Welfare Law Research Articles

History of aftercare for dependent children in Japan between the 1950s and 1970s: the expectations and limitations of the vocational parent (Shoku-oya, Hogojutakusha) system

ABSTRACT Post-World War II, the vocational parent system was established in Japan in 1951―based on the Child Welfare Law―to provide aftercare for older dependent children. The vocational parents lived with the children and provided the guidance necessary for them to live independently. The evolution of the vocational parent system is divided into three periods for this study: the 1950s, the end of the 1950s to the mid-1960s, and the mid-1960s to the 1970s. Vocational parents were primarily from small- and medium-sized business establishments who could provide personal guidance. This prevented the children from becoming skilled workers and seeking employment in large companies. Vocational parents were expected to provide “parental love” to the children without compensation, despite having to bear the childcare costs and blunders at work. The more the government, welfare personnel, and newspapers sought the welfare ideal of parent-like assistance, the more detached they became from the realities of the working environment and the needs of the children. Consequently, the disparity may have contributed to the decline in aftercare in post-war Japan.

“Commenting” on Animal Cruelty: A Content Analysis of Social Media Discourse on Animal Law Enforcement in Australia

ABSTRACT Animal welfare legislation in Australia is influenced by “community expectations.” Given a major source of publicly available information on animal welfare law is that from media articles, it is likely the information discussed online could be influencing public opinion and consequently shaping animal welfare legislation reform efforts. This study examined the social media discourse in response to news articles on animal welfare law in Australia. A content analysis was applied to Facebook comments from posts originating from a formal news agency discussing animal cruelty and penalties over a 6-month period between 1 June 2019 to 1 December 2019. All posts were screened against eligibility criteria and imported into NVivo for inductive coding. A total of 24 Facebook posts with an accumulative 1,723 comments were coded and thematically analyzed. Six primary themes were generated from the analysis: (1) failure of the court system; (2) failure of the legislation; (3) failure of the government; (4) emotive reactions; (5) risk of violence; and (6) mistrust in the media. The social media discourse was scathing of the legal system, with a particular focus on failings of the animal welfare law justice system. It is likely that this type of discourse surrounding animal law enforcement could be playing an influential role over the “expectations” influencing animal welfare legislation reform in Australia.

Animal Disease Models and Patient-iPS-Cell-Derived In Vitro Disease Models for Cardiovascular Biology-How Close to Disease?

Currently, zebrafish, rodents, canines, and pigs are the primary disease models used in cardiovascular research. In general, larger animals have more physiological similarities to humans, making better disease models. However, they can have restricted or limited use because they are difficult to handle and maintain. Moreover, animal welfare laws regulate the use of experimental animals. Different species have different mechanisms of disease onset. Organs in each animal species have different characteristics depending on their evolutionary history and living environment. For example, mice have higher heart rates than humans. Nonetheless, preclinical studies have used animals to evaluate the safety and efficacy of human drugs because no other complementary method exists. Hence, we need to evaluate the similarities and differences in disease mechanisms between humans and experimental animals. The translation of animal data to humans contributes to eliminating the gap between these two. In vitro disease models have been used as another alternative for human disease models since the discovery of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). Human cardiomyocytes have been generated from patient-derived iPSCs, which are genetically identical to the derived patients. Researchers have attempted to develop in vivo mimicking 3D culture systems. In this review, we explore the possible uses of animal disease models, iPSC-derived in vitro disease models, humanized animals, and the recent challenges of machine learning. The combination of these methods will make disease models more similar to human disease.

