The Anatomy of 267 Social Welfare Agencies in Jerusalem: Findings from a Census

Abstract

This article explores some central issues in congruence between family needs and welfare-service provisions. A set of concepts and a methodology are presented on the basis of which 267 welfare-service organizations exercising some discretionary power and operating in Jerusalem in the economic-social, health, and socialization spheres were censused. The following five key variables guided the collection of data: goals, resources, structural determinants, service provisions, and target population. According to the data thus collected, eighteen distinct profiles of welfare-service organizations crystallized; these might be viewed as an empirically derived typology of social welfare service agencies. The findings from Jerusalem 1965-66 revealed the dominance of voluntarily sponsored welfare operations in which the government subsidizes the operation without participating in policymaking. In contradistinction to welfare-service operations in the economic-social and socialization spheres of welfare, service operations in the sphere of health showed major attributes of a comprehensive-service delivery system catering to the whole population. The census exposed the absence of service provisions to aid families in coping with the complexities of their daily tasks. The authors suggest that the material may help to transform this laissez faire welfare enterprise into a rationally planned system capable of contributing substantially to family well-being.