American Social Welfare Policy: A Pluralist Approach

Most chapters end with Conclusion, Discussion Questions, and Notes. Preface. I. AMERICAN SOCIAL WELFARE POLICY. 1. Social Policy and the American Welfare State. Definitions of Social Welfare Policy. Social Problems and Social Welfare Policy. Social Work and Social Policy. Values, Ideology, and Social Welfare Policy. The Political Economy of American Social Welfare. The U.S. Economic Continuum. The U.S. Political Continuum. The Welfare Philosophers and the Neoconservative Think Tanks. 2. Social Welfare Policy Research: A Framework for Policy Analysis. A Proposed Model for Policy Analysis. Researching and Analyzing Social Policies. 3. Technology and Social Policy. The Digital Divide. Political Advocacy and the Internet. Social Policy Research and the Internet. 4. Discrimination in American Society. Discrimination. Racism. Discrimination Against African Americans. Hispanic Americans. Native Americans. Asian Americans. Immigrants and Immigration. Women and Society. Gays and Lesbians: Two Populations at Risk. Ageism. People with Disabilities. Legal Attempts to Remedy Discrimination. 5. Poverty in America. Some Theoretical Formulations About Who Make Up the Poor? Measuring Families and The Urban and Rural Poor. Work and Strategies Developed to Combat II. THE VOLUNTARY AND FOR-PROFIT SOCIAL SECTORS. 6. The Voluntary Sector Today. Structural Interests Within Social Welfare. The Forgotten Sector. Advancing Social Justice. Contemporary Nonprofit Human Service Organizations. The Future of the Voluntary Sector. 7. Privatization and Human Service Corporations. Concepts About Privatization. Issues in the Privatization of Health and Human Services. The Challenge of Privatization. Unions and the Private Sector. Corporate Welfare. History of the Corporate Sector. Corporate Social Responsibility. Corporate Influence on Social Welfare Policy. The Future of Corporate Involvement in Social Welfare. Human Service Corporations. Consolidation and Growth in Human Service Markets. III. THE GOVERNMENT SECTOR. 8. The Making of Governmental Policy. Technical Aspects of the Policy Process. A Critical Analysis of the Policy Process. The Policy Process. Nondecision Making. Social Workers and Social Reform. Social Work and Advocacy Organizations. Political Practice. 9. Tax Policy and Income Distribution. History of U.S. Tax Policy. Tax Policy and Special Interests. Federal Tax Policy. State Tax Policy and the Poor. The Efficiency of Tax Policy in Reducing Tax Expenditures as Poverty Policy. The Antitax Movement. 10. Social Insurance Programs. Definition of Social Insurance. The Background of Social Insurance. The Financial Organization of Social Insurance. Key Social Insurance Programs. The Social Security Dilemma. 11. Public Assistance Programs. Some Assumptions that Underlie Public Assistance. Aid to Families with Dependent Children. Supplemental Security Income. General Assistance. Issues in Welfare Reform. 12. The American Health Care System. The Organization of Medical Services. Major Public Health Care Programs: Medicare, Medicaid, and S-Chip. The Health Care Crisis. Explaining the High Cost of U.S. Health Care. Cutting Health Care Costs. AIDS and Health Care. Reforming U.S. Health Care Comparative Analysis: Health Care In Canada and Britain. 13. Mental Health and Substance Abuse Policy. Mental Health Reform. The Community Mental Health Centers Act. Deinstitutionalization. The Revolving Door. CMHCS Under Siege. Preventive Commitment. Mental Health Service Delivery. Parity for Mental Health Care. Substance Abuse. Private Practice and Mental Health Services. 14. Criminal Justice. History of U.S. Criminal Justice. The Criminal Justice System. Juvenile Justice. The War on Drugs. The Underclass and Moral Poverty. Legalization of Drugs. The New Penology. 15. Child Welfare Policy. History of Child Welfare Policy. Protective Services for Children. Foster Care for Children. Adoption. Head Start. Emerging Issues in Child Welfare. The Future of Child Welfare. 16. Housing Policies. Overview of Housing Legislation. The Federal Government and Low-Income Housing Programs. Issues in Housing Policy. Homelessness. Housing Reform. 17. The Politics of Food Policy and Rural Life. Hunger In the United States. Governmental Food Programs. Farming in the United States. Farmworkers. Governmental Farm Policies. IV. THE AMERICAN WELFARE STATE IN PERSPECTIVE. 18. The American Welfare State in International Perspective. Typologies of Welfare States. American Exceptionalism. The Welfare State in Transition. Ranking National Development. Capability International Aid. Global Capital. The Future. Glossary. Index.