaja, Risang; Cohen, Joanna E

    2015-01-01

    Objective District policies were recently put into place in Indonesia prohibiting smoking in public spaces. This study sought to (1) assess participants’ general knowledge of secondhand smoke (SHS) dangers; (2) assess participants’ awareness of and specific knowledge of smoke-free (SF) policies; and (3) assess the extent to which such policies are socially enforced and gather examples of successful social enforcement. Methods Qualitative in-depth interviews and focus group discussions were conducted in Bogor and Palembang cities with both community members and key informants such as government officials, non-government agency staff, religious leaders and health workers. Results Participants in both Palembang and Bogor find SF policy important. Although there was awareness of SHS dangers and SF policies, accurate knowledge of the dangers and an in-depth understanding of the policies varied. There was a high level of support for the SF policies in both cities among both smokers and non-smokers. Many participants did have experience asking a smoker not to smoke in an area where it was restricted, even if their comfort in doing so varied. There was, however, a higher level of comfort in telling smokers to stop or to move away from pregnant women and children. Hesitation to socially enforce the policies was especially present when asking men of status and/or community leaders to stop smoking, but overall participants felt they could comfortably ask someone to obey the law. Conclusion Palembang and Bogor may be evolving towards creating social norms in support of prohibiting smoking in public spaces. If provided with more support from government and law officials, such as government officials themselves promoting the policies and demonstrating compliance, and renewed efforts to promote and enforce policies in general were made, Indonesians in these cities may feel more confident protecting non-smokers from SHS. PMID:25244917

  14. Energy policy, social exclusion and sustainable development: The biofuels and oil and gas cases in Brazil

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hall, Jeremy; Matos, Stelvia; Silvestre, Bruno

    2010-09-15

    Recent Brazilian policies have encouraged impoverished communities to participate in the country's growing energy industry. This paper explores the country's attempts to encourage such participation within the oil and gas and biofuels sectors. Our research is based on interviews with industry executives, policymakers, non-governmental organizations and farmers conducted between 2005-2009 in Brazil, an emerging energy leader, yet a country grappling with social exclusion. We propose that some sectors have a propensity to be exclusive due to technological complexity, whereas other sectors, although less complex, tend to economize at the expense of social programs. We conclude with managerial and policy implications.

  15. Social accountability in the extractive industries: a review of the ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Lack of a proper social accountability system and practice are among the major factors contributing to the problem. As a result, social accountability has received attention from policy makers, policy researchers and donors. This research, based on desk reviews, tries to discuss the concepts, actors and mechanisms of social ...

  16. Intersectorality and social participation as coping policies for health inequities-worldwide

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Regina Celia Fiorati

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available Objective: To determine the impact that intersectoral policies and social participation, implemented worldwide, have had on the modification of the social determinants for health and on the reduction of social health inequities. Method: A scoping review of the literature published in the period 2005-2015 was performed. The literature search was conducted on PubMed and Scielo databases. Two researchers reviewed each document. Data were analysed according to the intersectoral action and social participation variables and according to the theoretical frameworks of the Social Determinants Model of the Commission on Social Determinants of Health (CSDH and the theoretical constructs of Social Capital (SC and Life Course (LC. Results: Out of 45 documents likely to be selected for final review, all of them based on title and abstract, 20 documents were eventually picked out and analysed; most them (n = 8 were conducted in all Latin America and Latin America's countries. Twelve documents reported intersectoral action associated with social participation in partnership with different institutions. Regarding theoretical frameworks, most of studies (n = 8 used CSDH and SC. In relation to health outcomes, the studies showed mainly: increased access to health and education, follow-up of pregnant women, increasing in prenatal examinations, reduction in malnutrition/child mortality, reduction in extreme poverty/hunger; reduction in epidemics/tuberculosis, control of alcohol/drug consumption, promotion of health/mental as well as basic sanitation improvements. Conclusions: Intersectoral and social participation experiences studied yielded positive outcomes regarding health status and quality of life in the communities in which such experiences were implemented. Resumen: Objetivo: Determinar el impacto que las políticas intersectoriales y la participación social, implementadas en todo el mundo, han tenido tanto en la modificación de los determinantes sociales

  17. Results and Lessons Learned from a Coupled Social and Physical Hydrology Model: Testing Alternative Water Management Policies and Institutional Structures Using Agent-Based Modeling and Regional Hydrology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murphy, J.; Lammers, R. B.; Prousevitch, A.; Ozik, J.; Altaweel, M.; Collier, N. T.; Kliskey, A. D.; Alessa, L.

