Full Description
The American welfare state has long been a source of political contention and academic debate. This Oxford Handbook pulls together much of our current knowledge about the origins, development, functions, and challenges of American social policy. After the Introduction, the first substantive part of the handbook offers an historical overview of U.S. social policy from the colonial era to the present. This is followed by a set of chapters on different theoretical perspectives available for understanding and explaining the development of U.S. social policy. The three following parts of the volume focus on concrete social programs for the elderly, the poor and near-poor, the disabled, and workers and families. Policy areas covered include health care, pensions, food assistance, housing, unemployment benefits, disability benefits, workers' compensation, family support, and programs for soldiers and veterans. The final part of the book focuses on some of the consequences of the U.S. welfare state for poverty, inequality, and citizenship. Many of the chapters comprising this handbook emphasize the disjointed patterns of policy making inherent to U.S. policymaking and the public-private mix of social provision in which the government helps certain groups of citizens directly (e.g., social insurance) or indirectly (e.g., tax expenditures, regulations). The contributing authors are experts from political science, sociology, history, economics, and other social sciences.
Contents
PART I INTRODUCTION ; The Fragmented American Welfare State: Putting the Pieces Together ; DANIEL BELAND, CHRISTOPHER HOWARD, AND KIMBERLY J. MORGAN ; PART II HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT ; Social Provision before the Twentieth Century ; LAURA S. JENSEN ; The Progressive Era ; DAVID BRIAN ROBERTSON ; The Great Depression and World War II ; ANDREW MORRIS ; From the Fair Deal to the Great Society ; JENNIFER KLEIN ; The U.S. Welfare State Since 1970 ; ALEX WADDAN ; A Cross-National Perspective on the American Welfare State ; JULIA LYNCH ; PART III THEORIES ; Cultural Influences on Social Policy Development ; J. TAYLOR DANIELSON AND ROBIN STRYKER ; Political Institutions and U.S. Social Policy ; EDWIN AMENTA AND AMBER CELINA TIERNEY ; Political Parties and Social Policy ; JEFFREY M. STONECASH ; Interest Groups ; TRACY ROOF ; Constituencies and Public Opinion ; ANDREA LOUISE CAMPBELL AND MICHAEL W. SANCES ; Race and Ethnicity in U.S. Social Policy ; ROBERT C. LIEBERMAN ; Gender ; ELLEN REESE, STEPHANIE D'AURIA, AND SANDRA LOUGHRIN ; PART IV PROGRAMS FOR THE ELDERLY ; Social Security ; EDWARD BERKOWITZ AND LARRY DEWITT ; Private Pensions ; TERESA GHILARDUCCI ; Medicare ; JONATHAN OBERLANDER ; Long Term Care for the Elderly ; MADONNA HARRINGTON MEYER AND JESSICA HAUSAUER ; PART V PROGRAMS FOR THE POOR AND NEAR-POOR ; Medicaid ; COLLEEN M. GROGAN AND CHRISTINA M. ANDREWS ; Temporary Assistance for Needy Families ; R. KENT WEAVER ; The Politics of Supporting Low-Wage Workers and Families ; DANIEL P. GITTERMAN ; Food Assistance Programs and Food Security ; CRAIG GUNDERSEN ; Public Housing and Vouchers ; ALEX SCHWARTZ ; PART VI PROGRAMS FOR THE DISABLED ; Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income ; JENNIFER L. ERKULWATER ; Workers' Compensation ; LESLIE I. BODEN AND EMILY A. SPIELER ; PART VII PROGRAMS FOR WORKERS AND FAMILIES ; Unemployment Insurance ; STEPHEN A. WOODBURY ; Care and Work-Family Policies ; SONYA MICHEL ; Home Ownership Policy ; PETER DREIER AND ALEX SCHWARTZ ; Private Health Insurance: Tax Breaks, Regulation, and Politics ; JAMES A. MORONE ; Pension and Health Benefits for Public Sector Workers ; LEE A. CRAIG ; Social Programs for Soldiers and Veterans ; MEREDITH KLEYKAMP AND CROSBY HIPES ; PART VIII POLICY OUTCOMES ; Poverty ; DAVID BRADY AND LANE DESTRO ; Inequality ; STEPHANIE MOLLER AND JOYA MISRA ; Citizenship ; SUZANNE METTLER AND ALEXIS WALKER
