KIHASA has published the Health and Welfare Issue and Focus, No. 444, "Gaps in Indepent Living Support for At-Risk Children, Adolescents, and Youth and Policy Responses," of which the lead researcher is Lee, Sang Jung, Research Fellow at the Department of Social Services Policy Research, KIHASA.

"The definition of 'youth in preparation for independent living' who are eligible for public independent living support is so narrow that there is a huge gap in independent living support policies. Youth discharged from the adolescent protection system or the juvenile protection system remain excluded from independent living support, and it is difficult to even determine the extent of this exclusion, due to the lack of an integrated information system," Dr. Lee said.

She said that in order to improve independent living support for youth, we neeed to expand the definition of youth who are eligible for such support and provide tailored services by formulating a policy for a more comprehensive support and establishing a more efficient management system.

In this study, she discusses ways to support all at-risk children, adolescents, and youth who, having been discharged from out-of-home protection, are in transition to independent living in adulthood.

Summary of the Brief

• ■'Youth in preparation for independen living' are defined as those who are eligible for public independent living support as they age out of the child protection system, including residential care facilities, group homes, and foster homes, and due to this very narrow definition, many youth are left without the independent living support they need.

• ■The study found overalpping target populations among the youth served by the child protection, adolescent protection, and juvenile protection systems. It also found that youth transitioning from the adolescent protection and juvenile protection systems encounter more barriers to independent living, needing more support compared to their peers.

• ■The study aims to find ways to provide independent living support to all at-risk children and adolescents who, after being discharged from facilities under the child welfare, adolescent protection, or juvenile protection systems, require support as they transition to adulthood.