    2015-12-01

    Water Management in the U.S. Southwest is under increasing scrutiny as many areas endure persistent drought. The impact of these prolonged dry conditions is a product of regional climate and hydrological conditions, but also of a highly engineered water management infrastructure and a complex web of social arrangements whereby water is allocated, shared, exchanged, used, re-used, and finally consumed. We coupled an agent-based model with a regional hydrological model to understand the dynamics in one richly studied and highly populous area: southern Arizona, U.S.A., including metropolitan Phoenix and Tucson. There, multiple management entities representing an array of municipalities and other water providers and customers, including private companies and Native American tribes are enmeshed in a complex legal and economic context in which water is bought, leased, banked, and exchanged in a variety of ways and on multiple temporal and physical scales. A recurrent question in the literature of adaptive management is the impact of management structure on overall system performance. To explore this, we constructed an agent-based model to capture this social complexity, and coupled this with a physical hydrological model that we used to drive the system under a variety of water stress scenarios and to assess the regional impact of the social system's performance. We report the outcomes of ensembles of runs in which varieties of alternative policy constraints and management strategies are considered. We hope to contribute to policy discussions in this area and connected and legislatively similar areas (such as California) as current conditions change and existing legal and policy structures are revised. Additionally, we comment on the challenges of integrating models that ostensibly are in different domains (physical and social) but that independently represent a system in which physical processes and human actions are closely intertwined and difficult to disentangle.

  18. 'Excuse me, sir. Please don't smoke here'. A qualitative study of social enforcement of smoke-free policies in Indonesia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaufman, Michelle R; Merritt, Alice Payne; Rimbatmaja, Risang; Cohen, Joanna E

    2015-10-01

    District policies were recently put into place in Indonesia prohibiting smoking in public spaces. This study sought to (1) assess participants' general knowledge of secondhand smoke (SHS) dangers; (2) assess participants' awareness of and specific knowledge of smoke-free (SF) policies; and (3) assess the extent to which such policies are socially enforced and gather examples of successful social enforcement. Qualitative in-depth interviews and focus group discussions were conducted in Bogor and Palembang cities with both community members and key informants such as government officials, non-government agency staff, religious leaders and health workers. Participants in both Palembang and Bogor find SF policy important. Although there was awareness of SHS dangers and SF policies, accurate knowledge of the dangers and an in-depth understanding of the policies varied. There was a high level of support for the SF policies in both cities among both smokers and non-smokers. Many participants did have experience asking a smoker not to smoke in an area where it was restricted, even if their comfort in doing so varied. There was, however, a higher level of comfort in telling smokers to stop or to move away from pregnant women and children. Hesitation to socially enforce the policies was especially present when asking men of status and/or community leaders to stop smoking, but overall participants felt they could comfortably ask someone to obey the law. Palembang and Bogor may be evolving towards creating social norms in support of prohibiting smoking in public spaces. If provided with more support from government and law officials, such as government officials themselves promoting the policies and demonstrating compliance, and renewed efforts to promote and enforce policies in general were made, Indonesians in these cities may feel more confident protecting non-smokers from SHS. Published by Oxford University Press in association with The London School of Hygiene and

  19. A Qualitative Methodological Framework to Assess Uptake of Evidence on Social Determinants of Health in Health Policy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fisher, Matthew; Baum, Frances; MacDougall, Colin; Newman, Lareen; McDermott, Dennis

    2015-01-01

    Despite abundant evidence on social determinants of health (SDH) and health inequities, effective uptake of the evidence in health policies of high-income countries has been limited. Health policies might acknowledge evidence on SDH but still direct most strategies towards biomedical and behavioural interventions. This article reports on a…

  20. Learning Companion Systems, Social Learning Systems, and the Global Social Learning Club.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chan, Tak-Wai

    1996-01-01

    Describes the development of learning companion systems and their contributions to the class of social learning systems that integrate artificial intelligence agents and use machine learning to tutor and interact with students. Outlines initial social learning projects, their programming languages, and weakness. Future improvements will include…

  1. Social policies and families in stress: Gender and educational differences in work-family conflict from a European perspective

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Notten, N.J.W.R.; Grunow, D.; Verbakel, C.M.C.

    2017-01-01

    In modern welfare states, family policies may resolve the tension between employment and care-focused demands. However these policies sometimes have adverse consequences for distinct social groups. This study examined gender and educational differences in working parents' perceived work-family

  2. Social Entrepreneurship and Mobilisation of Social Capital in European Social Enterprise - (Korean translation)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hulgård, Lars; Spear, Roger

    2011-01-01

    Korean translation of ”Social Entrepreneurship and Mobilisation of Social Capital in European Social Enterprise”, with Roger Spear. In Marthe Nyssens (ed.) Social Enterprises: between Market, Public Policies and Community. London: Routledge.......Korean translation of ”Social Entrepreneurship and Mobilisation of Social Capital in European Social Enterprise”, with Roger Spear. In Marthe Nyssens (ed.) Social Enterprises: between Market, Public Policies and Community. London: Routledge....

  3. The formation of ‘policy truths’: Foucault and social policy discourse

    OpenAIRE

    Pickerden, Alex; Evans, Donna; Piggott, David

    2015-01-01

    Discuss current approaches to policy analysis Illustrate an alternative method for policy analysis influenced by the theoretical concepts of Michel Foucault Briefly analyse current research which has focused upon education policy and education reform in the United Kingdom (UK) Introduce the concept of ‘policy truths’ and explain how this idea can aid in the critique of neoliberal policies and neoliberal governmentality

  4. Pricing Policy, Social Equity and Institutional Survival in Tertiary Education in New Jersey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Alfred M.

    New Jersey aids private institutions but is deficit in low-priced open access to public colleges. Discussed is higher education in New Jersey in light of this historical condition; pricing policy; social equity; decisions, especially regarding institutional support, student aid, and public tuition; and the "free market." While the…

  5. OPTIMIZATION OF THE RUSSIAN MACROECONOMIC POLICY FOR 2016-2020

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gilmundinov V. M.

