The Transitions from Care to Adulthood International Research group (INTRAC), formed in 2003, produced a mapping publication, which analyzed data from 16 countries, including the postcommunist states of Hungary and Romania. The unique situations, reforms, and challenges of alternative care in these two states prompted further investigation and a second mapping publication, produced by SOS Children’s Villages International, focused on Eastern European and Central Asian postcommunist societies. This study compares the data from 9 non-communist European countries examined in the INTRAC document with 14 post-communist countries reviewed in the SOS and INTRAC publications.
The paper outlines descriptive data on population; the placement of children living apart from their birth families; the age of leaving care; the legal and policy framework for preparation and aftercare; and official (secondary) data and research. The article concludes with policy and practice recommendations related to legal and policy framework, quality of care, transitions from care, support after care, and use of official data and research, as well as a brief discussion on the challenges of comparative work and directions for further research.