Neoliberalism and the Retraction of Welfare Law: A Theoretical Critique

This article provides a comprehensive critical analysis of the relationship between neoliberalism and the retraction of welfare law. It investigates how neoliberal ideologies, characterized by market deregulation, privatization, and reduced state intervention, have reshaped welfare policies and impacted social equity and access to welfare services. Through an interdisciplinary approach, the article examines the theoretical underpinnings of neoliberalism, analyzes its socio-economic effects, and explores its legal implications for welfare provision. Case studies from the United Kingdom and Australia serve to illustrate the real-world impacts of neoliberal policies on welfare law. Furthermore, the article engages with counter perspectives, offering insights into theoretical and practical alternatives that challenge neoliberal approaches, such as social democracy, participatory democracy, and post-Keynesian economics. It proposes reforms aimed at mitigating the adverse effects of neoliberal policies, emphasizing the reinstatement of welfare as a universal right, adopting progressive taxation policies, promoting cooperative welfare models, and enhancing accountability in welfare service delivery. This critique contributes to the ongoing debates on the role of the state, market, and individual in securing social welfare, advocating for a paradigm shift towards more equitable, inclusive, and democratic welfare policies.

Preliminary report of spinal cord injuries resulting from inappropriate microchip implantation in two puppies.

Since the revised Animal Welfare and Management Law in Japan became effective on June 1st, 2022, it became mandatory for pet dogs and cats to have microchips implanted and registered prior to be sold. Two cases of spinal cord injury as the result of inappropriate microchip implantation in puppies were referred to our facility, of which were diagnosed by cervical spinal radiography and computed tomography (CT). While adverse reactions following microchip implantation are rare, the possibility of iatrogenic spinal cord injury remains a serious complication. This is the first report of adverse reactions following microchip implantation in Japan, and it alerts the possibility of iatrogenic spinal cord injury secondary to inappropriate microchip implantation, where adequate training and extra caution is crucial especially in small light-weight animals.

Student insights towards animal welfare science and law. Survey results from Sassari University, Italy.

In this paper, we describe the results of an online survey consisting of 23 questions created to evaluate the knowledge and interest on animal welfare by students attending 15 different scientific, medical, and biomedical courses at University of Sassari, Italy. The survey collected students' demographic data, level of knowledge both on animal welfare and 3Rs, as well as their opinions on animal experimentation. The majority of the cohort was female and over 24 years of age. About a third of the students responded that their graduate programme included subjects that taught science, ethics, and animal welfare legislation. Just 21.2% of respondents had heard about the concept of 3Rs. About a quarter of the students believed that animal models can be replaced by in vitro and in silico methods while half believed that both are needed. However, 70% of the participants did not know the existence of an Ethics and Animal Welfare Committee. The result showed the importance of an Animal Welfare Course for the professional future of a larger number of students and underlined the key role of veterinary medicine in promoting ethics and animal experimentation.

State Regulation and Class Struggle in the Beedi Industry of Post-Colonial Malabar, 1947–1970

In post-independence India, as in many developing post-colonial nations, the capitalist class was dependent on the state to discipline the laborforce, and the rapid uptake of capitalist production methods prompted the new government to intervene aggressively in industrial labor relations. The main goal of postcolonial labor policy was to maintain peaceful labor relations at any cost in order to foster economic development. The newly elected government failed to help capitalists increase their profits through productivity growth, so the way forward was to impose restrictions on labor. Pro-capital labor legislation initially enabled capitalists to curb the mobility and resistance of workers. In due course, however, irrespective of how consistently or effectively labor regulations and repressive measures were enforced, the reaction of the working class heightened its political consciousness, and thus aggravated frictions between capital and labor. When the state resorted to labor welfare laws as a new strategy to reduce these conflicts, employers often fragmented production among smaller units (such as workshops and households) in order to dodge labor regulations. As a reaction to this production decentralization, the working-class movement created impediments to the process of continual capital accumulation.

Estimating global numbers of farmed fishes killed for food annually from 1990 to 2019.