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper is concerned with the methodological issues of economic policy elaboration and optimization of economic policy instruments’ parameters. Actuality of this research is provided by growing complexity of social and economic systems, important state role in their functioning as well as multi-targets of economic policy with limited number of instruments. Considering a big variety of internal and external restrictions of social and economic development of modern Russia it has wide range of applications. Extension of the dynamic econometric general equilibrium input-output model of the Russian economy with development of the sub-model of economic policy optimization is a key purpose of this study. The sub-model of economic policy optimization allows estimating impact of economic policy measures on target indicators as well as defining optimal values of their parameters. For this purpose, we extend Robert Mundell’s approach by considering dynamic optimization and wider range of economic policy targets and measures. Use of general equilibrium input-output model allows considering impact of economic policy on different aggregate markets and sectors. Approbation of suggested approach allows us to develop multi-variant forecast for the Russian economy for 2016-2020, define optimal values of monetary policy parameters and compare considered variants by values of social losses. The obtained results could be further used in theoretical as well as applied researches concerned with issues of economic policy elaboration and forecasting of social and economic development.

  6. The tool of power legitimisation and guardianship. Social policy and its implementation in the pension systems of Czechoslovakia and the German Democratic Republic (1970-1989)

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Vilímek, Tomáš

    2015-01-01

    Roč. 3, č. 1 (2015), s. 57-89 ISSN 2336-3142 Institutional support: RVO:68378114 Keywords : social policies * normalization * Czechoslovakia 1970-1989 * East Germany 1970-1989 Subject RIV: AB - History http://www.usd.cas.cz/casopis/czech-journal-of-contemporary-history-3-2015/

  7. The role of social participation in municipal-level health systems: the case of Palencia, Guatemala

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruano, Ana Lorena

    2013-01-01

    Background Social participation has been recognized as an important public health policy since the declaration of Alma-Ata presented it as one of the pillars of primary health care in 1978. Since then, there have been many adaptations to the original policy but participation in health is still seen as a means to make the health system more responsive to local health needs and as a way to bring the health sector and the community closer together. Objective To explore the role that social participation has in a municipal-level health system in Guatemala in order to inform future policies and programs. Design Documentary analysis was used to study the context of participation in Guatemala. To do this, written records and accounts of Guatemalan history during the 20th century were reviewed. The fieldwork was carried out over 8 months and three field visits were conducted between early January of 2009 and late March of 2010. A total of 38 in-depth interviews with regional health authorities, district health authorities, community representatives, and community health workers (CHWs) were conducted. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Results Guatemala's armed civil struggle was framed in the cold war and the fight against communism. Locally, the war was fed by the growing social, political, and ethnic inequalities that existed in the country. The process of reconstructing the country's social fabric started with the signing of the peace agreements of 1996, and continued with the passing of the 2002 legal framework designed to promote decentralization through social participation. Today, Guatemala is a post-war society that is trying to foster participation in a context full of challenges for the population and for the institutions that promote it. In the municipality of Palencia, there are three different spaces for participation in health: the municipal-level health commission, in community-level social development councils, and in the CHW program. Each of these

  8. The role of social participation in municipal-level health systems: the case of Palencia, Guatemala.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruano, Ana Lorena

    2013-09-10

    Social participation has been recognized as an important public health policy since the declaration of Alma-Ata presented it as one of the pillars of primary health care in 1978. Since then, there have been many adaptations to the original policy but participation in health is still seen as a means to make the health system more responsive to local health needs and as a way to bring the health sector and the community closer together. To explore the role that social participation has in a municipal-level health system in Guatemala in order to inform future policies and programs. Documentary analysis was used to study the context of participation in Guatemala. To do this, written records and accounts of Guatemalan history during the 20th century were reviewed. The fieldwork was carried out over 8 months and three field visits were conducted between early January of 2009 and late March of 2010. A total of 38 in-depth interviews with regional health authorities, district health authorities, community representatives, and community health workers (CHWs) were conducted. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Guatemala's armed civil struggle was framed in the cold war and the fight against communism. Locally, the war was fed by the growing social, political, and ethnic inequalities that existed in the country. The process of reconstructing the country's social fabric started with the signing of the peace agreements of 1996, and continued with the passing of the 2002 legal framework designed to promote decentralization through social participation. Today, Guatemala is a post-war society that is trying to foster participation in a context full of challenges for the population and for the institutions that promote it. In the municipality of Palencia, there are three different spaces for participation in health: the municipal-level health commission, in community-level social development councils, and in the CHW program. Each of these spaces has participants with

