Suchergebnisse

The increasing number of older people in the United States has served to focus attention upon the processes of aging and the effectiveness of social programs for the elderly. In order to plan effective programs, accurate social measures are necessary. Now, more than ever before, researchers need conceptually explicit instruments designed to assess individual and social behaviors, attitudes, and traits in the elderly population. This three-volume work is designed to serve the needs of researchers, evaluators, and clinicians in assessing the instruments used in the field of aging. The measures r

Doubts about the easy equation of economic growth and social progress led, in the 1960s, to a renewed interest in social measurement and to the birth of the "social indicators movement." Social Indicators, 1976, a product of that interest, can be read as both a report on social conditions and trends in the United States and a progress report on social indicators research. The volume is best understood against the background of the social indicators movement and of the research it has stimulated. Several research traditions are joined together in the social indicators movement, but they share a concern for measurement, analysis, and the reporting to a general audience of aspects of social conditions. The tradition best reflected in Social Indicators, 1976 stresses the monitoring and reporting of social change. Research work in this tradition emphasizes conceptual and methodological development of measures, improvements in the available data base, the development of social indicator models, and social reporting. In its data selection, treatment of data, organization, and commentary, Social Indicators, 1976 is an improvement over its predecessor, Social Indicators, 1973, though the analysis it contains is notably insufficient. Most of the improvements which should be found in future editions depend upon continued progress in the development of social indicators.

It is suggested that the approach of the social economist to social problems, if followed, would lead to The Good Society, one in which the lot of our "human resources" would be considerably ameliorated. For the social economist the goal of the economy is not private profit nor is it improvement in the fertility of the soil nor capital accumulation for their own sakes and that of their owners, but the material, moral and spiritual well‐being of homo sapiens. The social economist is concerned with the efficiency of the capitalist system relative to the broad goals of society, rather than the maximisation of private property.

This article examines the charts and tables contained in chapter 11 of Social Indicators, 1976 covering a wide range of social behavior under the general topic "Social Mobility and Social Participation." The topics covered include educational and occupational mobility, voting in national elections, volunteer work, charitable giving, participation in community organizations, views on religion, and feelings of anomie. Most readers will agree that this is a potpourri of topics but that all have bearing on the well-being of citizens. There would be less agreement on the significance of most of the indicators for public policy. The factual conclusions that can be drawn from the tables and charts are discussed and additional information from recent research on some of the topics is presented—particu— larly on educational and occupational mobility, voting and political behavior, and participation in community organizations.