Understanding human need
- Author/Editor(s):
- Hartley Dean
- Format:
- Paperback
, 240 pages
, 240 x 172 mm
Other formats available - ISBN
- 9781847421890
- Published:
- 10 Feb 2010
- Series:
- Understanding Welfare: Social Issues, Policy and Practice series
£17.59 - List price: £21.99 You save: £4.40
North America customers can order this book here.
Hartley Dean's book certainly meets a need: he expertly summarises debates over what human needs are, how they relate to happiness and capabilities, and what they entail for human rights and social policies. An invaluable book.
Ian Gough Emeritus Professor of Social Policy, University of Bath and co-author of 'A theory of human need'
About This Book
Human need is a central but contested concept in social policy and the social sciences. This book provides an accessible overview of the subject using concepts from many disciplines. It presents a unique integrative model that shows how the main approaches may be reflected in social policy goals. The author engages with recent debates which advance our understanding of human need, including human wellbeing and 'happiness'; poverty, social exclusion and global inequality; human difference, the diversity of needs and the concept of human capabilities. Most crucially, the book explores how human needs may be translated into rights and how these can be informed by a politics of human need. The book offers essential insights for students of social policy, but will also be of interest to other social science disciplines, policy makers and political activists.
Author Biography
Hartley Dean is Reader in Social Policy at the London School of Economics and Political Science. His academic career has extended over 20 years, and was preceded by a 12 year career as a welfare rights worker. He has published extensively on issues relating to poverty, social citizenship and welfare rights.Contents
Introduction
Inherent need
Interpreted need
Poverty, inequality and resource distribution
Social exclusion, capabilities and recognition
The thin and the thick of human well-being
Human need and social policy
Translating needs into rights
The politics of human need
Afterword
Customers in Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei must order from their local distributor