Child protection in Italy and Spain: Influence of the family supported society

The analysis of the historical development of child protection in Spain and Italy shows remarkable common aspects. There has been a strong tradition of using residential care by means of large institutions, mostly run by catholic religious organizations, in both countries, and both have had to face the challenge of changing the tendency of this institutional care to a family based care. On the other hand, both countries share a Mediterranean culture where the family has been the main provider of personal and social wellbeing, although the welfare state has achieved a high level of development with large health, education, and social services coverage in the last decades. The current financial crisis of these countries is jeopardizing these recently attained advances and again the importance of family support is becoming crucial. The article reviews the historical development of out-of-home care in both countries and compares foster family and residential care, as well as the main research contributions to these topics in both countries.