Introduction / Jochen Clasen -- Trends and developments in welfare states / Catherine Jones Finer -- Theories and methods in comparative social policy / Deborah Mabbett and Helen Bolderson -- Comparative housing policy / John Doling -- Institutions, states and cultures: Health policy and politics in Europe / Richard Freeman -- Comparing family policies in Europe / Linda Hantrais -- Full circle: A second coming for social assistance? / John Ditch -- Comparative approaches to long-term care for adults / Susan Tester. Unemployment compensation and other labour-market policies / Jochen Clasen -- The problem of lone motherhood in comparative perspective / Jane Lewis -- Inside out: Migrants' disentitlement to Social Security benefits in the EU / Simon Roberts and Helen Bolderson -- Accumulated disadvantage? Welfare state provision and the incomes of older women and men in Britain, France and Germany / Katherine Rake.

Providing students with an introduction to cross-national social policy research, this text conveys issues involved in conducting the research, examining the theoretical, conceptual and methodological approaches, and discussing prevailing concepts and methodological difficulties