Seven Square pegs and round holes: extending existing typologies fails to capture the complexities of Chinese social policy
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Dan Horsfall
Abstract
Exploring the relationship between markets and social policy from a different angle, Dan Horsfall and Sabrina Chai examine the merits of applying the idea of the ‘competition state’ to China. They consider whether this typology fits the case of China and while they locate valuable observations that might illuminate and help to make sense of the relationship between macroeconomic and social policy, they also find that various factors – for example, the rural-urban divide, provincial versus state policies and the continuing development of ‘welfare’ in China, including the growing share of expenditure devoted to social policies – make China a complex case. This is exacerbated by gaps in the literature and gaps in the data. Their conclusion is that the future direction of social policy in China remains unclear, paving the way for more research on these crucial questions in the future.
Abstract
Exploring the relationship between markets and social policy from a different angle, Dan Horsfall and Sabrina Chai examine the merits of applying the idea of the ‘competition state’ to China. They consider whether this typology fits the case of China and while they locate valuable observations that might illuminate and help to make sense of the relationship between macroeconomic and social policy, they also find that various factors – for example, the rural-urban divide, provincial versus state policies and the continuing development of ‘welfare’ in China, including the growing share of expenditure devoted to social policies – make China a complex case. This is exacerbated by gaps in the literature and gaps in the data. Their conclusion is that the future direction of social policy in China remains unclear, paving the way for more research on these crucial questions in the future.
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- Notes on contributors v
- Introduction xi
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Contemporary debates and developments in the UK
- Introducing Universal Credit 3
- Reconciling fuel poverty and climate change policy under the Coalition government: Green Deal or no deal? 23
- Doctors in the driving seat? Reforms in NHS primary care and commissioning 47
- Financing later life: pensions, care, housing equity and the new politics of old age 67
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Contributions from the Social Policy Association/East Asian Social Policy Research Network Conference of 2012
- It’s time to move on from ‘race’? The official ‘invisibilisation’ of minority ethnic disadvantage 93
- Corporations as political actors: new perspectives for health policy research 113
- Square pegs and round holes: extending existing typologies fails to capture the complexities of Chinese social policy 129
- The Earned Income Tax Credit as an anti-poverty programme: palliative or cure? 149
- Social policy and culture: the cases of Japan and South Korea 167
- Load-shedding and reloading: changes in government responsibility – the case of Israeli immigration and integration policy 2004–10 183
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Themed section: work, employment and insecurity
- ‘What unemployment means’ three decades and two recessions later 207
- Precarious employment and EU employment regulation 227
- How do activation policies affect social citizenship? The issue of autonomy 249
- Modernising social security for lone parents: avoiding fertility and unemployment traps when reforming social policy in Northern Europe 271
- Women, families and the ‘Great Recession’ in the UK 293
- Index 315
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- Notes on contributors v
- Introduction xi
-
Contemporary debates and developments in the UK
- Introducing Universal Credit 3
- Reconciling fuel poverty and climate change policy under the Coalition government: Green Deal or no deal? 23
- Doctors in the driving seat? Reforms in NHS primary care and commissioning 47
- Financing later life: pensions, care, housing equity and the new politics of old age 67
-
Contributions from the Social Policy Association/East Asian Social Policy Research Network Conference of 2012
- It’s time to move on from ‘race’? The official ‘invisibilisation’ of minority ethnic disadvantage 93
- Corporations as political actors: new perspectives for health policy research 113
- Square pegs and round holes: extending existing typologies fails to capture the complexities of Chinese social policy 129
- The Earned Income Tax Credit as an anti-poverty programme: palliative or cure? 149
- Social policy and culture: the cases of Japan and South Korea 167
- Load-shedding and reloading: changes in government responsibility – the case of Israeli immigration and integration policy 2004–10 183
-
Themed section: work, employment and insecurity
- ‘What unemployment means’ three decades and two recessions later 207
- Precarious employment and EU employment regulation 227
- How do activation policies affect social citizenship? The issue of autonomy 249
- Modernising social security for lone parents: avoiding fertility and unemployment traps when reforming social policy in Northern Europe 271
- Women, families and the ‘Great Recession’ in the UK 293
- Index 315