  9. The role of social participation in municipal-level health systems: the case of Palencia, Guatemala

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ana Lorena Ruano

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available Background: Social participation has been recognized as an important public health policy since the declaration of Alma-Ata presented it as one of the pillars of primary health care in 1978. Since then, there have been many adaptations to the original policy but participation in health is still seen as a means to make the health system more responsive to local health needs and as a way to bring the health sector and the community closer together. Objective: To explore the role that social participation has in a municipal-level health system in Guatemala in order to inform future policies and programs. Design: Documentary analysis was used to study the context of participation in Guatemala. To do this, written records and accounts of Guatemalan history during the 20th century were reviewed. The fieldwork was carried out over 8 months and three field visits were conducted between early January of 2009 and late March of 2010. A total of 38 in-depth interviews with regional health authorities, district health authorities, community representatives, and community health workers (CHWs were conducted. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Results: Guatemala's armed civil struggle was framed in the cold war and the fight against communism. Locally, the war was fed by the growing social, political, and ethnic inequalities that existed in the country. The process of reconstructing the country's social fabric started with the signing of the peace agreements of 1996, and continued with the passing of the 2002 legal framework designed to promote decentralization through social participation. Today, Guatemala is a post-war society that is trying to foster participation in a context full of challenges for the population and for the institutions that promote it. In the municipality of Palencia, there are three different spaces for participation in health: the municipal-level health commission, in community-level social development councils, and in the CHW

  10. nstitutional Capacities and Social Policy Implementation: Maternal Child Health and Nutrition Programmes in Argentina and Chile (1930-2000

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alma Idiart

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available This article compares maternal child health and nutrition programmes in Argentina and Chile, focusing on long-term institutional features and the central neo-liberal trends organizing social reforms during the 1980s and the 1990s. Objective: To carry out a comparative study of the ransformations of Maternal Child Health and Nutrition Programmes, taking into account three intertwined issues: social policies, institutional capacity, and policy implementation. Methodology: The documentary analysis done in this article is framed in the structural force model of Carmelo Mesa-Lago and the polity-centred structure model of Theda Skocpol. Conclusions: Despite relatively similar policy lines implemented in both countries, the contrasting long-term institutional features (Chilean programmes addressed maternal and child health more efficiently than the Argentines account for most of the variation in the overall process of reform implementation and the performance of maternal and child health policies.

  11. Life Cycle Assessment of Energy Systems: Closing the Ethical Loophole of Social Sustainability

    OpenAIRE

    Sakellariou, Nikolaos

    2015-01-01

    AbstractLife Cycle Assessment of Energy Systems: Closing the Ethical Loophole of Social SustainabilitybyNikolaos SakellariouDoctor of Philosophy in Environmental Science, Policy, and ManagementUniversity of California, BerkeleyProfessor Alastair T. Iles, ChairThis dissertation investigates the historical and normative bases of what contemporary engineers consider to be the embodiment of sustainability: Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). It explores the interplay among technology ethics, energy syst...

  12. Holidays for Children and Families in Need: An Exploration of the Research and Policy Context for Social Tourism in the UK

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hazel, Neal

    2005-01-01

    Although provision of holidays for families in need has been mainstreamed within the social care policies of many countries in the rest of Europe, "social tourism" has yet to be adopted in the United Kingdom. This article reports on a scoping study of research and policy in this area. While there is limited robust research on the impact…

  13. The new immigration contestation: social movements and local immigration policy making in the United States, 2000-2011.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Steil, Justin Peter; Vasi, Ion Bogdan

    2014-01-01

    Analyzing oppositional social movements in the context of municipal immigration ordinances, the authors examine whether the explanatory power of resource mobilization, political process, and strain theories of social movements' impact on policy outcomes differs when considering proactive as opposed to reactive movements. The adoption of pro-immigrant (proactive) ordinances was facilitated by the presence of immigrant community organizations and of sympathetic local political allies. The adoption of anti-immigrant (reactive) ordinances was influenced by structural social changes, such as rapid increases in the local Latino population, that were framed as threats. The study also finds that pro-immigrant protest events can influence policy in two ways, contributing both to the passage of pro-immigrant ordinances in the locality where protests occur and also inhibiting the passage of anti-immigrant ordinances in neighboring cities.

  14. Legislation affecting governmental assistance for children of parents with substance use: a policy analysis of social justice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Raynor, Phyllis; Williams, Pamela Holtzclaw

    2012-11-01

    There is legislation that withdraws governmental assistance where parents are using drugs. Social justice is an important consideration in any policy that modifies governmental assistance that benefits vulnerable children. The purpose of this policy analysis is to analyze identified legislation that effect governmental assistance for children in response to parents' substance misuse. A selective review of data-driven studies examined findings describing actual or potential effects on children of legislation targeting parental substance misuse. Challenges in design, processes, and implementation contribute to poor child outcomes. Identifiable constructs of social justice were missing in the reviewed legislation. Social injustice is a potential outcome for children when legislative intent focuses solely on addressing parental drug behaviors. Legislative alternatives to withdrawing support can address substance abuse while maintaining health promotion for these vulnerable children.

  15. Implementing public employment policy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Larsen, Flemming; Bredgaard, Thomas

    disciplining of the unemployed (work first) (cf.Bredgaard & Larsen, 2005; Sol & Westerweld, 2005). It is, however, remarkable that in the research field there seems to be a division of labour so that changes in public administration and changes in the substance of employment policies are dealt with separately......Like most other areas within welfare policy, the employment and social policy areas are undergoing far-reaching changes in many countries. Partly in the shape of new forms of governance inspired by New Public Management (NPM), partly through new policies oriented towards activation and stronger....... But there is an interesting question to investigate here: whether and if so how, NPM-inspired reforms are related to changes in employment policy towards a work-first approach? Are changes in public management systems created as deliberate policy changes, or do they bring about more indirect and unintended policy changes...

