A Theory of Poverty and Social Exclusion

Bill Jordan seeks to fill a gap in social scientific theory by accounting for why a deterioration in the living standards of the worst-off members of societies tends to coincide with the resurgence of free-market utopianism as a political creed.

1. Introduction: The Great Exclusion?. 2. Interdependency and Collective Action. 3. Missing Links. 4. Globalization and the Fragmentation of Welfare States. 5. Community, Polarization and Social Exclusion. 6. The Politics of Enforcement. 7. Conclusions: States and Social Policy. Bibliography and Sources. Index.