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Much of intra‐Asian labour migration is regulated on the basis of governing tools that aim at managing cross‐border movement of workers on a strictly temporary, employer‐tied basis. The key elements involved in the operationalization of strictly temporary migration are recruitment, remittances and return; these three 'Rs' are also central to global policy discussions around the migration‐development nexus. The core premise of this paper is that this strict framework results in a particular form of migrant precarity which in turn shapes migrant transnationality, leaving migrants with severely circumscribed labour agency. This leads to the argument that temporary migration paradigm as practiced in much of Asia constitutes involuntary transnationalism. The paper ends by arguing that based on proactive migrant rights activism, the involuntary character of transnationalism is being challenged by bringing a different set of 'Rs' into the discussion derived from global social policy and global justice perspectives: regulation, redistribution and rights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People in East and South Asia widely believe that having children brings fulfilment to an individual's life. However, over the past fifty years, modernisation in Asia has been accompanied by a remarkable drop in birth rates to a level even lower than most western countries. Prior research on western nations has shown that the time demands and financial stresses of parenthood, as well as current inflexible employment practices, contribute to the high cost of parenthood and discount the emotional rewards of having children. This study investigates the happiness of parents and childless individuals in East and South Asia, and whether social policies can improve parental happiness. We use individual-level data in 10 Asian countries from the World Values and the Asian Barometer Surveys, and find no country where parents report significantly greater happiness than non-parents after controlling for relevant sociodemographic differences. Multilevel models show that paid annual leave, paid maternity and parental leave, and flexible working schedules as well as a comprehensive policy index help alleviate the disparity in happiness between parents and non-parents across countries, in particular work flexibility, while family-friendly policies have no noticeable negative effects on non-parents' wellbeing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the countries of East and Southeast Asia where fertility has reached ultra-low levels, there has been a flurry of developments in pro-natalist policy over the past five years or so, but its impact appears to be limited. This paper addresses the strong obstacles hindering the success of pro-natalist policies in the region, suggests key interventions that are needed, and stresses that the policies in these countries should also be considering other ways of addressing the issues. Social policy has certainly moved ahead in positive ways in South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan, as evidenced by parental leave policy and childcare reform, but workplace cultures have yet to follow suit. The slow changes in gender norms, along with the pressures of educating children and finding housing in the big cities where most people in the region live, are the continuing realities facing couples considering marriage and childbearing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Long-term care (LTC) planning is important in helping the older people tackle their future needs better. The needs for LTC services represent generational characteristics as they may be different between the current and upcoming cohorts of older adults. However, very few studies have examined the cohort differences in terms of their expected utilisation of LTC services, while understanding the patterns is crucial in helping policy makers prepare for the development of LTC services. This study fills the research gap by examining the plans and expectations for LTC services of 1,613 middle-aged and older persons in Hong Kong with data collected from a telephone survey. By applying the Andersen Model to examine LTC expectations, this study analyses the LTC needs and plans of the middle-aged and older cohorts of Hong Kong adults, as well as their associated factors, with a multiple logistic regression method. Both gender and birth cohort were examined individually and in combination. Birth cohort and gender have been found to exert an impact on all aspects of LTC needs and planning to varying degrees. The findings are interpreted and contrasted with those of a key study based in the West, with reference to the contextual characteristics of Hong Kong. This study furthers the scholarly understanding on LTC needs and planning and their cohort effect, and draws evidence-based recommendations for LTC development in Hong Kong, a rapidly ageing East Asian society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International marriage migration is now one of the most prominent forms of migration in Asia, and the number of women migrating to South Korea for marriage has increased dramatically in the last two decades. In this article, we provide a systematic review regarding the health status and health-related issues of international marriage immigrant women. The literature search identified 620 articles, of which 53 studies are presented in the article. Three overarching categories including six subcategories were identified according to the research focus; ‘Environmental factors of health’ including social support and barriers, ‘Health status’ including physical, psychological and social health, and quality of life as ‘Outcome of health’. Overall women immigrants by marriage showed relatively poor health outcomes. Social support was an