Publisher's Synopsis
As a field of study, global social policy has grown in strength and remit since the late 1990s and offers a fresh set of perspectives on contemporary debates within social policy. This book is the first student-aimed textbook that engages comprehensively with this field of study, examining the key theoretical and policy debates and issues. Written by an international team of leading social policy analysts, it examines the impact of the prefix 'global' on the construction of social policy as a field of study, explores how the globalising strategies of state and non-state actors intersect with social policy concerns and evaluates their impacts on social welfare. Understanding global social policy emphasises the role of supranational organisations and international actors in social policy formation and highlights the 'bottom-up' transnational pressures and forces as well as the 'top-down' ones associated with intergovernmental fora and organisations. Focusing on policy processes, content and impacts, it historicises current developments and debates in global social policy. Designed with the needs of students in mind the book will be invaluable to undergraduate and postgraduate students of social policy, sociology, health studies and development studies.
