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Through its 14 chapters, this book presents a first view of the different perspectives within the fragmented field of behaviour change. The first part presents a series of perspectives of behaviour change as it is currently researched and implemented. This includes an overview of theories of behaviour, of evaluation and intervention design, the various approaches to behaviour change policy and a review of both behavioural economics and social marketing. The second part presents a series of approaches which are more concerned with questioning underlying conditions in which problematic behaviours occur. The activities of commercial marketers are scrutinised, the ethics and efficacy of participatory approaches – without systemic change - are questioned, and theories of practice and whole-system approaches are offered as perspectives which lead to a more complete picture of ‘problem’ behaviours and how to change them. The book paints a picture of a field that is undoubtedly fragmented and subject to a series of forces, both internally and externally. It highlights the breadth of perspectives and does not seek to hide the conflicts between them. Rather, the book seeks to suggest the potential of transdisciplinary behaviour change and to pave the way for further innovative discussions across the field and the setting of a firm agenda for its future.

This book offers a timely analysis of the impact of rapidly advancing knowledge about the brain, mind and behaviour on contemporary public policy and practice. Drawing on in-depth interviews with professionals in a range of social spheres including architecture and urban design, education, and the workplace, the book examines the global spread of policy strategies, UK based policy experiments and everyday practice informed by ‘brain culture’. It explores how neuroscientific, behavioural and psychological explanation have become increasingly influential in such fields, and examines their repercussions for governing citizens. Analysis of a neural turn in research, policy and practice is offered through the development of a geographical focus on behaviour, including the role of context, scale and situatedness in re-shaping political agency. The book provides a grounded critical commentary on the burgeoning field of social, cultural and political aspects of brain culture. It offers an alternative set of explanations for what matters in explaining why people behave in certain ways and how citizens’ behaviour could and should be governed.

Choice pervades our society: it is founded on political rights to choose and our economy of market choices, but we have now reached the point where choice is extended almost everywhere. This book provides a critique of choice in contemporary society and policy, arguing that we can have too much of a good thing. And there are alternatives. In the first part, the book shows how choice works at a personal level, its demands, and how it can fail. By examining healthcare, education and pensions, it then explores the alternatives, such as provision. In the second part of the text the book reviews the impact of choice through the life cycle, in areas such as careers, relationships, fertility, retirement and death. The book considers whether this enhances or burdens our lives, and questions the assumption that more choice is always for the better.

The relationship between citizens and local decision makers is a long-standing policy pre-occupation and has often been the subject of debate by politicians across parties. Recent governments have sought to empower, activate, and give responsibility to some citizens, while other groups have been abandoned or ignored. Drawing on extensive up-to-date empirical work by leading researchers in the field, this book aims to explain what debates about local governance mean for local people. Questions addressed include: what new demands are being made on citizens and why? Which citizens are affected and how have they responded? What difference do changing forms of local governance make to people's lives? The book explores governance and citizenship in relation to multiculturalism, economic migration, community cohesion, housing markets, neighbourhoods, faith organisations, behaviour change, and e-democracy, in order to establish a differentiated, contemporary view of the ways that citizens are constituted at the local level today.

This book challenges existing stereotypes about the ‘consumer as chooser’. It shows how we must develop a more sophisticated understanding of consumers, examining their place and role as users of public services. The analysis shows that there are many different ‘faces’ of the consumer and that it is not easy to categorise users in particular environments. Drawing on empirical research, the book critiques established assumptions surrounding citizenship and consumption. Choice may grab the policy headlines, but other essential values are revealed as important throughout the book. One issue concerns the ‘subjects’ of consumerism, or who it is that presents themselves when they come to use public services. Another concerns consumer ‘mechanisms’, or the ways that public services try to relate to these people. Bringing these issues together, with contributions from a range of leading researchers, the message is that today's public services must learn to cope with a differentiated public.

Covering the period from the height of Empire to Brexit and beyond, this book shows how the vote to leave the European Union increased hostilities towards racial and ethnic minorities and migrants. Concentrating on the education system it asks whether populist views that there should be a British identity, or a Scottish, Welsh or Irish one largely excluding minorities, or whether arguments based on human rights, equality and economic needs will prevail. It covers events in politics and education that have left most white British people ignorant of Empire, the often-brutal processes of decolonisation and the arrival of migrants from post-colonial and European countries. It discusses policies and practices in education, race, religion and migration that have left schools and universities largely failing to engage with a multicultural and multiracial society

This book explores questions of trade union identities and what is termed ‘niche unionism’ in the work. It exposes the inadequacy of the extant industrial relations literature in explaining both contemporary union identities and the significance of niche to union organisation. It explores the contribution of alternative bodies of literature including organisational identity theory, social identity theory and marketing. The work introduces a new approach to understanding unions’ projected identities in the form of a multidimensional framework of analysis developed from more than ten years research designed to isolate the sources of union identity. The projected identities of trade unions certified in Great Britain are examined systematically under broad headings of general, industrial/occupational, organisational and geographical unions. Four drivers to change in union identities are explored, namely, union mergers, union rebranding, new unions and union dissolutions. The work provides a brief comparative analysis of union identities in five other countries, suggesting additional sources of union identity that might be required for a more comprehensive analysis. Finally, the work explores critical questions relating to the future of union identities concerning, the primacy of general unions, the persistence of niche unions, whether general or niche unions are better placed to organise the unorganised and finally whether niche identity a barrier to expanding membership territories.

