Dynamique interactionnelle du soutien social et attitudes résilientes chez les Orphelins et autres enfants vulnérables places dans les œuvres sociales privées.

Abstract

The "interactional dynamics of social support" is the driving force behind movements implemented through the connections between different social actors: "that is, their conflicts, alliances, collaborations, exchanges, etc., regarding a problem turned into an issue, giving rise to change" (Rezsohazy, 1996), to provide social support to those in need. This social support often intervenes in distressing situations, such as for a person who has lost a loved one, a situation comparable to that of orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) placed in care organizations (CO). This study starts from the observation that many OVC in COs have difficulty adapting to their new living conditions, that of living without their primary parental figure, and developing resilient attitudes. It addresses the issue of their difficulty in adapting to or coping with daily challenges following parental loss. The provisional answer proposed is: "the interactional dynamics of social support foster resilient attitudes in OVC." The research objective was to assess the effect of these dynamics on the development of resilient attitudes in OVC. A questionnaire-based survey was conducted with 200 OVC in various COs in Yaoundé. Three hypotheses were tested, with only one being confirmed (HR3: β = .48; p = .000). The results revealed that the interactional dynamics of social support do not foster resilient attitudes in OVC in COs. They confirm the conclusions of Baldwin et al. (1996), asserting that for an individual, the perception of potential help is more directly related to their well-being than the actual help received from the support network (Caron & Guay, 2005).