Institutionalization Law & Legal Definition
Institutionalization is the short-term or long-term placement of people in institutions, such as hospitals, group homes or orphanages. Placement in institutions during early critical developmental periods, and for lengthy periods of time, is often associated with developmental delays due to environmental deprivation, poor staff to child ratios, or lack of early childhood stimulation.With an emphasis on care and treatment, the best institutions offer emotionally disturbed people a better chance at life. They can learn new skills, improve behavioral and psychological problems, and develop healthier self-esteem.
During the 1980s, the federal government began a program of "deinstitutionalizing" the mentally ill. Some returned to their families. Others found themselves in hospitals or community health centers. Today, it is not uncommon to see emotionally disturbed or psychotic people living on the streets, along with other homeless people. Local communities have been reluctant to provide alternatives to mental institutions, refusing to allow mental health clinics, half-way houses, or group homes to be established in their neighborhoods.
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