Complex processes of social exclusion and the role of the family in social protection

The study takes into account a sample of 5% of the population of Argyroupolis (Athens). It was conducted within the framework of Poverty 3 (EC)from October 1990 to May 1991. It records the living conditions of the "least privileged groups" (LPG)and it suggests that family is the most important institution for social protection in Greece today. The process of social exclusion is defined according to four main dimensions:

1. The contradiction of strategies of social mobility throughout generations, combined with the splintered labour market and the general institutional deficiency and malfunctioning in supporting unemployed people;

2. The contradiction between the family organization of production and the lack of market trasparency and deficiencies in the banking system;

3. The contradictory relationship between the strongly introvert nature of the family institution on the one hand, and on the other the social alienation of the local population and the lack of social and political transparency;

4. The interweaving of institutional deficiency and malfunctioning of public institutions with their strong central intervention for control and the constant backwardness of economic infrastructure.

The study suggests that the preservation of traditional relationships of social support within the framework of social institutions constitutes the most substantial form of social protection. This also requires the development of synergy between state and private institutions. Social development is therefore understood as a process resulting in a series of macro and micro regulations to be allocated in a conscious way to public and private institutions as well as to the world of its citizens. Families in particular, are already providing forms of flexible internal support in coping with problems of poverty among the elderly, the unemployed and single parent families, the three least privileged groups analysed. Families must be therefore supported in the four main phases they go through as regards mutual social support:

1. Preparation (building up of consumer and professional strategies);

2. Supporting offspring;

3. Supporting relationships with relatives;

4. Services to the elderly through relatives.