Since the late 1980s the quality of public services has become a major focus of attention for politicians, managers and citizens, but most of the material available on how to achieve quality is either set in private sector contexts or confined to a single country. This book is a pioneer in addressing the need for a focus on issues common to the public services which underpin Westem European societies. Quality improvement is portrayed in this book as part of a broader managerial and political strategy, not a narrow technical issue. Success in improving quality in the public sphere requires a close relationship between quality improvement strategies and citizen involvement This text, firstly, provides an overview of the concepts and methodologies involved in the management of quality improvements and, secondly, offers a set of case studies to illustrate how quality improvements have been achieved, drawing lessons from a spectrum of services in a range of countries. Part One establishes a theoretical framework which helps the reader make sense of the detail contained in the case studies. It places quality improvement in the special political and organisational context of the public sector. Various concepts of quality are reviewed, showing how the choice of a particular concept has significant political and organisational consequences. Part One also discusses how quality may be measured and the importance of measurement in developing plans for improvement. Part Two provides seven case studies built around a set of common questions derived from the analysis of Part One. These case studies illuminate many of the detailed operational issues in quality improvement by drawing on the experience of a range of different types of public services from a number of different European backgrounds. Part Three reviews the general lessons of the case studies in terms of fitting strategies for improvement to the purposes and circumstances of the organisation in question, and reflects on the nature of service quality and the range of approaches to its improvement This book forms a stimulating introduction to, and exploration of, quality improvement in public services for managers, administrators and professionals in public services, as well as for academics, consultants and students of public management, organisation and administration.
International Organizations and the Future of Welfare
Studying the globalization of social policy, this text demonstrates that national social policy is increasingly determined by global economic competition and by the social policy of international organizations. The authors argue that the substance of social policy now has to be understood in terms of global social redistribution, global social regulation and global social provision and empowerment. The book examines trends global inequity and sumarizes the diverse experiences of different types of regimes across the world. The social policies of international organizations such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, UN agencies and the European Union are also reviewed.
How can mainstream models and classifications be used in analyzing welfare states and gender? What sort of modifications to traditional theory are required? Must alternative frameworks be constructed to accommodate the dimension of gender? These and other questions are addressed in this comprehensive volume - the first to synthesize the insights of feminist and mainstream research in examining the impact of gender on welfare state analysis and outcomes. The text also highlights the effect of welfare state policies on women and men. This book assembles an international and interdisciplinary cast of scholars who approach the subject on two levels. First, they test the applicability of mainstream frameworks to new areas in analyzing gender. Secondly, they highlight possible reconceptualizations and innovative frameworks designed to provide gender-balanced analyses. These twin approaches are combined with a comparative component, focusing on a cross-section of countries of major interest in welfare state research. This text should contribute to contemporary theorizing on welfare states by integrating a range of contemporary research in comparative politics, women's studies, social policy and economics. It should be of interest to students and academics across a wide range of disciplines.
This text looks at the historical and contemporary changes in social welfare systems and provision, and the debates and struggles surrounding them. The perspectives of liberalism, Marxism, neo-liberalism, post-structuralism, political economy, political ecology and postmodernism are used to provide an introduction to the theoretical frameworks within which the sociological perspectives on welfare have been formulated. The authors also examine: issues such as the justification for theory in the analysis of welfare as well as the present definitions of theory, social welfare, the welfare state and the state; and show how social theories construct the relationship between state, society, economy, culture, environment, production, consumption and other forms of individual and collective and experience.
"This is a brilliant explanation of how social marketing can address upstream issues... As the author points out, too often people think of the downstream applications of social marketing. This book is the only one in this camp, and it does a very good job of it." -Mike Basil, University of Lethbridge, Canada Most observers and many practitioners see social marketing as a downstream approach to influencing people with "bad behaviors"-smoking, neglecting prenatal care, not recycling. However, this narrow view hugely underestimates social marketing's real potential. Social marketing is simply about influencing the behavior of target audiences. There are many more target audiences who need to act besides "problem people" if we are to solve major social problems. The goal of this cutting edge book is to reposition social marketing so that foundations, government agencies, and various nonprofits will approach social change in a way that reaches both upstream and downstream individuals in society. Author Alan R. Andreasen outlines potential roles, restates fundamental principles, and then suggests how social marketing might be applied to a sample of nontraditional challenges. Key Features: Emphasizes Broad Social Change: Repositions social marketing as an approach to social change that reaches both upstream and downstream. Reviews Social Marketing Concepts and Tools: A number of different strands of scholarship are used to provide an accessible introduction to social marketing including the evolution of social problems, the science of framing, the process of social change, and social marketing history and elements. Presents Frameworks for Influencing Behavior: Three simple frameworks are provided that anyone can use whenever there is a situation where one needs to influence another's behavior- stages of change, the BCOS model and competition. Social Marketing in the 21st Century is an excellent text for advanced undergraduate and graduate courses in Health Promotion, Social Marketing, Social Enterprise, Social Change, Public Health, Social Welfare, and Communications. In addition, it is a valuable resource for social marketing practitioners, public health communicators, nonprofit managers, social workers, and social enterprise programs.
The Third Edition of this widely adopted textbook has been thoroughly revised and offers an authoritative and up-to-date coverage of the key theories, concepts and issues in social policy. The lively and readable text has been designed to provide students with the essential tools to gain a clear understanding of the theoretical debates surrounding the discipline. The book is organized into three parts: * Part One offers a detailed but accessible critique of major theoretical approaches such as neo-liberalism, Marxism, feminism and racism; * Part Two explores conceptual debates such as distributive justice and postmodernism; * PArt Three engages with contemporary social policy issues such as children, pensions and the role of New Labour. It also features newly commissioned chapters to reflect recent developments and current debates within social policy. New areas of consideration include: * Citizenship * Post-structuralism * The politics of food * Globalization Student exercises and reading lists feature throughout the text and practical examples are skilfully used to illustrate conceptual and theoretical material, making it the ideal core textbook for undergraduate social policy students, as well as those studying related welfare modules across the social sciences.
This volume details the self-reported stress of being Black in the United States, and documents the cultural resources African Americans draw upon to overcome adversity and maintain a positive, healthy perspective on life. Based on data obtained from a United States National Survey of Black Americans, the book first discusses psychological and sociological factors affecting life satisfaction. Contributors then explore how these psychosocial factors contribute to such health problems as alcoholism and hypertension. The volume concludes with an examination of strategies Black Americans use in their attempt to solve life problems. These include: prayer; avoidance; active problem-solving; and seeking help from family, community mental health providers and law enforcement agencies.
Rethinking Social Policy is a comprehensive introduction to, and analysis of, the complex mixture of problems and possibilities within the study of social policy. Contributors at the cutting edge of social policy analysis reflect upon the implications of new social and theoretical movements for welfare and the study of social policy. Topics ......
Evaluators and applied researchers who want to enhance their understanding of research design and of threats to valid inference will find this book an effective guide. The First Edition was popular for its integration of multiple regression with evaluation desig, and for offering systematic ways to select the proper goals for single- and multiple-outcome evaluations. This edition has been revised to cover new issues and to clarify further the concepts used in impact analysis. New features include: expanded coverage and explanation of quasi-experiments; a section on impact analysis theory; a section on the use of qualitative research for impact analysis; expanded coverage of significance testing for programme evaluation; an explanation of why the comparative-change design is better than an ex-post-facto design from the standpoint of causal inference; a clarification of the effects of volunteering or self-selection; and a new simplified appendix on regression artefacts.
