Child poverty in Croatia

U ovom radu obrađena je tema Siromaštvo djece u Hrvatskoj s ciljem stjecanja uvida u stvarni položaj djece u riziku od siromaštva. Želja je bila prikazati neke bitne odrednice svakodnevnog života ove djece, što bi omogućilo bolje razumijevanje ovog problema. Rad je strukturiran na način da je u prvom dijelu obrađen sam pojam siromaštva, njegove vrste, teorije, pojmovi koji se vežu za njega, načini mjerenja i socijalna struktura siromašnih. Drugi dio se odnosi na siromaštvo u Hrvatskoj općenito, a treći na siromaštvo djece u Hrvatskoj. Istraživanja pokazuju kako siromaštvo ima brojne negativne posljedice na djecu, koja su na njega posebno osjetljiva. Od najranije dobi su uskraćena za razna dobra, koja su dostupna njihovim nesiromašnim vršnjacima. O životnim okolnostima ovisi njihov adekvatan rast i razvoj, u kojem često zaostaju. Nedostupni su im brojni resursi te često nisu u mogućnosti ostvariti svoje potencijale. To sve rezultira slabijim obrazovnim uspjehom (koji je vezan i za obrazovnu razinu njihovih roditelja, uglavnom s niskim ili nikakvim obrazovanjem), koji je preduvjet za izlazak iz siromaštva, zbog čega često ostaju u siromaštvu i u odrasloj dobi.This paper deals with the topic of child povery in Croatia with the aim of gaining insight into the real situation of children at risk of poverty. The desire was to show some important determinants of the daily life of these children, which would allow a better understanding of this problem. The paper is structurated in such a way that the first part deals with the very concept of poverty, it's types, theories, concepts related to it, methods of measurment and the social structure of the poor. The second part refers to poverty in Croatia in general, and the third to child poverty, in general and in Croatia. Research shows that poverty has a number of negative consequences for children, who are particularly vulnerable to it. From an early age, they are deprived of various goods, which are available to their peers, who are not poor. Their adequate growth and development depends on their living conditions, in wich they often lag behind. Many resources are unavailable to them and they are often unable to realize their potential. This all results in poorer educational achievement (which is also linked to the educational level of their paretns, mostly with little or without education at all), which is a prerequisite for getting out of poverty, which is why they often remain in poverty and into adulthood