University of Chicago Press: New Titles in Political Science: Political Behavior and Public Opinion

Trade-Offs

Harold Winter — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 06:00:00 GMT

When economists wrestle with issues such as unemployment, inflation, or budget deficits, they do so by incorporating an impersonal, detached mode of reasoning. But economists also analyze issues that, to others, typically do not fall within the realm of economic reasoning, such as organ transplants, cigarette addiction, overeating, and product safety. Trade-Offs is an introduction to the economic approach to analyzing these controversial public policy issues.

Harold Winter provides readers with the analytical tools needed to identify and understand the trade-offs associated with these topics. By considering both the costs and benefits of potential policy solutions, Winter stresses that real-world decision making is best served by an explicit recognition of as many trade-offs as possible. This new edition incorporates recent developments in policy debates, including the rise of “new paternalism,” or policies designed to protect people from themselves; alternative ways to increase the supply of organs available for transplant; and economic approaches to controlling infectious disease.

Intellectually stimulating yet accessible and entertaining, Trade-Offs will be appreciated by students of economics, public policy, health administration, political science, and law, as well as by anyone who follows current social policy debates.

Youth Participation in Europe

Patricia Loncle; Morena Cuconato; Virginie Muniglia; Andreas Walther — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 06:00:00 GMT

In a period when social unrest and youth dissatisfaction has manifested itself through highly public protests, the question of youth participation in democratic societies is at the forefront. This book offers a fresh look at youth participation, examining official and unofficial constructions of participation by young people in a range of sociopolitical domains. It explores the motivations and rationales underlying official attempts to increase participation among young people and offers a critique of those various efforts’ effectiveness. Based on original research data from a significant study, it provides a thorough analysis of an important sector of democratic societies.

Work, Health and Wellbeing

Sarah Vickerstaff; Chris Phillipson; Ross Wilkie — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 06:00:00 GMT

The relationship between health and work is widely recognized as complex and multifaceted. In the context of an aging population, our ability to enable individuals with health issues to continue working is becoming more critical. Addressing these current policy concerns, Work, Health and Wellbeing brings together new, original research from diverse disciplinary backgrounds to investigate how we can define and act on a biopsychosocial model of ill health to improve work participation in middle and later life.