important factor affecting the health status and quality of life in this population. We offer recommendations to develop and implement culturally and linguistically appropriate health promoting programs for international marriage immigrant women in South Korea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The question whether Asian welfare types can be classified as distinctly 'productivist' has remained subject to lively debates: in East Asia, the recent implementation of social rights-based public policy innovations - including working family support - as a response to rising inequalities, welfare expectations and accelerating social change has been well documented; similarly, South East Asian and South Asian economies have featured much more frequently in comparative social policy analysis as policymakers have sought to address persisting chronic poverty, a diminishing demographic dividend and burdensome epidemiological transitions via integrating human capital formation with social protection measures. Yet, far from a unifying convergence of these social policy trends in the post-Millennium Development Goals era, the global perspective we take in this article suggests continued variation and difference, with a multiplicity of forms of globalizations encountered and/or engendered in diverse contexts. As a consequence, variegated and path-dependent patterns of social development continue to persist across Asian economies. These findings, in turn, address major issues of our time, for they speak to the broader question of what analytical bases and research strategies can best reveal the complexities of (and interactions between) national, extra-national and transnational drivers of welfare formation and development under contemporary but diverse conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A key normative principle of transformative social policy is that it is rights-based. This implies that it be universal, as a right extended categorically to all persons in a defined situation, or to all citizens, or, in its most radical form, as applicable to all residents regardless of citizenship status. To be transformative, social policy also needs to tackle the root causes of inequalities and social injustices. In the recent past, approaches emerged in a number of countries in Southeast Asia and South Asia that pointed in the direction of universal, rights-based social policy. These suggest that a 'social turn' took place - a shift to ideas and policies that prioritize social issues. In the cases under review (India, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan and Thailand), the trends towards a universal, rights-based approach to social services and social transfers were in each case politically driven and a result of changes in government - the social turns were the outcome of contestation. At present, these countries are experiencing political backlashes, with democratic processes and civil society under severe attack. This article seeks to make two points. First, a rights-based, transformative policy approach and a social turn do not come automatically: it is always the result of contestation, be it from the electorate and their interests groups, or from competition between political parties. Second, acquired rights and moves towards transformation can be dismantled. In the current global political rollback, there is a need to defend and fight for transformative and rights-based social policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous analyses indicate that there are a number of potentially serious health risks associated with the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). The objective of this work is to provide further insight into the potential health impacts of the TPP by investigating labour market pathways. The impact of the TPP on employment and working conditions is a major point of contention in broader public debates. In public health literature, these factors are considered fundamental determinants of health, yet they are rarely addressed in analyses of trade and investment agreements. We therefore undertake a prospective policy analysis of the TPP through a content analysis of the agreement’s Labour Chapter. Provisions of the Chapter are analyzed with reference to the health policy triangle and four main areas through which labour markets influence health: power relations, social policies, employment conditions and working conditions. Findings indicate that implementation of the TPP can have important impacts on health through labour market pathways. While the Labour Chapter is being presented by proponents of the agreement as a vehicle for improvement in labour standards, we find little evidence to support this view. Instead, we find several ways the TPP may weaken employment relations to the detriment of health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper takes as its starting point the multidirectionality and multi-sitedness of change triggered by migration, especially in relation to gender and migrant precarity. More specifically, it interrogates four strands of the gendered migration debate related to marriage migration: various forms of precarity faced by migrant women and their implications in socio-economic and legal terms; changes to family patterns and social reproduction connected to marriage migration; social policies in origin and destination countries and their relevance to women’s unpaid care work duties; and the productive and reproductive functions involved in the creation of a precarity that leads to, and results, from marriage migration. It points to remaining gaps in knowledge and offers ideas for future lines of inquiry into marriage migration in general and in the context of Asia specifically. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Asian countries are at different stages of demographic transition. While Central and South Asian countries are relatively young and will remain so for some time, East and Southeast Asia are expected to age at an unprecedented rate in the next few decades. Japan has reached the future first. Other nations, such as China, are still young but ageing faster than many advanced economies, including Australia and the USA. This demographic shift has considerable implications for the development of social policy. Here too, countries differ widely. This paper sets the context for the rest of the volume. The focus is mostly on countries in East and Southeast Asia, but it includes contrasting comparisons to key regional countries such as India and Australia. First, the paper presents the context: the demographic, urbanization, and social trends facing Asia. Second, it tackles the allocation of resources for the elderly, in particular, by summarizing approaches to two areas of social policy most pertinent to population ageing: retirement income and health care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From a Westerner's perspective of the place of people with a disability in Asian society, there are similarities and differences between the two societies. A major problem for the Asian countries is their lack of reliable disability prevalence data. The stigmatization of people with a disability remains an international problem and is not confined to Asian cultures. It is argued that the environmental contexts of a culture need to be explored before making generalisations about a culture's attitudes towards people experiencing a disability. Differences between social policies toward disadvantaged groups are explored with reference to economic rationalist policies, utilitarian individualism, materialism, and the potential moral challenges presented by new genetic discoveries. The rise of globalisation and its potential impact upon traditional Asian cultures is explored. The concluding analysis examines developments in disability legislation, support services and the development of a local disability research capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of social policy in East Asia has been gaining momentum in recent decades, challenging scholars to offer an explanation. This article addresses two questions: Are we witnessing the rise of welfare states in East Asia? And if so, what are the driving forces behind this development? We draw on theoretical perspectives of Franz-Xaver Kaufmann, who emphasizes the relationship between the state and civil society as the context of welfare statism, and who elaborated the role of international organizations and law in social policy ("welfare internationalism"). Choosing South Korea and Taiwan as examples, we explore the role of international policy diffusion, highlighting the interaction of international and domestic factors. We find that South Korea and Taiwan have indeed turned into welfare states, and that external "social" ideas, which have received little attention in previous research, have contributed to this development in different historical phases. Our analysis extends Kaufmann's perspective beyond Western welfare states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Western societies promote home ownership in the belief that it provides a means to build up individual welfare and security, potentially offsetting the inadequacy of social security to meet needs in retirement. Some East Asian economies have long focused on advancing ‘asset building’ through housing policy. These efforts have two purposes: to use housing investment to drive economic development and to build family assets throughout life as a component of income protection for old age. These purposes work well in some countries but not as well in others. In policy terms, the common element among them is that governments promote home ownership as a component of social policy or as a complement to mainstream welfare. This article examines how home ownership fares as a form of asset-based welfare in selected East Asian countries (Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan) and considers the implications for understanding the role of institutions in development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the overall social policy approach with reference to welfare pluralism in Asia and then compares the relation between the social policy approach and the level of social development in the Asian subregions. It concludes on the inappro-priateness of the residual welfare approach and the need for a rights-based social policy approach. It ends with a discussion on planning a rights-based social policy approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new social policy tool emerged a little more than a decade in Latin America and in Asia that brought immediate relief in the form of cash to poor families with children and conditioned the benefits on behavioral changes that would affect the long-term well-being of beneficiary households. By conditioning benefits on school attendance and obtaining health care and social support services, many countries, especially those in Latin America, were able to reverse intergenerational and intractable poverty rates. These programs, conditional cash transfers (CCTs) spread quickly throughout Latin America but have also become popular in other parts of the world. This paper looks at how CCTs have been used as a child policy strategy in Asia, summarizing the forms it has taken and the effectiveness of the programs in six Asian countries, and ends with a discussion of lessons learned from these experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reviews approaches to the needs of disabled people in Asia and the Pacific, the only part of the world currently lacking regional human rights machinery. The article examines some of the social policy choices involved in prioritising different