This book tells the story of how the International Labour Organisation came in 2012 to recommend to all countries that they should establish a Social Protection Floor (SPF), containing basic social security guarantees that ensure that over the life cycle all in need could afford and have access to essential health care and income security. It is the story of how the concept of a “global social floor” was transformed from a term used by global social reformists at the turn of the century challenging neo-liberal globalization into a concrete global social policy measure. It covers the internal politics of one of the major UN international organizations, throwing light upon the respective roles of governments, employers and trade unions on the one hand, and the permanent Secretariat of the ILO on the other. It also describes the struggle to win other agencies in the ‘system’ of global social governance over to supporting this idea. It tells how the UN, the World Bank and the G20 all came to endorse the concept. More than a case study, the book sets out an analytical framework for understanding global social policy change and provides a critical assessment of the global social governance system.

This groundbreaking study examines two neglected areas in studies of housing and minority groups and of social relations between different marginalized communities. First, the book examines the largely enforced settlement of the UK's Gypsy and Traveller populations into conventional housing. Despite the size of this settlement and a plethora of interest in the housing related experiences of other minority groups, this is the only in-depth study to address the settlement of Britain's formerly nomadic people. The material is presented thematically and explores routes into housing; lived experiences in ‘bricks and mortar’ social support mechanisms and adaptations to settlement. The qualitative material forms a compelling account of the gendered and generational articulations of these trends by examining community dynamics and how collective identities and community structures are constructed within housing. Second, the book examines social relations between housed Gypsies and Travellers and their (often poor and marginalized) ‘settled’ neighbours. This is the first investigation of the historical and contemporary manifestations of inter-group relations in a British context. Through comparative case studies the complex and contradictory nature of social relations on housing estates where Gypsies form an increasingly prominent population are examined. The book is an original and important sociological account of intergroup relations in low income areas. The empirical material is situated within its wider historical and policy framework, which allows fundamental questions concerning citizenship, diversity and inclusion in contemporary societies to be addressed.

Locating localism explores the development of localism as a new mode of statecraft and its implications for the practice of citizenship in England. The book takes the long view of this new policy development, positioning it in relation to the political geo-history of the British state. It highlights the challenges of the state devolving itself and the importance of citizens having the incentives and institutions needed to act. Drawing on original research into community organising, neighbourhood planning and the organisation of local government, the book highlights the importance of citizens having the civic infrastructure they need to engage in decision making on their own terms.

Whether mental health problems should be viewed as disabilities is a pressing concern, especially since the inclusion of psychosocial disability in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. This book explores the challenges of applying disability theory and policy, including the social model of disability, to madness, mental illness and distress. It brings together leading scholars and activists from Europe, North America, Australia and India, to explore the relationship between madness, distress and disability and enhance our collective understanding of the issues.

A Citizen's Income (sometimes called a Basic Income, a Universal Grant, a Social Dividend, or a Universal Benefit) is an unconditional, nonwithdrawable income for every individual as a right of citizenship. To replace some of the UK current tax system and much of the benefits system with a Citizen's Income would offer important positive benefits for society and the economy. Means-tested benefits are withdrawn as earnings rise, but a Citizen's Income would not be, thus making it easier for individuals and households to increase their net income. Current means-tested benefits pay less to a couple than to two individuals, thus imposing difficult decisions and intrusive investigations on claimants, whereas a Citizen's Income, because paid to each individual, would not interfere with people's relationships. The book employs thought-experiments to introduce a Citizen's Income, offers historical context, asks why some reform proposals succeed and some fail, and explores different ways of implementing a Citizen's Income. Existing universal benefits and recent pilot projects are described. A list of criteria for a good benefits system is then constructed, and both the UK's existing system and a Citizen's Income are evaluated against the criteria. The book discusses effects on the labour market, affordability, funding mechanisms, political feasibility, who should receive a Citizen's Income, alternative proposals, and the problems that a Citizen's Income would not solve. The book concludes that the significant benefits that a Citizen's Income would offer to our society and economy mean that a substantial pilot project, and then full implementation, are essential.

Once considered the preserve of the wealthy, nanny care has grown in response to changes in the labour market, including the rising number of mothers with young children, and increases in non-standard work patterns. This book examines the place of in-home childcare, commonly referred to as care by nannies, in Australia, the United Kingdom and Canada since the 1970s. In contrast to childminding or family day care provided in the home of the carer, in-home care takes place in the child’s home. The research extends beyond the early childhood education and care domain to consider how migration policy facilitates the provision of childcare in the private home. New empirical research is presented about in-home childcare in Australia, the United Kingdom and Canada, three countries where governments are pursuing new ways to support the recruitment of in-home childcare workers through funding, regulation and migration. The compelling policy story that emerges illustrates the implications of different mechanisms for facilitating in-home childcare - for families and for care workers. It proposes that these differences are shaped by both structural and normative understandings about appropriate forms of care that cut across gender, class/socioeconomic status and race/migration. Overall, it argues that greater attention needs to be given to the way childcare work in the private home is situated across ECEC and migration policy.

