The East Asian Welfare Model: Welfare Orientalism and the State (Esrc Pacific Asia Programme) [Paperback]

Roger Goodman (Editor), Huck-Ju Kwon (Editor), Gordon White (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 27, 1998 | ISBN-10: 041517211X | ISBN-13: 978-0415172110

For many politicians and observers in the West, East Asia has provided a broad range of positive images of the state's intervention in society. Neoliberals grew excited by popular welfare systems that cost little in expenditure and bureaucracy. Social-democrats thought they had found a model for social cohesion and equality. In fact the reality in East Asia is rather different from these stereotypes.
In this book six specialists of six different societies in East Asia (Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, China, Singapore and Hong Kong) examine the role of the state in their welfare systems. There are detailed case studies on pensions, health insurance, housing and personal social services. They provide an up-to-date detailed account of how these systems have developed as well as an examination of the question of whether these welfare regimes are the natural outgrowth of cultural traditions or the result of economic and political conditions.
This broad-ranging and detailed study will be welcomed by both students and policy makers as the first proper academic study in English to have such a wide coverage of this topic. Its clarity and authority should come as a welcome alternative to the more common misconceptions about Asian society.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Overall, this is an important addition to the field of comparative social policy. It is the best one on East Asia that is available. The quality of this volume will ensure that it will be an essential reader for many years to come. As the leading text, it will provide insights to researchers who examine the nature and development of East Asian welfare.
–Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Routledge (August 27, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 041517211X
• ISBN-13: 978-0415172110
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #804,225 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Much needed scholarship in English, October 11, 2000

By 

Nessander - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The East Asian Welfare Model: Welfare Orientalism and the State (Esrc Pacific Asia Programme (Series).) (Hardcover)

Much has been written about East Asian economies and states, and much of it without a solid basis in scholarship and critical investigation of the subject matter being discussed. This book marks an important foray into that terra incognita, in that it is a work written in English by established scholars, and therefore not only informative but - more importantly - well informed, and hence reliable.

By engaging in a comparative study of East Asian states and their welfare systems, looking at diverse elements such as pension plans and services such as housing, health care, etc., the contributors to this volume look not only to the past and present, but also out into the years to come. The volume is aptly edited by Roger Goodman, lecturer in anthropology and expert on Japan at the Nissan Institute, Oxford University, and fellow of St. Antony's College, Oxford. For those who are not already well acquainted with the East Asian states covered, and who would like to read in English, this is a good recommendation.