  16. Health policy, health systems research and analysis capacity ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Introduction: Health Policy and Systems Research and Analysis (HPSR&A) is an applied science that deals with complexity as it tries to provide lessons, tools and methods to understand and improve health systems and health policy. It is defined by the kinds of questions asked rather than a particular methodology.

  17. The Social Commerce System

    OpenAIRE

    Dubovyk Tetiana V.; Ortynska Valentyna V.

    2017-01-01

    The social commerce is a relatively new phenomenon, found in the little researched direction of trade. Research results by the authors have provided to systematize the views on the concept of «social commerce», characterize the social commerce system, propose measures to develop a social commerce strategy. The authors have defined the social commerce as expansion of e-commerce in the social networks on the Internet, in which social factors are significant, and consumers use the right to creat...

  18. Crisis, neoliberal health policy, and political processes in Mexico.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laurell, A C

    1991-01-01

    The Mexican case represents an orthodox neoliberal health policy in the context of the structural adjustment adopted by the Mexican government in 1983. The social costs of this strategy are very high, including an increase in unemployment, wage depression, regressive redistribution of wealth, and profound changes in social policies. These transformations are reflected in the health sector, where the four main axes of neoliberal policy--expenditure restrictions, targeting, decentralization, and privatization--have been implemented. This represents a change in social policy from a model based on citizens' social rights and the state's obligation to guarantee them, to a model characterized by selective public charity. This strategy has been imposed on society as a result of the Mexican corporative political regime based on a state party system. Since 1985, however, there has been a growing process of independent organization of civil society. This led in the presidential elections of 1988 to the defeat of the candidate of the governing party by the candidate of a popular-democratic opposition front. Although the government party imposed its candidate through electoral fraud, social mobilization against neoliberal policies continues in the midst of an important political crisis that can only be resolved by profound democratization of Mexican society.

  19. The research, policy and practice interface: reflections on using applied social research to promote equity in health in Malawi.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Theobald, Sally; Nhlema-Simwaka, Bertha

    2008-09-01

    The case for research to promote equity in health in resource poor contexts such as Malawi is compelling. In Malawi, nearly half of all the people with tuberculosis cannot afford to access free tuberculosis services. In this scenario, there is a clear need to understand the multiple barriers poor women and men face in accessing services and pilot interventions to address these in a way that engages policy makers, practitioners and communities. This paper provides a critical reflection on our experience as applied social researchers working at the REACH (Research for Equity and Community Health) Trust in Malawi. Our work largely uses qualitative research methodologies as a tool for applied social research to explore the equity dimensions of health services in the country. We argue that a key strength of qualitative research methods and analysis is the ability to bring the perceptions and experiences of marginalised groups to policy makers and practitioners. The focus of this paper is two-fold. The first focus lies in synthesising the opportunities and challenges we have encountered in promoting the use of applied social research, and in particular qualitative research methods, on TB and HIV in Malawi. The second focus is on documenting and reflecting on our experiences of using applied social research to promote gender equity in TB/HIV policy and practice in Malawi. In this paper, we reflect on the strategic frameworks we have used in the Malawian context to try and bring the voices of poor women and men to policy makers and practitioners and hence intensify the research to policy and practice interface.

  1. Social determinants of health in selected slum areas in Jordan: challenges and policy directions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ajlouni, Musa T

    2016-01-01

    The unplanned urbanization in Jordan has over time created many informal settlements "slums" around big cities as Amman, Zerka and Aqaba. The purpose of this study was to highlight the most common challenges related to social determinants of health in two selected slum areas in Amman and Aqaba and suggest policy directions and interventions to meet these challenges. In addition to a prestructured interview with all household heads living in the two slum sites, focus group meetings with a purposefully selected sample of 12 slum dwellers in each site were used to assess the structural and intermediary determinants of health as perceived by slum residents in the two study locations. The study found that slum residents in the two locations suffer from many challenges as severe poverty; unemployment; illiteracy and low education attainments; gender discrimination; insufficient and poor diet; social and official exclusion; unhealthy environment; lack of water supply, electricity and basic sanitation facilities; high prevalence of diseases; and insufficient and inappropriate health services. Specific policy directions to meet these challenges were recommended and grouped into three main clusters: social protection, social inclusion and empowerment. New plans and tools should be developed by local authorities in Jordan to understand, protect, include and empower those vulnerable people who are forced to live in these unhealthy and inhuman environments. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  2. Increasing social capital to combat social exclusion; The Social Action contribution

    OpenAIRE

    Boeck, T. G.; McCullogh, P.; Ward, David, 1946-

    2001-01-01

    This chapter explores some of the findings of a TSER Project "Making New Local Policies Against Social Exclusion In European Cities" which was based on European and local networks. The importance of this chapter was that it was one of the first to highlight the contextual importance of social capital. It has policy implications for drawing together issues of social exclusion and community cohesion. It influenced local policy making and was presented in several international conferences.

