Social welfare, cultural norms and the nature of government ental institutions are inexorably linked. Changes in one will oftentimes produce changes throughout the other social institutions. This research examines the historical relationship between social welfare and the politics of society in three dimensions. First, the state of social welfare and social services will be documented in the course of the Great Depression. Second, the evolution of social conditions and the institution of welfare will be shown from the 1930s through World War II. Finally, the historical analysis will provide insight as to how these social institutions are deeply intertwined with politics and society.
Social welfare can be defined either very narrowly or quite broadly. In its narrow sense, social welfare includes those "nonprofit functions of society, public or voluntary, that are clearly aimed at alleviating distress or poverty or at ameliorating the conditions of the casualties of society." Or social welfare could be defined more broadly as "those formally organized and socially sponsored institutions, agencies, and programs, exclusive of the family and private enterprise, which function to maintain or improve the economic conditions, health or interpersonal competence of some parts or all of the population."
The narrower definition is limited to traditional government-organized welfare programs and tend to exclude the nuances of social services, such as programs of prevention or insurance. The broader definition, however, carries the term far beyond what most people imply when speaking of welfare, such as the public school system. For purposes of this research, social welfare will be defined as a cross between the narrow and broad interpretations, highlighting both the government-sponsored welfare programs and the private insurance and prevention programs.
There are several other concepts that should be defined. "Social policy" is...