This volume explores a range of contemporary challenges facing civil society organisations in the early twenty-first century. As the following chapters reveal, each may arrest or subvert the beneficial effects of associative life and negatively impact upon governance, culture and welfare. The overall argument of this volume is the importance of civil society to individual and collective well-being, as well as the health of democracy. On the one hand, the following chapters note the resilience of civil society and its adaptability to meet uncertainties, yet on
The relationship between the family and civil society has always been complex, with the family often regarded as separate from, or even oppositional to, civil society.
Taking a fresh empirical approach, Muddiman, Power and Taylor reveal how such separation underestimates the important role the family plays in civil society. Considering the impact of family events, dinner table debates, intergenerational transmission of virtues and the role of the mother, this enlightening book draws on survey data from 1000 young people, a sample of their parents and grandparents, and extended family interviews, to uncover how civil engagement, activism and political participation are inherited and fostered within the home.
11 TWO Civil society Introduction Civil society, like the concepts of democracy, liberalism and radicalism, is a ‘catch-all’ term. It is a phrase that has profound relevance to societies across the globe and that is part of the mainstream of political theory, social policy and the agendas of social movements. It has become a melting pot into which ideas, arguments and examples are poured ceaselessly. Yet this topicality is in danger of rendering the term meaningless. There can be no doubt as to the complexity surrounding the concept, particularly given
This book explores how the uncertainties of the 21st century present existential challenges to civil society. These include changing modes of governance (through devolution and Brexit), austerity, migration, growing digital divides, issues of (mis)trust and democratic confidence, welfare delivery and the COVID-19 pandemic and the contemporary threat to minority languages and cultures.
Presenting original empirical findings, this book brings together core strands of social theory to provide a new way of understanding existential challenges to the form and function of civil society. It highlights pressing social issues and transferable lessons that will inform policy and practice in today’s age of uncertainty.
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Drawing on place-based field investigations and new empirical analysis, this original book investigates civil society at local level.
The concept of civil society is contested and multifaceted, and this text offers assessment and clarification of debates concerning the intertwining of civil society, the state and local community relations. Analysing two Welsh villages, the authors examine the importance of identity, connection with place and the impact of social and spatial boundaries on the everyday production of civil society.
Bringing into focus questions of biography and temporality, the book provides an innovative account of continuities and changes within local civil society during social and economic transformation.
Renowned social and political theorist Bob Jessop explores the idea of civil society as a mode of governance in this bold challenge to current thinking.
Developing theories of governance failure and metagovernance, the book analyses the limits and failures of economic and social policy in various styles of governance. Reviewing the principles of self-emancipation and self-responsibilisation it considers the struggle to integrate civil society into governance, and the power of social networks and solidarity within civil society.
With case studies of mobilisations to tackle economic and social problems, this is a comprehensive review of the factors that influence their success and identifies lessons for future social innovation.
Introduction Periodically, policy makers set out a broad vision for the development of voluntary action or wider civil society, and within this outline the planned role for and limits of government action. These strategic or field-shaping interventions can involve justifications for prioritising resources or policy attention on one thing rather than another, may simply list existing activities, or seek to frame debates in particular ways, signalling new directions. As such, they are often matters of significant academic concern. Thus, for example, in April
To what extent are the ideas and practice of community development across Europe similar? Community Development and Civil Society explores this question with special reference to the UK and Hungary and shows how community development connects powerfully with civil society, a concept that today has global significance.
Paul Henderson and Ilona Vercseg argue that community development is both a profession and a social movement and is relevant to a wide range of issues.They interweave case studies with discussion of principles and theory.The book's critical and accessible approach will appeal especially to students and practitioners.
Are young people blindly self-interested? How does university shape students’ political participation? Can busy parents and grandparents find time to volunteer?
Challenging conventional thinking, leading academics explore how individuals’ relationships with civil society change over time as different lifecourse events and stages trigger and hinder civic engagement.
Drawing on personal narratives, longitudinal cohort studies and national surveys, this unprecedented study considers rarely examined aspects of civic engagement including school students’ sense of social responsibility and the charitable legacy bequests of elderly people and highlights significant implications for those promoting greater civic and political participation.
in civil society. Indeed, as we have seen earlier, it is a critical period in the lifecourse when levels of volunteering significantly decline before beginning to rise again during mid-adulthood. For some in society the period of ‘emergent adulthood’ is dominated by their participation in higher education (HE). In the UK, approximately 45 per cent of school-leavers enter HE by the age of 20 years, although there is significant variation in these figures by region and country of the UK. The opportunities that are provided while at university, educationally and
