How "full" can full employment be? Schmid (Research Unit on Labour Market Policy and Employment, Social Science Research Center Berlin/emeritus, political economics, Free U. of Berlin, Germany) treats the policy debates on full employment in Europe in the contexts of globalization, individualization (internal challenges), and transnationalization. A discussion of the partial failure of the European Employment Strategy to reach goals set in 2000 is followed by a comparative analysis of EU and US employment strategies. Drawing on Transitional Labor Markets theory that views transitions between labor markets and other social systems as fluid, he proposes the alternative approach of 'flexicurity' that weds flexibility and security over the life span. E.g., freelance artists engage in gainful activities even when not earning income. Annotation ⓒ2008 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)