Qu’en est-il de l’équilibre psychique des enfants réfugiés ?

Abstract

ObjectiveThe aim of this study is to determine to what extent the psychological balance of Syrian refugee children in Lebanon can be altered. Our goal is to identify the influence of the children's history and their current living conditions on their psychological balance. War refugees, and more particularly children and young adolescents, experience different crises and traumas linked to war, loss, exile, poor living conditions and integration in the host country. The current issue and the various researches that have been carried out have led to several questions about the impact that the war experience, the migratory history and the living conditions of these children can have on their psychological balance. The main questioning which therefore guides this research project is whether the psychological balance of these Syrian refugee children is altered and if so, to what extent. We have seen from the literature that studies on war refugees are rather rare. Immigrant populations in European populations are those that are generally studied because of their proximity and the relative ease of making contact, which is not the case in refugee camps. This is all the accurate for Lebanon, a country which, as we have seen, lacks any framework, procedure and structure relating to the organized reception of refugees. The main hypothesis of this research is that Syrian children living in more precarious living conditions and having a past history marked by potentially traumatic events, will have a less developed mental balance than others. Materials and methodsTwo groups of Syrian children living in Lebanon, aged between 8 and 12 years old, took part in this study. One of the groups being made up of children living in refugee camps and the other one made up of non-refugee children, living in conditions similar to their own in Syria. This research includes both girls and boys. All the children are of Syrian nationality, grew up in Syria and currently live in Lebanon. The collection of information and the study of the influence of the migratory experience of war and the living conditions of the children on their psychological balance, were carried out by means of three main tools: A semi-structured clinical interview available in three languages (in French, English and Arabic). A post-traumatic stress symptom rating scale was included in the questionnaire, the CRIES-13, which is an assessment questionnaire designed to measure the impact of events on children, and the free drawing test was proposed, followed by a survey following the child's production, analyzed from the model of Georges and Anna Cognet. ResultsThe collected data made it possible to observe an alteration in the psychological balance of Syrian refugee children, as well as significant differences between the two groups of children who participated in the study. ConclusionsThis is a study with a population that has so far not aroused much interest, despite the multitude of migratory crises of our century on all continents, and which could contribute to the assessment and the care of immigrant or displaced populations all over the world. Indeed, in view of the results obtained, the research contributes to the need for refugee support by countries and supranational organizations having the means or the responsibility to do so. The question of the consequences of the living conditions of refugees in the long term arises with the imperative, as a health professional, to find means of logistical, physical and in particular psychological care, for this fragile and large population. need for appropriate follow-up and support.