A study on social skills of individuals with institutional care experience (Example of Sakarya)

Social policies have been produced from past to present in our country for children in need of protection, and social service interventions are carried out within the scope of these policies. For children who cannot be cared for and supervised by their families due to some reasons, in our country, the Ministry of Family and Social Services takes a care measure decision within the scope of the Child Protection Law, and a protection order is issued; these children are benefited from family-based service models such as the foster family model, if possible, and institutional care services if not possible. Institutional care models include the service of helping children of similar age and characteristics in need of protection to survive in the presence of personnel with certain qualifications and to prepare themselves for their future lives. However, institutional care models, which cause a child to grow up far from the family environment, also bring some negativities for the individuals who grow up in it. In this study, the social skills of individuals who spent their childhood in institutional care and were put into life after institutional care were examined through the example of Sakarya. Quantitative method technique was used in the research. For individuals with institutional care experience, a questionnaire detailing demographic information and institutional care experiences and a social skill scale were applied. The data obtained were analyzed through the statistical program; Interpretations were made according to the existing findings. As a result of the research: The individuals with institutional care experience are mostly high school (48.44%), single (58.59%), working (89.84%) and civil servants (76.92%), and these individuals are mostly from broken families. (87.5%) was found. In addition, it was found that the social skills of the individuals who benefited from the old institution care service model such as orphanage or kindergarten were at a lower level, and there was an increase in social skills as the education level, monthly income, and frequency of family and relatives visits increased.