As we have promised earlier one of the main topics of this issue of Eszmélet is social policy looking at it both from theoretical-methodological and practical point of view focusing on Hungary. A different group of articles analyse the comprehensive and principal questions of historical development beginning form early periods up to the postmodern approach to history. Several studies examine the validity and perspectives of the different models of the capitalist society developed so far. Readers certainly will find interesting the presented dilemmas and efforts of the political left concerning the horrific events in former Yugoslavia and in Russia.

Table of contents

1. Lévai Katalin, Andor László, Kakuszi István, Susan Zimmermann : Talking about social policy
2. Loren Goldner : Eurocentrism and its mirror images: postmodernism versus world history
3. Wiener György : On prematured social formations – theses
4. Ronald Dore : Japanese capitalism vs. Anglo-Saxon capitalism. End stage of darwinian fight?
5. David M. Kotz : A comparative analysis of the theory of regulation and the social structure accumulation theory
6. Susan Zimmermann : The perspectives of social policy analysis
7. Andor László : The efficient welfare – interview with Ian Gough
8. Gere Ilona : Social traps of unemployment
9. Szabó Sándorné : Consumption structures and the dilemmas of income distribution
10. B. Aczél Anna : Dilemmas of child protection in Hungary
11. Andor László : The welfare state tomorrow
12. Catherine Samary : The debates of the left on Yugoslavia
13. Michael Barrat Brown : Debt and war in Yugoslavia
14. Adamik Mária : Hungarian social policy from gender point of view
15. Papp György : The Hungarian Forum of Child Interests
16. Krausz Tamás : Introduction to a document of a historic event
17. To the Russian intelligentsia
18. Some spohisticated methords to create subordinated labour force

The state socialist regime incorporated the so-called "women's ques­tion" into its social policy, but that policy was locked into the realm of patronizing women and imposing moral duties on them. The new conservative government have made some steps backwards from this stage. Progress in these questions requires an open debate about the role of the rights of men and women in society, and new social contracts between different groups of societ.