2016 年 19 巻 2 号 p. 196-212
Many of the children requiring alternative care in Japan reside in children's institutions; very few are placed in family-based care such as foster care or group homes. This can be partly attributed to the lack of general public knowledge regarding the foster care system. Publicity for the foster care system is thus an important issue. A study by Fukushima, Fukushima and Ukai (2013) found that publicity activities for the foster care system aimed at university classes increased students' specific understanding of and familiarity with foster care. The present study investigated this approach as a practical example of community support by analyzing the methods of needs assessment, collaboration with regional foster parent associations, and publicity methods. The findings clarified that publicity activities fostering collaborative relationships with regional foster parent associations based on the needs of the associations were effective in increasing awareness of the foster care system and empowering the regional foster parent associations.