| CODE | SWP2140 | ||||||||
| TITLE | The Economic Context of Welfare | ||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 02 - Years 2, 3 in Modular Undergraduate Course | ||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 5 | ||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 4 | ||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Social Policy and Social Work | ||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | This study-unit equips students with a fundamental understanding of the economic context that shapes and influences the development of formal and informal welfare policies, focusing on the intricate relationship between social welfare and economic factors. It will be argued that the basic raison d’etre for the existence of the state is the security it guarantees to its citizens. Through social policy, the state ensures that its economy provides its citizens with the financial security and economic wellbeing necessary to exercise the rights and responsibilities of an active, inclusive citizenship. Students will be assisted with understanding how the formulation and implementation of social policies is impacted by economic structures, globalisation and fiscal policies. Consequently, this study-unit aims to introduce students to the basic economic principles and concepts relevant to social workers and social policy students, the understanding of which is crucial to their eventual fields of work. It will explain basic micro-economic features of an economy, such as demand and supply forces and different market types, as well as macro-economic features such as GDP, inflation, unemployment etc. Students will be introduced to theories about how the government, through its monetary and fiscal policies, can steer the economy towards the economic and social wellbeing of its citizens. After the basic free-market theory of economics is explained and mapped out, students will be introduced to the concepts of market failure, government intervention, and the economics of inequality and poverty. In addition to mainstream economic systems and schools of thought, students will also be exposed to other economic models, such as that of degrowth and doughnut economics, among others. Throughout the study-unit, a horizontal perspective will be taken to encourage students to both understand and look beyond GDP, and will foster an appreciation of the power of economics to better distribute wealth, enhance social policy and improve quality of life. Practical case studies will help students develop a critical understanding of how social welfare interacts with economic forces, to be in a position to advocate for informed and effective policies within a broad socio-economic framework. Study-unit Aims: The study-unit aims to foster an appreciation of the relevance of economic knowledge in the social fields, particularly in social work and social policy. Through real case scenarios and national and international policy examples, the students will be exposed to basic economic theories, which impact the social arena and of which people working in such fields must have at least a basic working knowledge. In particular, the study unit aims to foster understanding of how economic developments have an impact upon poverty and inequality, and on the policy levers that address them. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: • Explain what economics is and why it matters to social work and social policy; • Demonstrate a basic understanding of macroeconomic and microeconomic factors that contribute to the evolution and development of social welfare policies, recognizing their impact on individuals, communities and broader societal structures; • Explain concepts of demand and supply, gross domestic product, and inflation; • Describe and distinguish between different types of markets; • Identify and explain market failure and the rationale for government intervention, and government failure; • Identify economic explanations of poverty and inequality, and how redistribution occurs through taxes and transfers; • Provide a basic explanation of the labour market, including job creation and destruction, the Phillips Curve, and the types of unemployment; • Outline the basic tenets of different economic models that do not solely focus on GDP growth but take into account other important indicators of social wellbeing. 2. Skills By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: • Demonstrate an appreciation of the challenges in allocating resources and in policy trade-offs; • Apply basic yet relevant knowledge and understanding of economics to contemporary social issues, such as poverty, inequality, unemployment and housing; • Critique the assumptions of rationality and utility; • Critically analyse the limitations of gross domestic product in explaining social wellbeing. Apply the concepts of demand and supply to analyse the labour market; • Analyse how different stakeholders are affected by economic activities; • Identify local economic policies and explain how they can be used as tools to foster social wellbeing; • Recognise the interconnected nature of social and economic issues; • Develop a basic professional confidence to collaborate and work effectively with professionals from the economic sector in designing holistic solutions to promote social wellbeing. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: No specific textbook is required. Useful site: https://www.core-econ.org/ Find open access resources on economics from University of London. Supplementary readings: - Hickel, J. (2021). Less Is More: How Degrowth Will Save the World. Windmill Books - Raworth, K. (2017). Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st-Century Economist. Chelsea Green. - Barr, N. (2020). The Economics of the Welfare State (6th ed.). Oxford. - Krugman, P. & Wells, R. (2021). Economics (6th ed.). Worth. - Lewis, M. & Widerquist, K. (2002). Economics for social workers. Columbia. - Rhoads, S.E. (2021). The Economist's View of the World: And the Quest for Well-Being (revised edition). Cambridge. - Smith, S., Le Grand, J. & Propper, C. (2008). The Economics of Social Problems (4th ed.). Red Globe Press. - Tirole, J. (2017). Economics for the common good. Princeton. - Thaler, R. (2015). Misbehaving. the making of behavioral economics . Penguin. - Winter, H. (2023). Trade-Offs: An Introduction to Economic Reasoning (3rd ed.). Chicago. Available online: - Greenlaw , S.A., Shapiro, D., Richardson, C., Sonenshine , R., Keenan, D., MacDonald, D., Dodge, E., Gamez , C., Jauregui, A. and Moledina , A. (2017). Principles of Micro-economics (2nd ed.). Rice University. Chapters 3, 5, 8, 9, 10. Available at: d3bxy9euw4e147.cloudfront.net/oscms-prodcms/media/documents/PrinciplesofMicroeconomics-LR.pdf - Acca (n.d.) Introduction to microeconomics. Available at: https://www.accaglobal.com/gb/en/student/exam- support -resources/fundamentals-exams-study-resources/f1/technical-articles/introduction-to- microeconomics.html. - The Principles of Macro-economics. Available at: Principles of Macroeconomics – Open Textbook (umn.edu). CHAPTERS 1, 5, 6, 11, 12 and 16. Available at: https://open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/33 Throughout class the lecturer will point students towards newspaper articles, reports and/or specific relevant papers to the discussed topics. |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture and Independent Study | ||||||||
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| LECTURER/S | Maria Giulia Borg |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2024/5. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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