ABSTRACT
In March 2008, we edited a special issue of the Review of Social Economy on the theme “Living Standards and Social Well-Being” (Volume 66, Number 1), with articles that explicitly dealt with the topic from a social economics perspective. Here we add new, original contributions to produce a longer book volume. The subject of appropriate living standards and well-being was central in economics as we prepared the special issue in late 2007 and demands even more attention during the current economic and fiscal crises. Households and families are struggling to make ends meet. Businesses, including banks, have failed. Countries are facing debt crises and ballooning budget deficits. Market economies are being reshaped as we think about public policy for provisioning. That's where this volume, Living Standards and Social Well-Being, fits in.
