Social Policies for the Elderly in the Third World

This volume proposes a clearly structured method to study social programs for the elderly in economically developing nations. Martin B. Tracy approaches the problem with a practical rather than academic or purely technical model, formulating specific criteria to measure the applicability of one country's social welfare program to another country's needs.

The study opens with an overview of the challenge facing developing countries as their elderly populations increase. Attention then turns to a description of the analytical model itself, and its application to the People's Republic of China, Kerala State in India, Mexico, Nigeria, and Turkey. Each case study answers specific questions, and thereby outlines a program which is a unique response to the particular needs of each region. Concluding with a summary of the major trends found in the studies, the work can serve as a valuable tool for social policy makers in the development of suitable programs and for educators of cross-national policy analysis.

MARTIN B. TRACY is an Associate Professor with the School of Social Work at the University of Iowa and a member of the University's Center for International Rural and Environmental Health. He is a former research analyst with the U.S. Social Security Administration and with the International Social Security Association in Geneva. He has contributed articles to the International Journal of Contemporary Socoiology and to the book Visions for the Future: Social Work and Pacific-Asian Perspectives.