Section Overview

Abstract This chapter provides an overview of the Australasian section of the Handbook. The chapters in this section cover four broad topics: the historical evolution of social provision and recent social trends; institutional and operational themes; financing arrangements; and innovation and evaluation. As highlighted in this section, there are both remarkable similarities but also important differences in the design, administration, and evolution of social policies across the region. For instance, both Australia and New Zealand, unlike most advanced democracies, have relied heavily on tax-funded, flat-rate, and means-tested forms of social assistance rather than social insurance. Against this, constitutional and cultural differences have resulted in contrasting administrative arrangements for the funding and provision of major social services, such as health and education. While path dependence will doubtless exert a continuing and powerful influence on future social policy arrangements across the region, there are bound to be ongoing, and sometimes significant, administrative reforms in response to exogenous shocks, technological innovation, and changing societal needs and values.