Social Policies in the Thirties in Europe:Crisis and Solution-The Italian Case

Drawing from historiography and literature on the subject and considering the consequences produced on the European society by World War I and the 1929 Wall Street Crisis,this article aims at analysing some aspects of the fascist construction of welfare state.The model suggested by the fascist regime in the thirties was a typical totalitarian welfare state,which used social policies to strengthen the home front and to build consensus for the regime.Despite the fascist regime had the war as its goal,it did not mobilize the country on the eve of World War II,but preferred to invest in social assistance and welfare,for reasons of political convenience.Moreover,the analysis of fascist social policy measures,such as social security,points out that some flaws in the social security system,such as excessive spending,or the categorical approach to assistance and social security typical of fascism,were borrowed from republican Italy.

Education As an Instrument for an Active Social Policy： Assumptions, Performance, and Prospects

The crisis of the welfare state caused the change of the approach to the policy of social protection and the tools of its realization in countries of EU. The present trend consists in the transfer of the responsibility for the welfare of the society from the state to local autonomies, businessmen, and, first of all, people themselves. A basic assignment of the present social policy is building active attitudes of persons and families being found in a difficult situation. Help in this has to be： the realization of the watchword work instead of benefit and the broadly understood education as the protection （guarantee） against life risks. Therefore, the author undertook synthesis of the current sociological knowledge on the change of an approach to social policy objectives formulation. Using qualitative methods, she analyzed the content of literature comprising （showing） discourses on the opportunities and constraints associated with the modernization of the existing social policy and selected EU documents.

For a Legal Guarantee to Improve People’s Livelihood and Protect Human Rights——Thoughts on policy concerning Social Insurance Law (draft)

The People＇s Republic of China Social Insurance Law （draft） has undergone three readings at the Standing Committee of the National People＇s Congress. The Law, once promulgated, will be of great significance to implementation of the constitutional principle of ＂respecting and protecting human rights.＂ It will help regulate the various social insurance relationships and the rights and obligations of the parties involved.

Social Policy Diffusion from the Perspective of Intergovernmental Relations： An Empirical Study of the Urban Subsistence Allowance System in China （1993-1999）

Universal access to China＇s social welfare system involves a process of diffusion from localities to the whole country on the basis of social policy innovations in which intergovernmental relations play a key role as a facilitator. The rapid establishment of the urban subsistence allowance system in more than 200 cities throughout the country in seven years （1993-1999） serves as a case for our empirical analysis of the diffusion mechanism of social policy innovations at different levels of government. Our findings show, firstly, that in adopting a new social policy, city governments have to respond to the social desire of local citizens while keeping fiscal constraints in mind; at the same time, they are affected by administrative orders from higher-level governments and the vertical fiscal relations between governments at different levels, and are also subject to competitive pressures from other cities at the same level. Secondly, city governments＇ policy innovations offer an opportunity for higher levels of government to learn from their experience. Thirdly, central government orders exert both a direct and indirect influence upon city governments, with provincial orders acting as intermediaries. And lastly, there is a clear difference in the time lag effect of orders from the central government and those at provincial level upon city governments＇ policy adoption.

Developing Social Citizenship? A Case Study of Education and Health Services in Yantian Village of Guangdong Province

Social policy is an indispensable element of rule and China＇s current leadership has moved policy to a more inclusive system based on a notion of citizenship. The extension of social welfareprovision is examined through a case study of education and health care in the South China village of Yantian. Yantian lies at the core of the Pearl River Delta, which has become a key link in the global reorganization of manufacturing andproduction. Consequently, the village is home to some 80 000 migrant workers who complement the 3000 registered inhabitants. A study of education and health-care provision reveals that in terms of equity, registered villagers enjoy significant advantages in seeking welJare resources. Although living in the same village, the two groups inhabit ＂＇different worlds. ＂However, provision, while selective, has become more inclusive. The present research suggests that ＂＇social citizenship＂ will precede ＂＇political citizenship. ＂

Social innovation based on collaboration between government and non-governmental organizations in COVID-19 crisis: evidence from Iran

Background One of the effective ways to attract social collaboration to provide effective,prompt,and coordinated interventions in emergencies is through social innovation.The present study seeks to identify the factors affecting the implementation of the social innovation plan based on the collaboration between government and non-governmental organizations(NGOs)for saving people’s lives in crises.The initial idea of this research was obtained from the best practice“Every Home Is a Health Base”which was implemented in Iran.Methods The Grounded Theory strategy has been used in this study.The statistical population of the study is health experts from the Ministry of Health and Medical Education of Iran.The study time span is during the first half of 2020.Exploratory analysis was used to identify the factors of social innovation.By selecting and reviewing 68 research in-depth,the initial framework was prepared.Then,through a semi-structured interview with experts,the framework was adapted and reviewed.Based on the analysis of the collected data,39 open codes were extracted and the factors affecting the implementation of the social innovation were identified.Results The eight axis codes as the factors affecting the implementation of the social innovation plan based on the collaboration between government and NGOs are as follows:Paying attention to the components of the NGOs collaboration effectiveness,investment to attract NGOs collaboration,the ability to manage the implementation,the ability of networking,the ability of policymaking,providing the necessary cultural and educational infrastructure;Existence of capable legal organizations to solve the executive problems of the plan and facilitate coordination,and controlling,containing and reducing the effects of the crisis,as consequences.Conclusions Lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic have shown the world that the current governmental and social structures are not efficient enough to respond quickly to the emergence of global challenges.Social innovation is a solution to this problem.The findings of this study also confirm this and identify the factors affecting the implementation of the social innovation plan based on collaboration between governments and NGOs in crises.The results of this research give governments and policymakers an efficient solution by involving NGOs,especially in times of widespread crises.Also,they can be used in planning for social development.

