ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the subjects of behavioural conditionality, that is, groups of welfare recipients who have been targeted by conduct conditions seeking to ensure that they behave in particular kinds of ways. It also focuses on the 'classic' group targeted by behavioural conditionality – unemployed people – who are typically subject to work-related forms of conditionality within the benefit system. The chapter targets the young people and sick and disabled people within these labour-market-orientated conditional welfare programmes. It considers the sometimes very different rationales for conditional forms of welfare targeting low-income families with children, wherein behaviour change is sought primarily in the education, health and child protection spheres. The chapter also considers conditional forms of welfare in the housing realm, specifically those targeted on social tenants and homeless people. It discusses both of moral narratives and activation narratives and their policy impacts.
