Family support services for socially excluded families

Abstract

This paper addresses conceptual issues related to the notions of 'family', family support' and 'social exclusion' in the Western world. The author understands the notion of family as a personal social network; social exclusion refers to a process that increasingly generates a lack of resources and family support refers to the provision of multifunctional and comprehensive support structures for personal social networks 'at risk' of social exclusion. Modern family support systems have to provide an answer to challenges related to changes in family structure and organisation. These changes include the inability of modern family structures to care for dependent family members; increasing family breakdowns and fluid family structures; inability to raise children according to the demands of modern society; violence and deviance in families; high disintegration risks of migrant families. The paper ends by presenting some core elements for family support structures that meet the challenges family life is facing in the modern Western world.