This pioneering book critically reviews and develops the concept of resilience in relation to family life. It examines the experiences of low-resourced families in Belgium, Croatia, Poland, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom, assessing how they manage challenges such as low income and poor working conditions whilst also caring for children and others needing care. It considers the resources that are available to families, how they are utilised and the role and effectiveness of the welfare state system in supporting families with low resources.
Expert authors comparatively analyse the findings from focus group interviews with over 300 participants in the six countries. The participants came from a variety of backgrounds, including lone parent families, those with heavy care-related demands and those with an immigrant background. The book studies the resilience of families in a variety of low-income situations, identifying how they cope with family and employment transitions and risks and discussing the crucial linkages between care, paid work and income. Ultimately, it critiques welfare state provision from the perspective of family resilience and advocates for policy and practical reform in relation to childcare, labour market, and income and service support.
Students and scholars of social policy, comparative welfare studies and sociology will greatly benefit from this cutting-edge book. It is also a vital resource for policymakers and practitioners working in social and labour policy.
Recenzijas
A compelling exploration of how low-resource families across Europe navigate their lives. The authors interrogate an individualised conception of resilience, emphasizing the essential role of welfare states in supporting families through everyday risk, vulnerability and transitions. A vital contribution to comparative family policy research. -- Kitty Stewart, The London School of Economics and Political Science, UK The comparative research presented in this book deepens our understanding of how disadvantaged families deal with their multiple constraints and how social policies may function as a resource, but also an additional constraint. This is an important book for researchers, social workers and policy makers. -- Chiara Saraceno, University of Turin, Italy and Berlin Social Science Center, Germany
Contents
Introduction to Families, Welfare States and Resilience xi
Mary Daly
1 Revising the concept of resilience for application in a familial
and low-income context 1
Mary Daly
2 The circumstances of families and the social policy contexts 20
Rense Nieuwenhuis, Max Thaning, Alzbeta Bartova and Wim
Van Lancker
3 Families with low resources striving for resilience in Belgium 42
Eef Gijbels, Merve Uzunaliolu, Alzbeta Bartova and Wim
Van Lancker
4 Families with low resources striving for resilience in Croatia 61
Ivana Dobroti, Anja Ivekovi Martinis and Merve Uzunaliolu
5 Families with low resources striving for resilience in Poland 81
Anna Kurowska, Agnieszka Kasperska and Mary Daly
6 Families with low resources striving for resilience in Spain 101
Margarita León, Ivan Cerrillo and Thomas Rochow
7 Families with low resources striving for resilience in Sweden 121
Lovisa Backman and Rense Nieuwenhuis
8 Families with low resources striving for resilience in the
United Kingdom 141
Mary Daly and Agathe Osinski
Conclusion to Families, Welfare States and Resilience 160
Mary Daly
Appendix: research methods and sample of participants 176
Edited by Mary Daly, Professor of Sociology and Social Policy, Department of Social Policy and Intervention, University of Oxford, UK