Global farmed finfish production increased from 9 to 56 million tonnes between 1990 and 2019. Although finfishes are now widely recognised as sentient beings, production is still being quantified as biomass rather than number of individuals (in contrast to farmed mammals and birds). Here, we estimate the global number of farmed finfishes slaughtered using FAO aquaculture production tonnages (1990-2019 data) and estimates of individual weight at killing (determined from internet searches at species and country level where possible). We relate these numbers to knowledge on humane slaughter, animal welfare law, and certification schemes. Since 1990, farmed finfish numbers killed annually for food have increased nine-fold, to 124 billion (1.24 × 1011, range 78-171 billion) in 2019. This figure does not represent the total number farmed (due to mortalities during rearing and non-food production) and is expected to increase as aquaculture expands. Our estimates indicate that farmed finfishes now outnumber the 80 billion farmed birds and mammals killed globally each year for food. The majority are produced in Asia. Inhumane slaughter practices cause suffering for most farmed finfishes. Most, 70-72%, have no legal welfare protection, and less than 1% have any fish-specific legal protection, at slaughter. The main global certification schemes in 2013-2015 accounted for 2% of slaughtered farmed finfishes. Fishes for which species-specific parameters for automated humane stunning are published comprise 20-24%. As the dominant taxa of farmed vertebrates, finfishes would benefit from better welfare if species-specific humane slaughter was defined and incorporated into laws and certification schemes.

Development and Implementation of State and Federal Child Welfare Laws Related to Drug Use in Pregnancy.

Amid increasing drug use among pregnant individuals, legislators have pursued policies intended to reduce substance use during pregnancy. Many states have utilized child welfare mechanisms despite evidence that these policies might disincentivize treatment-seeking. Recent federal changes were intended to facilitate care for substance-exposed infants and their families, but implementation of these changes at the state level has been slowed and complicated by existing state policies. We seek to provide a timeline of state child welfare laws related to prenatal drug use and describe stakeholder perceptions of implementation. We catalogued child welfare laws related to prenatal drug use, including laws that defined child abuse and neglect and established child welfare reporting standards, for all 50 states and the District of Columbia (DC), from 1974 to 2019. In the 19 states that changed relevant laws between 2009 and 2019, qualitative interviews were conducted with stakeholders to capture state-level perspectives on policy implementation. Twenty-four states and DC have passed laws classifying prenatal drug use as child abuse or neglect. Thirty-seven states and DC mandate reporting of suspected prenatal drug use to the state. Qualitative findings suggested variation in implementation within and across states between 2009 and 2019 and revealed that implementation of changes to federal law during that decade, intended to encourage states to provide comprehensive social services and linkages to evidence-based care to drug-exposed infants and their families, has been complicated by existing policies and a lack of guidance for practitioners. Many states have enacted laws that may disincentivize treatment-seeking among pregnant people who use drugs and lead to family separation. To craft effective state laws and support their implementation, state policymakers and practitioners could benefit from a treatment-oriented approach to prenatal substance use and additional state and federal guidance.

ARE THE INTERESTS OF BUSINESS ACTORS AND CONSUMERS BALANCED IN THE INDONESIAN COMPETITION LAW?

This paper aims to provide a critical analysis to the relations between economic efficiency and justice as the objectives of business competition law in Indonesia within the framework of legal philosophy. Philosophical aspects explores view on equal opportunities for every citizen in their business behavior, relation between the principles of justice and efficiency considering that in the Law 5 of 1999 there is no any word “justice” mentioned. Several related schools of legal philosophy will use to analyse the problems, such as, Utilitarianism in dissecting the phrase "public interest and welfare", John Stuart Mill's theory of lliberty in examining "equal opportunities for citizens", The article uses the legal research by emphasising the critical analysis on economic efficiency and justice principles in Indonesian competition law and compare FTC. Article 3 of Law Number 5 of 1999 aims to improve economic efficiency as one of the efforts to improve people's welfare. From a philosophical point of view, people's welfare law is closely related to the "greatest benefit for the greatest people" (Jeremy Bentham). However, if we look at the interests between business actors and consumers, thiscondition can still be seen that the interest in efficiency still prioritizes the interests of business actors. Fulfilment of consumer justice is only placed as an "object" rather than a subject whose rights must be protected due to violations of business competition.

