The Student's Companion to Social Policy by This fully updated and expanded edition of the bestselling Student's Companion to Social Policy charts the latest developments, research, challenges, and controversies in the field in a concise, authoritative format. Provides students with the analytical base from which to investigate and evaluate key concepts, perspectives, policies, and outcomes at national and international levels Features a new section on devolution and social policy in the UK; enhanced discussion of international and comparative issues; and new coverage of 'nudge'-based policies, austerity politics, sustainable welfare, working age conditionality, social movements, policy learning and transfer, and social policy in the BRIC countries Offers essential information for anyone studying social policy, from undergraduates on introductory courses to those pursuing postgraduate or professional programmes Accompanied by updated online resources to support independent learning and skill development with chapter overviews, study questions, guides to key sources and career opportunities, a key term glossary, and more Written by a team of experts working at the forefront of social policy
Understanding British Party Politics by The 2010 general election caught many by surprise as it swept away the old certainties of two-party politics. But, as Stephen Driver shows in this new book, multi-party politics had already established itself as a feature of contemporary British political life. In recent years, both Labour and the Conservatives lost their iron grip on the electorate and the Liberal Democrats emerged as a significant and credible third party force across the country. In local, devolved and European elections, smaller parties from across the ideological spectrum have been adding to the political mix. This fluid and uncertain political scene provides a unique moment to explore the dynamics of UK political parties and the key challenges facing them as they grapple with the changing shape of politics in 21st century Britain. Key questions explored in this book include: How far have Labour and the Conservatives escaped from the shadow of Thatcherism? What turned the Liberal Democrats from a party of protest to a party of power? To what extent have green and far-right politics entered the political mainstream? What impact, if any, has devolution had on party lines across the UK? Moreover, at a time when trust in politics has hit an all time low, political parties are facing a crisis in confidence. Membership of mainstream parties has melted away, while support for pressure groups in areas such as the environment and human rights has grown. At the same time, parties rely on hired professionals to win support among the growing number of independently-minded voters. In understanding how political parties have become much more aggressive, professionally-driven organizations, this book points to real concerns about their capacity to engage and mobilise an increasingly critical and disenchanted electorate. British politics needs strong parties, but to regain voters' trust, they need to change.
The New Politics of Crime and Punishment by This book provides an overview of recent government initiatives in the field of crime and punishment, reviewing both the policies themselves, the perceived problems and issues they seek to address, and the broader social and political context in which this is taking place. The underlying theme of the book is that a qualitative change has taken place in the politics of crime control in the UK since the early 1990s. Although crime has stabilised, imprisonment rates continue to climb, there is a new mood of punitiveness, and crime has become a central policy issue for the government, no longer just a technical matter of law enforcement. At the same time the politics of crime control have taken on a pronounced gender, race and age preoccupation. This book will be essential reading for anybody seeking an understanding of why crime and criminal justice policy have risen to the top of the political agenda.
Criminalising Social Policy by Recent legislative and policy developments in contemporary Britain have ushered in a new approach to criminal justice. The focus on criminal dispositions and welfarism has given way to a strategy which now involves the management of social exclusion, dysfunctional and anti-social families and situational crime prevention, leading to what has been widely characterized as the 'criminalisation of social policy' - and evidenced most recently by the anti-social behaviour and respect agendas. This book is concerned to explore, analyse and explain these developments. It seeks at the same time to situate the study of anti-social behaviour and response to it in the wider context of changes in the industrial and social structure, social polarization and inequality and the changing role of the welfare state in present-day society. This book will be essential reading for students taking courses in criminology, sociology, criminal justice, social policy and related subjects.
