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Social policy
 
 
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Social policy primarily refers to guidelines and interventions for the changing, maintenance or creation of living conditions that are conducive to human welfare
Quality of life

Quality of life is the degree of well-being felt by an individual or group of people.Quality of life cannot be measured directly, however the perception of QOL is made up of of two components: the physical and the psychological....
. Thus social policy is that part of public policy
Public policy

Public policy can be generally defined as the course of action or inaction taken by government entities with regard to a particular issue or set of issues....
 that has to do with social
Social

Social refers to a characteristic of living organisms . It always refers to the interaction of organisms with other organisms and to their collective co-existence, irrespective of whether they are aware of it or not, and irrespective of whether the interaction is voluntary or involuntary....
 issues. Social policy aims to improve human welfare and to meet human needs for education, health, housing and social security. The Malcolm Wiener Center for Social Policy at Harvard University
Harvard University

Harvard University is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Massachusetts, United States, and a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1636 by the colonial Massachusetts legislature, Harvard is the Colonial Colleges institution of higher learning in the United States....
 describes it as "public policy and practice in the areas of health care, human services, criminal justice, inequality, education, and labor" .

In an academic environment, London School of Economics
London School of Economics

The London School of Economics and Political Science, more commonly referred to as The London School of Economics or LSE, is a specialist college of the University of London in London, England....
 professor Richard Titmuss
Richard Titmuss

File:Richard Titmuss.jpgRichard Titmuss was a pioneering British social researcher and teacher. He founded the academic discipline of Social Administration and held the founding chair in the subject at the LSE....
 is considered to have established Social Policy (or Social Administration) as an academic area of study.






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Social policy primarily refers to guidelines and interventions for the changing, maintenance or creation of living conditions that are conducive to human welfare
Quality of life

Quality of life is the degree of well-being felt by an individual or group of people.Quality of life cannot be measured directly, however the perception of QOL is made up of of two components: the physical and the psychological....
. Thus social policy is that part of public policy
Public policy

Public policy can be generally defined as the course of action or inaction taken by government entities with regard to a particular issue or set of issues....
 that has to do with social
Social

Social refers to a characteristic of living organisms . It always refers to the interaction of organisms with other organisms and to their collective co-existence, irrespective of whether they are aware of it or not, and irrespective of whether the interaction is voluntary or involuntary....
 issues. Social policy aims to improve human welfare and to meet human needs for education, health, housing and social security. The Malcolm Wiener Center for Social Policy at Harvard University
Harvard University

Harvard University is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Massachusetts, United States, and a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1636 by the colonial Massachusetts legislature, Harvard is the Colonial Colleges institution of higher learning in the United States....
 describes it as "public policy and practice in the areas of health care, human services, criminal justice, inequality, education, and labor" .

In an academic environment, London School of Economics
London School of Economics

The London School of Economics and Political Science, more commonly referred to as The London School of Economics or LSE, is a specialist college of the University of London in London, England....
 professor Richard Titmuss
Richard Titmuss

File:Richard Titmuss.jpgRichard Titmuss was a pioneering British social researcher and teacher. He founded the academic discipline of Social Administration and held the founding chair in the subject at the LSE....
 is considered to have established Social Policy (or Social Administration) as an academic area of study. Many universities offer the subject for undergraduate and postgraduate study.

International Interpretations


In Europe
Europe

Europe is, conventionally, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural , the Caspian Sea, and by the Caucasus Mountains to the southeast....
, 'social policy' refers to policies affecting the social conditions under which people live. Important areas of social policy in these countries are:
  • The welfare state
    Welfare State

    The Welfare State of the United Kingdom was prefigured in the William Beveridge Report in 1942, which identified five "Giant Evils" in society: squalor, ignorance, want, idleness and disease....
  • Social security
    Social security

    Social security primarily refers to a social insurance program providing social protection, or protection against socially recognized conditions, including poverty, old age, disability, unemployment and others....
  • Unemployment insurance
  • Pensions
  • Healthcare
  • Social housing
  • Social care
  • Social exclusion
    Social exclusion

    Social Exclusion has no agreed to, defined, or specific single application, though one suggested definition is as follows:Social exclusion is a multidimensional process of progressive social rupture, detaching groups and individuals from social relations and institutions and preventing them from full participation in the normal, normatively...
  • Education policy
    Education policy

    Education policy refers to the collection of laws and rules that govern the operation of education systems.Education occurs in many forms for many purposes through many institutions....
  • Crime
    Crime

    Societies define Crime as the breach of one or more rules or laws for which some Government or force may ultimately prescribe a punishment.The word crime originates from the Latin crimen , from the Latin root cerno and Greek ????? = "I judge"....
     and Criminal justice
    Criminal justice

    Criminal justice is the system of practices, and organizations, used by national and local governments, directed at maintaining social control, Deterrence and controlling crime, and sanctioning those who violate laws with criminal penalties....
  • Labour regulation


However, in the United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 politics
Politics

