Social Welfare State: An Arena Of Struggle

Chapter 2 refers to the welfare state as “an arena of struggle.” What is meant by this?
The social welfare state is comprised of several moving parts that all need to align in an ever-changing society. The alignment of these moving parts doesn’t necessarily combine organically within society, therefore creating and arena of struggle on several different levels. Blau and Abramovitz (2014, p.40) describe the social welfare state as “an arena of social, economic and political struggle because access to income and services outside of work and marriages provides people with the wherewithal to resist challenge and change power relations that shape the prevailing status quo.” This definition outlines the various ongoing conflicts between societal …show more content…
NASW describes the value of Service having the primary goal to help people in need and to address social problems. (NASW, 2008, Preamble) This subgroup of our population has high needs in several areas and also shows enough statistical concern to provide the urgency to address this social problem. The NASW value of Importance of Human Relationships falls appropriately under the social problem of teen parents because the core of this value seeks to strengthen relationships in an effort to enhance the well-being of families as well as engage people as partners in the process. (NASW, 2008, Preamble) Many of the services provided to teen parents are designed to identify and obtain personal goals, provide guidance for success and to increase attachment between the teen parents and their children. In several programs, throughout these steps of service, teen parent input and voice are consistently brought to the table to best suit their specific needs and become partners with their providers, not just recipients; all of which align with the Importance of Human Relationships