possible approaches to meeting the needs of disabled people in the region, with a focus on a proposed regional disability rights tribunal (DR-TAP). It is argued that this is not the top priority for immediate action; rather it is contended that capacity building and culturally appropriate attitudinal and other change strategies should instead be pursued over the medium-term horizon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article attempts to "globalize" the social policy literature, inspired by Ian Gough's argument that there are analytical lessons from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) welfare state literature, and the rise of social policy analysis elsewhere. This explores the nature of social policy in three contexts, in the old OECD (the Netherlands, in particular) and in the emerging economies of East Asia (China) and South Asia (India). The comparison focuses on how economic contexts, politics and institution, and ideas and ideologies structure social policies. This shows that the constellations of and changes in social policy across those very different contexts can be characterized on two axes: a productivism-welfarism distinction, and Esping-Andersen's triad of universalism, corporatism, and liberalism. Moreover, the comparison shows that economic globalization has led to some degree of convergence-however, different politics and ideologies in which social policies are embedded, and not just levels of development, continue to result in social policy divergence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article attempts to quantitatively measure the various influences on mobile phone adoption at the bottom of the pyramid (BoP) in Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, and Thailand. Based on an existing theoretical framework, adoption is modeled by fitting a logit model to a large six country dataset. The study finds evidence for the importance of social influence in mobile adoption in two modes: one that exerts pressure on individuals to adopt, and another that helps to generate benefits via social networks that are tied in with economic and business networks. The article elaborates on the resulting social policy implications for using mobile telephone services to fight poverty at the BoP in these and similar countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the extent to which the concept of social quality could contribute to a transformation in the debates about the welfare sustainability in Asia and Europe. The article starts by outlining the concept of social quality: its constitutional, conditional and normative components and the origins of its development as a European conceptual framework. Then a bridge is created between Europe and Asia by looking briefly at the similarities and diff erences between social quality and human security, a concept that is more familiar in the latter region than the former one. is is followed by a critique of the global discourses on 'sustainability' and, in particular, their dominance by economism. The final part of the article utilizes the concept of social quality to propose a more open and balanced approach to sustainability that brings in social and ecological considerations alongside economic ones. Some tentative suggestions are made concerning the operationalisation of a social quality approach to welfare system sustainability [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social theories are heavily context-embedded, and their creation is naturally interwoven with particular contexts. Once they are disseminated within a new societal landscape, adjustments and adaptation should be made. This paper investigates the entangled contexts of the social quality theory and its applicability to Asian societies. rough a comparative analysis of the key questions that this theory purports to answer, as well as its proposed answers and solutions, the study evaluates the purpose, features and functions of the theory. Moreover, in relation to four sorts of 'conditional factors', this article also proposes extending social quality studies into four approaches that should lead the studies beyond the level of description into new forms of theory. The article also explores the theory's power to explain the Asian social quality systems and their implications for global social development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

National design policies don't follow a predetermined format. They depend heavily on the economic and political realities of the countries in which they are born. Nevertheless, this article argues that such policies-national design systems-are more likely to be successful than isolated initiatives, which tend to duplicate efforts and tackle only one part of a problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is a thought paper reflecting on the issues that give rise to prominent concerns in social development in Asia. However, the linkages between local concerns in Asia and global concerns are inevitable. Some examples from Asian countries are used as illustrations. The author's conclusion is that social development involves more than government initiatives, social philanthropy, and professional social work. Social work's involvement in social development also includes helping to galvanize the participation of beneficiaries of social development at the local level and to engage the political will of policymakers and the business community in the global platform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies of the 1997 Asian financial crisis suggest that impacts of economic shocks on education are ambiguous and vary according to gender, income and location. The crisis exacerbated previous disparities, with gaps between girls and boys, and urban and rural education widening. Secondary school enrolment sustained the greatest impact. Countries' high