Politics is the process by which groups of people make decisions. The term is generally applied to behaviour within civil governments, but politics has been observed in all human group interactions, including corporation, academia, and religion institutions....
 and in Canadian politics
Politics

Politics is the process by which groups of people make decisions. The term is generally applied to behaviour within civil governments, but politics has been observed in all human group interactions, including corporation, academia, and religion institutions....
, social policies are those which regulate and govern human behavior in areas such as sexuality and general morality
Morality

Morality has three principal meanings.In its first, descriptive usage, morality means a code of conduct which is held to be authoritative in matters of right and wrong....
. Social policies are in contrast to other, more traditional forms of political policy, such as foreign policy
Foreign policy

A state's foreign policy, also called the international relations policy, is a set of goals outlining how the country will interact with other countries economically, politically, socially and militarily, and to a lesser extent, how the country will interact with non-state actors....
 and economic policy
Economics

File:Ballard Farmers' Market - vegetables.jpgEconomics is the Social sciences that studies the Production theory basics, Distribution , and Consumption of Good and Service ....
. Modern-day social policies may deal with the following issues:
  • abortion
    Abortion

    An abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by the removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus from the uterus, resulting in or caused by its death....
    , and the regulation of its practice
  • the legal status of euthanasia
    Euthanasia

    Euthanasia refers to the practice of ending a life in a painless manner. Many different forms of euthanasia can be distinguished, including euthanasia and human euthanasia, and within the latter, voluntary and involuntary euthanasia....
  • the rules surrounding issues of marriage
    Marriage

    Marriage is a social, spirituality, or law union of individuals. This union may also be called matrimony, while the ceremony that marks its beginning is usually called a wedding and the married status created is sometimes called wedlock....
    , divorce
    Divorce

    Divorce or dissolution of marriage is a legal process in which a judge or other authority dissolves the bonds of matrimony existing between two persons, thus restoring them to the marital status of being single....
    , and adoption
    Adoption

    Adoption is the act of Family law placing a child with a parent or parents other than those to whom they were born. An adoption order has the effect of severing parental responsibilities and rights of the original parent and transferring those responsibilities and rights to the adoptive parent....
  • poverty
    Poverty

    Poverty is the shortage of common things such as food, clothing, shelter and safe drinking water, all of which determine our quality of life. It may also include the lack of access to opportunities such as education and employment which aid the escape from poverty and/or allow one to enjoy the respect of fellow citizens....
    , welfare
    Welfare (financial aid)

    Welfare is financial assistance paid to people by governments. Some welfare is general, while specific and can only be invoked under certain circumstances, such as a scholarship....
    , and homelessness
    Homelessness

    Homelessness is the condition and social category of people who lack housing, because they cannot afford, or are otherwise unable to maintain, regular, safe, and adequate shelter....
     and how it is to deal with these issues
  • the legal status of recreational drugs
  • the legal status of prostitution
    Prostitution

    The word prostitution is used to indicate:1. The exposing or otherwise offering oneself or someone else with the purpose of tempting potential customers to exchange money or goods for the promise of cooperativeness in sexual intercourse from the exposed person;...


Ideological interpretations


Social policy may be influenced by religion
Religion

A religion is an organized approach to human spirituality which usually encompasses a set of myth, symbols, beliefs and practices, often with a supernatural or transcendence quality, that give meaning to the practitioner's experiences of life through reference to a higher power or truth....
 and the religious beliefs of politicians. Political conservative
Conservatism

Conservatism is a political and social term whose meaning has changed in different countries and time periods, but which usually indicates support for the status quo or the status quo ante....
s as a whole generally favor a more traditionalist approach that favors individual initiative and private enterprise in social policy. Political liberal
Liberalism

Liberalism is a broad class of political philosophy that considers individualism liberty and equality to be the most important political goals....
s, on the other hand favor the guarantee of social rights
Social rights

Economic, social and cultural rights are Socioeconomics human rights; compare with civil and political rights. Economic, social and cultural rights are included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and elaborated upon in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights ....
, citizenship
Citizenship

Citizenship refers to a person's membership in a political community such as a country or city. It has different legal definitions in different countries....
 and entitlements to all and tend to favor state regulation or social insurance
Social insurance

Social insurance is any government-sponsored program with the following four characteristics:* the benefits, eligibility requirements and other aspects of the program are defined by statute;...
 measures to support this.

Social policy often deals with issues which Rittle & Webber (1973) called wicked problems.

See also

  • Socio-economics
  • Program evaluation
    Program evaluation

    Program evaluation is a systematic method for collecting, analyzing, and using information to answer basic questions about projects, policies and program ....
  • Social Protection
  • Social democracy
    Social democracy

    Social democracy is a political philosophy of the left-wing politics or centre-left that emerged in the late 19th century from the socialism movement and continues to exert influence worldwide....


Further Reading


Titmuss, R. M. (1951) Problems of social policy. HM Stationery Off. ISBN ?
Dean, H. (2006). Social Policy. Cambridge: Polity Press. ISBN 9780745634340.