  3. 78 FR 70046 - Payment System Risk Policy; Daylight Overdraft Posting Rules

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-11-22

    ... FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM [Docket No. OP--1471] Payment System Risk Policy; Daylight Overdraft... Reserve Policy on Payment System Risk (PSR policy) to eliminate certain posting rules to conform with... Services Analyst (202- 452-2404), Division of Reserve Bank Operations and Payment Systems. For users of...

  4. Social Exclusion and Austerity Policies in England: The Role of Sports in a New Area of Social Polarisation and Inequality?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mike Collins

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available Poverty still counts as the core of social exclusion from sport and many other domains of people’s lives. In the first part of this paper, we shortly describe the recent poverty trends in England, and identify groups that are more at-risk of being poor and socially excluded. We then focus on the relationship between poverty, social exclusion and leisure/sports participation, and describe a case study that addresses young people’s social exclusion through the use of sports (i.e., Positive Futures. Although further analysis is warranted, it would seem that growing structural inequalities (including sport participation—with their concomitant effects on health and quality of life—are further widened and deepened by the policy measures taken by the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition in the UK. In addition, within a climate of austerity, sport-based social inclusion schemes are likely to become wholly inadequate in the face of exclusionary forces such schemes envision to combat.

  5. Verification of Security Policy Enforcement in Enterprise Systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gupta, Puneet; Stoller, Scott D.

    Many security requirements for enterprise systems can be expressed in a natural way as high-level access control policies. A high-level policy may refer to abstract information resources, independent of where the information is stored; it controls both direct and indirect accesses to the information; it may refer to the context of a request, i.e., the request’s path through the system; and its enforcement point and enforcement mechanism may be unspecified. Enforcement of a high-level policy may depend on the system architecture and the configurations of a variety of security mechanisms, such as firewalls, host login permissions, file permissions, DBMS access control, and application-specific security mechanisms. This paper presents a framework in which all of these can be conveniently and formally expressed, a method to verify that a high-level policy is enforced, and an algorithm to determine a trusted computing base for each resource.

  6. Intersectorality and social participation as coping policies for health inequities-worldwide.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fiorati, Regina Celia; Arcêncio, Ricardo A; Segura Del Pozo, Javier; Ramasco-Gutiérrez, Milagros; Serrano-Gallardo, Pilar

    2017-09-18

    To determine the impact that intersectoral policies and social participation, implemented worldwide, have had on the modification of the social determinants for health and on the reduction of social health inequities. A scoping review of the literature published in the period 2005-2015 was performed. The literature search was conducted on PubMed and Scielo databases. Two researchers reviewed each document. Data were analysed according to the intersectoral action and social participation variables and according to the theoretical frameworks of the Social Determinants Model of the Commission on Social Determinants of Health (CSDH) and the theoretical constructs of Social Capital (SC) and Life Course (LC). Out of 45 documents likely to be selected for final review, all of them based on title and abstract, 20 documents were eventually picked out and analysed; most them (n = 8) were conducted in all Latin America and Latin America's countries. Twelve documents reported intersectoral action associated with social participation in partnership with different institutions. Regarding theoretical frameworks, most of studies (n = 8) used CSDH and SC. In relation to health outcomes, the studies showed mainly: increased access to health and education, follow-up of pregnant women, increasing in prenatal examinations, reduction in malnutrition/child mortality, reduction in extreme poverty/hunger; reduction in epidemics/tuberculosis, control of alcohol/drug consumption, promotion of health/mental as well as basic sanitation improvements. Intersectoral and social participation experiences studied yielded positive outcomes regarding health status and quality of life in the communities in which such experiences were implemented. Copyright © 2017 SESPAS. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  7. Innovation Policy in European Union

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marta-Christina Suciu

    2006-11-01

    Full Text Available The innovation policies aim to analyze priority factors shaping innovative performance and to reflect the increasing appreciation of the economic and social importance of innovation. This paper is commissioned to examine topics of current interest or concern to innovation policy-makers in Europe. Based on literature and the framework of the European Action Plan for Innovation, this paper investigates different levels and fields of European innovational systems and practices.

  8. Land Politics under Market Socialism: The State, Land Policies, and Rural–Urban Land Conversion in China and Vietnam

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hoang Linh Nguyen

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available This paper undertakes a comparative analysis of rural–urban land conversion policies in China and Vietnam, and examines the ideology of the state in land policymaking under a market socialism environment. It argues that land policies in both countries include ambiguous boundaries, which allow the socialist state to legitimize its politico-administrative power in land management and retain strong intervention capacity in the land market. In addition to similarities, land policies in China and Vietnam show significant differences in terms of the ownership of rural land and related legislation on land expropriation and transactions. Together, these distinctions cause divergent impacts on the interests and motivations of multiple stakeholders in rural land conversion. It is further observed that the state in both countries is characterized by dynamic, complex, and self-coordinated institutional systems, in which multiple levels of government have different driving forces and strategies in land development. The internal structure of authority in rural–urban land conversion between the multiple levels of government is readjusted by the regulatory land control of the central government.

