The paper discusses the problems of the European social policy and the European social model. In terms of implementation, the issues concerning individualization of social rights in the EU legal acts are examined, including the open method of co-ordination. The paper also attempts to establish the role and scope of European citizenship as a source of the entitlement to social rights. The role of the EU institutions and structures is analyzed with relation to the implementation of the European social policy. The relation between the Polish and European social policy is also scrutinized. The areas that require further study and consideration are mentioned.

Increase in number of divorces observed in the last years in Poland enforces to analyze if it is related with incidental events or with a long-term trend. Special attention should be paid to question what numbers of minor children are bitten by the divorce of their parents. The article focuses on presentation of data on the numbers of the children and their structures by age, sibling size, and custody. The second aim of the article is to underline data indicating how the 2003 amendments to the Family Allowances Act affected propensity to divorce.

Work-Life Balance (WLB) is one of the most important contemporary social problems. Long-lasting conflict in this dimension causes many threats for personal and social life. Authoress presents justification for usage practices Work-Life Balance and actual situation in Poland.

The main aim of this article is to describe cultural rules in rural communites and the habitus based on them which affect the way of functioning village dwellers on the labor market. According to this perspective, the traditional homogeneous approach to the mental characteristics of Polish village dwellers is not valid any more. Nowadays, we can distinguish at least three types of rural habituses: "farmer", "the small farm owner" and "the former state farm worker" - to some extent being a continuation of the former state system order. Therefore, the social policy programes for Polish village dwellers" should include its dwellers different needs in the "New Capitalism" culture.

The article comments the results of an international research conducted under the auspices of the European Union Commission on elderly living conditions in Europe.

Book reviews
Information

TROUBLED IMPLEMENTATION OF EUROPEAN SOCIAL POLICY. UNION CITIZENSHIP. INDIVIDUAL SOCIAL RIGHTS - Gertruda Uścińska
MINORS AND DIVORCES OF THEIR PARENTS: POLAND, 1980-2007 - Piotr Szukalski
WORK-LIFE BALANCE - A CHOICE OR NECESSITY? - Agnieszka Smoder
RURAL HABITUSES AND THE "NEW CAPITALISM" - Kinga Pawłowska

LIVING CONDITIONS OF THE ELDERLY IN EU - Danuta Graniewska

Elżbieta Kryńska (ed.): FLEXICURITY IN POLAND. DIAGNOSIS AND RECCOMENDATIONS - Reviewed by Marek Bednarski

MODIFIED SOCIAL MINIMA - DECEMBER 2009 - Piotr Kurowski
SOCIAL COHESION AND INDIVIDUAL SOCIAL RIGHTS. ILSS DEBATE - Beata Kaczyńska