This book shows why the delegation of discretionary powers to professionals in the front-line of the welfare state is both unavoidable and problematic. It adds

Discretion has re-emerged as an issue of central importance for welfare professionals over the last two decades in the face of an intensification of management

Robert Goodin passionately and cogently defends the welfare state from current attacks by the New Right. But he contends that the welfare state finds false frie

This discerning and timely study revitalizes Weber's ideas, applying them to welfare state redistributions and synthesizing them with major issues in political

Looking at discretion broadly as the exercise of controlled freedom, this edited volume introduces insights from a range of social sciences perspectives. Tradit