With a focus on the history, politics and economics of voluntary and community sector activity in Northern Ireland, this book explores the region’s neoliberal policy reforms and their implications for the sector, communities and governance. We chart the repeated ‘partnership turns’ in government rhetoric and policy, the networks and relationships that have developed between VCS actors and the state, and assess the nature and role of the sector after decades of financial and rhetorical support from governments and international funders. We will see how these developments had offered the voluntary sector a privileged role in the governance of a region that was making a transition to both relative peace and a highly localised version of neoliberalism. As this book will illustrate, the optimistic ‘glue that holds society together’ narratives that surrounded the sector in the decades of the peace process, and the ‘partnership’ policy discourses of the peacebuilding and New Labour heyday, are constantly resurrected in policy narratives that surround voluntary and community action in the region. However, such discourses are increasingly giving way to narratives and practices that are unapologetically grounded in neoliberal notions of civil society.

Policy analysis in Brazil is part of the International Library of Policy Analysis and is the first book to paint a comprehensive panorama of policy analysis activities in Brazil. Highlighting the unique features of the Brazilian example, it brings together 18 studies by leading Brazilian social scientists on policy analysis as a widespread activity pursued in a variety of policy fields and through different methods by governmental and non-governmental institutions and actors. It shows how policy analysis emerged as part of Brazilian state-building from the 1930s onwards. With the democratisation process of the late 1980s, policy analysis began to include innovative elements of social participation in public management. This unique book offers key insights into the practice of this field and is indispensable reading for scholars, policy makers and students of the social sciences interested in learning how policy analysis developed and functions in Brazil.

This comprehensive study, part of the International Library of Policy Analysis, brings together for the first time a systemic overview of policy analysis activities in Germany. Written by leading experts in the field – including informed practitioners – it outlines the development of the discipline, identifies its role in academic education and research, and examines its styles and methods. The book also focuses on the role of public policy analysis for governments and parliaments, for parties, social partners, and interest groups. By offering a rich and timely analysis of policy analysis in Germany, this book is a valuable resource for academic exchange and for teaching, particularly in the fields of political science, social sciences, economics and geography. Moreover, by its broad, comprehensive understanding of ‘policy analysis’, the book will be of practical relevance and shape the debate for the future development of policy analysis in Germany and the different spheres where it is practiced.

Public participation is central to a wide range of current public policies — not only in the UK, but elsewhere in the developed and the developing world. There are substantial aspirations for what enhanced participation can achieve. This book offers a critical examination of both the discourse and practice of participation in order to understand the significance of this explosion in participatory forums, and the extent to which such practices represent a fundamental change in governance. Based on 17 case studies across a range of policy areas in two English cities, the chapters address key issues such as: the way in which notions of the public are constructed; the motivation of participants; how the interests and identities of officials and citizens are negotiated within forums; and the ways in which institutions enable and constrain the development of participation initiatives. Much of the literature on public participation is highly normative. This book draws from detailed empirical work, theories of governance, deliberative democracy, and social movements to offer a nuanced account of the dynamics of participation and to suggest why these experiences can be frustrating as well as transformative.

Schools have long struggled to embrace diversity while also responding to the pressure to improve discipline standards and attainment. This book takes a critical and empirically grounded look at how such concerns are increasingly being managed through the use of onsite ‘behaviour support units’. Commonly administered through pastoral support services these self-contained centres are located on school premises and enable difficult pupils to be removed from mainstream classrooms for extended periods without recourse to official exclusion channels. Despite a general acknowledgment that such units now exist in the majority of British secondary schools there is a remarkable gap in knowledge and literature about their workings. This book will offer a valuable and much needed insight into the politics and practices of internal school exclusion, as highlighted through the experiences of the young people attending the units. Drawing on uniquely situated ethnographic research in three London based behaviour support units this book provides an important and highly illuminating account of the institutional and inter-personal dynamics characterising internal school exclusion

As Europe's public realms face upheaval, this book identifies how social solidarity is being reinvented from below and redefined from above. Interdisciplinary transnational approaches provide new insights into the relationship between national and transnational social solidarity across Europe. The book reveals social solidarity as the defining pillar of European integration, bringing a greater dimension and integrity beyond democracy across nation states. It addresses four central aims. Firstly, the clarification and development of a conceptual framework for discourse on solidarity within an enlarged Europe. Secondly, the collation and synthesis of research, which focuses on systematic national and cross-national analysis of empirical data within key areas of social and public policy, enabling critical engagement with the concept of social solidarity with an enlarged Europe. Thirdly, the book aims to identify methods and processes that make a difference in the development of transnational social securities and solidarities by tracing empirical relating to transnational policy and governance practice within an increasing austere background in Europe. Finally, it examines the relationship between national and transnational social solidarity within Europe and in the wider global socio-economic context.