Social Policy 4th edn. by What is social policy, and why are welfare systems important? How have they been affected by the global financial crisis?The fourth edition of this well-respected textbook provides an excellent introduction to social policy in the twenty-first century. Expert contributors examine the development, delivery, and implications of welfare, as well as the social and economic context by which it is shaped. With numeroushelpful learning features and an attractive two-colour text design it is an ideal starting point for students new to the subject, and for those looking to take their learning further.The fourth edition includes three new chapters on the history and development of social policy, making social policy in a global context, and how to research and write about social policy. It is up-to-date with the coalition government's social policy agenda, and offers increased coverage of theimportant issues of equality, gender, ethnicity, migration, globalization and sustainability.Social Policy is also supported by an accompanying Online Resource Centre with the following features:- Updates on recent developments in the field- Searchable glossary- Web links
The Eternal Recurrence of Crime and Control: Essays in Honour of Paul Rock by The Eternal Recurrence of Crime and Control features contributions from a distinguished group of criminologists from the UK, the US and Australia, brought together to honour the work of Paul Rock, former Professor of Social Institutions at the London School of Economics. Edited by TimNewburn, David Downes and Dick Hobbs, it offers an exploration of the theories which underpin much of current criminological thinking.The resulting thirteen essays all examine and build upon the central themes associated with Paul Rock's work: social and criminological theory, policy development and policy-making, and victims and victimology. Together, the chapters draw on some of his landmark publications for inspiration anddiscuss the key findings presented over his 50 year career. These include his contribution to the theoretical development of symbolic interactionism and approaches to sociological theory and practice, as well as an analysis of the concept of criminal justice as a social institution and theresurgence of treatment programmes for women offenders. Also of note is a critical study of the Macpherson enquiry into the death of Stephen Lawrence, an ethnographic exploration of the repercussions of incarceration on prisoners' families and inmates, and two papers drawing on Paul Rock's work withvictims and secondary victims of homicide.
Politics UK by This revised and updated ninth edition of the bestselling textbook Politics UK is an indispensable introduction to British politics. It provides a thorough and accessible overview of the institutions and processes of British government, a good grounding in British political history and an incisive introduction to the issues and challenges facing Britain today, including the European referendum and Brexit. The ninth edition welcomes brand new material from seven new contributors to complement the rigorously updated and highly respected chapters retained from the previous edition. It delivers excellent coverage of contemporary events including a new chapter on Euro-scepticism and the European referendum, an assessment of the performance of Labour¿s leadership, the trials and tribulations of the Liberal Democrats and UKIP, and the evolving devolution debate in Scotland, led by the Scottish Nationalist Party. Features of the new edition include: Britain in context boxes offering contrasting international perspectives on key themes in British politics A comprehensive ¿who¿s who¿ of politics in the form of Profile boxes featuring key political figures And another thing . . . pieces containing short articles written by distinguished commentators including Mark Garnett, Sir David Omand, Richard Wilkinson and Sir Simon Jenkins An epilogue analyzing the turbulent state of UK politics following the European referendum With chapters written by highly respected scholars in the field and contemporary articles on real-world politics from well-known political commentators, this textbook is an essential guide for all students of British politics.
State Crime and Immorality by This book begins with the concept of the ideal state as a single, functioning whole that ensures uniformity in the name of legitimacy. It then goes on to show the many ways that states fall away from the ideal, often because of the actions of the powerful and connected--and the consequences of those failures. Looking at everything from invasions of other nations to consolidated media power, State Crime and Immorality is the first book to draw a clear line between conventional criminality and organized state crime and to directly confront the problem of illegitimate actions among the elite in society and government.
Where Next for Criminal Justice? by The formation of a coalition government, at a time of economic crisis, is likely to prove a watershed for criminal justice. Following a review of the achievements and disappointments in criminal justice over the last thirty years, 'Where next for criminal justice?' aims to stimulate fresh thinking in criminal justice by considering the policies which need to be adopted, how they should be formed, and the principles and values which should be adopted.
Victims of Crime by Over the last thirty years, victims of crime have become a staple topic of media interest and policy-making discourse.Drawing on an extensive programme of first-hand empirical data gathered at some 300 English criminal trials, this book examines the practical outcomes of this reform agenda and assesses the meaning, implications and impact of the government's pledge to put victims 'at the heart' of the criminal justice system.The study also draws on in-depth interviews with barristers and solicitors, as well as court administrators and other Local Criminal Justice Board members. The book delves into the policy-making process behind these reforms, based on interviews conducted at key government departments, and offers a model for what a genuinely 'victim centred' criminal justice system might look like in the twenty-first century, drawing on the psychological and sociological literature on narrative responses to traumatic events.