  9. Effect of smoke-free policies on the behaviour of social smokers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Philpot, S J; Ryan, S A; Torre, L E; Wilcox, H M; Jalleh, G; Jamrozik, K

    1999-01-01

    To test the hypothesis that proposed amendments to the Occupational Safety and Health Act making all enclosed workplaces in Western Australia smoke free would result in a decrease in cigarette consumption by patrons at nightclubs, pubs, and restaurants without adversely affecting attendance. Cross sectional structured interview survey. Patrons of several inner city pubs and nightclubs in Perth were interviewed while queuing for admission to these venues. Current social habits, smoking habits; and how these might be affected by the proposed regulations. Persons who did not smoke daily were classified as "social smokers." Half (50%) of the 374 patrons interviewed were male, 51% currently did not smoke at all, 34.3% smoked every day, and the remaining 15.7% smoked, but not every day. A clear majority (62.5%) of all 374 respondents anticipated no change to the frequency of their patronage of hospitality venues if smoke-free policies became mandatory. One in five (19.3%) indicated that they would go out more often, and 18.2% said they would go out less often. Half (52%) of daily smokers anticipated no change to their cigarette consumption, while 44.5% of daily smokers anticipated a reduction in consumption. A majority of social smokers (54%) predicted a reduction in their cigarette consumption, with 42% of these anticipating quitting. One in nine (11.5%) of smokers say that adoption of smoke-free policies would prompt them to quit smoking entirely without a significant decrease in attendance at pubs and nightclubs. There can be few other initiatives as simple, cheap, and popular that would achieve so much for public health.

  10. The Structural Underpinnings of Policy Learning: A Classroom Policy Simulation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bird, Stephen

    This paper investigates the relationship between the centrality of individual actors in a social network structure and their policy learning performance. In a dynamic comparable to real-world policy networks, results from a classroom simulation demonstrate a strong relationship between centrality in social learning networks and grade performance. Previous research indicates that social network centrality should have a positive effect on learning in other contexts and this link is tested in a policy learning context. Second, the distinction between collaborative learning versus information diffusion processes in policy learning is examined. Third, frequency of interaction is analyzed to determine whether consistent, frequent tics have a greater impact on the learning process. Finally, the data arc analyzed to determine if the benefits of centrality have limitations or thresholds when benefits no longer accrue. These results demonstrate the importance of network structure, and support a collaborative conceptualization of the policy learning process.

  11. Changing social policy: Grassroots to legislation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lemiska, Liz; McCann, Eileen M; Mancuso, Margaret

    2002-05-01

    Health care in the United States has evolved into a multimillion dollar business. As the health care industry has grown, so too has government regulation and involvement. As both insurers and patients vie to get the most for their health care dollars, federal and state governments attempt to mediate, prevent fraud and abuse, and protect all parties involved. Consumers feel the effects of this "tug of war" in the form of higher copayments, premiums, and out-of-pocket costs, as well as denial of coverage. This denial of coverage sparked a very successful grassroots effort to stop commercial insurers in the state of Connecticut from defining ostomy supplies as cosmetic and thus denying reimbursement. A tremendous amount of collaboration between Connecticut WOC nurses, state legislators, local American Cancer Society advocates, United Ostomy Association chapter members, and health care providers resulted in a powerful mobilization and support for House Bill No. 5120. This bill went beyond defining ostomy supplies as medically necessary but also set a minimum rate for reimbursement. Social policy changed, improving the lives of Connecticut citizens with an ostomy. Although many people fear they do not have the power to make necessary changes in government, this experience proved otherwise. The collaboration that occurred was patient advocacy at its best. This article describes the process that allowed this successful collaboration to take place with the hope that others will be inspired to get involved with patient advocacy through political involvement. It is the intention of this work to capture the essence of dedication of a grassroots campaign involving a small group of well-organized, highly focused participants who were responsible for changing public health care policy in the state of Connecticut.

  12. Housing policy socialization and de-commodification in South Korea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ronald, R.; Lee, H.

    2012-01-01

    South Korea has undergone significant housing system transformations in recent decades involving radical expansions in state housing provision. Growth in social forms of public housing ostensibly contradicts the neoliberal trend toward the privatization of social housing sectors elsewhere in the

  13. TECHNOLOGIES IN HIGHER EDUCATION: PUBLIC POLICIES AND SOCIAL APPROPRIATION OF THEIR IMPLEMENTATION

    OpenAIRE

    Melo Fiallos, Diego Fernando; Silva Chávez, Judith Alexandra; Indacochea Mendoza, Luis Rene; Núñez Campaña, Jorge Humberto

    2017-01-01

    This paper presents an analysis of the implementation of information and communication technologies in higher education with the aim to contribute knowledge on trends regarding their social appropriation. To that effect, documents of public policies and scientific literature containing guidelines developed by international organizations and explaining different alternatives to guide the process of integrating technologies in education were reviewed. Then, some research works on problems deriv...

  14. Energy policies for rural electrification : a social multi-criteria evaluation approach

    OpenAIRE

    Munda, Giuseppe

    2005-01-01

    In this article, a real-world case- study is presented with two general objectives: to give a clear and simple illustrative example of application of social multi-criteria evaluation (SMCE) in the field of rural renewable energy policies, and to help in understanding to what extent and under which circumstances solar energy is suitable for electrifying isolated farmhouses. In this sense, this study might offer public decision- makers some insight on the conditions that favour the diffusion of...

