New Modes of Governance in Activation Policies - 2: International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy - Issue 9 & 10, Volume 27

## Purpose The first part of the paper aimed to interpret the changes addressed by the concepts of governance and activation in their context, in order to grasp the larger picture of the societal transformation underlying them: the starting point is the assumption that new modes of governance in activation policies are a fruitful entry point for effectively understanding deep waves of change of contemporary society. The second part aims to briefly introduce the papers included in this issue. ## Design/methodology/approach The paper insists on a perspective according to which there are two main dimension characterising the context of addressed transformations: the paradoxical torsion of the historical process of individualisation in the new spirit of capitalism; the profound redesign of the institutional programme, implying a new horizon for the instances of publicness. ## Findings Different and contradictory trends are pointed out in the actual pursuing of objectives of governance and activation, as far as the process of individualisation and the redesign of publicness are concerned. The impossibility of finding an abstract and universal evaluation of these transformations and the necessity of situated empirical inquiries are stressed. ## Originality/value The paper demonstrates the relevance of deepening the normative underlying dimensions (with regard to individualisation and publicness) of social processes for a better understanding of concrete transformations (specifically: operational and substantive changes introduced by new modes of governance in activation policies). This is the second e-book of the International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy dedicated to the discussion and analysis of the introduction of new modes of governance in activation or reintegration policies. While the introduction of the previous issue focused on the concepts of "governance" and "activation", their multiple meanings and their complex and ambiguous interweaving, here we will attempt to interpret the changes addressed by those concepts in their context, in order to grasp the larger picture of the societal transformation underlying them. In other words Cover......Page 1 CONTENTS......Page 2 EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD......Page 5 Contextualising new modes of governance in activation policies......Page 6 The “double dynamics” of activation......Page 17 The government of activation policies by EU institutions......Page 29 Governing the activation of older workers in the European Union......Page 40 The impact of contractualism in social policies......Page 54 Individualised service provision in an era of activation and new governance......Page 66