概 论 社会福利的主要作用是解决社会问题或满足社会上不同人士的一般或特殊需要。然而社会问题的出现又有它不同的政治、经济、文化、社会甚至历史的背景。另一方面,如何界定“社会问题”和“社会需要”也与特定的社会时空相关。本文介绍社会学方面界定“社会问题”的各种理论,以及有关界定“社会需要”的理念架构,以使读者明了社会福利服务所对应的服务对象。 Introduction The main role of social welfare is to solve social problems or to meet the general or special needs of different people in the community. However, the emergence of social problems has its own different political, economic, cultural, social and even historical background. On the other hand, how to define “social problems” and “social needs” is also related to the specific social space-time. This article introduces various sociological theories that define “social issues,” as well as the conceptual framework that defines “social needs,” so that readers understand who serves a social welfare service.