Non-parental custody of children

Nature:

The legal custody of children may be undertaken either by the state or by private individuals (adoption, fostering), which may cause stress and adjustment problems among children or hardship to parents.

Incidence:

Child care institutions are a worldwide phenomenon designed to cater for not only the children of broken homes, but also those who are orphaned or abandoned or who cannot be maintained as a result of poverty. Non-parental custody of children may also result during times of disaster, when aunts, uncles, cousins, or godparents may take custody of children, often without giving them full rights as members of the family by, for instance, using them as domestic help during their stay. After the 1976 Guatemalan earthquake, many children were adopted and used in this manner.

Broader Problems:

Surrogate parenting
Institutionalized members of society

Narrower Problems:

State custody of deprived children
Adoption of children by unsuitable parents
Conflict concerning legal custody of children

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The Encyclopedia of World Problems and Human Potential is a unique, experimental research work of the Union of International Associations. It is currently published as a searchable online platform with profiles of world problems, action strategies, and human values that are interlinked in novel and innovative ways. These connections are based on a range of relationships such as broader and narrower scope, aggravation, relatedness and more. By concentrating on these links and relationships, the Encyclopedia is uniquely positioned to bring focus to the complex and expansive sphere of global issues and their interconnected nature.

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Non-parental custody of children

About the Encyclopedia

About UIA