An investigation into ‘community expectations’ surrounding animal welfare law enforcement in Australia

Nature of reform to animal welfare legislation in Australia has commonly been attributed to increasing alignment with the ‘communities’ expectations’, implying that the community has power in driving legislative change. Yet, despite this assertion there has been no publicly available information disclosing the nature of these ‘expectations’, or the methodology used to determine public stance. However, based on previous sociological research, as well as legal reforms that have taken place to increase maximum penalties for animal welfare offences, it is probable that the community expects harsher penalties for offences. Using representative sampling of the Australian public, this study provides an assessment of current community expectations of animal welfare law enforcement. A total of 2152 individuals participated in the survey. There was strong support for sentences for animal cruelty being higher in magnitude (50% support). However, a large proportion (84%) were in favour of alternate penalties such as prohibiting offenders from owning animals in the future. There was also a belief that current prosecution rates were too low with 80% of respondents agreeing to this assertion. Collectively, this suggests a greater support for preventing animal cruelty through a stronger enforcement model rather than punishing animal cruelty offenders through harsher sentences. This potentially indicates a shift in public opinion towards a more proactive approach to animal welfare, rather than a reactive approach to animal cruelty.

Portraying Animal Cruelty: A Thematic Analysis of Australian News Media Reports on Penalties for Animal Cruelty.

Media portrayals of animal cruelty can shape public understanding and perception of animal welfare law. Given that animal welfare law in Australia is guided partially by 'community expectations', the media might indirectly be influencing recent reform efforts to amend maximum penalties in Australia, through guiding and shaping public opinion. This paper reports on Australian news articles which refer to penalties for animal cruelty published between 1 June 2019 and 1 December 2019. Using the electronic database Newsbank, a total of 71 news articles were included for thematic analysis. Three contrasting themes were identified: (1) laws are not good enough; (2) laws are improving; and (3) reforms are unnecessary. We propose a penalty reform cycle to represent the relationship between themes one and two, and 'community expectations'. The cycle is as follows: media reports on recent amendments imply that 'laws are improving' (theme two). Due to a range of inherent factors in the criminal justice system, harsher sentences are not handed down by the courts, resulting in media report of 'lenient sentencing' (theme one). Hence, the public become displeased with the penal system, forming the 'community expectations', which then fuel future reform efforts. Thus, the cycle continues.

Wild Fish Welfare in UK Commercial Sea Fisheries: Qualitative Analysis of Stakeholder Views.

Simple SummaryEvery year an estimated 1.5–2.7 billion wild fish are caught by UK commercial sea fishing fleets subjecting most to severe stressors. Scientific research shows that fish are sentient beings, but UK animal welfare laws do not protect commercially caught wild fish. For example, stunning fish before slaughter is rare and gutting them alive is a common practice. There are therefore major welfare issues in wild capture sea fisheries, no laws to protect the welfare of wild fish at sea, and great potential to reform practice to improve the lives of billions of sentient fish. The article investigates this through reporting findings from interviews with 18 experts with a stake in wild fish welfare. The article reviews the UK fishing industry, policy context and scientific evidence that fish are sentient, linked to stakeholder views about what fish experience during wild capture. The article then analyses industry practices, resultant welfare harms and stakeholder attitudes towards them. No participant disputed that fish are sentient and all were able to identify key stressors to fish in different stages of the capture process, together with potential mitigations. Interviews revealed that harms can be worsened by their hidden nature along with conservative industry attitudes towards brutal practices which would be unacceptable in other areas of animal food production. The article raises awareness of an under-researched welfare problem in UK wild capture sea fisheries but should have wider significance to many fishing nations.An estimated 1.5–2.7 billion wild fish are caught by UK commercial sea fishing fleets annually. Most are subjected to severe stressors during capture; stunning is rare and gutting alive is common practice. Fish are recognised in UK law as sentient beings, but commercially caught wild fish are excluded from welfare protections. Animal welfare impacts in wild capture sea fisheries are therefore on a massive scale, with major potential for legislative and market-based reforms. Interviews were conducted with 18 experts working within the fishing and seafood industry, fisheries management, scientific research and animal/fish advocacy organisations. The findings reveal a significant welfare gap between societally acceptable ways to treat sentient animals and the reality of capture fisheries. The participants pointed to harms caused to fish throughout different stages of the capture process caused by combinations of variables from fishing gear and methods to biological, environmental and other factors, noting that all require mitigation. Interviews revealed that the nature of harms may be exacerbated by conservative attitudes towards brutal practices in the industry, driven by profit and efficiency and free from legal restraint. To address the welfare gap, stakeholders favour engagement with the industry to improve understanding of harms and to identify mutually beneficial and shared objectives through alleviating stressors to fish in the capture process. This empirical research is focused on UK wild capture sea fisheries. However, given the dearth of welfare legislation globally, it has significance for fishing nations and the many billions of wild sea fish captured each year around the world.