commitment to education, as evidenced by increased household expenditures and government social protection programmes, helped protect education. Lessons from 1997 serve as a useful framework for considering potential policy responses to the 2007-08 crisis. Getting policies right is important given the current education landscape, where disparities continue to persist. The paper provides an analysis of the state of education in East Asia and the Pacific. It then analyzes experiences from the 1997 crisis and government policy responses since 1997. It argues that quick and sustained action is important. Social protection measures should be institutionalized to prepare for future crises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Divergent fertility trends in the course of development are commonly ascribed to differences in state action—that is, to government policy, deliberate or inadvertent. However, fertility outcomes can also, often more persuasively, be traced to differences in cultural and institutional inheritance and in the supply and growth potential of human capital. These are materials that states and societies find themselves endowed with—in brief, their legacy. In reality, legacy and policy are interwoven: policy actions build on some legacy elements and attempt to combat others. And there is a third set of factors influencing fertility outcomes, covering distinctive features of the economic and geopolitical environment and essentially fortuitous events—together termed circumstance. Legacy and circumstance can shrink or shift the policy space, helping to explain past failures in policy achievement. These broad considerations are the basis for a sketch of East Asian/sub-Saharan African contrasts in fertility transition over the last 50 years. The sketch points to missing avenues of policy action in the African case in seeking to overcome legacy obstacles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To assess some of the ways that blogs appear to be affecting news reporting and consumption as well as some giving a sense as to their implications for social stability, this paper presents a preliminary analysis of views and comments by bloggers in Asian countries. Data on this topic was gathered by e-mail interviews of Asian bloggers as well as by collecting writings and data from relevant websites. Analysis suggests that, in many societies in Asia and elsewhere, bloggers have become an important source of news outside of but also alongside of traditional mainstream media. A trend is observed that information and communication technologies are reconfiguring the traditional balance between the creators and consumers of news and the journalistic reporting profession. Internet blogs and mobile phones, among other technologies, have made new information and perspectives available concerning local events; they have also added important and often oppositional interpretations of the significance and meaning of those events. Thus, on both professional and economic grounds, the New Media are reducing the relative prominence of traditional news outlets as well as stature of professional journalists. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Asia, the past two decades have seen rapid demographic changes, including a shift in the population age structure, while increases in urbanization, educational attainment, and nonagricultural employment are affecting the social and economic landscape. All family systems in Asia traditionally faced the problems of generational succession, economic support of the non-active elderly and physical care of the frail elderly, but the structures that provided solutions to these problems were by no means uniform. An example of health service and social welfare for the elderly is the long-term care insurance, which was started in Japan from 2000. Asian societies are starting from an inherently different cultural, social, structural and economic base than the developed countries of the West. The strongly ingrained cultural basis of family responsibility for support and care of the elderly will lead to a transformation quite different from that characterizing the elderly in the Western countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes the demographic change and its social and political implications in East and South-East Asia with a trajectory up to 2050. It selectively touches on inequalities, migration, social policy, and international security. In the course of this exercise, I present two hypotheses: one relating to the formation of the new middle class, and the other relating to the geriatric peace argument. The first hypothesis posits that when the growing inequalities in terms of per capita income aggravate the sense of happiness among the low- and middle-income strata as contrasted to high-income strata, the formation of a new middle class becomes more difficult. The second hypothesis posits that when the aging population carries a large demographic weight, it tends to be transformed into strong political voice, which is, in turn, translated into larger government spending on social policy items often accompanied by a likely decline in the defense expenditure budget. These hypotheses paint a provocative picture of East and South-East Asia in the next four decades, especially in the wake of the deepening economic difficulties prevailing over the entire globe. I present these hypotheses for further conceptual elaboration and empirical analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information about several papers discussed at the Global Social Policy Forum is presented. Topics include the impact of global economic crisis on Asian countries, children's health and education, as well as government policies that concern on the condition of the economy. It also cites the efforts of UNICEF in dealing with the economic conditions.

