How has America's social welfare network benefited families living in
poverty? In what ways has it failed to provide for their needs? The
system of social welfare in the United States has been in place for most
of this century-and although it has had lasting impact on the lives of
many people in need, it is far from perfect in its handling of the
nation's poor. Fragile Families, Fragile Solutions presents a historical
perspective on one of the central components of the U.S. social welfare
network-family services-and provides a unique look at the advances this
service network has achieved, problems it has confronted, and where it
is likely to go in the future.
Beginning with an exploration of the nineteenth-century roots of family
services and the emergence of family casework at the beginning of this
century, Halpern ranges through the 1920s and 1930- charting the
influence of psychoanalytic theory in social service work and government
responses to the Depression. He surveys the following two decades, when
policymakers attempted to respond to changing inner-city populations. An
extended section focuses on the 1960- a critical reform period. Covering
a wide spectrum of contemporary issues in policy and organization, as
well as escalating crises in such areas as child welfare, Halpern brings
readers up to date on this complex subject.
Offering policy recommendations for the future, Halpern inspires social
workers and policymakers alike with a symbolic goal of constructing a
more positive vision of the potential of social services, and a
pragmatic objective of designing an efficient, effective family services
network to care for Americans in greatest need of support.