Evidence Versus Politics by The initial enthusiasm for the evidence-based policy agenda has recently been replaced with increasing scepticism. Critics point out that 'policy-based evidence' characterises the relationship more accurately. Analysing the role and nature of evidence in the context of UK drug policy and drawing on a range of theories of the policy process and research utilisation, this book pursues an alternative route for conceptualising the evidence and policy connection, which moves beyond zero-sum statements of evidence-based policy and policy-based evidence. It will be essential reading for students and researchers in public policy and criminology.
The Politics of Crime Control by This book brings together ten leading British criminologists to explore the contemporary politics of crime and its control. The volume is produced in honour of Britain's most important criminological scholar - David Downes of the London School of Economics. The essays are grouped around thethree major themes that run through David Downes' work - sociological theory, crime and deviance; comparative penal policy; and, the politics of crime. The third theme also provides the overarching unifying thread for the volume.The contributions are broad ranging and cover such subjects as criminological theory and the new East End of London, the practice of comparative criminology including an analysis of variations in penal cultures within the United States, restorative justice in Colombia, New Labour's politics andpolicy in relation to dangerous personality-disordered offenders, the legal construction of torture, and the future for a social democratic criminology.
Constructing Victims' Rights by Despite plentiful discussion at various times, the personal victim has traditionally been afforded almost no formal role in the criminal justice process. Victims' rights have always met with stout opposition from both judges and the Lord Chancellor, who have guarded defendants' rights; themaintenance of professionally-controlled and emotionally unencumbered trials; and the doctrine that crime is at heart an offence against society, State, or Sovereign.Constructing Victims' Rights provides a detailed account of how this opposition was overcome, and of the progressive redefinition of victims of crime, culminating in 2003 in proposals for awarding near-rights to victims of crime.Based upon extensive observation, primary papers, and interviews, Paul Rock examines changes in the forms of criminal justice policy-making within the New Labour Government, observing how they shaped political representations and activities centred on victims of crime. He reveals how the issues ofnew managerialism, restorative justice, human rights, race and racism (after the death of Stephen Lawrence), and the treatment of rape victims after the trial of Ralston Edwards came to form a critical mass that required ordering and reconstruction.Constructing Victims' Rights unpicks and explains the resultant battery of proposals and the deft policy manoeuvre contained in the Domestic Violence, Crime, and Victims Bill of 2003. This, the solution to a seemingly intractable problem, was a work of finesse, proposing on the one hand, theimposition of statutory duties on criminal justice agencies and the granting of access to an Ombudsman, and on the other, a National Victims' Advisory Panel that would afford victims a symbolic voice, and a symbolic champion: a Commissioner for Victims and Witnesses.
Governing Through Crime by Across America today gated communities sprawl out from urban centers, employers enforce mandatory drug testing, and schools screen students with metal detectors. Social problems ranging from welfare dependency to educational inequality have been reconceptualized as crimes, with an attendant focus on assigning fault and imposing consequences. Even before the recent terrorist attacks, non-citizen residents had become subject to an increasingly harsh regime of detention and deportation, and prospective employees subjected to background checks. How and when did our everyday world become dominated by fear, every citizen treated as a potential criminal?In this startlingly original work, Jonathan Simon traces this pattern back to the collapse of the New Deal approach to governing during the 1960s when declining confidence in expert-guided government policies sent political leaders searching for new models of governance. The War on Crime offered a ready solution to their problem: politicians set agendas by drawing analogies to crime and redefined the ideal citizen as a crime victim, one whose vulnerabilities opened the door to overweening government intervention. By the 1980s, this transformation of the core powers of government had spilled over into the institutions that govern daily life. Soon our schools, our families, our workplaces, and our residential communities were being governed through crime.This powerful work concludes with a call for passive citizens to become engaged partners in the management of risk and the treatment of social ills. Only by coming together to produce security, can we free ourselves from a logic of domination by others, and from the fear that currently rules our everyday life.