One of the most controversial policy questions in all of institutional mental disability law is the extent to which patients in psychiatric hospitals have a right to voluntary sexual interaction. The resolution of this matter involves difficult and sensitive questions of law, social policy, clinical judgment, politics, religion, and family structures. As difficult as these questions are in cases involving civil hospitals, the difficulties are exacerbated when the topic is the application of the right in forensic hospitals. Such facilities typically house individuals involved in the criminal-justice system: who may be incompetent to stand trial; who have been found incompetent to stand trial; who have been found not guilty by reason of insanity; or in some cases, who have been convicted of crimes. The legal statuses of these populations raise public concerns such as the extent to which they are entitled to exercise civil rights while institutionalized, and the potential additional danger that might be associated with the granting of sexual freedom to these populations. Additional difficulties are presented when we consider the application of this right in both civil and forensic hospitals in Asia, where the notion of "patients' rights" regrettably lags far behind the construction of such rights in Western nations. How different would my conclusions be if I were looking at these issues from an international perspective? And what impact, if any, would the new United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (U.N. Convention) have on my answer? It is impossible to meaningfully come to grips with the multiple issues presented in this Article without also dealing with the social attitude of sanism, an irrational prejudice of the same quality and character of other irrational prejudices that cause (and are reflected in) prevailing social attitudes of racism, sexism, homophobia, and ethnic bigotry. Sanism infects both our jurisprudence and our lawyering practices; it is largely invisible and largely socially acceptable, based predominantly upon stereotype, myth, superstition, and deindividualization. It is sustained and perpetuated by our use of alleged "ordinary common sense" and heuristic reasoning in an unconscious response to events both in everyday life and in the legal process. This Article will (1) discuss the state of the law that applies to sexual autonomy in psychiatric institutions, (2) review the social policy issues as they relate to (a) forensic patients and (b) Asia, (3) explain the pernicious impact of sanism, and (4) seek to offer some tentative solutions to the underlying dilemmas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines some of the effects of globalisation on education and teacher education. In particular it considers the contradictory demands of economic and cultural forms of globalisation, and between globalisation and localisation. Attempts to construct an 'education space' in Europe and Asia are considered and various responses of teacher education systems are outlined. A defensible theory of teacher education is presented around the transformation of curriculum, pedagogy, assessment and the practicum: one that might allow a creative response to the contradictions of globalisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, I approach the question of mobiles in Asian countries by considering the case of Australia. I do so by way of a preliminary inquiry that seeks to explore the intersection between the emergence of mobiles in Australia with transformations in that country's sense of its relationship with Asia. First I discuss the history of the mobile phone in Australia, noting some important uses and representations that formed part of its social shaping. Second, I explore mobiles and the paradoxes of multiculturalism, and also how digital technologies became central to political culture and identity debates in Australia in the early to-mid 1990s. Third, I look at some important moments in the social shaping of text messaging, in which questions of cultural difference were decisive. Finally, I offer concluding remarks about future research on mobiles in Australia and how they are tied into Asian identities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The estimation of unwanted fertility is a major objective of demographic surveys, including DHS surveys conducted in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Levels and trends in unwanted fertility are important input to the formulation of population policy and the evaluation of family planning programs. Yet existing methods for estimating unwanted fertility are known to be defective, among other reasons because they rely on subjective data whose validity and reliability are questionable. In this article, we propose a new estimator of unwanted fertility-the "aggregate prospective estimator"--so named because it depends on the stated preference for another child at the time of the survey, the fertility-desires item consistently shown to possess the highest validity and reliability. Under reasonable assumptions, the aggregate prospective estimator produces less biased estimates of unwanted fertility than the most widely used existing methods. The new estimator has the limitation of generating only aggregate-level estimates, but such estimates are the primary data for policy formulation and program evaluation. The new estimator