Social Welfare
Year:2001 | Volume:1 | Issue:1|Papers Count:4

"Social welfare" and "social problems" should be considered as two sides of one coin. In this paper, the concept of "social problem" is defined, through reviewing four textbooks, as a situation which is considered as a threat for quality of life or vital values by a considerable number of population but, of course, not necessarily the majority of them. In addition, this situation should contain some social causes or effects and its abolition should require some changes in social policies.Accordingly, poverty, inequality, social deviation, and difficulties in social institutions, i.e. production, administration, general health, mental health, education, and family can be categorized as typical social problems.Functionalist, conflict, and interactionist theories explain social problems differently, and therefore, propose different policies to resolve them. Whereas functionalists consider social problems as those who have arised out of a disrupture between norms and behaviors, conflict theorists regard them as products of an unjust distribution of power, wealth, status, and information. These macrotheories do not explain the individual differences in a given social condition; this is relinquished to interactionists who emphasize the semantic and interpretive processes, such as labeling and differential association as forces on individual to deviate.

This paper explores the development of social services in Japan in terms of the broader concepts of welfare Orientalism and Occidentalism. The focus of this paper is on the roles-both negative and positive-played by the "West" in the construction of Japanese social service provision, not only literally in the form of foreign advisers in the early Meiji and post-war Occupation periods, but also metaphorically as a "model" for Japanese social policy makers either to emulate or to avoid. It concentrates in particular on the system of voluntary welfare commissioners called the minseiiin seido and how their role has been variously interpreted in the light of ideas about how social welfare has developed, and should develop, in the future in Japan in comparison with "Western" societies. The significance of these debates extends beyond welfare since, underlying them, are fundamental ideas about the role and the nature of the "person", the "family", the "community", and as well as the concepts of "civic duties", "rights" and "citizenship", and how these may differ in Japan and North American and West European societies, leading thereby to very different social ideas about "welfare".

Partial and general functions of the drug market in Iran have so far been left unknown. This essay intends to reveal and analyze some of these functions. Institutional factors, particularly those that determine income distribution, from one hand and, those that cause social conflicts on the other, can be considered as main political economy factors. With regard to consumption, and more clearly, to high level of consumption, price mechanism has especial, and important influences. But consummating the drug, by itself, is not determined merely by the price. According to our research, the real price of opium has decree are during the 17 years of the study, but this has only helped to compunction / demand. Beside, consumption of drug has been stemmed from poverty, discrimination, unemployment very shortage of recreational facilities and welfare, social conflict, and in some limited cases, due to the high in come of minorities or as an artificial energy motivating instrument for some professions.Despite the real price reduction and risk of seizure and capital punishments in various activities of drug business. its supply has been profitable.The reason is that the great traffickers can transfer it into European countries and take a dramatic in come from the huge unemployed and poor addict people. But these nudy people, specially the youth can take advantage in all airmentances in farour of their necessary substances.We have come to conclusion in our essay that simplified supply persistent drug abuse (specially opium and then heroin) in Iran. Factors and institutions that are active in reaction to poverty, unemployment and discrimination are more important in this field. Profit making plus corruption of course are playing a mainrole in trafficking as well as in whole sailing. The fact that a considerable part of addicts are simultaneously street distributors have caused the supply go forward into capillary hair of drug stribution .Definitely the poverty and unemployment can not explain whole aspects of drug addiction. In fact social shortcomings, looking more stimulants for mark and eaxtra ordinary easy money making induce drug demands. Total number of serious drug addicts in Iran in quite high (1.3 million) and there exis nearly 0.8 million semi addicts that become serious addiction very soon. Also between 1-4 million accidental / entertainment users are reported it however drug addiction and total amount of opium and heroin consumption is quite high in Iran. Tetal amount of value added of drug transit from western borders of Iran to Europe is nearly billion $ 16. All these factors and mechanisms are based on internal heavy consumption and profitable supply, whereas both are under influence of some other complicated social issues.

The book "Globalization and the Welfare State" by Ramesh Mishar, that its second and chapter is translated and introduced into their volume is essentially to examine the implications of globalization in respect of social policy and social standard in advanced industrial countries (It is in fact a fair critique to the globalization) Ramesh Mishar, professor emeritus at york university in Canada, is known by many experts as a leading authority on social policy. This book argues that the opening up of economies has curtailed the policy autonomy of nation stes for full employment and economic growth. Also pressures stemming from globalization have impinyed significantly on labour market, social spending and social protection. Resulted to arrow onto downward. Glubalization has also undermined the first line at defense against poverty and dependence of Keynesian welfare state.The comparatire evidence presented in professor mishra's book suggest that in continental Europe and Japan income suggest inequality has increused less than Angle-Saxon countries. Nevertheless neo politic jollities and ideology threaten to become heygemonic influences.Chopter 2, of the book look at employment and the labor market in globalizing economy. This chapter of the book has successfully tried to show that neoliberal attach of Keynesian welfare state followed by the global market economy has caused the defense policy against economic insecurity and poverty to weaken. In globalize economy we can hardly expect corporations replacing the government to be in position to assume responsibility for employee welfare. This chapter also have reached to the conclusion that globalization has to go toward non humanitarian labor market. However the more productive sector of the economy is dissocialized, i.e commodified. The greuter in the need for compensating social policy to provide surety as well as civilized public life.