Table of Contents

Introduction; 'Virtue' and the Poor Law in Britain and Ireland in the 1830s; Spencer and a liberal road to welfare: the individual in Spencer's social theory; The case of older people: social thought and divergent prescriptions for care; Social policy and idealist versus non-idealist thought: the fundamental schism; Idealist thought, social policy and the rediscovery of informal care; Social theory and voluntary action in Britain since 1880; Epilogue: from Poor Law to Labour's 'new idealism'.

About the Author

John Offer is Professor of Social Theory and Policy in the School of Policy Studies at the University of Ulster, Coleraine. His main research interests are the history of ideas in respect of UK social policy, the social theory of Herbert Spencer, informal care and voluntary action, and the sociology of professional interventions in everyday social life.

Reviews

"John Offer's challenging new book on the development of ideas about social policy in the nineteenth century will be essential reading for teachers, students and researchers with interests in the field of social welfare theory." Robert Pinker, Emeritus Professor of Social Administration, London School of Economics