SA4C8      Half Unit
Globalisation and Social Policy

This information is for the 2015/16 session.

Teacher responsible

Dr Muzafferettin Seckinelgin OLD2.57

Availability

This course is available on the MSc in China in Comparative Perspective, MSc in Global Health, MSc in Health, Community and Development, MSc in Human Rights, MSc in Social Policy (European and Comparative Social Policy), MSc in Social Policy (Social Policy and Planning), MSc in Social Policy and Development and MSc in Social Policy and Development: Non-Governmental Organisations. This course is available with permission as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit.

Course content

What do the, the Catholic Church, Bill and Melissa Gates, UNICEF and the World Bank have in common? They are in one way or another involved in social policy that goes beyond the nation state. Policy could be seen as the exercise of political power and this political power has often been concentrated within the nation state. Far from the traditional study of policy this includes the effect of globalization on a variety of actors in social policy. This course examines how globalization has changed the way we perceive areas such as health, education, social care and other areas that concern social citizenship. The course examines the international policy environment, particularly intergovernmental organisations; bilateral and multilateral aid agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), which influence the social policy environment in developing countries. The impact of the inter-governmental policy process on policy outcomes is examined. The same goes for religious groups, social movements and corporations that all play a role in global social policy. The main goal of the course is not only to open up the understanding of social policy and globalization but also to show the complexity of goals and actors of social policy. It is expected that the students will devote considerable time to reading and preparing for the seminars.

Teaching

10 hours of lectures and 15 hours of seminars in the MT.

Revision session(s) will be scheduled in the ST.

Formative coursework

Students will write a long essay.

Indicative reading

A detailed reading list will be presented at the beginning of the term. Some introductory texts include: B Deacon, M Hulse & P Stubbs, Global Social Policy: International Organisations and the Future of Welfare States in Transition: National Adaptations in Global Economics (1996); D Held et al, Global Transformations: Politics, Economics and Culture, Polity Press (1999); J Hills, J Le Grand & D Piachaud (Eds), Understanding Social Exclusion, OUP (2002); P Hirst & G Thomson (Eds), Globalisation in Question: The International Economy and the Possibilities of Governance, Polity Press (1996); F Jameson & M Miyoshi (Eds), The Cultures of Globalization, The Duke University Press (2001); J Midgley, Social Welfare in Global Context, Sage (1997); R Mishra, Globalisation and the Welfare State, Edward Elgar (1999); D Nayyar, Governing Globalization: Issues and Institutions, OUP (2002); V S Peterson & A S Runyan, Global Gender Issues, Westview Press 1993.

Assessment

Exam (75%, duration: 2 hours) in the main exam period.
Essay (25%) in the ST.

Student performance results

(2011/12 - 2013/14 combined)

Classification % of students
Distinction 10.5
Merit 64.9
Pass 22.8
Fail 1.8

Key facts

Department: Social Policy

Total students 2014/15: Unavailable

Average class size 2014/15: Unavailable

Controlled access 2014/15: No

Value: Half Unit

Guidelines for interpreting course guide information

Course survey results

(2011/12 - 2013/14 combined)

1 = "best" score, 5 = "worst" score

The scores below are average responses.

Response rate: 79.6%

Question

Average
response

Reading list (Q2.1)

1.6

Materials (Q2.3)

2

Course satisfied (Q2.4)

1.7

Lectures (Q2.5)

1.6

Integration (Q2.6)

1.7

Contact (Q2.7)

1.9

Feedback (Q2.8)

2

Recommend (Q2.9)

Yes

89.4%

Maybe

8.5%

No

2.1%