AGE COMPOSITION OF CHILDREN IN THE SUBSTITUTE FAMILY CARE IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC
Pavla Štochlová
University of South Bohemia, Faculty of Health and Social Studies, Department of Social Work, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
Korespondenční autor: Pavla Štochlová (pavla.stochlova@gmail.com)
ISSN 1804-7181 (On-line)
Full verze:
Submitted:21. 1. 2011
Accepted: 31. 3. 2011
Published online: 15. 6. 2011
Summary
The article describes the situation of placing children for adoption and in foster care in the Czech Republic, and collects the relevant data regarding the children recorded in the database of regional authorities for the respective year, focusing on their age composition. Individual groups of the researched unit are always divided into the children placed for adoptation, the children placed in foster care and the children that have been placed in the substitute family care with no success in the given research period. The respective data apply to the entire Czech Republic being divided into individual regions.
Objective: The objective of the research was to establish the age composition of the children placed for adoption, in foster care and in no substitute family care in the Czech Republic in 2006.
Material and methods: In order to acquire the necessary data, the methods of the quantitative research, especially, the techniques for the secondary and contents data analysis of the official documentation were applied.
Results: The given research established that a relatively extensive number of children older than three years are placed in foster care as well as for adoption. It was established in the research sample of the children, which were placed in these selected types of the substitute family care with no success, that children older than three years represent the absolute majority.
Conclusion: The outcome of the research conducted brings a fairly optimistic view at the existing situation in the area of placing children for adoption and in foster care in the Czech Republic. It is important to know the real situation in these issues not only due to rebutting any kind of myths lingering with the general public but also due to supporting work of workers in Department of Social and Legal Protection of Children and making implementation of the substitute family care more efficient.
Keywords: child; placement; adoption; foster care; age; Czech Republic
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