THE INSTITUTIONALIZATION OF PEOPLE WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES: WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED FROM HISTORY?

THE INSTITUTIONALIZATION OF PEOPLE WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES: WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED FROM HISTORY? Marko Buljevac Department of Social Work, Faculty of Law, University of Zagreb Zagreb, Croatia The aim of this paper is to present the history of the people with intellectual disabilities' institutionalization, primarily in the USA, United Kingdom, and Germany, countries whose social policies were used as the role model for social policy in many other countries. The first part of the paper will provide information about the causes of intellectual disabilities, different classification of people and the purpose of the institutionalization in the period from the Middle Ages until the beginning of deinstitutionalization. The purpose of the institutionalization will be presented as the protection of people with intellectual disabilities and the protection of society from people with intellectual disabilities. Some aspects of education, labor and sterilization as important determinants of people with intellectual disabilities' life in institutions, basic aspects of history of institutionalization in Croatia and some information about the deinstitutionalization in the world are going to be presented in the second part of the paper. In the final part of the paper the answers about what has been changed during the history when it comes to the institutionalization of people with intellectual disabilities as a measure of social policy are going to be presented. The conclusion is that although the modern trends of deinstitutionalization ensure progress in the care of people with intellectual disabilities, many aspects of the institutionalization have been minimally changed during history.