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Cash transfer and professional care for tackling child poverty and neglect in Italy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 October 2020

Maria Bezze ,
Cinzia Canali Open the ORCID record for Cinzia Canali [Opens in a new window] ,
Devis Geron  and
Tiziano Vecchiato
Maria Bezze
Affiliation:
Fondazione Emanuela Zancan, Via del Seminario, 5A 35122PadovaItaly
Cinzia Canali*
Affiliation:
Fondazione Emanuela Zancan, Via del Seminario, 5A 35122PadovaItaly
Devis Geron
Affiliation:
Fondazione Emanuela Zancan, Via del Seminario, 5A 35122PadovaItaly
Tiziano Vecchiato
Affiliation:
Fondazione Emanuela Zancan, Via del Seminario, 5A 35122PadovaItaly
*
Author for correspondence: Cinzia Canali, Email: cinziacanali@fondazionezancan.it
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Abstract

There has been a general increase in poverty over the last decade in Italy, which has mainly affected the younger generations, with children and youth experiencing the worst economic conditions. This is primarily not due to a lack of available economic resources but to the way in which these resources are allocated: mainly in the form of cash transfers rather than services. The provision of adequate services based on professional work needs to be implemented by overcoming two main obstacles which are highlighted by the results of two studies presented here. The first study concerns the quality of professional care and the systematic use of outcome evaluation, the second concerns the vision of professionals and their ability to integrate the provision of services with economic support aimed at improving children’s growth and parenting skills. The two studies were carried out as part of an international debate on how to effectively fight poverty and social exclusion of children which was promoted by the International Association for Outcome-based Evaluation and Research on Family and Children’s Services (iaOBERfcs).

Keywords

Economic transferssocial serviceseffectivenesschild povertyWelfare system
Type
Special Issue: Poverty and Child Abuse
Information
Children Australia , Volume 45 , Special Issue 4: Special Issue: Poverty and Child Abuse , December 2020 , pp. 229 - 235
Copyright
© The Author(s) 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press

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