is presented in this article, along with an evaluation of its underlying assumptions and its sensitivity to several sources of error. In an illustrative application to recent DHS data from six countries, the new estimator yields substantially higher estimates of unwanted fertility than existing methods in all six countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Books reviewed in this article: Weber, Axel (sous la direction de); Asian Development Bank. Social protection index for committed poverty reduction. Islam, Nurul. Reducing rural poverty in Asia: Challenges and opportunities for microenterprises and public employment schemes. Alesina, Alberto; Glaeser, Edward L. Combattre les inégalités et la pauvreté: les Etats-Unis face à l'Europe. Leisering, Lutz; Buhr, Petra; Traiser-Diop, Ute. Soziale Grundsicherung in der Weltgesellschaft: monetäre Mindestsiche-rungssysteme in den Länden des Südens und des Nordens. Imbeau, Louis. Politiques publiques comparées dans les Etats fédérés: l'Allemagne, l'Australie, le Canada, les Etats-Unis et la Suisse. Schierup, Carl-Ulrik; Hansen, Peo; Castles, Stephen. Migration, citizenship, and the European welfare state: A European dilemma. Razavi, Shahra; Hassim, Shireen (sous la direction de); United Nations Research Institute for Social Development. Gender and social policy in a global context. Steinwachs, Luise. Die Herstellung sozialer Sicherheit in Tanzania: Prozesse sozialer Transformation und die Entstehung neuer Handlungsräume. Glendinning, Caroline; Kemp, Peter A. (sous la direction de). Cash and care: Policy challenges in the welfare state. Piller, Otto. Die soziale Schweiz: die schweizerischen Sozialwerke im Überblick. Häcki, Kurt; Schaub, Beatrice. Sozialversi-cherungen kreuz und quer. Schoppa, Leonard. Race for the exits: The unraveling of Japan's system of social protection. Lafore, Robert; Cauquil, Guy (sous la direction de). Evaluer les politiques sociales. Bureau, Marie-Christine, et al. Défaillances et inventions de l'action sociale. Parienty, Arnaud. Protectionsociale: le défi. Allen, Davina; Pilnick, Alison (sous la direction de). The social organisation of healthcare work. Walshe, Kieran; Smith, Judith (sous la direction de). Healthcare management. Jacobs, Rowena; Smith, Peter C.; Street, Andrew. Measuring efficiency in health care: Analytic techniques and health policy. Brink, Alexander, et al. Gerechtigkeit im Gesundheitswesen. Angel, Ronald J.; Lein, Laura; Henrici, Jane. Poor families in America's health care crisis. Buzzi, Stéphane; Devinck, Jean-Claude; Rosental, Paul-André. La santé au travail, 1880-2006. Libault, Dominique, et al. La réforme de l'assurance maladie. Dopson, Sue; Fitzgerald, Louise. Knowledge to action? Evidence-based health care in context. Gimeno, Juan A.; Rubio, Santiago; Tamayo Lorenzo, Pedro A. (sous la direction de). Economía de la salud: fundamentos. Gimeno, Juan A.; Rubio, Santiago; Tamayo Lorenzo, Pedro A. (sous la direction de). Economía de la salud: instrumentos. Hamman, Philippe. Les travailleurs frontaliers en Europe: mobilités et mobili sations transnationales. l'Horty, Yannick. Les nouvelles politiques de l'emploi. Thibault, Florence; Avenel, Cyprien. Précarités et insécurité sociale. Demazière, Didier. Sociologie des chômeurs. Sunley, Peter; Martin, Ron; Nativel, Corinne. Putting workfare in place: Local labour markets and the New Deal. Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques. Perspectivas del empleo, 2005. Lynch, Julia. Age in the welfare state: The origins of social spending on pensioners,workers, and children. Ebbinghaus, Bernhard. Reforming early retirement in Europe, Japan and the USA. Clark, Gordon L.; et al. The Oxford handbook of pensions and retirement income. Milevsky, Moshe A. The calculus of retirement income: Financial models for pension annuities and life insurance. Dorenlot, Pascale, et al. Accompagner la fin de vie des personnes atteintes de la maladie d'Alzheimer ou de maladies apparentées. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social polarisation theory assumes that the world's major cities tend to divide into dual social strata. However, in the context of developmental states integrated into the Greater South China economic zone, an empirical study of three Asian cities challenges the social polarisation hypothesis and suggests alternative forms of social transformation. Data on changes in employment, occupation and household income in Singapore, Hong Kong and Taipei show that urban regimes and social policies instigated by developmental states play a decisive role in the formation of social inequality and marginal urban populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the project of tribal education in the British colonial state in the mid-19th century and the shape into which it developed in Chhotanagpur, an obscure area of east India under the Presidency of Bengal. Trends in educational growth elsewhere in India showed further that education was not solely the responsibility and activity of the colonial government. In the destabilized and fluid social situation of the early nineteenth century, many were quick to assess colonial Western education as the passport to a new livelihood and to a new respectable social status. The cultural fermentation that resulted from the interaction between the East and the West gave rise to private Indian enterprise in the field of education.

