Intersecting Pathways: Society, Economy, and Policy in a Global Context

This is an open access journal distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License CC BY 4.0, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited

Socio-economy and policy studies constitute an interdisciplinary field that interrogates the reciprocal relationship between social structures, economic processes, and institutional interventions. Drawing upon insights from political economy, sociology, and public policy, this domain highlights how state-led policies—ranging from welfare redistribution and labor market regulation to trade liberalization and fiscal reforms—generate differentiated outcomes across social groups. For instance, neoliberal economic reforms have been associated with aggregate efficiency gains but have simultaneously exacerbated structural inequalities in many developing contexts, thereby necessitating compensatory social protection measures (Stiglitz, 2012; Mkandawire, 2001). Moreover, the field emphasizes the importance of policy design and institutional capacity, as poorly targeted welfare interventions risk entrenching dependency, while inclusive and context-sensitive frameworks can foster both economic resilience and social cohesion. In this regard, socio-economy and policy studies provide a critical analytical lens for assessing how governance structures mediate the pursuit of sustainable and equitable development in an era of globalization.

Frequency: Bi-annual