Contents
Acknowledgments
1 Introduction
2 Toward a Revised Conception of Social Citizenship: An Autonomy-Focused Model
3 The New Paternalism: Rethinking State Intervention and Autonomy
4 Taking Responsibility: PRWORA’s Limits to Immigrant Access
5 “Coordinated Fragmentation” and Domestic Violence Services
6 Embodied Recognition, Ascriptive Autonomy, and Harm Reduction
7 Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
Index
Elizabeth Ben-Ishai is Assistant Professor of Political Science at Albion College, USA.
“Elizabeth Ben-Ishai’s work speaks in important ways both to
normative theories of the liberal state and to ongoing
conversations about the design and implementation of public policy.
Her work reconstructs a notion of autonomy, usefully positioning
this centerpiece of liberal commitments not as a mere bulwark
against the state but as a kind of standard by which we can assess
which forms of state interventions are quite compatible, and
perhaps even required, in order to foster autonomy. Ben-Ishai’s
work is conceptually sophisticated and commendably
ambitious.”—Julie White, Ohio University
“Elizabeth Ben-Ishai’s book makes an important and illuminating
contribution to the literature on the social and political
dimensions of autonomy. By showing how the state can either foster
or impair autonomy through social welfare service delivery,
Fostering Autonomy adds considerable empirical depth to theoretical
debates about relational autonomy.”—Catriona Mackenzie, Macquarie
University
“In this superb and timely analysis, Elizabeth Ben-Ishai explains
why states should strive to foster autonomy and how social service
systems can be used to pursue this goal. Blending theoretical
insights with careful empirical observations, Ben-Ishai challenges
us to rethink our conceptions of citizenship, autonomy, and the
state. Her relational approach yields a powerful critique of
prevailing assumptions and practices. It also provides valuable
conceptual resources for thinking about where we should go from
here.”—Joe Soss, University of Minnesota
“The most striking thing about Elizabeth Ben-Ishai’s book is the
way she skillfully moves between the conceptual and the concrete,
using theory to reflect upon the implications of public policy and
using studies of public policy implementation to build and rebuild
theory. In doing this, Fostering Autonomy brings together two
concerns that have long occupied feminist and democratic theorists:
autonomy and the role of the state. . . . [Ben-Ishai’s] attention
to the lived experience of individuals as they engage with the
state is a wonderful example of practical political theorizing that
has the potential to expand and enrich democratic politics for us
all.”—Elizabeth K. Markovits Perspectives on Politics
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