For many years students who took courses in social development had no text available for their use. Those of us who instructed them had to rely on assigning journal articles to be read and providing an overview and syn thesis of the area in our lectures. In the last few years, the situation has changed markedly. There are now several very good textbooks that fill the void, reflecting an increasing interest in this area of research and theory. Here is one more. There are many ways to tell a story. Our book, we think, tells it dif ferently enough to have made it worth the writing. As we began to talk, some time ago, about undertaking this project, we found we had a mutual interest in trying to present the study of social development from a histori cal point of view. The field has changed dramatically from its inception, and we have both been in it long enough to have witnessed first-hand a number of these changes. Modifications of theoretical orientations and the de velopment of increasingly sophisticated and rigorous methodology have brought with them the stimulation of controversy and growth, as social developmental psychologists argued about the best ways of going about their business. Certainly the same things have happened in other areas of psychology, but the arguments seem to have been particularly vigorous in our own domain.

Social Development provides a comprehensive introduction to the multiple factors that shape a child’s behavior, interaction with others, feelings about themselves, and how and why behaviors change over time. Delving into the biological, cognitive, and perceptual aspects of development and their influence on behavior, socialization, and self-image, this text also recognizes the significance of cultural and societal distinctions by emphasizing the value of context and identifying cultural variation’s role in social development. Special pedagogical features in each chapter enhance the learning experience and promote student understanding: counter-intuitive examples cases challenge reader assumptions, coverage of extreme cases tell the story behind historical advancements, and profiles of current leaders in the field highlight the many paths to a career in social development. With a focus on real-world application, coupled with coverage of cutting-edge methodologies and the latest research findings, this book gives students a strong, highly relevant foundation in core concepts and practices central to the study of social development.

"At a time when social welfare is undergoing structural economic change, this text puts the important emerging field of social development into the hands of the student. Inspired by the conceptual insights of contemporary political economy, social development offers a macro view of social needs and social problems. It provides a complete introduction to the field, providing the student with discussion of comprehensive strategies for social development as well as definitions, history, and theory"--From publisher description.

Walking through social development’s key theoretical principles and practice strategies, this book shows how it promotes peoples’ wellbeing not only in the Global South, where it first emerged, but in the Western countries as well. It covers: Definitions and an historical evolution of social development Key theoretical debates around social well-being, human rights and social justice Social development practice such as human capital interventions, community development and cooperatives, asset building, employment creation policies and programmes, microenterprises and social planning among others Future challenges; global poverty, international aid and trade, and global inequality, conflict and injustice. Complete with international examples drawn from around the world, Social Development: Theory and Practice demonstrates how social development theory translates into practical application. This book is essential reading for students in development studies, social policy, public administration and social work, and for policymakers and development practitioners everywhere. James Midgley is the Harry and Riva Specht Professor of Public Social Services at the School of Social Welfare, University of California, Berkeley.

This book takes a historical approach to analyse ideologies, policy approaches and development systems that have constructed the paradigm of international social development. It aims to review the social construction of "development" by tracing the historical dynamics of the modern ideologies and political economy of industrialization, colonization, the Cold War, and globalisation; to examine the process of reconstruction of development as "social development" based on alternate ideologies and alternate policy approaches and review the roles played by the development systems; and to trace the history of social policy approaches from welfare to rights-based, universal, comprehensive and preventative social policies for social development, and identify the roles played by non-government organizations and the social work profession.

This book invites readers to think about future directions in social development. The book succinctly presents the historical context and progress of social development. By reflecting on the Millennium and Sustainable Development Goals, it discusses the increasing global relevance of several critical themes and issues such as human rights and good governance, participation, peace, gender, environment, religion and spirituality, aging, social protection and partnership. It appreciates the importance of goals and targets, but calls to look beyond them to visualise future directions in social development. The book argues that values-driven social development needs to focus on knowledge creation, dissemination and training, draw on multidisciplinary knowledge and professionals, promote conscientious consumption, create less unequal societies and engage in innovation that brings happiness to everyone.

Published in cooperation with the Society for Personality and Social Psychology To some degree, the issues raised by social psychologists and developmentalists overlap, each of them offering unique possibilities by which to explore questions of interest. Social Development addresses this issue and attempts to foster an awareness of the interesting research on the interface of social and developmental psychology. Written by a cast of leading researchers, this volume provides a multi-level perspective on the common boundaries between social and developmental psychology with an eye toward synthesizing research from many fields including personality, education, social work, and family studies. The contributors raise questions that are often not recognized by investigators due to their lack of knowledge of work and ideas outside their own discipline. Some of the specific subjects covered are individual differences in predicting others' thoughts and feelings, naturally occurring interpersonal expectancies, self-conceptions and their development, and social development and self-monitoring. Researchers and students involved in social psychology, developmental psychology, personality, social work, family studies, sociology, and adolescence will find Social Development to be a lucid, insightful, and interesting volume.