About the Authors

About the Authors

Understanding Subordinate Animal Welfare Legislation in Australia: Assembling the Regulations and Codes of Practice.

Simple SummaryIn Australia, animal welfare protection is a state and territory responsibility. Having eight separate state and territories results in eight separate animal welfare legal frameworks, all which contain a primary piece of legislation and secondary or subordinate forms of legislation. These subordinate forms are known as regulations and codes of practice and are lower-ranking laws that are given powers under the primary legislation. Subordinate laws contain crucial details that govern everyday human–animal interactions and industry practices, for example companion animals used for breeding. There has been no review of the animal welfare-focused subordinate laws in Australia. This study has assembled each animal welfare regulation and code of practice in force in Australia as a reference for practitioners working in specific animal-related areas to easily identify relevant documents pertaining to welfare and understand the nature of their responsibilities in terms of compliance with these documents. A total of 201 pieces of subordinate legislation were identified and presented through the following utility categories of animals: companion, production, wild/exotic, entertainment. The benefits of housing the information identified from this study on an online database for animal industries to use are discussed.The state-based approach to regulating animal welfare in Australia is thought to create national dis-uniformity in that each state and territory legislates and operates inconsistently. The animal welfare legal framework in each of the eight Australian jurisdictions is made up of a primary statute and subordinate legislation, where subordinate animal welfare legislation, in the forms of regulations and codes of practices, are lower-ranking laws that are given power under the jurisdiction’s specific animal welfare statute. Since a review of animal welfare statutes identified broad patterns between the jurisdictions, this study is intended to be complementary by collating the subordinate legislation to provide a more comprehensive understanding of animal welfare laws in Australia. Using targeted search strategies stemming from the eight enabling animal welfare statutes, this study identified 201 pieces of subordinate legislation in force between 28 March 2022 and 5 April 2022. The scope of subordinate legislation is depicted through the following utility categories of animals: companion, production, wild/exotic, entertainment. Whilst subordinate legislation differed between the jurisdictions, it was common for similar welfare concerns or topic areas to be protected in higher-order legislation (statutes or regulations). Additionally, many jurisdictions were found to have similar shortcomings, all which likely could be managed through a mechanism of national data collection.

A Review on the Methodology of Social Welfare Law Study: Based on the Professor Seung Won Choi’s Study