This article examines the educational policy responses by five western countries/regions to the ‘Asian economic miracle’ in the 1990s. It begins by stating that the idea of the global economic context has assumed considerable importance in the current educational thinking and debates. It then shows that Asia has been thematized in the west as a challenge that must be accommodated as a matter of significant economic interests. The country/region specific analyses, in the aggregate, demonstrate that ‘educating for location’ has been the driving force behind the policy to become Asia-literate. This instrumental approach is suggested as having a limiting influence on the sustainability of the policy initiatives. This paper underlies the need for a greater effort to make the proposed literacy reform educationally relevant and valid. Additionally, the recent events of 9/11 and the Bali bombings may have the effect of exacerbating the process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the study on the condition and trend in adult basic education in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, as accounted by the Swedish International Development Agency. The research concentrated on the condition of the adult basic learning and education in the South and their needs in terms of holistic approach in human development. The authors have compared the Adult Basic Learning and Education (ABLE) program to the Adult Basic Education system, characterizing ABLE as a medium that can replace Education for All movement. Information regarding the aim for globalisation of learning is also discussed.

Although the third sector now plays a very important role in social welfare, studies of the third sector almost always concentrate on the Western industrial and rarely include the developing counties. One reason for this is that the analytical framework that social policy scholars use does not provide adequate tools to study nonprofit organizations in the developing countries. This article shows why the present framework cannot be applied to developing countries and then proposes a new framework: the space model. It discusses this model and suggests that it has relevance not only to the developing countries but to industrial countries as well. The author uses Asian case studies to support this contention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land reform in Asian countries is often mentioned as one explanation for the successful economic performance of several Asian countries. Latin American countries did not have land reform and therefore have had lower economic growth. However, this legitimate guess has only scarce evidences. We use a new analytical method to investigate some plausible channels and effects, and we find supportive evidences that part of the regional differential in economic performance of the East Asian and Latin American regions can be explained by their difference in land distribution inequality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years there has been considerable disagreement over the extent to which productivity growth has accounted for the success of the east Asian economies. Empirical evidence, based on forms of growth accounting or direct estimation of a production function, is inconclusive so that the debate appears to be at a stalemate. This article applies an alternative approach, using the Malmquist productivity indices, to investigate the contribution of productivity to the longer term growth. The results support the view that over the longer term, the east Asian economies were input driven but interesting differences arise between countries when shorter periods are analysed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has long been assumed among Western commentators that rapid economic growth in East and South-east Asia has been achieved without the development of social policies. It has often been inferred that growth without social welfare is not only possible, but beneficial to further strong economic growth. The article questions these perceptions and beliefs. First, to what extent did East and South-east Asian countries delay the introduction of social insurance schemes compared to European pioneering countries, in the sense of introducing them only at a much higher level of 'modernization'? Second, to what extent was the economic miracle achieved by some of these countries based on (or accompanied by) attempts to forestall or retrench welfare state schemes? Third, to what extent has the recent financial crisis led to attempts at lowering or changing standards of social protection? The study shows that the Asian countries generally introduced social security programmes at a lower level of 'modernization' than Western European countries; that rapid and strong economic growth in the decade 1985-95 has in general been accompanied by welfare expansion; and that even after the financial crisis of 1997, expansion of state welfare responsibility is more evident than efforts to reduce or dismantle state welfare responsibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines some of the policy issues facing the Asian region with respect to climate change and its economic consequences. Threat to the future growth of the region brought about by the environmental consequences of its economic rise; Potential for increase in the greenhouse gas emissions in the region; National and regional policies as strategies for tackling the likely effects of climate change.