  15. Health at the center of health systems reform: how philosophy can inform policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sturmberg, Joachim P; Martin, Carmel M; Moes, Mark M

    2010-01-01

    Contemporary views hold that health and disease can be defined as objective states and thus should determine the design and delivery of health services. Yet health concepts are elusive and contestable. Health is neither an individual construction, a reflection of societal expectations, nor only the absence of pathologies. Based on philosophical and sociological theory, empirical evidence, and clinical experience, we argue that health has simultaneously objective and subjective features that converge into a dynamic complex-adaptive health model. Health (or its dysfunction, illness) is a dynamic state representing complex patterns of adaptation to body, mind, social, and environmental challenges, resulting in bodily homeostasis and personal internal coherence. The "balance of health" model-emergent, self-organizing, dynamic, and adaptive-underpins the very essence of medicine. This model should be the foundation for health systems design and also should inform therapeutic approaches, policy decision-making, and the development of emerging health service models. A complex adaptive health system focused on achieving the best possible "personal" health outcomes must provide the broad policy frameworks and resources required to implement people-centered health care. People-centered health systems are emergent in nature, resulting in locally different but mutually compatible solutions across the whole health system.

  16. Multimethod research into policy changes in the pharmacy sector

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Almarsdóttir, Anna Birna; Traulsen, Janine Marie

    2009-01-01

    This article aims to explain the nature of multimethod studies and to illustrate their role in pharmaceutical policy research. In the field of pharmaceutical policy research, methodological and theoretically sound evaluation is the main goal. Reflexive learning is required in order to address...... and resolve one of the important paradoxes of late modern societies, which is that while the increasing complexity of social systems progressively undermines notions of certainty in social knowledge, it simultaneously raises the stakes in relation to rational guidance of those systems. By reflecting over our...... own research processes, we identified the strengths and weaknesses of multimethod research. We present our research methods and the experiences of pharmaceutical policy changes from two separate evaluation studies, one from Iceland and the other from Denmark. In addition, examples from a third study...

  17. Reshaping skills policy in South Africa: structures, policies and ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Reshaping skills policy in South Africa: structures, policies and processes. ... New Agenda: South African Journal of Social and Economic Policy ... South African skills development policy since the promulgation of the Skills Development Act of 1998 has undergone a number of different iterations or attempts at accelerating ...

  18. The meaning of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize. Microcredit evangelism, health, and social policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bond, Patrick

    2007-01-01

    The awarding of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize to Muhammad Yunus, founder of the Grameen Bank, provides an opportunity to consider the use and abuse of microfinancing, especially because credit continues to be touted as a poverty-reduction strategy associated with health education and health care financing strategies. Not only is the Grameen diagnosis of poverty dubious, but many structural problems also plague the model, ranging from financial accounting to market failures. In Southern Africa, to illustrate, microcredit schemes for peasants and small farmers have been attempted for more than 70 years, on the basis that modem capitalism and peasant/informal system gaps can be bridged by an expanded financial system. The results have been disappointing. A critical reading of political economy posits an organic linkage between the "developed" and "underdeveloped" economies that is typically not mitigated by capitalist financial markets, but instead is often exacerbated. When applied to health and social policy, microcredit evangelism becomes especially dangerous.

  19. Social policy towards the family: Socialization or the end of a historic form?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pavićević Aleksandra

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available Intensive development of socialist society, which started immediately after Second World War, proceeded simultaneously on two mutually conditional tracks: on material and ideological. In certain way, both were based on the critique of traditional social concept: starting from its economic and all the way to value characteristics under all encompassing parole of "modernization". The policy of transformation was mostly based on certain number of dichotomies that expressed the difference between past and preferred social forms and contents. Past, which was defined as old, regressive, conservative, patriarchal, alienated should be replaced by preferred, that is, by new, progressive, modern, egalitarian, democratic, free... The mainstay of the past was village, agrarian family, while the mainstay of the preferred was, as it appeared later, urban type family. Modernization implied economic restructuring of the state through the process of intensive industrialization and consequently, urbanization while "non-material" discourse of changes was dominated by the idea of democratization of society, that is, a specific ideology of "freedom" that had to be won on all instances of social reality. In-alienation of society was proclaimed as the highest ideal of the new order, which should be achieved by the emancipation of its members from all types of coercion-from work, through moral and up to religious coercion. Even though there is a prevailing viewpoint in scientific literature about the conditionality of social transformations by economic and technological factors and "progress", I think that it can be rightly said that this process was primarily of "spiritual" nature, that is, that its main mover and trigger was the process of atheism of the society. Development of modern society (not only in Serbia meant in fact its de-Christianization and secularization, where "freedom" from God and "coercions" contained in the religious view of the world became

  20. Quality of Financial Policies and Financial System Stress

    OpenAIRE

    Udaibir S Das; Plamen Yossifov; Richard Podpiera; Dmitriy L Rozhkov

    2005-01-01

    In this paper, we develop multi-country indices of financial system stress and quality of financial policies and use them in regression analysis of the determinants of financial stress. We find that countries with higher quality of financial policies are better able to contain the effects of macroeconomic pressures on the overall level of stress in the financial system. They are also in a better position to ensure sustainable development of the financial system.