이 글에서는 사회복지학과 법학을 통합적으로 다룬 최승원 교수의 사회복지법제연구를 살펴보고, 이를 기초로 향후 사회복지 연구방법론의 발전방안에 대해서 검토해보았다. 최 교수는 사회복지권의 개념을 구축하고 이것이 수요자 중심, 지역 중심의 사회복지실천으로 이어지도록 하는 데에 초점을 맞추고 있는 것을 볼 수 있다. 그리고 이 과정에서 정보통신기술(ICT)을 이용한 지식관리의 중요성을 강조하고 있다. 이러한 최 교수의 연구는 사회복지법제 연구방법론의 발전을 위한 여러 가지 시사점을 제공한다고 할 수 있다. 첫째, 사회복지법제의 체계정립이 필요하다. 사회보험법, 사회서비스법, 공공부조법 등 사회복지법제의 각 분야들을 권리성과 연계하여 ‘내부적으로’ 체계화할 필요가 있으며, 사회복지법제와 인권법, 사회적 경제 관련법, 과학기술법 등 다른 법제간의 관계를 정립함으로써 ‘외부적으로’ 체계화하는 것이 필요하다. 둘째, 사회복지법제의 법해석론과 관련해서는 국제인권법에 부합하는 헌법해석과 헌법합치적 법령해석이 이루어질 필요가 있다. 이 과정에서 사회권의 법적 성질이 문제될 수 있는데, 사회권 자체의 권리성을 인정하는 방안과 사회복지와 관련한 권리를 자유권으로 포섭하여 이해하는 방안 모두를 적절하게 활용할 필요가 있다. 셋째, 사회복지법제의 입법론과 관련해서는 보장국가, 사회국가와 같은 국가의 성격과 사회복지법제간의 관계를 고려한 입법론이 제시되어야 하며, 사회복지법제에 대한 비교법 연구를 함에 있어서 복지모델유형(자유주의, 보수주의-조합주의, 사회민주주의)에 대한 사회복지학의 연구성과들을 고려할 필요가 있다.

A Study on Artificial Intelligence and Social welfare law and legal system

A Study on Artificial Intelligence and Social welfare law and legal system

Failing, writing, litigating: daily practices of resistance in Belgian welfare bureaucracies

AbstractThis paper builds on ethnographic fieldwork in Belgian welfare administrations to identify daily practices of resistance among Belgian ‘welfare bureaucrats’ who interrogate the new welfare and immigration law reforms that further restrict migrants’ access to social assistance. The contestation strategies are used to circumvent and sometimes break the formal and informal policy guidelines while still allowing them to perform and remain loyal to the state and to higher principles such as a commitment to the fundamental right to human dignity. Three main contestation strategies are identified: failing to provide certain services to demonstrate the absurdity of certain guidelines, writing reports against the administration and in favour of the user, and encouraging litigation against the federal agencies that employ them. These strategies show Belgian welfare workers’ commitment to providing a form of public service that aligns with their professional ethos rather than enforcing specific government policies.

Dopamine Transporter Knockout Rats Show Impaired Wellbeing in a Multimodal Severity Assessment Approach.

In preclinical psychiatry research, animals are central to modeling and understanding biological mechanisms of behavior and psychiatric disorders. We here present the first multimodal severity assessment of a genetically modified rat strain used in psychiatric research, lacking the dopamine transporter (DAT) gene and showing endophenotypes of several dopamine-associated disorders. Absence of the DAT leads to high extracellular dopamine (DA) levels and has been associated with locomotor hyperactivity, compulsive behaviors and stereotypies in the past. The German Animal Welfare Law, which is based on the EU Directive (2010/63/EU), requires a prospective severity assessment for every animal experiment, depending on the extent of the expected degree of pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm that the animals will experience. This should consider all procedures but also the impact of the genotype on the phenotype. Therefore, we examined multiple parameters indicating animal welfare, like burrowing behavior, social interaction, saccharin preference, baseline stress hormone levels and nesting behavior. Additionally, a footprint analysis was performed and home cage activity was analyzed for a more detailed characterization of locomotion. DAT KO rats demonstrated reduced burrowing, social interaction and saccharin preference. We also found pronounced stereotypies and alterations in the gait analysis in DAT KO rats. Moreover, we confirmed the hyperactivity and the impaired sensorimotor gating mechanisms to assure that our rats are exhibiting the correct phenotype. In conclusion, we provide evidence that DAT KO rats show alterations in natural behavior patterns and deduce that the marked stereotypies are a sign for coping difficulties, both indicating a negative influence of the genotype on wellbeing. We suggest to assess further rat models in an objectified severity assessment as previously done in mice to create a relative severity assessment based on scientific evidence. Until then, we propose the classification of homozygous DAT KO rats as “moderate” in accordance with the criteria of the EU directive 2010/63.

Providers Assessing Child Abuse and Neglect

Providers Assessing Child Abuse and Neglect