Employment marketization,social security inclusion and rights equalization of rural migrants

Against the backdrop of stagnation in hukou reform,a new theme in research on internal migration in China has emerged.Are reforms aimed at equalizing citizens’rights effective in promoting the rights and position of rural migrants?This paper proposes that a dual transition is taking place in China,one that is affecting the market and another in the area of social policy.The paper examines two lines of reform measures intended to equalize rights:the marketization of employment and the development of inclusive social policy.This investigation on the reforms shows that rural migrants to cities have attained citizenship-based rights to employment and job-related social insurance.This paper also discusses the issue of local citizenship as a by-product of China’s reform and development.The paper’s findings imply that rural migrants are beneficiaries of China’s dual-transition.

Population aging in China from a multidimensional,comparative perspective

In recent years,perhaps more than any others,changes in China’s population have been under the spotlight.Issues relating to population aging and stagnation/decline have been presented as a near existential threat to the political,social,and economic future of the country.The responses to these challenges have typically revolved around seeking a‘demographic response’-namely more babies.These responses,however,are deaf to both the challenges of family formation in contemporary China,as well as the timespan needed for such policies to affect already stressed systems and institutions.Rather,policies which reformed such stressed systems and address the lifecycle challenges and opportunities of population aging are urgently required.This requires an improved,multidimensional‘problem definition’as well as con-sidering comparative approaches to facilitate policy learning.This commentary explores these issues and identifies how the papers which make up this special issue of China Population and Development Studies contribute to developing our under-standing of aging from a multidimensional and comparative perspective.

Growth and Common Prosperity in China

This paper introduces a decomposition method that quantifies the contributions to common prosperity of labor market performance and social policies and extends the idea of shared prosperity to a new measure of inequity in opportunities.The resulting common prosperity indices and opportunity equality indices are then applied to five waves of the Chinese Household Income Project data from 1988 to 2018.This paper shows that the labor market performance and social policies have been improving over the last 30 years and have helped China move towards common prosperity for everyone.The indices developed in this paper allow us to quantify the extent of shared prosperity that a country has achieved and to carry out empirical studies on which policy is working and which is not.It can also help us identify the fundamental causes of inequality and aid us in achieving equality in opportunity among all members of society.

Childcare Policy in China:Review,Reflection and Reconstruction

In recent years,China’s“childcare crisis”has worsened,affecting children,women,families and even society as a whole in multiple ways.A review of the childcare policy since the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949 shows that it has shifted from construction to destruction and thence to partial reconstruction,entering a crucial reconstruction stage after the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China.To cope effectively with the childcare crisis that has emerged from the changes in population structure and population policies,socioeconomic transformation,family changes,etc.,we need to gain a renewed understanding of the important role of childcare policy in socioeconomic development and in the people’s sense of betterment,in order to build an integrated childcare system with universally accessible benefits in which the state,the market,society and families participate.

The Chinese Dream of a More Progressive Welfare State： Progress and Challenges

＂The Chinese Dream＂ and its ideational precursors in official discourse touch upon issues of social policymaking. More specifically, official China has stated the goal of achieving a ＂moderate＂ or ＂appropriate＂ universal welfare state in order to mitigate increasing inequality and the individualization of social risk. Consequently, the new millennium witnessed a wave of social reforms in China's Mainland, the most significant of which were arguably within the policy fields of health insurance, pensions and unemployment protection. This paper reviews reform efforts within these three policy fields and discusses progress and looming challenges with the concept of universalism as the yardstick. From the perspective of universalism, the social right dimensions of coverage （the share of the population included）, generosity （benefit levels or adequacy of welfare proved for those included） and financing （such as state, contributions or private） are quintessential. Coverage of social protection has increased significantly with new schemes in all three policy fields. The hukou divide in coverage of social insurance is not as pronounced as before, especially in health insurance. However, major challenges still persist. Declining benefit generosity or adequacy has been a tendency in both pensions and unemployment protection. The pension system also faces problems of financial fragmentation and unsustainability. The health insurance system is still inadequate in terms of protection against health risks, particularly serious or chronic illnesses. These issues are more pronounced in schemes catering to rural residents or urban residents outside the labor market. This reflects that schemes for urban workers are still much more generous. In this regard, recent tentative efforts to integrate the divided welfare system should be noted.